How to measure a parking lot for snow removal

Before the first snow, walk the site: the surfaces to clear, the hand work, what to stake and where the snow goes. A worked example and a free calculator are waiting at the end.

De-icing salt calculator

What to bring

A laser measure or a measuring wheel for large areas
The site plan, if there is one: it often gives the area
Stakes and something to mark the obstacles
Your phone to record and photograph each zone in a MesuPro survey

Safety first: survey in daylight, outside busy hours, and stay visible in the lot. Photograph existing damage (curbs, lawn, pavement) before the season.

Step by step

Split the site by use
Parking, drive aisles, loading docks, sidewalks, ramps: each use calls for different equipment. Record each surface on its own row, with its length and width, or the area from the plan.
Note the hand work
Stairs, ramps, landings and entrances are cleared with a shovel or a snowblower: count them separately.
Stake before the first snow
Curbs, islands, catch basins, hydrants, light pole bases: what a plow can hit. Also note the spots that ice first: shade, poor drainage, drifting.
Choose where the snow goes
On the low side of the lot, so meltwater drains off the pavement toward a catch basin, away from watercourses and wells. Check your city's rules on where snow may go, and keep it off the street and the sidewalk.
Calculate salt from your rate
Salt per application = area x rate. The rate depends on pavement temperature and the snow: plow first, then apply the rate you set for those conditions.

The calculation

Area = length x width, added up for every surface. Salt per application = area x rate (lb per 1,000 sq ft, or kg per 100 m²). Salt for the season = salt per application x the applications planned. Fresh snow = area x storm depth, with no packing or melting. Storage zone = length x width x maximum pile height. No rate comes filled in: it is yours, by pavement temperature.

Worked example

On the fictitious site of the demo "Snow removal - Retail center, Minneapolis MN", the front lot of 200 ft by 130 ft and the delivery lane of 260 ft by 26 ft make 32,760 sq ft. At 3 lb per 1,000 sq ft, that is 98.3 lb of salt per application, and 1,966 lb for 20 applications in the season. A 6 in storm leaves 606.7 cu yd of fresh snow; the north zone of 65 ft by 50 ft, piled 8 ft high, holds 963 cu yd.

Try it with your numbers