COLD

Mosey · Jan 21, 2003

We're having our coldest winter since moving to southern Indiana. It was in the 30's (F) yesterday, but we've had several days with the high only in the 20's and lows are supposed to be below zero the next couple of days. According to weather.com, it's actually warmer in Leadville, Colorado where the elevation is 10,000 feet! I moved south (from Michigan) to get away from this kind of stuff! If we don't have a mild (cooler) summer to make up for it, then I need to move further south.

Bird - I tried Texas once, but for me the 100 degree days in the summer were just as miserable as the 0 degree mornings here in the winter!

Bird · Jan 21, 2003

Yep, Danny, I really don't like the heat in the summer. If it weren't for air-conditioning, I'd definitely be looking to move elsewhere. And I guess the only thing predictable about the weather is its unpredictability. I played golf in 70 degree weather yesterday, partly cloudy, but unfortunately so windy you wondered whether you could keep it from blowing the golf ball off the tee./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif And now it's 54 degrees this morning, clear, and supposed to be getting cooler all day and some freezing weather again the next few days./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

Boondox · Jan 21, 2003

Danny -- It's colder than normal here in Vermont as well. Supposed to have a high of -3 today. Haven't seen a sub-zero high for three years...and it's supposed to be like this thru the weekend! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Pete

JDGREEN4ME · Jan 21, 2003

Our run of cold continues here in my part of PA. Not as cold as some of you guys but we have been down to single numbers and the wind...

Anonymous Poster · Jan 21, 2003

Hank, I know you moved from Md to AZ. FYI, tonight they are calling for temperatures around 10 degrees in the city and 4 degrees in the burbs. A little on the "cool" side.

Knight9 · Jan 21, 2003

Going down to below -30 overnight tonight. With wind chill expected to have a "feels like" temperature of -40 C....course -40 C = -40 F!!!! Brrrrrr..

Kevin

frank_f15 · Jan 22, 2003

yep -40 f =-40 c, either one is too darn cold. glad i live in the sunny south where the temp is only suposed to get to about 0. try to remember a few days this past summer when i was on the bota moving dirt, shorts, wet rag around my neck, and this at 8 pm. said the heck with it and went in to the a/c . what a diff a few months make. but i love it all, hot, cold and in bet. gives me something to gripe about/w3tcompact/icons/blush.gif

Boondox · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Woke up to minus 16 and a stiff breeze coming from the north. Thought that was cold till I listened to the NOAA report of conditions on Mt Washington. 32 below zero with sustained winds of over 100MPH!!! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Pete

RichZ · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

It's been between -10 to -20 degrees F all week when I get up to take care of the animals. This morning I got up to -30 degrees F!!!!/w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif This is unbelievable!!! This is upstate New York, not the artic circle!!! I'd be happy just to wake up and have it above 0!!!

rancar · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Hi Rich...

This is unbelievable!!! This is upstate New York, not the artic circle!!!

Actually, these were normal temps here in Cambridge during the 1960s and 70s. BTW, how are you making out with your water pipes? Just about everyone I know around Cambridge who live in older homes experience pipes freezing up at these temps.

"I'd be happy just to wake up and have it above 0!!!"

Not much longer to wait....we'll be above 0 in the AM by this weekend and they're saying January thaw starting next week. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

.....Bob

Boondox · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

We've had frozen pipes twice this month in the cottage we rent above our farmhouse. Real pain in the buns! Years ago we had a fire in the farmhouse this time of year and all the pipes in the basement ruptured in the cold. We replumbed with Wirsbo PEX. Amazing stuff! One of the half inch lines running along the basement wall froze solid when a basement window broke and let winter in. The line just swelled up twice its normal size and went back to normal when it thawed out!

Reactions to cold weather are kinda funny. I was all bundled up yesterday morning at 10 below, but by the afternoon it had warmed to 3 above and I was comfortable in a t-shirt while getting eggs from the coop.

Pete

Wingnut · Jan 22, 2003

-40 C = -40 F!!!! Brrrrrr..
buncha wussies!
Why, he says stroking his long white beard, I remember back when I lived in Inuvik, we used to go out snowmobiling at -60

/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

pete .... who now thinks that the 0 F this morning was cold enough for him .... and is suffering from PMS (parked motorcycle syndrome)

RichZ · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Howdy, Bob!

Luckily the frozen pipes are just to our washing machine. Our house is over 200 years old, and the laundry room used to be a porch, so it has no basement underneath it, and we can't get to those pipes. We called our friend who is a plumber, and he tried to blow a heater under that section of the house, but he couldn't defrost the pipe. We have forced air heat, and he extended a section of pvc pipe from a heating duct to the section of the house where the frozen pipe is, but it STILL hasn't defrosted yet!!!/w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif We're hoping the pipe isn't broken, but we'll only know when and if it ever defrosts.

In the meantime, we have a hosebib under the kitchen sink, so we attach a graden hose between that and the washing machine when we do laundry, so we can at least use the machine. Our plumber said he has spent most of the past few weeks dealing with frozen pipes all over the Cambridge area. What a winter!!!/w3tcompact/icons/mad.gif

RichZ · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Pete, it is amazing what you get used to. I was working in the barn over the weekend when it was 10 below, and I had to take my coat off.

You're getting eggs??? Our chickens are barely laying!!! They hate being locked in the henhouse, and some days we don't get any eggs, at most we get 2 or three. Down from 12 or more each day!!! The chickens don't like this weather either!!!

rancar · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

"The line just swelled up twice its normal size and went back to normal when it thawed out!"

Wow....this is amazing. Where does one buy this stuff called Wirsbo PEX, Pete?

"...it had warmed to 3 above and I was comfortable in a t-shirt while getting eggs from the coop"

Sounds like good weather for budding Rambos in training.../w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

....Bob

Knight9 · Jan 22, 2003

Hey Pete,

We have a contractor in here for two days who flew in yesterday from Texas....tee hee.... 70 F apparently and about -30 F here. 100 degree temp swing literally in hours...

Welcome to Edmonton I say!!!! /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

Kevin

rancar · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Rich...

It's a little comforting to know I'm not the only one who has this problem. Misery loves company, ehh?

My pipes freeze up in the basement under these temp extremes. Before the house renovation was completed and before I installed new basement windows (and windows I should add, for those following the Building Permit thread, that I didn't have to get permits for /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif), the only way I had to warm these pipes was with electrical taping. I never found these to be very effective, especially around joints. I've since installed two overhead electric space heaters, similar to ones you see in warehouses, that hang down from the ceilings. These are placed at opposite ends of my basement. When basement temps get down to 30 degrees or so I have to turn these on. With these running for 10-15 minutes, the pipes quickly thaw and I'm good to go. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

"We're hoping the pipe isn't broken, but we'll only know when and if it ever defrosts..."

In this case and as a precaution, you might want to install a separate shut off valve on the water line running to the washer if you don't have one already. When temps warm up and if you're away, you might come home to a flooded crawl space and basement. Just speaking from experience and a small inexpensive tip that I hope others can benefit from. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

Stay safe and warm....
Bob

Boondox · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Rich -- Yeah, we're getting eggs from our Buff Orpingtons (about six a day from nine birds) but the two year old hens aren't putting out anymore. If they don't start up again in spring we'll stew them.

Pete

RichZ · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Thanks, Bob!! We've got the valve shut off already!!! Great minds think alike!!/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif Now we just have to wait for the thaw. I figure that'll happen sometime in August!!!/w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif

Boondox · Jan 22, 2003

Re: REALLY COLD

Bob -- PEX is cross-linked polyethylene (I think) and I got it from my local heating/plumbing folks. They highly recommended the stuff for use in cold locations. It's not to be confused with that stuff used in radiant heating systems of several years ago that started failing. There was an article recently in one of the home mags (sorry, can't remember which one -- probably TOH or Fine Homebuilding since I get both of them) that gave a really good evaluation and how-to guide.

I built a pair of manifolds (one hot and one cold) with ball valves to isolate every water fixture in the house. Because of the manifold and the individual runs, we no longer have water hammers or those annoying pressure drops when in the shower and someone else flushes, starts the washer, etc. Also, because we eliminated every single elbow in the pipes, we seem to have better water pressure.

I had absolutely no plumbing experience at all, but was able to replumb our 160 year old two-story farmhouse in one long day (this does not include making the manifold with the help of a "Soldering for Dummies" book). We were even able to use the old copper pipe to pull the new PEX down the inner walls from the upstairs bathroom to the basement!

Let me know if you want some pictures of the stuff.

Pete