Get Your Car Out of the Snow

Winter is quickly approaching, ladies, and it’s time to think about emergency snow plans. We’ve all seen it happen: a driver slips on ice, loses control of the car, and gets stuck in the snow. Or, in less dramatic situations, you’ve just parked on the street during an overnight blizzard.  If you’re in a populated area, you might be able to call a tow truck or get some able-bodied men (and women!) to help push or dig your car out, but what if you’re on your own, away from home?  Here’s one tried-and-true do-it-yourself method from women who’ve been stuck before:

Before winter arrives, purchase a reliable snow broom, ice scraper, and collapsible shovel and keep these in your car.  The original Sno Brum is equipped with a durable, freeze-resistant molded polyethylene foam head and a telescoping handle, allowing you to easily remove snow from your car without damaging the paint. If you’re stuck in the snow, you’ll need to use these tools to scrape the snow out from around your car.

If you’re stuck, before you start your engine, make sure the tailpipe is clear of snow.  If it’s not, you’ll risk deadly gases building up inside your car.

Start your car and turn on the front and rear defrosters.

Use your snow broom, ice scraper, and shovel to remove as much snow from around your tires as you can.

If you have rock salt—or even table salt—sprinkle it around the tires to melt the ice. Pouring windshield wiper fluid will also help melt the ice around your tires, but use this as a last resort, as the chemicals in the fluid can poison any animals that may come in contact with the snow after you leave. If you don’t have salt, sprinkling sand or cat litter around the tires will help provide tire traction, but won’t melt the ice.

Make sure your wheels are as straight as possible, put your car in low gear, and gently accelerate.

When the wheels start to slip, back up a little.  Pull forward again then back up a little bit.  Repeat this back-and-forth motion until you have enough room to pull out.

As a last resort, rock the car gently between forward and reverse or ride the brakes, but remember that these actions can have adverse effects on the car.

As a final tip, keep the number of a towing company with you, in case digging your car out yourself fails to work.

Once you get your car out of the snow, if you’re not horribly late for work, buy yourself a Grande Café Mocha at Starbucks to warm yourself up and reward yourself for being a superwoman!