Frozen ground before excavation
Frost in the top of the profile is what turns a straightforward dig into breaking work. Taking it out first returns the excavation to the method it was priced at.
Excavations, trenches, service runs
Cold-weather construction
Ground thaw units
Controlled heat into frozen ground so construction can carry on through cold weather, instead of waiting for a thaw or paying for hoarding and fuel.
- Application
- Frozen soil and concrete
- Environment
- On site
What it is
Winter is a schedule risk
Heat is put into the ground, under cover, and held there long enough to take the frost out of the depth the next operation needs.
Frozen ground stops excavation, stops a pour and stops a pour curing. The usual answers are to wait for a thaw, or to hoard the area and burn fuel into it until it gives.
Applying controlled heat instead treats the same problem as a planned operation with a known duration, rather than as weather to be absorbed. The work continues and the programme holds.
What is deployed, for how long and to what depth is scoped against the site and the operation that follows it. Dry-Ways engineers the plan and supplies the system.
Where it goes
Where a thaw buys back a week
Named by the operation rather than the part code. The site conditions and programme determine the plan.
Subgrade before a pour
Concrete placed onto frozen subgrade is a defect in waiting. The ground has to be above freezing before the mix goes down, not merely uncovered.
Footings, slabs, foundations
Curing in cold weather
A pour that loses its heat too early does not reach the strength it was designed for. Holding the temperature through the early curing period is what protects it.
Slabs, walls, structural pours
Keeping the critical path moving
The value is usually in the programme rather than in the single operation. A week not lost in January is a week not lost at the end of the job.
Winter programmes, phased sites
Specification
What we can state today
Ground thaw is specified against the site, material, area and conditions. Dry-Ways confirms the system, connected load and controls on the site plan before equipment is ordered.
Application
- Medium
- Frozen soil
- Also
- Concrete
- Setting
- Active construction site
Supply
- Plan
- Engineered per site
- Stock
- Held in Edmonton
- Coverage
- Western Canada
How a job is scoped
How we scope a thaw
A thaw is scoped against ground conditions and a programme, not off a product page. What follows is the process, which is the part that is settled.
Every job starts with the operation you are trying not to lose.
Depth of frost, area, what has to happen next and when it has to happen decide the scope. Those four are site facts, and they are taken before anything is quoted.
Dry-Ways engineers custom heating plans covering product, layout, spacing, output and system requirements, and holds significant inventory so a winter programme is not waiting on a delivery.
Site and conditions
Area, depth of frost, access, power available and the operation the thaw is clearing the way for.
Engineered plan
Product, layout, spacing, output and system requirements are engineered for the site rather than taken from a standard sheet.
Supply and support
Stock is held in Edmonton and shipped across Western Canada, so the plan is not waiting on a lead time to become useful.
Why it matters
The cost is in the week you lose
Ground thaw is bought against a programme rather than against a surface. What it is compared with is not another product; it is waiting, or hoarding and fuel.
Waiting is not free
01
A programme that stops in January does not restart where it left off. The cost of the delay is usually larger than the cost of the operation that prevents it.
Planned, not absorbed
02
Controlled heat turns frozen ground into a scheduled task with a known duration, rather than a condition the site takes on the chin.
Stock on the ground
03
Significant inventory is held in Edmonton so a winter decision does not become a lead time. Coverage is Western Canada, with shipping Canada-wide.
FAQ
The questions we cannot fully answer yet
Four answers specific to ground thaw. The general questions are on the homepage FAQ.
Not here? Send us the job or call 780-953-9297.
Which product is this?
Equipment selection is confirmed during site scoping, after the area, frost depth, power available and required schedule are known. Dry-Ways provides the specified system with the plan and quotation.
How is this different from hoarding and heaters?
Hoarding and fuel warm the air above the ground and rely on that reaching the frost. Applying heat into the ground treats the thing that is actually frozen. Which is appropriate for a given site is a question for the site.
How long does it take?
It depends on the depth of frost, the area and the conditions, so it is answered against a site rather than in general. It is scoped as an operation with a duration and that duration is part of what comes back.
Do you supply outside Edmonton?
Coverage is Western Canada and stock ships Canada-wide from Edmonton. Send the site location with the conditions.