smt Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 We had a 400 square foot wood deck built recently. We just had the first frozen precipitation, and noticed that as long as the temps stayed below freezing, the deck was pretty darn slick with a thin layer of ice. We are bringing home a 2 year old female foster this weekend, and are now concerned about what to do if (when) it is covered in black ice again. She must traverse it to get from back door to yard. I can only imagine what it will be like when she hits it on a blind run when coming back in to the house. There are only 2 steps down to the ground, and our other fosters have tended to leap onto the deck while running in from the yard without missing a beat. So far no issues, but if its icy, I'm worried about a bad wipe out. What do folks with frozen decks do when their hounds must traverse the deck and it is low to the ground? We were advised against salting it. Any other ideas on making it less of a hazard? Again, it's 400 square feet, so a pretty large area to contend with. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerseyGrey Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 When we were houndless and care free we scrubbed our decking with biological washing powder granules which stopped them from becoming slippery but I’m not sure how much it would work in a very cold winter - ours are pretty mild. There is anti slip decking paint and strips which you can search for on amazon and see if either of those would suit your needs. Our current decking is horrendously slippy and rotting in places. My husband was ignoring it until Buddy put his foot through a rotten plank - now we are having the entire garden remodelled to suit the dog 😊 Quote Buddy Molly 🌈 5/11/10-10/10/23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dante2zoe Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 I put down old towels as a path to the steps, upon which we have rubber step pad-thingys. I find that they stick to the towel path rather well. Quote Cindy with Miss Fancypants, Paris Bueller, Zeke, and Angus Dante (Dg's Boyd), Zoe (In a While), Brady (Devilish Effect), Goose (BG Shotgun), Maverick (BG ShoMe), Maggie (All Trades Jax), Sherman (LNB Herman Bad) and Indy (BYB whippet) forever in my heart The flame that burns the brightest, burns the fastest and leaves the biggest shadow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greysmom Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 The other thing to do is stop them from taking flying leaps onto the deck. We have a baby gate across the entrance to the deck anyway, but it has the added help of making them stop on their way back inside if we need them to slow down. Quote Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora) siggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmdsmoxie Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 Have you looked into a product like this? There are probably other products like this out there. https://www.wood-finishes-direct.com/blog/how-to-make-decking-non-slip/ I've never used it so i don't have an opinion about it, but you could look into it especially is your deck isn't stained yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 14, 2019 Author Share Posted November 14, 2019 48 minutes ago, greysmom said: The other thing to do is stop them from taking flying leaps onto the deck. We have a baby gate across the entrance to the deck anyway, but it has the added help of making them stop on their way back inside if we need them to slow down. Unfortunately, the entrance is 12 feet long. I don't think we could find a baby gate wide enough to span the distance. I am going to look at rubber mats that we can put down when the ice and snow are present. I can store them in the basement when not needed. Luckily we live in the South, so this is not a terribly common situation. The past 2 days of an icy deck made me start thinking, though . . . Off to start googling . . . Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 14, 2019 Author Share Posted November 14, 2019 Just found these on Costco website: https://www.costco.com/3'-x-15'-coverguard-garage-floor-rubber-mat-xl.product.100011166.html They might do the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatterseaBrindl Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 (edited) I'm in Ontario...and we already have snow/ice and COLD temps. We do salt the entrance deck when it's icy....although ours is quite small. No matting would stay ice-free here. You can buy pet-safe de-icer. Can you put some sort of temporary fencing ...plastic snow fencing ? ... around the majority of the deck, leaving only a 2-3 ft opening to keep the dog from jumping up and sliding across the wide span? Edited November 14, 2019 by BatterseaBrindl Quote Nancy...Mom to Sid (Peteles Tiger), Kibo (112 Carlota Galgos) and Joshi. Missing Casey, Gomer, Mona, Penelope, BillieJean, Bandit, Nixon (Starz Sammie), Ruby (Watch Me Dash) Nigel (Nigel), and especially little Mario, waiting at the Bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiveRoooooers Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 3 hours ago, dante2zoe said: I put down old towels as a path to the steps, upon which we have rubber step pad-thingys. I find that they stick to the towel path rather well. I use the towel path method as well. Works great on steps and on icy yards. Quote Old Dogs are the Best Dogs. Thank you, campers. Current enrollees: Punkin. AnnIE Oooh M, Ebbie, HollyBeeBop (Betty Crocker). Angels: Pal . Segugio. Sorella (TPGIT). LadyBug. Zeke-aroni. MiMi Sizzle Pants. Gracie. Seamie . (Foster)Sweet. Andy. PaddyALVIN!Mayhem. Bosco. Bruno. Dottie B. Trevor Double-Heart. Bea. Cletus, KLTO. Aiden 1-4. Upon reflection, our lives are often referenced in parts defined by the all-too-short lives of our dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MP_the4pack Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 I use sand. It'll handle another layer of ice and is more eco friendly than salt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaineysMom Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 (edited) leash walk them out when it's icy. We have been doing that since last winter when it snowed then melted and turned the entire yard into 3" thick of ice. Our patio is 20' long from door to where the grass starts and we use ice melter and a large towel from the door to about 4' out. We also have this HORRENDOUS blaze orange plastic fencing (4' high) that goes around one half of the patio side since they would vault from the grass over the 4' wide rocky area (that is around the patio) and they would go down if they hit the icy cement (the other 1/2 is fenced because that's my garden area and turns out Zeke thinks that's his personal diggy-diggy hole if he can get to it.... ) having to walk 2 dogs with a fenced in yard might seem silly, but with Larry being 12 3/4 and Zeke 10 3/4 we just can't risk one of them going down hope you can find something that works. Edited November 14, 2019 by RaineysMom Quote Kim and Bruce - with Rick (Rick Roufus 6/30/16) and missing my sweet greyhound Angels Rainey (LG's Rainey 10/4/2000 - 3/8/2011), Anubis (RJ's Saint Nick 12/25/2001 - 9/12/12) and Zeke (Hey Who Whiz It 4/6/2009 - 7/20/2020) and Larry (PTL Laroach 2/24/2007 - 8/2/2020) -- and Chester (Lab) (8/31/1990 - 5/3/2005), Captain (Schipperke) (10/12/1992 - 6/13/2005) and Remy (GSP) (?/?/1998 - 1/6/2005) at the bridge"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut." -- Ernest Hemmingway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houndtime Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 Our deck steps were icy yesterday. The dogs went down, but they wouldn't come up. So, I figured, I would get their leashes, walk them around the front and into the garage. I went into the house, got the leashes and opened the garage. When I came back to the porch, they were both on the deck waiting for me. I guess they got nervous that I would leave them outside. Silly pups. Quote Irene Ullmann w/Flying Odin and Mama Mia in Lower Delaware Angels Brandy, John E, American Idol, Paul, Fuzzy and Shine Handcrafted Greyhound and Custom Clocks http://www.houndtime.com Zoom Doggies-Racing Coats for Racing Greyhounds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NevadasMom Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 How about carpet runners? Quote Carol-Glendale, AZ Trolley (Figsiza Trollyn) Nevada 1992-2008...always in my heart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleptogrey Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 6 hours ago, dante2zoe said: I put down old towels as a path to the steps, upon which we have rubber step pad-thingys. I find that they stick to the towel path rather well. towels are the very very best. just layer them up if they freeze. eventually they will defrost enough so you can wash them and start the process all over again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt Posted November 15, 2019 Author Share Posted November 15, 2019 15 hours ago, cleptogrey said: towels are the very very best. just layer them up if they freeze. eventually they will defrost enough so you can wash them and start the process all over again. This certainly seems like the most efficient, economical and easy solution. And because we live in the South, we will likely not need them all winter. Thanks for such a simple and obvious remedy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShebasMom Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 You also could buy some of that indoor/outdoor carpeting to put on the deck in the area of concern. Can get it at Home Depot, Lowe's, and the like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoutsmom Posted November 18, 2019 Share Posted November 18, 2019 My father has a strip of outdoor carpeting, about 3 feet wide, that he staples to the deck when the rainy season starts (late Sept) and removes it when the rainy season ends (July). The strip runs from the patio door to the steps down to the yard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.