Facility&Operations | By Steve LeGros
Removing snow from
synthetic and natural turf fields
S SPORTS TURF MANAGERS there are
many challenges we face and many of these
are weather related. While working in the
Northeast, my biggest challenge was dealing with
winter conditions, in football season or in early
spring with field hockey or baseball.
I have found through trial and error a number of ways to deal with snow on both synthetic
and natural grass fields; the most important
strategy was to have a plan of attack ahead of
time, before Old Man Winter throws multiple
inches of snow or ice at you. If you are not prepared the result will be a lot of lost valuable time
in the removing of this frozen precipitation. Establish what the plan of action will be in advance
and be sure to factor in ���the worst case scenario���
while also having a Plan B.
A
1
2
5
6
3
4
7
>> 1. SNOW REMOVAL on rain tarp with a drain pipe bucket plow and turbine blower.
>> 2. PLOWING SNOW with retro-fitted bucket with guard. >> 3. RETRO PLOW BLADE on utility vehicle. >> 4. RETRO FITTED bucket on tractor. >> 5. SCREEN DRAG on dusting of snow.
>> 6. SNOW BLOWING a natural grass field. >> 7. GREEN DYE sprayed on snow to acceler-
ate melt.
22 SportsTurf | January 2013
PLOWING OPTIONS
Here are a couple of plowing options that can
be used to successfully remove snow on either synthetic or natural grass:
If a rain tarp is available, tarping the surface
before the event allows you to remove the
snow/ice AS SOON AS IT BEGINS TO FALL.
Using high-powered, PTO-driven blowers allows
you to prevent as much accumulation on the tarp
as possible; this requires being on site as soon as
the snow or freezing rain begins to fall, and proactively removing the precipitation, working from
the center of the field and working your way out
to the sidelines.
The snow has to be a dry snow for blowers to
work. If it���s a wet snow you can remove the snow
by using rubber tip snow plows, or other snow
plow options listed below. Do not allow the
snow to accumulate more than 1 inch before
beginning the removal. Also, plowing off the
CAUTION: When plowing
off of the rain tarp, plow in
the direction in which the tarp
was laid, and modifying the
plow blade to prevent snagging and tearing the rain tarp.
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