Question

Please Help!
people living in cold climates countries where there is plenty of snow are advised not to heat their garages in the winter. what is the electrochemical basis for this recommendation?

Answer 1

Well, what you are probably looking for is the fact that corrosion -- an electrochemical reaction between metals and oxygen, mostly -- is significantly accelerated when it takes place in an electrically conductive solution, because that allows the electrons and ions to get whether they need to be to react. Salt water is a very good conductive solution. Municipalities tend to put salt on snow in the winter to melt it, and there are anyway salts in dirt that accumulates on roads and vehicles. So the point is that if you keep your garage unheated, the temperature will stay below freezing, there will be very little liquid water with dissolved salt to conduct electricity and facilitate corrosion.