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I have recently moved to Minnesota and bought a house with no garage and a steeply sloped driveway.

My wife and I are evaluating options for dealing with the driveway when the snow inevitably comes. The first thought was an electric heated driveway installed by tearing up the current (rough shape asphalt) driveway and getting new electrical service for it.

We expected it to be expensive but it’s coming in north of 30k all said and done. I have a snowblower (it just needs a little repair) and would like to add a garage at some point.

I’ve been looking at heated driveway mats from companies like HeatTrak but am having trouble finding information on longevity.

Also I’d love to find independent reviews on the subject.

I’d really like to know of a few competitors in the space with details about longevity, cost, and security (wanna make sure they don’t walk away)

uggnot
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  • Welcome to [diy.se]. Unfortunately, this boils down to shopping recommendations and/or product reviews which are explicitly [off-topic](https://diy.stackexchange.com/help/dont-ask) and will lead to this getting closed. If you have a _specific_ question about something, then feel free to ask, but this type of question isn't what we handle. Take the [tour] for more info. – FreeMan Oct 18 '23 at 13:36
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    That said, resistive heating (think 1000 toasters under your driveway) has _got_ to be inefficient and expensive to run! Consider looking into hydronic heat for under the driveway. – FreeMan Oct 18 '23 at 13:37
  • What will be the state of the road when your driveway is covered in snow? If you have tyres suitable for the road, will they be able to cope with snow on the driveway anyway? – Andrew Morton Oct 18 '23 at 13:37
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    The way we do it in Canada is by removing the snow thoroughly (packed snow turns to ice quickly under the weight of a car) and using chemicals (salt, etc) as needed to melt what can't be removed. Having a nice flat pavement helps with the removal part. – Olivier Oct 18 '23 at 13:42
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    Having lived in Duluth, MN, give it a year. You'll be fine, just shovel or hire someone to do it for you. One of your neighbors has a snowblower, I guarantee it. – Sort of Damocles Oct 18 '23 at 13:49
  • Yeah, before inventing problems (and solutions), ask a few Minnesotans. Almost no one here has that kind of melt system (and you should really be more environmentally conscious anyway). A sloped driveway will often melt off _quicker_ than a level one due to its angle to the sun and the fast drainage. Your key is to _be aware of present conditions_ when you use the driveway, and deal with them accordingly. – isherwood Oct 18 '23 at 14:02
  • Those systems are for defrosting the driveway, not removing the snow. You'll more than double your electric bill some months if you intend to use that system for snow removal. $30k later you'll still be using that snowblower as your primary method of snow removal. – popham Oct 18 '23 at 19:05

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It's sheer madness.

If you have the money to run such a system (nevermind the install cost) you have more than enough money to pay someone to plow and salt the driveway into oblivion.

You could conceivably have a low running cost system if you used deep ground source heat (would't even need a heat pump, just a heat exchanger to use antifreeze in the driveway coils) but that would cost a lot to install.

If you are not super-rich, or a rich-enough organization living in fear of lawsuits from a fall-on-ice you can't afford to run a snowmelt system.

If you did install a snowmelt system, electric resistance is the most expensive to operate. Using a heat pump or fuel to warm an antifreeze loop is far less cost to operate, but still unsustainable.

Buy good snowtires, either with studs, (not allowed in MN, but chains, when needed, are permitted) or with studless technology (grit embedded in the rubber - quieter.) Forget snowmelt systems. And don't believe in "all season" tires in snow country.

Ecnerwal
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  • Studded tires are not legal in Minnesota, but the snow tire suggestion is spot on. I run snow tires on all my family's cars here, and IMO it should be law. It's that profound a difference from "all season" compromise tires. – isherwood Oct 18 '23 at 14:00
  • Since it appears that you are coming from a "less cold place" into Northern Winter - have your antifreeze checked and/or changed and your oil changed to a suitable weight before winter, and get your battery tested, and replaced if needed, before winter. – Ecnerwal Oct 18 '23 at 14:30