Car parks take a battering in winter. Leaves pile up in corners and block drains, gritting leaves salt and grit across every bay, and mud gets carried in from verges and building sites. Left alone it turns into a slippery mess that ends up walked into your building, and it doesn’t give visitors a great first impression either.
Whether you look after a retail park, an office car park, a hospital site or a multi storey, the right cleaning machine makes winter a lot easier to manage.
Why Winter Car Park Cleaning Matters
- Safety. Wet leaves and loose grit are a slip risk for pedestrians and can affect braking on ramps.
- Drainage. Leaves and debris block gullies, which leads to standing water and ice.
- Less mess indoors. Most of the dirt on your entrance floors starts in the car park.
- Surface life. Grit ground into tarmac and painted lines wears them out faster.
Sweepers Do Most Of The Work
For car parks the main machine is a sweeper. It picks up leaves, grit, litter and dust in one pass and collects it in a hopper, which is far quicker than brushes and blowers.
For smaller car parks and paths a walk behind sweeper like the Nilfisk SW900 is usually enough, with a working width of up to 1050 mm using two side brooms.
Larger car parks are much quicker with a ride on. The Viper ROS1300 cleans 1350 mm wide with both side brooms and holds 130 litres of debris, while the Hako large indoor and outdoor sweeper is built for tougher outdoor conditions.
Multi Storey And Underground Car Parks
Covered car parks have their own problems. Oil drips, tyre marks and exhaust dust build up on the decks, and in winter water and salt get carried in on every car. Here a sweeper is often paired with a ride on scrubber dryer to wash the surface, and a hot water pressure washer for stairwells, ramps and drains. We go into more detail on our multi storey and underground car parks page.
A Simple Winter Routine
- Sweep weekly through autumn and early winter when leaves are falling, more often after storms.
- Clear drains and gullies before cold snaps so water can get away.
- Sweep up spent grit once the weather warms, rather than leaving it to be walked inside.
- Pressure wash stairwells, pay machine areas and ramps when salt starts to build up.
Buy, Hire Or Refurbished
If you only need a sweeper for the winter months, have a look at our hire and lease options. We also have refurbished sweepers which are a good way of getting a larger machine for less. Call us on 01325 371 439 and tell us the size of your car park, we’ll recomend the right machine.
Contact Us
Columbus UK, based in Darlington, County Durham, is your total solution for all types of indoor and outdoor cleaning equipment. We supply high-quality industrial cleaning machines to all industries and commercial businesses across mainland Britain.
Our friendly, dedicated team provides expert purchasing advice, professional installation, servicing, and repair support to ensure you have the correct machine for your application at an affordable and cost-effective price.
We cover all areas from Scotland and the North East of England through the West Midlands and down to London, with mobile service and repair support available nationwide.
📧 Email: info@columbusuk.co.uk
📞 Tel: 01325 371 439
🌐 Web: columbusuk.co.uk
