EnviroTech Journal

Transportation agencies and snow fighting crews use some innovative ways to keep us all safe during the winter. Many of these practices maximize the physical and chemical reactions needed to melt ice and snow quickly to restore safe driving conditions. Here we will answer frequently asked questions about the specific practice of pre-wetting deicing products before applying them.

Winter storms take on a variety of different forms. Whether it’s ice storms, thick powder, slush, blinding blizzards, or a mix of conditions, our goal must be the same...clear roads fast. However, not all deicers are effective in all storm scenarios. Let’s talk about how to choose a road treatment product based on storm conditions.

Power Hop is a condition that occurs when weight + balance + pressure are not being evenly distributed across the drive wheels. When this condition occurs in larger 4WD or MFWD tractor(s), it causes a lot of frustration to farm operations including loss of time and fuel.

My name is Veronica Lopez, and I would like to share a little about myself and how I went from a high school intern to long-term committed employee at EnviroTech Services, Inc. I was a junior in high school at Greeley West when I was enrolled in an ACE class that focused on business and gave students tools to enter the working world. I was hand chosen by my teacher, Jeff Cranson, to respond to an opportunity from a company to do a part-time internship. This was great news to me because it meant I would also earn a credit towards graduation for being employed while completing this ACE class. I was a very quiet and shy 16-year-old (I know for some of you who really know me it’s hard to believe now) walking into a corporate building with no experience of the business world whatsoever, but I was willing to give it a shot. I had a brief meeting with Carrie Plasters who was the sales assistant at the time and on September 19, 2005, I was employed by EnviroTech Services, Inc. for what was supposed to be a semester long internship that would later turn into my future career. I was an intern for the entire office and completed many different tasks that anyone had for me including filing Accounts Payable files and credit files. I continued to take on small projects and looked for any opportunity to learn something new and before I knew it, I was even being trained to do minimal tasks in the customer management IFS system.

Winter road management practices should carefully balance the safety of both the public and
the environment. When ice and snow are not removed from road surfaces, the results are
catastrophic, even deadly for drivers. On the flip side, over-applying caustic treatments to keep roads clear can harm the environment. Let's learn how to responsibly satisfy both these needs.

EnviroTech is proud to offer Ice Slicer^®; a deicer treatment with a special geological history that has given it unique chemical and physical properties that prove not all salt is created equal. Here we will learn more about what makes Ice Slicer^® a cut above other salts.

Why does air pollution get worse during the winter time? You may remember from school scientific experiments, that cold air sinks and warm air rises. Cold air is more dense and moves more slowly than warm air. Sinking cold air can create an atmospheric cap over the earth’s surface, while warm air passes over the top. This cap prevents pollution from dissipating, and creates unhealthy conditions for anyone within it.

Every chemical process involves the transfer of energy. Here, we will learn about 2 important chemical processes: exothermic and endothermic reactions, how they differ, and why they are so important when it comes to deicing roadways.

“Salt is salt” is a common misconception which has permeated the deicing industry for years. In reality, there are several chemical and physical properties that distinguish different salts from each other. Let’s learn about a specific type of deicer containing complex chlorides and why that matters for road safety, infrastructure, and the environment.