Forget Boots: This Hack Provides Traction For Shoveling Your Snowy Driveway

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Have you dreamt you found yourself with clothes inside out or on in the wrong order? Well, it turns out that can actually be helpful in the waking world. If you want to gain more traction when shoveling your snowy driveway, donning a pair of socks over your shoes or boots can significantly increase your traction in snow and even on ice.

Winter weather has its pros and cons. While many enjoy seeing the splendor of a snow-covered landscape, few, if any, enjoying shoveling snow from driveways and sidewalks. However, throughout the winter season, snowstorms and blizzards often deposit heaps of snow that need to be removed in order to leave your home. Granted, there are a variety of tricks and hacks to make snow removal easier, but they all still involve stepping on snowy or icy surfaces, which leads to many people being injured from falls while shoveling driveways. In fact, over 90% of all weather-related injuries result from slips and falls, many of which, like bruises and concussions, don't manifest till hours or days later.

With all that in mind, it's obvious you need as much traction as you can get. While there is no shortage of boots with various grips and tread, or contraptions like ice cleats or Ergodyne's spike-free, slip-on traction devices, one easy hack to gain more traction in the snow is to put what's inside your boots on the outside. That is because socks not only keep your feet warm and dry while in your boots, they can also increase your traction when worn over your boots. Obviously (or perhaps not), you're going to use a second pair of socks for this hack.

Just as it is important to pick the right tools for easier snow removal, so, too, is it essential to wear the right footwear when removing that snow. While slipping a pair of socks over your boots may look as if you are just learning to dress yourself, it can actually save you from slipping while shoveling snow, walking to your car, or otherwise moving around on snow-covered surfaces. It is the fabric the socks are made from that provides the added traction. The idea is that the cloth provides more friction than rubber or plastic soles. There's even a bit of science to back it up: A 2009 study published in the New Zealand Medical Journal involved convincing 30 random passersby to don a variety of socks to descend an icy slope. Researchers found both the anecdotal user experiences and the observed rated data suggested a statistically significant improvement in traction over just the boots or shoes being worn. It should be noted the hack works best on snow or choppy ice rather than glass-smooth ice, where slips and slides can still happen.

Any old pair of cotton or wool socks will help, although in order to get them over your shoes or boots you may need to buy a larger size or have some that are substantially stretched out. Of course they will wear through at some point. If you will be using this method a lot, it may be worthwhile to invest in a pair of XTRATUF Bama Sokket boot liners or similar product. While these are designed to add a thick insulating layer between sock and boot, they can also be used over boots and the low-cut design makes them easier to slip on.