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What exactly do you get in Grit and why do we use it?

If you’ve ever been stuck in a traffic jam caused by snow its very likely that you will be cursing the name of the road gritters not getting out early enough to lay the roads with this useful stuff. It’s also a standard Radio DJ joke, to ask the question “how do the road Gritters get to work?” the easy answer being they go out the day or night before to lay it. They don’t wait till it’s completely snowed before they do.

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Gritting is a difficult skill for the council officials to judge. They have to make sure that they have enough to cover at least the main roads of the county and they also have to keep a close eye on the metrological reports because if they get the gritters out too soon and it rains, which it has a habit of doing before it snows, then the grit is all washed away and the snow falls on a lovely wet surface which it helps turn to ice. Also, the council are under no obligation to come and personally grit your road or drive way despite whatever council tax you pay as they need to keep the main arterial roads open over the housing estates. If you are in desperate need then a Car Park Gritting Gloucester based firm like http://www.contract-gritting.co.uk/ could well be the answer.

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What exactly is Grit? It’s not actual grit like pebbles per say but a substance called Rock Salt with a bit of dirt mixed into it to give it a bit of a sticky context to it and allow it to bond with the road better. The gritter sprays this stuff willy-nilly all over the road covering it. There are two versions of this which is the snow plough one that is usually sent out to replace the work of the first wave version which is a simple trailer pulling job. Once that is down the Rock salt warms up the road surface and the snow melts. This is a natural chemical reaction and there is nothing that the snow can do about it as it hits a surface that is too warm for it to settle and the editor’s decision is finally on that.

Where problem occurs is at our end. The council can through an infinite amount of grit on the road but if don’t get out on it in our cars and the buses don’t bother to run then the rock salt will not warm up and the snow will not melt.