Roseville's Retrofit Truck Ready for Ice, Snow

An experiment that started with a bit of plastic piping has expanded into a new tool to keep Roseville streets a bit safer when storms like the one predicted to slam into the city this week are in the forecast. 

Roseville Public Works will use an old hydro seeder truck to lay down a mixture of brine and water to prepare roads for the layer of ice predicted by the National Weather Service to start hitting Roseville Wednesday, and even resist snow cover if temperature cooperate Wednesday night into Thursday. 

According to an article in the Roseville Review, residents can thank public works employee Joshua Dix for the contraption, which will likely be seen on main streets around town tonight and tomorrow. 

Dix started with a small brine contraption that was connected to a hand-held sprayer via PVC pipe. He found if the temps stayed warm enough, the mixture would keep sidewalks clear, the Review reported.

Now, the tanker truck uses the same mixture to treat roads.