Severe Winter Weather: ESSENTIAL PREPARATIONS, TRAVEL ADVICE, DRIVING TIPS & CLOSURES

Zoney

minibear wrote: »

We have a back boiler and I believe it's dangerous if the power goes when the stove is lit. Whenever we've had power cuts we didn't risk lighting the stove. Having the gas heater as backup anyway I'd rather not take any chances.

If it's plumbed properly it should be fine. Ours releases the heat even without the pump switched on, naturally through upstairs radiators, which is fine in very cold weather.

In fact with ours, the pump won't activate even if switched on, until the water gets pretty hot (upstairs warmed up). Which even on only slightly chilly autumn/spring evenings needs quite a big fire.

On a very cold day, unless you light a veritable bonfire, then the back boiler will only just about keep the upstairs radiators warm, no need to worry about pump. Unless your plumbing is messed up.

Driving the central heating fully via back boiler needs quite good coal in our experience, wood and briquettes struggle to heat the back boiler enough to get the pump to operate for the downstairs radiators

An Ri rua

Jake1 wrote: »

Thanks for starting this thread UFA

I have questions myself.
Was wondering, should I leave taps dribbling over night, or would leaving the heating on suffice, to protect any pipes from freezing?

Also, the tank in attic, is there anything, I should do there, to protect it?

BBQ briquettes, is a brilliant idea, Super Rush.

Thanks all

In 2010, I was in a rented house in Laois. The landlord was a bit of a drinker. A few neighbours had passed derogatory comments about his house and condition to me before Dec 2010 came along.
By only sparsely using oil to protect the heating system (I was very stuck for money) but by running a paraffin heater (Inverter 3.2kW) in the hallway of the bungalow, and running an open fire, I was one of TWO houses out of 80 whose water pipes did not freeze. Civil Defence had to help the rest. I simply opened the attic hatch a small bit and let that highly insulated space warm a little.

So if you're highly insulated up there, get a frost lamp or just open the hatch a crack for a few days.

An Ri rua

Row wrote: »

Here is a helpful clip that could take someone out of a spot if caught up in snow.
All ya need is a length of rope the boot...:)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpJKU-zO4hk

This deserves far more thanks folks. A bit of rope is a always handy in your boot.

And a shovel. And cable ties .....

Seriously though, possibly the best tip here. So where's the thanks?

ZX7R

Zoney wrote: »

If it's plumbed properly it should be fine. Ours releases the heat even without the pump switched on, naturally through upstairs radiators, which is fine in very cold weather.

In fact with ours, the pump won't activate even if switched on, until the water gets pretty hot (upstairs warmed up). Which even on only slightly chilly autumn/spring evenings needs quite a big fire.

On a very cold day, unless you light a veritable bonfire, then the back boiler will only just about keep the upstairs radiators warm, no need to worry about pump. Unless your plumbing is messed up.

Driving the central heating fully via back boiler needs quite good coal in our experience, wood and briquettes struggle to heat the back boiler enough to get the pump to operate for the downstairs radiators

Probably because the pump is linked to a thermostat and set very high by the sounds of it or your thermostat is to far away from the pump. 40c is the recommended tempature for a solid fuel with a back boiler.
Seems strange to me the rads downstairs don't heat up, mine did that when I installed mine first, there was a block in the system, had to flush it

SeaBreezes

My list (from 2010 and Ophelia)
Baby wipes, great if water limited for cleaning house and people
Bottled water
Radio with batteries
Gas tank and ring (gas to my cooker works when temps mild but too cold and gas contracts and might not work)
Lagging for pipes
Water store for flushing toilets (fill the bath if water/elec out)
Battery operated lanterns
Hot water bottles (great for defrosting pipes)


I do need advice for my hen tho, she's outside in a wooden coop. Gonna insulate it tomorrow with cardboard and paper. No elec so heat lamp not an option any suggestions?

Deank

SeaBreezes wrote: »

My list (from 2010 and Ophelia)
Baby wipes, great if water limited for cleaning house and people
Bottled water
Radio with batteries
Gas tank and ring (gas to my cooker works when temps mild but too cold and gas contracts and might not work)
Lagging for pipes
Water store for flushing toilets (fill the bath if water/elec out)
Battery operated lanterns
Hot water bottles (great for defrosting pipes)


I do need advice for my hen tho, she's outside in a wooden coop. Gonna insulate it tomorrow with cardboard and paper. No elec so heat lamp not an option any suggestions?

Sorry

uck51js9zml2yt

OmegaGene wrote: »

Cook the food and bag it and freeze it in the deep freezer
Camping gas stove to heat it up

The deep freeze won't work!

Irish Steve

Where to start? Most of the essentials have already been mentioned, but the emphasis I would make is related to driving.

You may have the most wonderful vehicle in the world that can go up or down Mount Everest in 2 Ft of Snow on a layer of ice, but if some other driver in front of you can't cope with the conditions, and blocks the road, and then other drivers behind you manage to do the same, if you've not got some very good outer garments that will keep the cold and wet out, you could be in serious problems, even more so if you can't keep the engine running to provide some warmth in the vehicle, and depending on how long your journey is, the thoughts of needing extra clothing may not have been considered, even a short school run can go wrong in some situations, and if there's a lot of snow falling in windy conditions, you won't get far without the right levels of protection. Blizzard conditions in below zero temperatures with significant wind chill are a killer, very quickly.

And yes, I am being blunt and alarmist for good reasons, no one should die because they failed to take adequate precautions when starting even a short journey, but every time there are extreme weather conditions, lives are lost because of the failures to prepare adequately.

Footwear that is suitable for the conditions needs to be in the vehicle, in case you do actually have to leave it due to circumstances beyond your direct control.

Headwear is essential in low temperatures, at minimum a built in hood in a jacket, but a decent weight proper hat, or similar is much more appropriate. a decent scarf or similar to add extra neck protection is also no bad thing. Gloves are also a good idea.

A few snacks and a bottle or two of non alcoholic drink can be important if you're on a longer journey, just in case of delays, partly because a hot car (which is understandable) is a contributor to dehydration. A thermos flask with a hot drink is even better.

If driving out of town at night, a good torch may be essential, especially if you have to leave the vehicle.

gozunda

Deank wrote: »

Sorry

Do ye know nothing?

A hen lays eggs but
A chicken makes a nice dinner

You can roast the latter
But you will have to boil the buggery out of the first.


SeaBreezes - bring your hen in - sounds like she could do with a bit of company and you dont want her ending up as a snack for an opportunistic fox ...

YFlyer

The gritter truck was out tonight in Castletroy, Limerick spraying either salt or grit on the roads.

Deank

gozunda wrote: »

Do ye know nothing?

A hen lays eggs but
A chicken makes a nice dinner

You can roast the latter
But you will have to boil the buggery out of the first.


SeaBreezes - bring your hen in - sounds like she could do with a bit of company and you dont want her ending up as a snack for a opportunistic fox ...

Who knew :pac:

SeaBreezes

Deank wrote: »

Sorry

LOL poor hen!! Not an option, unless the cold REALLY digs in...

Saganist

YFlyer wrote: »

The gritter truck was out tonight in Castletroy, Limerick spraying either salt or grit on the roads.

Seen one gritting the N2 today.

igCorcaigh

YFlyer wrote: »

The gritter truck was out tonight in Castletroy, Limerick spraying either salt or grit on the roads.

Hope they also do the footpaths.

mfceiling

up for anything wrote: »

Also, I'm a scaredy cat driving on a bit of frost so any ice/snow is going to a challenge. I usually hold my breathe and close my eyes on the way down

Please stay off the roads if the weather turns bad.

YFlyer

If issue with water or heating, go to the local gym or college for a shower. I have University of Limerick for my free shower

nacho libre

It might be worth posting this again:



How to tackle driving in the snow

"Wear comfortable and dry footwear
Accelerate gently, use low revs and change up to a higher gear as quickly as possible
Move off in second gear as this will help reduce wheel slip - some cars have a winter mode, which does the same job – so to check whether your car has this function in the vehicle’s handbook

Get your speed right and maintain safe stopping distances between you and the car in front, leaving as much as 10 times the normal recommended gap
Prepare for an uphill by leaving plenty of room in front so you can maintain a constant speed without the need for changing gear

Use a low gear for going downhill and try to avoid braking unless necessary, make sure you leave plenty of space between you and the car in front

When approaching a bend, brake before you actually start to turn the steering wheel. If your car does lose grip try not to panic; the key thing is to take your foot off the accelerator and make sure that your wheels are pointing in the direction you want to go in

If you do encounter a skid, steer gently into it - for example, if the rear of the car is sliding to the right, steer to the right. Do not take your hands off the steering wheel or stamp your foot on the brakes

When driving in heavy snow, make sure that you use your dipped headlights. Relying on daytime running lights is not enough, because they don’t always put lights on the back of your car.

If visibility drops below a 100m, put your fog lights on. But remember to turn them off when the visibility improves.

If the road has not been gritted, be wary of driving in the wheeltracks or other vehicles as compressed snow is likely to be more icy than fresh snow

Controls such as the brakes, as well as the steering, accelerator and even gear changing should be operated smoothly and slowly

Sunglasses can help to reduce the glare of low winter sun on the snow
Keep your speed down and allow more time to stop and steer

Finally, it’s important to think about the environment that you’re driving in, especially microclimates that might appear on the road. These are areas that perhaps the sun hasn’t got to, which could stay icy when the rest of the road has thawed. Bridges are a good example. They’re normally the first to freeze and the last to thaw. So be aware of that when you’re driving in open spaces. "

YFlyer

igCorcaigh wrote: »

Hope they also do the footpaths.

Hardly. They gritted the roads on Sunday the 11th. The paths weren't. Footpaths and cycle lanes were like ice rings on the Monday morning.

igCorcaigh

YFlyer wrote: »

Hardly. They gritted the roads on Sunday the 11th. The paths weren't. Footpaths and cycle lanes were like ice rings on the Monday morning.

Crazy. If paths aren't gritted, pedestrians will walk on the road. Accident waiting to happen.

SleetAndSnow

igCorcaigh wrote: »

Crazy. If paths aren't gritted, pedestrians will walk on the road. Accident waiting to happen.

Same happened here on Sarsfield Road. Paths werent gritted, road was. People were slipping everywhere

Pa ElGrande

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnWOBE4Tg74

nacho libre

A bit off topic but i have seen people recently wearing shoes with no socks on their feet. Are there feet not freezing? Also it must be uncomfortable. Surely with the snow coming they will put their socks back on!

mattser

Can someone put an end to this misery thread. FFS It's weather.

SleetAndSnow

nacho libre wrote: »

A bit off topic but i have seen people recently wearing shoes with no socks on their feet. Are there feet not freezing? Also it must be uncomfortable. Surely with the snow coming they will put their socks back on!

Welcome to our strange generation nacho.

But seriously I have no idea why thats a trend, it makes it so uncomfortable to wear shoes too

fritzelly

nacho libre wrote: »

A bit off topic but i have seen people recently wearing shoes with no socks on their feet. Are there feet not freezing? Also it must be uncomfortable. Surely with the snow coming they will put their socks back on!

Theyre wearing socks you can't see, it's a trend with trousers at half mast

Rougies

italodisco wrote: »

When I worked in Poland a neighbour of mine wore golf shoes when he was heading to the shops as to not slip on the ice lol

Not a bad idea!

That is a good idea! If you don't have golf shoes, here's a great idea for some DIY snow shoes I found earlier. All you need is a couple of old frisbees and some superglue. This image is pretty self explanatory.

Charles Babbage

nacho libre wrote: »

A bit off topic but i have seen people recently wearing shoes with no socks on their feet. Are there feet not freezing? Also it must be uncomfortable. Surely with the snow coming they will put their socks back on!

The proper thing to do is put the sock over the shoe, for grip.

policy75

bought 20 bales of briquettes today. Would be most upset if we were not in this for the long haul :-)

redsteveireland

nacho libre wrote: »

A bit off topic but i have seen people recently wearing shoes with no socks on their feet. Are there feet not freezing? Also it must be uncomfortable. Surely with the snow coming they will put their socks back on!

Ive known certain people to wear their "dubes" with no socks for many years, it's not a new thing. Nasty sweaty feet comes to mind.
Running spikes could be handy on frozen ground too.

_Whimsical_

I'll be very obvious and say get a hotwater bottle.

During the last cold snap I know of two people who died in their beds, in their homes. One from hypothermia and one because she drunkenly brought a hair styling appliance into bed to warm her up and ended up putting the bed on fire. Awfully sad cases and completely preventable. A hot water bottle can make a massive difference to someone older who isn't very mobile but for the rest of us it's cosy and warm.


Also if it gets very bad and you think your water pipes will freeze then fill your bath up with water and if your running water does disappear you can use the bath water to fill the toilet cistern so you can still flush it.

policy75

Charles Babbage wrote: »

The proper thing to do is put the sock over the shoe, for grip.

I mentioned that to my son yesterday. Problem I see with this solution is you get stuck to the footpath?

Rougies

Charles Babbage wrote: »

The proper thing to do is put the sock over the shoe, for grip.

The choice is to have a grip, or to have a grip on fashion. I'll be wearing plastic bags over my socks, probably let the ends peek about a bit to show I'm rocking the pre-bagtax era.

igCorcaigh

I think you can get ice grips for shoes; cleats I think they're called. Anybody know where sells them?

If it does thaw and then refreeze, getting around on foot could be very tricky.

sryanbruen

I spoke too soon, now socks and shoes. :P

What's next? :rolleyes:

policy75

sryanbruen wrote: »

I spoke too soon, now socks and shoes. :P

What's next? :rolleyes:

you have the fear of God (currently it seems residing in Siberia) put into us young man ;-)

squarecircles

I SAID ...SEND "SUPPLIES"!

IV ordered a life size clown,incase I get snowed in and need entertaining.

(Specsavers add)

endacl

Jake1 wrote: »

Was wondering, should I leave taps dribbling over night, or would leaving the heating on suffice, to protect any pipes from freezing?

Pointlessly wasting water will do nothing to stop pipes from freezing. Pipes freeze from the outside in. If they're going to freeze, they'll freeze, unless you're connected to mains antifreeze*. Insulation stops water pipes freezing. Not flow. The only thing letting a tap drip would be good for is to prevent a pressure buildup between a blockage and the outlet. Which wouldn't happen. You can observe this not happening by taking a look at any tap in your house. Is it flying off its connection because of the water pressure? No. Of course it's not. Because it's designed to not do that!

Tl:dr:

Don't leave your taps running. Because physics.


*No such thing. Just for clarity.

endacl

endacl wrote: »

Pointlessly wasting water will do nothing to stop pipes from freezing. Pipes freeze from the outside in. If they're going to freeze, they'll freeze, unless you're connected to mains antifreeze*. Insulation stops water pipes freezing. Not flow. The only thing letting a tap drip would be good for is to prevent a pressure buildup between a blockage and the outlet. Which wouldn't happen. You can observe this not happening by taking a look at any tap in your house. Is it flying off its connection because of the water pressure? No. Of course it's not. Because it's designed to not do that!

Tl:dr:

Don't leave your taps running. Because physics.


*No such thing. Just for clarity.

That was an exceedingly good explanation , thank you.

igCorcaigh

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

Stocking freezer, fridge and non perishables for if you can’t get out to the shop. We have a tiny freezer. A few discussed today I hadn’t thought of.

Meat like pork steak have long dates so can go in the fridge. Short date meats into the freezer. Wraps and even pitta have longer dates so if you can’t get out for bread and aren’t a cook that’s an option. Similarly cookable bread rolls have decent dates. Soups and pasta and all those go without say. If you have lots of freezer space milk can be frozen

Freezer space should not be a problem

Kamili

Random one for people with horses that I heard during the week. Horse poop of the freshly delivered kind is great for packing around outside tap pipes to act as insulation. It's warm enough to keep the freezing temperatures from freezing the pipes. Acts as an insulator even when it cools down too apparently.

gozunda

Kamili wrote: »

Random one for people with horses that I heard during the week. Horse poop of the freshly delivered kind is great for packing around outside tap pipes to act as insulation. It's warm enough to keep the freezing temperatures from freezing the pipes. Acts as an insulator even when it cools down too apparently.

Well rotted Horse manure from a heap is an active heat source - if you can get your hands (!) on any ...

listermint

Kamili wrote: »

Random one for people with horses that I heard during the week. Horse poop of the freshly delivered kind is great for packing around outside tap pipes to act as insulation. It's warm enough to keep the freezing temperatures from freezing the pipes. Acts as an insulator even when it cools down too apparently.

Eh just buy a wrap of pipe insulation it's a couple of euro.

We're not living in the hills of Albania

BabysCoffee

Dealz are selling those grip things you put on over your shoes.

Argos have travel snow shovels for 6 euro.

Dishwasher salt is 1.60 for 3kg bag n Tesco. Might be cheaper in Lidl......

Oops69

gozunda wrote: »

Well rotted Horse manure from a heap is an active heat source - if you can get your hands (!) on any ...

Dail Eireann have plenty , but at a price .

aboyro

any thoughts on factory roofs etc. we have a large amount of factories in ireland with flat roof's. i wonder has the load bearing capacity been considered for an event like this????

charlietheminxx

aboyro wrote: »

any thoughts on factory roofs etc. we have a large amount of factories in ireland with flat roof's. i wonder has the load bearing capacity been considered for an event like this????

An engineer at design stage should have taken this into account.

my3cents

endacl wrote: »

Pointlessly wasting water will do nothing to stop pipes from freezing. Pipes freeze from the outside in. If they're going to freeze, they'll freeze, unless you're connected to mains antifreeze*. Insulation stops water pipes freezing. Not flow. The only thing letting a tap drip would be good for is to prevent a pressure buildup between a blockage and the outlet. Which wouldn't happen. You can observe this not happening by taking a look at any tap in your house. Is it flying off its connection because of the water pressure? No. Of course it's not. Because it's designed to not do that!

Tl:dr:

Don't leave your taps running. Because physics.


*No such thing. Just for clarity.

Depends on the rate of flow. We had a field trough that comes off the house supply that leaked a lot, when I fixed it the whole line that fed it froze up in cold weather when it never had when there was the leak.

Obviously water flowing through the pipe is warmer than the freezing point of water so if the water runs through the pipe then it can warm the pipe on the inside faster than its loosing heat from the outside. Because physics.

Just don't waste water!

irelandspurs

I've bought my wife a new brush in case the power goes and she can't use the vacuum, she can still clean the house.

Chivito550

I’m going to Birmingham for the World Indoor Athletics Championships on Thursday to Monday. Flying from Dublin Thursday lunchtime. The championships start Thursday evening.

What’s the percentage likelihood right now based on forecasts that my flight will be cancelled?

Should I bite the bullet and book a boat to Hollyhead and train to Birmingham on Thursday?

Are boat and train journeys likely to be effected by this too?

This is a real pain. Any other week and I wouldn’t care, but timing is awful for me.

George Sunsnow

hoody wrote: »

Flying Shannon to Heathrow and back on Tuesday. From following details on the various threads here, I'm not expecting any issue at Shannon, but how is Heathrow likely to be affected, and how well set up are they to deal with snow / frost?

Delay issues st Heathrow I’d say but you should get back
This episode is well flagged this time at Lhr so all their gear will be out
Lack of warning in December caused problems there