Cold Weather Preparedness

The first hard freeze comes fast in Ontario. It catches crews before anyone's back in the habit of watching their footing — and it catches the site too: a cracked water line, a hose frozen solid, a machine that ran fine yesterday. An hour of prep now keeps people on their feet; the saved machines are the bonus.

The hazard

Frozen ground and overnight ice hide slip and trip hazards — pooled water, wet plywood, churned mud all turn slick by morning, and the slips start before the first real snow. The cold is hard on the site itself too: water expands when it freezes and splits pipes, pumps and fittings, fuel can gel, and batteries lose capacity. A site that isn't ready loses mornings to burst lines and machines that won't start.

What to do — people first

• Give the surfaces an owner, all shift. Work areas, the routes to and from them, and scaffold platforms in use have to be kept clear of snow and ice and sanded when footing needs it — at all times, not once in the morning. Assign who inspects, clears, and re-treats as conditions change, and close a route that can't yet be made safe.
• Stockpile sand, salt, or grit now, at the entrances, stairs, and walkways where it'll be needed, and keep it topped up.
• Get the shovels, scrapers, and a working snow blower on site before the first storm, not during it.
• Check the warm-up arrangements — somewhere genuinely warm, and a break schedule that will flex with wind chill once it drops.

Then the site and the gear

• Drain water lines, pumps, hoses, and pressure washers at the end of the day. If you blow lines out with compressed air, do it the way the equipment's instructions say — regulated pressure, eye protection, nobody in the discharge path. Improvised air is its own injury.
• Fuel, coolant, and batteries follow the manufacturer's specification for that machine, not a rule of thumb. Winter fuel and conditioner ahead of the cold, coolant checked against its rated protection, block heaters used as the maker intends — and inspect the cords and connections before you plug anything in outside.
• Store small tools, batteries, and adhesives per their instructions. Cold flattens battery charge and ruins some glues and sealants; heated storage helps, but check what the product actually calls for.

Watch out for

• Pooled water that becomes a hidden sheet of ice by morning.
• A machine that cranks slow or won't start — that's a warning, not just a delay. Don't force it.
• Hoses or lines left full "just for tonight." That's how they split.
• Damaged extension cords and block-heater leads under snow — a wet, damaged cord outdoors is an electrical hazard, not an inconvenience.

Talk it over

• Where will ice show up first here — shaded walkways, ramps, plywood, stairs — and who's checking and re-treating them tomorrow morning?
• What on this site still has water in it right now?
• Is the warm-up area actually warm, and does everyone know where it is?