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Post by brownrexx on Feb 18, 2015 18:24:01 GMT -5
It just started snowing here but only an inch or two is expected. However, the arctic air and the wind return tomorrow and that is the really brutal part.
I just keep thinking "at least I don't live in Boston".
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Post by breezygardener on Feb 18, 2015 18:27:37 GMT -5
Didn't get above freezing today, although at least we had some sunshine interrupted by a few snow flurries.
Just got back inside from sledgehammering water tubs & topping up with warm water, as well as tossing out a king's ransom's worth of alfalfa - lol! And then dutifully dragged Mr. Hose back into the basement.
The wind is picking up strongly now, so glad I'm done with my outdoor chores. It will be Mr. B's turn to take the hounds from hell out for their last "business" walk of the night later.
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Post by oliverman on Feb 18, 2015 20:24:34 GMT -5
High of 8 degrees here today with wind gusts up to 30 mph. Forecast low for tonight is -10. High tomorrow is supposed to be a sweltering 5 degrees. Not complaining much though. At least there isn't a blizzard to go with it.
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Post by desertwoman on Feb 18, 2015 21:36:36 GMT -5
And we are continuing with the typical spring yo-yo., a month or two early A run of 60 degree days then a snow storm, more 60's, then another snow.
Yesterday AM woke up to a couple of inches, which was mostly melted by the afternoon. Today's high was 60.
The rose bushes are leafing out. In February. oh no
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Post by gakaren on Feb 18, 2015 21:43:29 GMT -5
And we are headed to a deep freeze for us. It was 29º when I got up this morning and supposed to be colder tonight. We never made it to 50º today. Tomorrow we aren't supposed to get out of the 30's & Fri. am. supposed to be in the teens! And then on Sun., they are forecasting 70º....talk about yo -yo!
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Post by brownrexx on Feb 19, 2015 9:03:13 GMT -5
It is 10 degrees right now and they say it is all downhill from here with wind chills increasing all day and by tomorrow morning it may be 20 below.
We'll be giving the chickens extra rations of corn and scratch grain today.
The gas company is asking people to set their thermostats back to 65 degrees. They say that the low temperatures cause the line pressure to drop so there could be shortages in supply. I never heard of that before.
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Post by ellenr on Feb 19, 2015 10:00:19 GMT -5
I'm worried about pipes freezing.
In Texas one winter, the temps dropped, I don't remember to what, but lower than usual for Houston, and lots of pipes froze, bec. naturally folk down there do not wrap their pipes.
In the Northeast I'm sure there is some protection to pipes, down to a certain temp, but I wonder if it will suit to these unusual temps. I'm in an apartment building, so nothing I can do. I'm sure management is worrying about this too.
We are in a wind chill advisory now thru 11 am Fri, wind chill temp predicted 10-15 below- Fri, a high of 20, which 'feels like' 5.
another winter storm approaching for Sat, but I didn't look at that. I did sneak a look a March, hoping for something to be happy about, weatherwise. the first week is forecast to be in the '30's, definitely an improvement, but still ten degrees below the average.
--sigh
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Post by ellenr on Feb 19, 2015 10:04:47 GMT -5
speaking of Boston, there was a kinda funny story - not to laugh at these folk who so far have 7 feet of snow-- but- in south End of Boston, there is a convention, that if you clean your parking space on the street, and put something out to mark it - ie. a chair - no one can park in it for 48 hours.
someone was visiting, and didn't know or didn't care - so they parked in someone's space -
when that person returned they piled all the snow on top of the car!
lots of incidents when the snow is so much, road rage.
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Post by SpringRain🕊️ on Feb 19, 2015 11:50:28 GMT -5
Ellen,
Even in an apartment you can take some protection. We’ve had more than a few -25 to -30 wind chill evenings (including last night), so I’ve also been concerned about freezing pipes.
These are a few things you can try.
1. Leave the cold water faucets open just slightly, enough to allow them to drip regularly. Apparently the burst pipes occur when the pipes freeze, the trapped water expands, and there’s nowhere to go. So allegedly allowing some dripping at least allows water to escape and lessen the likelihood of burst pipes.
I’ve been fortunate enough not to have experienced it, but it has happened in this area. In fact the local news reported that pipes burst in two buildings at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan.
2. When it’s warm enough to venture outside, get some of the black foam type insulation from Lowe’s, Home Depot or a local hardware store. You’ll have to measure the diameter of your pipes first, then get the appropriately sized foam insulation. Wrap it around the pipes underneath your sinks. Those are probably the only pipes you can access, and it may not help, but it wouldn’t hurt to try.
Hopefully the management will wrap the pipes in the basement of the apartment complex. I think the South has had enough aberrant weather that home and building owners can see that winter protection is justified now.
Unfortunately, I don’t remember at this time what type of sealant to use to close the foam wrap. I’m sure it would have to be temperature tolerant. When I had to wrap a wandering dryer hose once, I found a good tape that was heat tolerant. I don’t remember the name of it. It looks like duct tape but if I remember correctly had some type of insulating substance which enabled it to tolerate the high heat of a dryer. 3. I've read that leaving open sink and cabinet doors that enclose pipes will allow warmer air access to the pipes, and this could help prevent freezing.
I’m guessing someone here has gone through this though and could offer better advice on this aspect.
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Post by breezygardener on Feb 19, 2015 12:40:07 GMT -5
When temps (like now) dip down into the single digits, every night I go around & set every faucet to the slowest continuous drip possible. So far it's been working.
Last year when we went through a couple of weeks of deep freeze, while luckily our pipes didn't burst, more than once we didn't have any water until the sun had been up for a few hours. This was before we started setting drips at night.
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Post by SpringRain🕊️ on Feb 19, 2015 12:45:23 GMT -5
Breezy, thanks for insight into your experience. Now that I know it works, I'm not going to worry about the nominal extra cost of dripping water.
I'm glad your pipes didn't burst but it sounds as though it might have been close had the sun not appeared to save the day.
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Post by breezygardener on Feb 19, 2015 12:51:36 GMT -5
Breezy, thanks for insight into your experience. Now that I know it works, I'm not going to worry about the nominal extra cost of dripping water.
I'm glad your pipes didn't burst but it sounds as though it might have been close had the sun not appeared to save the day.
Not having experienced this before prior to last year, I actually called our plumber company when we had no water last year. They stopped by & were very sweet. Checked the pipes to be sure nothing had burst, & then just told me to wait a bit until temps warmed up. No charge (I have GREAT plumbers), & sure enough - water was running fine in a couple of hours.
From now on, it's the slow drip set at night for me. Whatever water is wasted is worth having water the next morning & no burst pipes. You just have to make sure that you actually have a continuous slow drip & not just a few drips coming after you've turned off the faucet, which can fake you into thinking the faucet is dripping when in reality it's turned off.
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Post by ecsoehng on Feb 19, 2015 17:44:10 GMT -5
I forgot all about the water thing. It has not been this cold for quite some time. Someone is always up and about 24 hrs a day at our house since there are either nurses or me doing the night work so maybe that is why I have not yet had a problem. It is COLD! I am going to lose my ARP rosemary again. I need to put one in a pot and move it in the garage when it gets super cold.
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Post by brownrexx on Feb 19, 2015 19:04:29 GMT -5
Leaving the cabinet doors open below your bathroom and kitchen sinks is also a good idea if they are on the first floor. The basement below them can be VERY cold.
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Post by datgirl on Feb 19, 2015 19:08:08 GMT -5
It was -9 when I left for work this morning. -2 right now. Don't even want to know what the wind chill temp is. Just crazy.
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