it is cold! and getting colder... what are you doing to prepare?

[rockriver]

it doesn't get this cold where I live.... ususally.
wind is blowing big time to add to the chill factor!.
--
Dakota alert went off... alert zone 1.... we don't get many alerts from that station.
I look and no cars... probably just the wind moving limbs/trees .

then I hear a crash at a door with lots of windows...
racing across house grabbing a tool,
feel like a dumb @ss when all I can find is a large flower pot and a stand that blew over!!

some of my outdoor plumbing faucets are on lines I could cut off. done. drained.

I bought several foam tubes (wrong name!!) and insulated several spigots in the yard/woods. I couldn't find cut off valves for these.
the foam insulating tubes were headed out the door at lowe's fast this morning.. I bought the last 1" ones they had.
guys were telling me that their pipes were half inch... hmmm. I think a bunch of them will be surprised when they get home.

after installing the foam tubing, I wrapped walmart bags and trash bags around entire faucet/hosebibs.

checked radiatiors in machines. plenty of antifreeze... I couldn't find my antifreeze tester... walmart was sold out. found 2 at tractor supply. I bought one of them.

we had planned a short trip for this week. postponing till most of this freezing blows over.

suggestions? what should I be checking? what have you done?

rr

[brokedownbiker]

This is our second hard freeze of the year so all the preparations have been done and stress tested already. I'm just keeping up my normal schedule and enjoying a couple of extra cups of cocoa or tea daily to keep the core temp up.

Oh, and driving around the neighborhood every morning in my diesel dually truck pulling folks out of the ditch when they fail to recognize the ice on the roads. The county is down to one sand truck for my area due to mechanical problems and I figured I'd chip in and try and help out. Did two yesterday morning and one today, I saw the sand truck this afternoon so hopefully there won't be any more tomorrow.

[WiseOwl]

RR.........we are just "chillin" up here.

I love this weather. I go primitive camping in this weather every year. I made sure the Mrs had plenty of firewood for during the day and made sure I left the spigot on a 1/2 turn than the regular 1/4 turn.
I am just wishing momma nature would blow the 2 dead trees down that I am wanting to cut next weekend. Make it easy on me lady!


I busted a pallet up for a coworker today so she could have some good firestarter. It was about 5:30 and it was starting to get cold. It was weird seeing the temp drop 20 degrees in 3 hours.

I just wish I could have foreseen this and was in the mountains right now sitting around a campfire with the fellas talking about black helicopters and the Dulce Base drinking IPA slushies :P

Stay warm friends!

[justanothergunnut]

i got my fill of cold over the Christmas vacation to Idaho.. Im good thanks!!

[1Admin]

17'ish here tonight, they claim with the high wind it will be the equivalent of zero.

Fires going in two stoves since 9am this morning and the bedroom stove for about 2 hours now. House is a toasty 74.

Makes you appreciate all the wood you put up last few years.

[GhostofWinter]

Let's see. It s -14 here...with the windchill at about -40. Makes you really appreciate the fact that you have a well insulated house and good furnace. With the cold and snow we got (about 20ish inches) it's made for some interesting times outside shoveling. The local roads have all been closed due to the weather so I've been staying inside curled up with my hot coffee and reading a good book.

I do however see a few improvements I can make around here so the next time is much easier to endure. I'm making a list of the things I can and will do as time allows.

[jimmycthemd]

Well, it was 5 this morning. When we resided the house last spring, we put in extra insulation and wrapped all the pipes that were along the outside walls. I have shutoffs on all the outside spigots so those have been off since late fall.

My winter and spring routine includes checking/relevelling the anitfreeze in all vehicles so that's taken care of (habit from growing up in the great white north). Put the winter equipment in all the vehicles last fall. Mostly dress warm and take it as it comes.

[1Admin]

House was a toasty 75 just before turning it around 10:30'ish last night. Just now it reads 61... Pretty big inside drop for us. But it says it's 22 outside right now without the wind factored in.

We don't really have any place to put more insulation, but I'm trying to get creative...

[Rmplstlskn]

Uneventful here in western VA... It is 8 degrees at 8:40am. It was 13 when I went to bed at 11:45pm. Everything worked as designed. Recently installed wood-burning fireplace insert (a hell job in a too small of space) was roaring when I went to bed with an inside temp of 82. Sometime in the early morning the fire died down, then later as the temp dropped inside the oil-fired boiler kicked on to take over. Woke up to a 72 degree home. The German-made Buderus boiler will purr like a kitten the rest of the day as I am at work. Then start the fire again in the evening and do it all over again... Love wood heat! Oil is not bad either... Stay warm people!

Rmpl

[rockriver]

I have living space in a barn... well insulated. about 500 s.f. the dehumidifier or one small 60 $ electric heater can keep it 60 degrees. (edited to correct... thermometer keeps up with current and coldest for last 24 hours... it read 52 not 60. when I checked it.. 14 degreees outside dehu held temp at 52 60 was the prior low)
I put the same heater in a glass sunroom, it is having trouble keeping temp at 51 degrees!! with double pane glass on 3 sides and house on one side.
out side temp 21 degrees right now. insulation is the key!!

thanks for the comments.
ld3, rmpl, wise, thanks for the wood stove comments... I sure need to do that... the fireplace has a huge appetite!

[Benn Gleck]

What am I doing to prepare?

I put on a coat AND a hat!

It was 12 below last night but to me thats no big deal its just winter. You guys down south though I'm sure it is a big deal.

I'm gettin tired of hearing the news people/weathermen blubber about windchill though, jeez you'd think it never got cold and the wind blew before!

[jimmycthemd]

I'm gettin tired of hearing the news people/weathermen blubber about windchill though, jeez you'd think it never got cold and the wind blew before!

Remember, there are some idjits out there that don't know what wind chill is.
I may be down south now....but grew up 100 miles or so from Canada.

[PerryJeff]

When temp gets to 10 or below the cars gas tank never gets under half a tank. I also like to add a gas treatment/ cleaner ounce or two every fill up.
All vehicles before winter get radiator flushed and filled with new anti-freeze and test to -40 for my area. Also don't forget about windshield washer fluid drain the blue out of all vehicles and put orange Antifreeze in fluid. Everything gets oil change in sept oct and I like the 5- 30 weight oil for everything and all get 5-6 ounces of Polytet... oil additive I like Duralube best has twice the Polyt than slick 50 and 5 bucks cheaper. All vehicles had full qt added at first oil change I did with them. All batteries are checked and the tractor batteries pulled and put in the basement make sure all cables are cleaned and bolts are good. All vehicles not daily driver are treated with Stabil.
The pickup and car get a set of jumper cables, socket set 1/2 in with 3 foot breaker bar socket, and straight wrenches, two sleeping bags and two insulated coveralls, snow boots, stocking hats and gloves. Also a 2 ton jack and 20 ft. log chain.
My normal kit has set of fuses, head light and led lantern, 3/8 in socket set, 3 adjustable wrenches, 2 channel locks. Sterno kit plus a 72 hour kit.

[rockriver]

yep a big deal! lol.
some faucets were wrapped and valve froze but no cracks first night... worked when heat applied.
I added plastic buckets to the formula... checked them just now (freezing in teens longer than the night before!)
and valves worked without heating them...
yea for plastic buckets!
rr

[tech]

Already was prepped for the cold. We managed to get down to 14 and 17 the last two nights and Monday briefly made it above freezing. Not a big deal up north, but this is unusual around here. Just plugged a couple of reflector lights into the inverter to heat a couple of exposed els and put an extra log in the wood stove. No problems.