Winter Storm: a little help from our Northern brethren
Here in Oklahoma (& much of the central South) we are getting ready for the biggest blizzard we’ve had in over a decade (expected record breaking lows). Any suggestions from those of you who regularly deal with this kind of weather? Besides dripping faucets and having groceries stocked up what other preparations do you suggest?
Comments
Assuming you have done everything for safety, HAVE FUN! If you have kids, let them sleep in a tent in the living room! Have lots of hot chocolate. Play board games. Let the kids enjoy the snow, then come back. I grew up in Northern Florida. We had snow maybe once every couple years. I remember pictures of snow on palmetto bushes.
During storms stay in. Don’t drive. Pull over if shelter is available. I remember people sitting in the aisles at a grocery store, playing cards.
We were lucky. Old timers spoke of 60 below.....
Be safe. Be well.
The Brothers have given you some sound advise and I can't add much. We in Iowa tend to take a lot for granted based on our experience as far as things like insulation and water pipe wrap. I'll bet there aren't many snow blowers to be acquired in your neck of the woods. Five days before my heart surgery I was shoveling snow and experiencing chest pain, thinking it was heartburn. It wasn't! Cold and snow bring out the worst in machines other man made things we take for granted, it makes everything twice as hard to get done. Be careful and good luck my brother.
If you have a block heater on you vehicle, plug it in. Check your anti-freeze/coolant to make sure it will not freeze at the temps that are expected . A cracked engine block sucks😖. Oh, make sure your RV’s, boats and whatever else that has water in them will survive the low temperature expected. If you have a good heater in your house, no need to let the faucets drip😳, if not, open any cabinets that have waterlines run inside along an outside wall, especially if your house was built awhile ago and has pitiful insulation...like mine. Of course, if it stays in the “positive” temps, probably no worries, right?
When we moved to Fargo, we had three alterations done to our two cars.
1) electric heat pad under the battery or wrap around the battery
2) a circulator cut into the lower radiator hose
3) a dipstick like heating device inserted into the engine
All three led to a male AC plug that dangled from the front of the car. You plugged it in to an extension cord (and some parking meters) if it was to be left outside for more than an hour or two. We had the two cars, so one in the garage and the other.....
If you left a car outside, unplugged, at 40 below zero, you got it back in April, or after you had it towed to a heated garage.
http://www.pipestud.com
<<You Have Got to be Kidding Me!
I live in the heart of Texas. Bone chilling winter weather around here means a couple of days of blustery north winds and temperatures in the 40's before going back up to the 60's and 70's. We had an ice storm yesterday that blanketed most of the state with temperatures in the 20's and caused a 155 car pile up in Dallas (about 90 miles north of me), that actually killed 6 people. And now, I am horrified after seeing the weather forecast down here in my little town of Robinson, just a few miles south of Waco. Cold all weekend and on Monday, an expected high of 14 degrees with a low of 0 degrees with blowing snow. Are you kidding me, 0 degrees? Blowing snow? A dadgum blizzard to boot! As soon as I finish this newsletter I'm going to order a Parka, snow shoes, mittens and survival gear such as flares, from Amazon. If you see a flare in the sky over downtown Robinson, HELP PLEASE!>>
Driving down the interstate in a snowstorm (blizzard) at ~10mph with my head out the window watching for the centerline while my brother, riding shotgun, has his head out the passenger side window watching for the shoulder, both hoping we make it to the next town instead of into one of the the barrow pits on either side of the road.....that’s a blizzard.
I like some winter, but I really don’t need any more🙂. My friend in Tennessee is getting some cooler temps as well, but he was raised/lived in North Dakota and Montana and his wife was born and raised in Montana. They both lived here for at least 30 years before moving to TN, so he and his wife are use to it🙂. I don’t think they miss the winter though😉 Me, so far, I would miss winter, that may change when I get older, but I hope not🥶
Now, I like it cold enough to wear a sweater or light jacket. Don’t really miss ice and snow.
Won't be sitting outside to have a pipe again today.
Got out of bed, looked outside, checked the temp., then crawled back into bed and slept for another hour...
Isn't it great being retired?...