Does anyone know the best way to make this ramp nonslip? We get a fair amount of ice and snow and there are a couple elderly folks using the ramp.
We tried a basic nonslip rubber mat, but the grooves just hold ice and snow so don’t really help.
Our current ideas are maybe adding rubber stair treads every board or two, or maybe tacking little strips of wood to every board.
I’m going to echo the heating idea.
We get a fair amount of ice here, and I used to be in home health, so I’ve dealt with ramps.
Overall, the only thing that really works is preventing the ice to begin with. De-icing always comes with issues. You get re-freezes, wood warping, there’s the mess from salt and/or sand. Traction additions only work after the ice is gone, and makes getting rid of it harder (same with snow in that regard).
There’s multiple types of heating gear that I’ve seen done up for this. The neatest was done up with the stuff that’s used on pipes, attached to a canvas roll. Roll it out before an expected ice/snow, and it prevents build-up, then you roll it up after and the ramp is perfect. But there’s heating coils and such that can be placed permanently.
It really is the safest and most effective option. Iirc, about ten years ago it only cost about a hundred and some sweat to get done. Not sure of pricing nowadays, but it’s an afternoon job.