Welp, we’re getting read to get ‘slammed’ by a winter storm…
It’s supposed to start rolling in tomorrow by noon, and continue until Monday sometime…
We’ve watched the lows and highs ping pong all over the place from a high of 17 to a low of 19, to a low of 2! And snowfalls from 8 inches to 15 inches…
In any case, it’s gonna be COLD! And we’re not ready. Our houses aren’t insulated for these kinds of temps, and everybody is running hither and yon looking for generators, heaters, bread, water, eggs, etc…
And a lot of folks are ‘bragging’ that they have gas heat, so it won’t get that bad. Except the gas heat is controlled by electric controllers/pilot lights. Power goes out, it gets ugly!
Also, reminder, kerosene heaters DO NOT belong in the house! Carbon dioxide will kill you!
And check your tire pressures if you’re crazy enough to want to go drive around! Low tire pressure can cause you to roll the beads on the tires right off those fancy rims!
Me? I’ve done what I can, got a checklist, followed it, and I’m not planning on going anywhere. Plus saying prayers none of the pipes freeze. I’ve done what I can to protect them, and will have them dripping, but who knows???
If you have/know elderly in the path of the storm, please check on them.
Also, if you don’t see posts from me, that means we probably lost power and I’m just staying warm in front of my fireplace.
If I don’t see any posts from you, you’re gonna get checked on. Possibly with a casserole in hand… if only because it’s gonna be too icy for me to duck and run if I showed up with a chicken pot pie!
Down in the Texas RGV, I am anticipating likely power brown – blackouts to accommodate those who live in North Texas. No blame – those are dangerous conditions and those who live there need all of the help and prayers they can get. Down here, just a possible freeze Sunday night but by then the precipitation is already gone. A shelter for our outside dog is being planned. We already have an electric ceramic heater for her during cold spells but if power goes out … ?? A shelter with insulated underfoot (likely hay) and some overhead cover should help her. Along with high calorie dog food for the inner furnace.
A friend who PCS’ed to the San Angelo area was walking the giant fluffy dog through the snow this morning, and he reported that she was SOOOOO happy.
How about store some water for cooking/toilets ect.,(bathtub great for water for toilet storage)and shut water down and even drain to lowest point.
I get paranoid about all this but then,am a paranoid prepper!
Best of luck to all,and,help those that deserve help if you can!
Collin County Texas, Rockin B acres. 99 percent ready. My wife is mini prepper so we didn’t have to do much. Genset fired up and tested. 190 pounds of propane for the genset. Back up space heaters. Plenty of drinking water. LOTS of food. Blankets. Power supplies.
We made the last one we will make this one.
We’re located in the gray area that may, or may not, get an accumulation of ice. With most of our electricity coming from the south, and the diligent efforts of our electricity provider to clear easements, we’re in a much better position to have electricity over the worst of the weather. I’ll pray.
Reminder: Texas natural gas valves in the distribution system weren’t winterized as of 2021, and that caused natural gas to stop flowing, and power generation plants that depended on natural gas to shut down:
https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/16/natural-gas-power-storm/
So if the power goes out, be ready to switch to an alternate source of heat, and be ready to shut off the main water valve and drain both the pipes AND the hot water tank to prevent them from freezing and bursting.
Good luck everyone.
Winter SUCKS.
Went out this morning for essentials.
I can’t believe how crowded the liquor store was at 0900.
Best of luck
LOL
Hang in there. The weather you’re facing is what we had for three solid weeks in late December/early January. We’re built for it, and warmer places typically aren’t. Take care, sir.
I’m not worried. (Must be because I am arrogant, and overconfident.) (Slightly more seriously, I’ve been exposed to enough stuff that I can be little numb to weather hazard. Which isn’t really the exposure, it is that I pretty easily cap what I can productively be concerned about.) Anyway, gonna be cold, and this corner of the woods people are not practiced clearing snow.
You could have moved to Arizona…just saying.
A bit late to the party with this, but have used these for a couple of winters now. They work great.
https://www.freezemiser.com/
Just screw ’em on and leave faucet on. They start to drip at about 37 degrees F. Chunk of ice on the ground, but faucet is fine.
Dripping faucets. To be safer, turn off the water to the house then open all the faucets. Don’t forget the washing machine. Turn it on long enough to empty the supply line. Leave all the faucets open.
Central NC is supposed to get hit pretty hard as well with up to an inch of ice accumulation starting tomorrow late afternoon/early evening – which will be a pain when the tree limbs come down and the power goes out. We plan to stay away from the roads as much as possible… Hope everyone is safe out there this weekend.
We’re as ready as we can be up at RedQuarters. More snow than ice, thanks be, but a low of -2F on Monday AM’s not going to be fun. As yes, all the tires read 30 lb at 19F. I’m plugged into a trickle charger, so the battery will be good to go on Monday AM for work. The driver is another story.
We’re expecting the snow to arrive around 10 am Saturday in Southwest Ohio. Hopefully it holds off at least that long, so we can get our gym time in tomorrow morning – Zumba for my wife, fitness center for me, and swim lessons for the daughter.
All- Thanks! And yes, checklist includes turning off water and draining lines. So far, temp is at 27 and falling, no rain/sleet, just now started spitting snow a little. But I did see a jogger in SHORTS a few minutes ago… health nuts…sigh
SC east of I-95 should dodge the bullet, but Columbia, Greenville and points NW may get 3 days of sleet and freezing mix. My State Guard unit is on standby for clearing downed trees. I live in North Charleston, but have winterized the faucets and had the propane for the Generac topped off. Plenty of food and bottled water on hand. If I have to deploy, the wife can handle it. We were stationed in Upstate NY and Vermont for 25 years, including an ice storm that knocked out power for 27 days.
Also, reminder, kerosene heaters DO NOT belong in the house! Carbon dioxide will kill you!
Shouldn’t that be carbon monoxide?
Looks like a COLD few days for you, NFO. I just got our fireplace going, and I’m sure glad I bought that 1/3 cord a month ago!
Too late now but even a small generator will run heating strips for water pipes. You do not want a burst pipe inside a wall. For future, a healthy dual-fuel generator (10kW+) is not as expensive ($1100 or so) as the damage no juice for long periods can be. (dead freezers, burst pipes, no heat, etc)
Ed- THAT is gonna suck.
Feral- Agreed, but you’re right.
Drjim- Yep!
Tom- The problem is finding one!!! Everything for sale around here is the Generac style permanent mount ones for $5000 and up!
On Amazon – probably other places as well:
Westinghouse 12500 Watt Dual Fuel Home Backup Portable Generator, Remote Electric Start, Transfer Switch Ready, Gas and Propane Powered $999
Though I’d wait for the storm and panic to pass
Given that I live in a remote national forest, I do a lot of those things on a daily basis, and Arizona will only be brushed by the Apocalyptic storm. The Generacs that run on your propane tank are expensive, but they work. $5K is entry level and doesn’t include installation, and there are maintenance costs as well. Where I live, literally everyone has them – and they’re usually installed when you build your shack.
I originally planned to install a diesel generator, but then I’d need to store diesel in the house, or build a separate outbuilding for the diesel (and tank). The propane-fuelled generator made more sense when I penciled it out.
Parts of the US (California) have fragile electrical grids, and it’s not a bad idea to have a generator for extreme summer or winter conditions.
I’m near Little Rock. The cold hit here last night.
We get a day or two of single-digit temperatures every winter, but the NOAA forecast shows between 0 and 14 degrees for the next few days. That’s longer than I can remember for it to stay below 20-ish.
My main concern is about pipes freezing. I double-wrapped the outside faucet and blocked the crawlspace vents. Now I’m down to crossing my fingers.
Some of the water pipes are in an outside wall. We used to put a heater under the sink to prevent them from freezing. A few years ago I realized a fan would work at least as well. It’s not warm air like from the heater, but there’s a *lot* of it! Seems to be working, anyway.