Advice For Those Not Used To Cold Temperatures!

[Chad Michael]

1) Prestone Windshield de-icer spray for your vehicle

2) do not wear a brass bra

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

Welcome to Oklahoma! We have snow on the ground, and expect more tonight. The good news? It'll all be melted by Sunday as we expect to be in the 50s.
View attachment 4169640

Cold morning here in Beaumont Tx., around 12 deg.
But Snow and Ice on the Galveston Beaches..... Really????

 

[lomo]

Yes leave the cold water running at more than a trickle and yes do whatever you can to expose the pipes to indoor warmth.

 

[WI Short Scaler]

-22, yes real temperature, yesterday AM on the way to work.

Just another day.

 

[fdeck]

I'm from the north, lived in Texas for a few years.

1. Run your outside water bibs just a trickle. They are usually not insulated well enough, and the pipe can burst inside your wall. Disconnect the hose, so the water runs away instead of collecting and freezing.

2. Suburbans can't stop. Sorry, I meant S'burbn's. And the bigger the truck, the more overconfident the driver. Wait until 1/2 hour after normal rush hour, and they will all be safely in the ditch.

 

[HardNHeavy]

come to the northeast, we have ice-cookies!!

 

[Roland GR 88]

And remember, those ‘80’s Peavey combos will survive snowbanks, being left uncovered on porches, 50 deg. swings in temperatures and are worth 2 sand bags of weight to help keep your truck on the road.

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

It's just that in Texas, we're not set up for low temps. Our housing, our plumbing, our heating was not ever designed for this. The lowest recorded temp. in Beaumont was 10 deg, and that was in 1906. It got down to 12 last night. So we are just not prepared. In fact, most of our homes are all electric and have been usually built that way since the 70s. And those lucky enough to have gas heating, usually need electricity for the system to operate.

And now the entire Texas Power grid is struggling. And according to Ex-Gov. Rick Perry the West Texas Wind farm is froze up and not operating. So the rolling blackouts are really leaving many folks without any options. Especially those in the southern portions state. As most can't heat their homes with candles.

We had I guess a rolling blackout in the middle of the night here. Got pretty chilly inside. Power was back on about an hour after dawn.

So it is just a difficult time for many. Just saying. Praying we don't have many more deaths because of the Cold. And that our farmers can deal with it. We just heard the citrus growers have pretty much lost everything.

So I've had enough of the global warming stuff.

 

[Killing Floor]

Actually... Whisky.

I learned it can be spelled both ways correctly. I learned whisky is Scottish and whiskey is Irish spelling origin. And I’m in Texas so whichever I choose is the most correct way.
Any day I learn something new is a good day. And my power is out and I am freezing and thinking about booze at 10 am.

 

[Killing Floor]

Actually... Whisky.

I learned it can be spelled both ways correctly. I learned whisky is Scottish and whiskey is Irish spelling origin. And I’m in Texas so whichever I choose is the most correct way.
Any day I learn something new is a good day. And my power is out and I am freezing and thinking about booze at 10 am.

 

[mikew31]

A popular meme going around these parts (northern Wisconsin) is that it has been upwards of 50F warmer inside our refrigerators than it is outside the last week or so!

 

[pie_man_25]

Words to live by.

Other than that, hot sauce!!!

That reminds me of the importance of... uhhh... Not "holding it in"

The... uhh, "movement" that you might be holding in - because it would suck to pull your pants down in the cold, and sit on a cold toilet seat (or cold wilderness), will be dead weight that sucks heat out of you. It helps, when in these conditions, to NOT hold it in and have your body need to heat less "dead weight". It sucks, it really does, but even if it doesn't work like I'm saying it does, I'd rather be just cold than cold AND have to poop really bad.

Also, there's cold, there's wet, and there's cold AND wet. Cold OR wet sucks, but you can deal with it. Cold AND wet can be straight up dangerous.

I learned it can be spelled both ways correctly. I learned whisky is Scottish and whiskey is Irish spelling origin. And I’m in Texas so whichever I choose is the most correct way.
Any day I learn something new is a good day. And my power is out and I am freezing and thinking about booze at 10 am.

It's just that in Texas, we're not set up for low temps. Our housing, our plumbing, our heating was not ever designed for this. The lowest recorded temp. in Beaumont was 10 deg, and that was in 1906. It got down to 12 last night. So we are just not prepared. In fact, most of our homes are all electric and have been usually built that way since the 70s. And those lucky enough to have gas heating, usually need electricity for the system to operate.

And now the entire Texas Power grid is struggling. And according to Ex-Gov. Rick Perry the West Texas Wind farm is froze up and not operating. So the rolling blackouts are really leaving many folks without any options. Especially those in the southern portions state. As most can't heat their homes with candles.

We had I guess a rolling blackout in the middle of the night here. Got pretty chilly inside. Power was back on about an hour after dawn.

So it is just a difficult time for many. Just saying. Praying we don't have many more deaths because of the Cold. And that our farmers can deal with it. We just heard the citrus growers have pretty much lost everything.

So I've had enough of the global warming stuff.

Hang in there guys, and stick together. If you know somebody who's struggling, help them out how you can - no man is an island. I'd hop into my car and help you guys out but this kinda weather puts guys in my line of work into overtime. If you have some firewood and a wood stove, that'll warm you up. Kerosene, naphtha and "white camp gas" can be great, too - but keep that in a ventilated place. Most of those stoves can also run on lead-free gas without modifications, (I'd look through the manual or contact the manufacturer first).

worst-case scenario, those stoves that folks make out of pop/beer cans can work great with methyl hydrate (paint thinner), isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol), and ethanol (either rubbing alcohol with %70 or higher, or straight up everclear) are good cheap fuels in a pinch.

 

[VoodooJazz]

My camping/outdoorsy friends like these for when the heat’s off.

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[fdeck]

Don't forget proper tires.

 

[Silky Johnson]

It's been between -20 and 0 here for almost two weeks, nipples will start cutting thru clothing at about 5 degrees f

 

[Bad Bob]

There’s a lot of good practical advice here, but as an upstate New Yorker, cold is uncomfortable and real, but it helps to have a good mental attitude. Accept it, deal with it, joke with others about it, be as safe as you can, and know that it will be over soon.

 

[Bad Bob]

Also, appreciate those who have to work in it, and those maintaining and restoring our power and other utilities.

 

[Killing Floor]

Thanks @pie_man_25
We’ll be ok. We are keeping up with some neighbors. One of my son’s buddies walked 4 miles here yesterday because teenage boys, something about cerebral cortex not being fully developed? Anyway, I couldn’t let him walk back home so I drove him. I went the longer flat route! Slow and safe. We have food and water and ran a beer to my neighbor who was stressed out. Couple more days.

 

[pie_man_25]

Thanks @pie_man_25
We’ll be ok. We are keeping up with some neighbors. One of my son’s buddies walked 4 miles here yesterday because teenage boys, something about cerebral cortex not being fully developed? Anyway, I couldn’t let him walk back home so I drove him. I went the longer flat route! Slow and safe. We have food and water and ran a beer to my neighbor who was stressed out. Couple more days.

Great to hear!

4 miles isn't too bad as long as you're not wearing tennis shoes - your body will keep itself warm from the activity.

I dunno, it's easy for me (living where I do and working outdoors a lot) to forget that you guys don't have the infrastructure to deal with this exact sort of thing. I mean, can you even BUY a parka or thermal underwear where you guys are? If I were as far south as you guys, I'm not sure it'd be something I'd even think about.

In any case, as many times as I've referenced beers and such in this thread, I think it goes without saying to NOT overdrink alcohol.

 

[DanAdams]

I'm in an area that is cold and loses power somewhat frequently. Throughout the winter I freeze containers of those gel freeze packs (water works too) outdoors, then store the ice containers in my fridge until they're mostly melted, and then rotate them out for freshly frozen containers from my deck.
I feel like it buys me a lot of passive extra fridge time when the power goes out, and bonus! even when the power doesn't go out it saves on electricity since the fridge thermistor doesn't have to call for power as often.

and buy some dang moisture wicking Long-Johns

 

[marchone]

Polypropylene base layers. Cotton kills.