FROST HEAVES - A MAJOR DILEMMA FOR ICE ARENAS

The ice sheets of three arenas in Minneapolis-St. Paul have had frost heaves ranging from seven to eleven inches (0.2 to 0.3 m). Proper design should prevent frost from penetrating the ground water table or frost-susceptible soils. Conventional equations can be used to predict depth of frost penetration under arenas that operate seasonally. If arenas operate continuously, flow nets can be used to predict the depth of frost. A probe at the Burnsville Ice Arena shows frost at the 19-foot depth (6 m) after 21 months of operation.