ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Do you Winterize?

Couldn't be much worse than 3 kids and a sick hubby....

For those of us who fly a desk:
- Add box of instant oatmeal, hot chocolate (packets) & tea bags to lunch bag
- Bring out the panel heater for cold feet
- Bring sweater to leave in drawer

This morning it was a chilly 11 degrees F when I was trying to get aforementioned kids out of their cozy beds.

[This message has been edited by BuggabooBren (edited 11-24-2003).]

Ah, to winterize in Arizona,

I will finally get into your attic and install those recess cans that you wanted last summer.

I love the winter.

HOw many of you up in places like MN, WI, or the Canadian plains use those plug-in engine block heaters in winter?

I understand they're quite common in Scandinavian countries too.

I know of guys who when they go to northern Maine never shut their diesel trucks off, even when they spend the night in Hotel . When temps are 30 below zero, stuff starts hard the next morning
Engine block heaters are common all over Maine.

One thing not to do:

If the weather is below zero, DO NOT put the little square nut from the uni-strut clamp in your mouth if the clamps are laying outside all night. Saw a guy do this in Wyoming on a job once, just like a kid with his tongue stuck to a flag pole.

Straightedge I'm with you. Jobs requiring a lot of attic work are scheduled between 5:00 AM and 11:00 AM in the summer, but in the winter all day. Even still. a sunny winter day here can heat up an attic pretty good.
Brian........Tucson

Wow! When I was in Nebraska it was quite normal to see people leaving their engines running while going to the post office or to get some groceries, but I don't remember anyone leaving the motor running all night!

In Boston MA the local transit authority (MBTA) will leave the diesel busses running all night when the forecast is for cold weather.

I do not know at what temperature they decide to do this.

It is not every winter night.

Bill here in MA we can still run studded tires from November until the end of April.

They do a real number on the road when some one spins a studded tire in one spot.

I used to drive a Zamboni and the studded tires on that would rip up concrete.

[This message has been edited by iwire (edited 11-26-2003).]

I feel for you guys....I cry like a baby when it hits 40 F. Born and raised in AZ has its price I guess. How do I winterize? I put on pants. Sorry couldn't resist.

Paluk you were asking about block heater usage in Canada. Where I am in Manitoba it can go down to -40C in December through March and if your not plugged in you are not starting your vehicle.

Alot of people find out when it gets cold that their block heaters don't work. They then have the long hour wait for a tow truck to come jump the battery so they can start their vehicle.

About 5 years ago some vandal came through our lot when I was working evenings and unplugged all the cars. I had to wait 3 hours for the motor league to get a truck to me so I could go home.

The big thing now is energy management on the plugs. Manitoba Hydro says that the block heaters are only needed for up to 4 hours to warm the engine up, so to reduce consumption costs companies are putting devices on the staff plarking plugs to turn the power off and on depending on the weather.

Here are two examples the first is a central control unit and the second one is a retrofit that goes at each stall.
http://www.hydro.mb.ca/saving_with_ps/central_parking_controller.pdf
http://iplc.com/installation.html