Common questions
The things people
actually ask
42 straight answers, including the ones where the answer is that we are not the right fit. If what you need is not here, call or text and ask.
Cost and value
What you pay, what it covers, and when a contract is the wrong call.
What if it barely snows this winter?
Then you will have overpaid, and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise. Here is the actual math. A single driveway cleared per visit is $69. Complete is $1,254 across the six-month season, which works out to about eighteen clearings — roughly what a 2 cm trigger produces in a normal Calgary winter. A light year means you paid for visits you did not get.
Note that per-visit for eighteen clearings costs almost exactly the same as the contract. What the contract adds is priority: per-visit customers are serviced only after every contract customer is finished, which during a real storm means late afternoon rather than morning, and the City's clock does not pause while you wait in a queue. It also gives you one number to budget instead of a winter of invoices you cannot predict.
If you have a short driveway, no sidewalk frontage and a flexible schedule, per-visit is genuinely the better deal and we will tell you that on the phone. If it is only the sidewalk you are worried about, the walk-and-steps-only rate is $119 a month.
What does unlimited actually mean?
One full clearing per qualifying snowfall event, with no cap on the number of events. If a storm drops more than 20 cm we make multiple passes at no extra charge. If snow keeps falling for more than 24 hours, that counts as a second event and it is still covered.
There is no fine print where unlimited quietly becomes six visits.
If every plan clears the same things, why is Complete $30 more?
Margin against the City's clock, and what happens if we miss it. Every plan comes out after the same 2 cm and clears the same property. Essential finishes within 18 hours, which leaves you six hours of room before the 24-hour deadline. Complete finishes within 12 and leaves you twelve.
Complete also carries the bylaw guarantee — if we are late and you are ticketed, we pay it — plus windrow clearing after the City plow and ice melt on every event rather than as needed.
Essential does not carry the guarantee. Six hours of margin on a standard route is not enough room for us to promise it honestly, so we do not.
Should I just call you per visit instead?
Sometimes, yes. Per-visit rates are on the pricing page: $45 for a front walk, $69 for a single driveway, $95 for a double.
The catch is priority. Per-visit work happens after every contract customer is complete, so in the storms where it matters most you wait the longest. If your sidewalk frontage carries bylaw exposure, that wait is the expensive part.
Can my price change during the season?
No. The monthly number on your agreement is what you pay from November through April, regardless of how the winter turns out.
The only things billed on top are per-event extras you ask for — an emergency call-out, ice chipping, snow hauled off the property — and none of those happen without you approving them first.
What is not included in my monthly price?
Compacted ice removal ($95 to $175), snow hauled off the property ($175 to $400 per load), roof and eave ice dam removal ($250 to $650), emergency off-schedule call-outs ($95), and freeze-thaw check visits after a chinook ($45).
On Essential, October and April snowfalls and windrow clearing are also extra. They are included on Premium.
All of these are quoted before we do them.
Which discounts can I combine?
One promotional discount at a time, and prepay stacks on top of it, up to a 20% total cap.
So founding customer at 15% plus prepaying the full season at 10% works. Founding customer plus the seniors discount does not — you take whichever is larger.
The year-round bundle is separate: sign snow and summer lawn care together and both are 10% off with the rate locked for 24 months.
Do I pay more for a corner lot or a double driveway?
Yes, and we tell you exactly how much before you sign. A corner lot's second sidewalk frontage is $50 a month, a double driveway is $40, a triple is $90.
We measure from satellite at quote and confirm on site before the season starts. Nothing gets added after that.
Timing and service
When we come, what triggers a visit, and what happens in a bad storm.
When exactly will you show up?
The clock starts when snowfall ends, not when it begins. Essential is cleared within 18 hours of the snow stopping, Complete within 12, Premium within 8.
Premium customers are first in the route. Essential and Complete run in standard route order, which is set by geography rather than by who called first.
What is a trigger depth?
The amount of snow that has to fall before we automatically come out. Every Terrano plan triggers at 2 cm.
We used to offer a cheaper 5 cm option and stopped, because Calgary's climate normals show most snowfalls here leave less than 5 cm. A 5 cm trigger sits out the majority of them, and the bylaw does not care — the sidewalk is still your responsibility. Selling a plan that skips most of the winter would have been selling you a problem.
Below 2 cm we do not dispatch. If you want a clearing anyway that is an off-schedule call-out at $95, but very little falls through that gap.
What happens during a multi-day storm?
We clear on a best-effort basis while it is still coming down, so your property does not sit buried for two days, then complete a full service inside your window once accumulation stops.
Events separated by more than 24 hours of continued accumulation count as separate events. Both are covered.
What if I get a bylaw ticket anyway?
On Complete and Premium, we pay it. That is the bylaw guarantee, and it applies whenever we have committed to a 12-hour window or better and we missed it.
Essential does not carry the guarantee. An 18-hour window on a standard route leaves six hours of margin against the City's 24-hour deadline, and we would rather leave the guarantee off than promise something that thin.
Do you clear on weekends and holidays?
Yes. Snow does not observe statutory holidays and neither does the City's 24-hour clock, so neither do we. Christmas morning is in scope.
How do I know you actually came?
A time-stamped photo after every visit, on every plan including Essential. You never have to take our word for it or guess whether the truck came through at 4 a.m.
It is also the record you want if there is ever a dispute about a bylaw notice.
The City plow left a wall across my driveway. Now what?
Windrow clearing is included on Complete and Premium. We come back and clear it.
On Essential it is $25 per occurrence, because it is a second trip to a property we have already serviced.
A chinook melts everything and then it refreezes. What happens?
That is the genuinely dangerous part of a Calgary winter and it is not a snowfall, so it does not trigger a regular visit. We offer a freeze-thaw check visit at $45 — we come out after the melt, treat walks and steps, and deal with ice before it sets.
Complete includes ice melt on every qualifying event and Premium on every visit, which handles most of it. Ice that has already bonded to the surface is a separate job, quoted between $95 and $175.
What about freezing rain, or a 30 cm dump?
Both can take longer than the window. We service in route order and we do not skip properties, but we will not pretend a 30 cm event runs to the same schedule as a 4 cm one.
In those conditions we tell you where you are in the route rather than leaving you refreshing the window and wondering.
Your property
Vehicles, damage, pets, surfaces and where the snow ends up.
What about the car parked in my driveway?
We clear around it. We cannot clear what is underneath it, and we are not responsible for the patch it was sitting on. Move it and we will get that on the next visit at no charge.
If you know you will be parked in all winter, tell us at quote and we will price the driveway for the area we can actually reach.
What if you hit something under the snow?
Before November 1, mark or remove anything that could be struck once it is buried — decorative rock, edging, sprinkler heads, low fencing, solar lights, pet stakes. We supply and install marker stakes free on request.
We are not liable for damage to unmarked items. We are insured and WCB covered for everything else. We would much rather spend twenty minutes in October than have this conversation in January.
Will you clear down to bare pavement?
Wherever conditions allow, yes — and on the city sidewalk, bare pavement is what the bylaw actually requires.
Loose gravel, damaged asphalt and ice already bonded to the surface can prevent it. If your driveway is one of those, we tell you at quote rather than letting you discover it in December.
Do you clear back yards and paths to the garage?
Yes, as add-ons. A path to the garage or shed up to 30 ft is $35 a month, 30 to 60 ft is $50, a side gate walkway is $25.
Premium includes one back or side path in the base price. This is the section people forget at signup and then want in January, so it is worth two minutes at quote.
Bins are two different things. Clearing a path to them while we are already on site is $20 a month. Actually pulling them to the alley on collection day is $45, because that is a separate trip on the City's schedule whether it snowed or not.
What if my gate is locked, or my dog is outside?
We need reliable access to anything behind a gate. Give us the code or leave it unlocked through the season, and we will not enter a yard with a loose dog in it — the crew's safety comes first and so does your dog's.
If we cannot get in, we clear what we can reach and let you know why. We do not bill for the part we could not access.
Is the ice melt safe for pets and plants?
Standard de-icer is not, particularly on paws and adjacent beds. A pet-safe and plant-safe blend is available at $15 a month.
The dog run add-on at $30 a month always uses the pet-safe product — we do not treat a pet relief area with anything else.
Where does the snow go?
Stacked on your property, in the spot that makes the most sense for drainage and sightlines. We agree that location at the site visit before the season starts, so nobody is surprised by a two-metre pile in front of the living room window.
If your lot genuinely cannot hold a season's snow, hauling is $175 to $400 per load, quoted before we do it.
What if I am away for three weeks?
Nothing changes and there is nothing to arrange. Service continues on schedule and the photos keep arriving, so you can see your property is cleared from wherever you are.
This is included on every plan. An empty driveway with an uncleared sidewalk is exactly what bylaw enforcement notices, so we do not treat it as an upgrade.
Signing up and billing
Starting, paying, changing your mind and what happens in April.
How do I get started?
Send a quote request or call. We measure the property from satellite and come back with a firm monthly price, usually the same day.
If it works for you, we confirm the details on site before November 1, agree where the snow gets stacked, mark any hazards, and you are set for the season.
How does billing work?
Six equal monthly payments on the 1st, November through April, by pre-authorized credit card or e-transfer. No large deposit up front.
Overdue balances carry 1.5% per month and service pauses after 15 days past due — though we will call you well before that happens.
Is there any benefit to paying the whole season up front?
10%, and it stacks on top of a promotional discount up to the 20% cap. Prepay before November 1.
You are not required to. Monthly is the default for a reason — it keeps you from being far ahead of service you have not received yet.
Are add-ons a one-time charge or monthly?
Monthly. An add-on is added to your monthly price and runs for every month of the season, exactly like your plan. A $35 back path is $35 in November and $35 again in April — $210 across the six months, not $35 once.
That is because it is not a one-time job. We clear that path on every visit for the whole winter, which for a 2 cm trigger is roughly eighteen times.
One-time work is listed separately and priced that way on the page: ice chipping, snow hauling, roof ice dams, emergency call-outs, gutter cleaning and holiday lights. Those are charged when they happen and never touch your monthly number.
Can I add something partway through the season?
Yes. Add-ons can start any time and are prorated from the date we begin doing them.
Upgrading your plan mid-season works the same way. Downgrading takes effect the following month.
Why does your season run to the end of April?
Because Calgary keeps snowing in April and most contracts do not cover it. Across the City of Calgary's last five published snow seasons, April averaged 23 cm — more than March, more than October, and nearly as much as November. April 2022 alone brought 43 cm.
Almost every residential snow contract in this city ends March 31, which means the customer is on their own for one of the snowiest months of the year, right when they have stopped thinking about snow. We would rather bill a sixth month and actually be there.
It also means January, which is reliably our lightest month, is not the last thing you paid for.
It is already January. Can I still sign up?
Yes. You pay from the day we start, prorated across the months that are left — there is no penalty for joining late and nothing to buy for months that have already gone by.
Two honest caveats. Founding customer pricing closes October 15 and does not come back, so a January start is at standard rates. And if our routes in your area are already full we will tell you rather than take your money and arrive late.
Most people calling us in January are calling because something went wrong with their last arrangement. That is a good reason to call and we would rather hear from you than have you wait until next October.
Can I cancel partway through the season?
Yes, with 30 days written notice. Prepaid amounts are refunded pro rata, less services already performed and less any promotional discount that was applied.
We do not lock anyone into a season they regret. If the service is not what we said it would be, we would rather refund you than argue about it.
What happens at the end of the season? Does it renew automatically?
No. The agreement ends April 30 and we contact you in the autumn about the next season. Nothing charges without you agreeing to it first.
Founding customers have their rate locked for 2027/28, so if you signed by October 15 your second season is at the same price.
What if I move mid-season?
If the new address is inside our service area we move the contract with you and re-quote the property — it may be more or less depending on what you are moving to.
If it is outside our area, that is a cancellation with the standard 30 days notice and a pro rata refund.
About Terrano
Who we are, how you can check us out, and what we do in summer.
Why should I trust a company in its first season?
It is the right question to ask, and the honest answer is that you should check rather than take our word for it. We are Calgary owned, fully insured and WCB covered, and we will send you the certificates before you sign anything — ask and they arrive the same day.
The practical protection is in how we bill. Monthly on the 1st, five payments across the season, no large deposit up front. You are never more than one month ahead of the service you have received, and you can leave on 30 days notice with a pro rata refund. If we disappear in February, you are out one month, not a season.
Are you insured, and can I see proof?
Yes to both. Commercial general liability and WCB coverage, and we send the certificates on request before you commit to anything.
Anyone who hesitates when you ask for this is telling you something. Ask us and ask whoever else you are considering.
Who actually shows up at my house?
Our own crew, in marked vehicles.
What if you do a bad job?
Call or text and we come back and fix it at no charge. You have the time-stamped photo from the visit, so there is nothing to argue about regarding what was or was not done.
If we keep getting it wrong, cancel on 30 days notice and take the pro rata refund. A contract you cannot leave is not a service, it is a trap.
I already have someone. Why switch?
If they show up reliably, clear your city sidewalk, and you know what you are paying each month, do not switch. That is a good arrangement and we are not going to pretend otherwise.
The reasons people do move: the sidewalk turns out not to be included, the price moves during the season, nobody can tell them when the truck is coming, or the operator stops answering in February. If any of that sounds familiar, get a quote and compare it against what you are actually getting now.
Do you do commercial properties?
Yes — lots, entrances, fire exits, loading doors and accessible routes cleared before your tenants arrive, with a time-stamped service record retained for 24 months against liability claims. Grounds maintenance runs through the summer on the same contract.
Commercial is quoted per site after a walk, on per-push, hybrid or seasonal structures. Most Calgary commercial contracts are signed between August and early October, and planning ahead is the better outcome.
We also take mid-season takeovers where we can do them properly. If your current contractor has stopped answering or keeps arriving after your tenants do, call — we will walk the site within 48 hours and tell you honestly whether we have the route capacity to serve you this winter.
What do you do in summer?
Lawn care and landscaping, April through October. Terrano is a grounds company for the whole year, not a snow company that vanishes in spring.
Three plans mirroring the winter ones: mowing on a ten-day cycle at $129 a month, weekly mowing with cleanups and fertilizer at $199, or weekly with aeration, beds and weed control at $299. Full pricing is on the lawn and landscape page.
Sign snow and summer together and both are 10% off with the rate locked for 24 months. It is also the reason we answer the phone in July, which is not true of every snow contractor.
Still not sure?
Call and ask. If a contract is the wrong call for your property we will say so — the per-visit rates are on the pricing page and there are no hard feelings in pointing you at them.