Hi r/DIY! Hope this is okay under the rules.My husband and I rent a big old house in Massachusetts. We’re currently getting a nor’easter, which has reminded me that we have a sloping/grade issue in our backyard.The back door leads to a porch, which steps down to a concrete area that makes a path to the bulkhead/fence, the detached garage and the driveway. The back door is our main entry and exit to the house since it’s much closer to the driveway and garage.But, when it rains, water pools on the concrete right at the base of the porch steps. Maybe three inches deep. When colder, this turns into ice and no amount of de-icer can make a dent. (We also have dogs, so can’t use anything that would hurt them.) The puddle is probably 3’ wide and 3’ across. (I’d include a pic but it’s dark and won’t be useful.) And obviously it’s terrifying when it’s basically an ice rink to the back gate/driveway.Any ideas on a way to handle this issue that is a) cheap, b) safe for the dogs, c) won’t lead to broken ankles/concussions for us, i.e. non-slip? d) won’t piss off my landlord and e) will be easy to reverse for summer or move out?I considered just putting down some wood planks, but would be worried about slippage when it’s wet - both us slipping on wet boards and wet boards slipping on concrete. The dogs bolt down those steps and could see them moving boards by using them as launch pads. And I considered sand, but we have three dogs and it’d be entirely inside in a matter of weeks. Clean freak me can not handle that.Any brilliant ideas?Edit: super dark pictures water or ice essentially covers the first 1.5 concrete squares out towards the bulkhead. via /r/DIY https://ift.tt/2qcLXL2
