[Socal2Bham]

Originally Posted by Bravo35223

The biggest concern you would have RE: car damage would be from a tree limb falling on them....

This is why my boyfriend wants to cut down all the pine trees in our front yard.

[Threestep]

Who remembers the snowstorm of 93? :>)

[Bravo35223]

Originally Posted by Socal2Bham

This is why my boyfriend wants to cut down all the pine trees in our front yard.

Well there would be one other benefit of doing that - although I would hate to see the trees go too....

Tree sap. Pines can drop a tree sap on your car that will become hard as a rock....you need a special chemical to dissolve it or it will scratch your paint...I have one or two limbs over my vehicles and I get just a drop on the hood and it's terrible...

As a generality, cutting down large trees that are very close to your house is not a bad idea. Falling trees are a meaningful threat. There was a 'straight line storm' that hit Crestiline Village a few years ago and dozens of huge trees cut through the roofs of homes....I had it happen to my next door neighbor just two years ago....no tornado...just a microburst and womp! and huge tree through the roof...

I've cut down everything within 60 feet of my house....of course I have a two acre dense forest in my back yard that is beautiful.....but out of reach!

[33458]

Originally Posted by Bravo35223

Zenn.....first, hail is very common in the midwest...Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas etc. Fairly rare here....don't know why!

Next, this is your first chance to sit by the TV for awhile and see how they cover a legitimate storm...if they do not interupt regular programming, then it will be just a 'rainmaker' with nothing to be worried about....

We get that sort of thing down here rather frequently, too...

I guess it was a bit of an event there last night - husband even made note of it when he called from Huntsville.

[Bravo35223]

Originally Posted by Threestep

Who remembers the snowstorm of 93? :>)

OMG!!! Do I remember it???

Without power for 7 days....heated the house with firewood! We had to live in the den and close off the rest of the house...luckily we had gas stove and gas water heater...my back killed me from toting firewood. Had a continuous fire for seven straight days...

After that, I swore I would never be without generator and have a nice 5500 watt model that took me through Ivan and Katrina like a champ...wouldn't trade it for anything...

And here's the best part: FEMA paid for it!!!

[Reactionary]

Front porches were made for watching storms...

The local meteorologists have some pretty cool radars and systems (much of the technology developed in HSV! - i.e., Barron Systems) that allow for street level information. Watch the TV - red is bad. Green is good - we could use the rain.

For your peace of mind: in case of tornado (listen for sirens), get away from windows, go to interior space (bathroom / hallway), cover up with mattress / sleeping bag (in case of flying debris)...

The tips about tree limbs ('widowmakers') are spot on.

As for hail, it will dimple a car, but after the storm the kids have pre-fab snowballs...

[Reactionary]

Socal - smart boyfriend. Pines can be brittle - during storms there always seems to be a pine dropping limbs; during ice storms I've seen / heard them 'explode'. However, I would miss the pine straw (excellent mulch).

[MonaLisaVito]

OK, a meeting I had in Harselle was cancelled tonight because of the weather? Uh, what's wrong with a little rain...where I come from, nothing gets closed unless there is an ice storm and it's at least 30 degrees below zero.

[Threestep]

Originally Posted by Bravo35223

OMG!!! Do I remember it???

Without power for 7 days....heated the house with firewood! We had to live in the den and close off the rest of the house...luckily we had gas stove and gas water heater...my back killed me from toting firewood. Had a continuous fire for seven straight days...

After that, I swore I would never be without generator and have a nice 5500 watt model that took me through Ivan and Katrina like a champ...wouldn't trade it for anything...

And here's the best part: FEMA paid for it!!!

Had the only house on the block with fire place and fire wood. Strangers showed up to camp out. As soon as power came on all I did was open the door:>)
My husband flew emergency transports as of the day Katrina hit. A neighbor was kind enough to let everyone take turns to keep freezers going. It really helped to get us together. Needless to say - I had to buy a new generator and it has been happily parked ever since.

[Bravo35223]

Originally Posted by Threestep

Had the only house on the block with fire place and fire wood. Strangers showed up to camp out. As soon as power came on all I did was open the door:>)
My husband flew emergency transports as of the day Katrina hit. A neighbor was kind enough to let everyone take turns to keep freezers going. It really helped to get us together. Needless to say - I had to buy a new generator and it has been happily parked ever since.

Did you know that you could have filed a claim with FEMA and had them pay for your generator? I got mine scott free....