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Unread 06-08-2012, 11:23 PM
 
62 posts, read 22,028 times
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Default Storms?

Hello, like many others, we are strongly considering a move to Austin. We'd be moving from the Denton area. Does Austin get many crazy windstorms with hail, minor tornadoes, and downburst winds? Here I think we've had one almost every year that knocked down a fence or tore shingles off the roof. We're at the bottom tip of "tornado alley" so that explains some of it. Just wondering how similar or different it will be just a few hours away. It would be nice to not have to worry about damaging storms as much!
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Unread 06-09-2012, 01:34 AM
 
Location: In a state of denial
1,291 posts, read 875,942 times
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It's certainly not as bad as Denton. We have a few thunderstorms, but as far as damage it's not as bad by a long shot.

We do have wildfires here (look up Bastrop fires) and Northwest had one too last year. It could be related to the drought we're in.
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Unread 06-09-2012, 02:30 PM
 
Location: The Lone Star State
2,797 posts, read 1,647,494 times
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We do get that kind of weather at times but IMO the DFW area gets it a lot worse. In fact North Texas is probably the worst area of the state for that weather.
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Unread 06-09-2012, 09:21 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
363 posts, read 449,229 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HFamily View Post
Hello, like many others, we are strongly considering a move to Austin. We'd be moving from the Denton area. Does Austin get many crazy windstorms with hail, minor tornadoes, and downburst winds? Here I think we've had one almost every year that knocked down a fence or tore shingles off the roof. We're at the bottom tip of "tornado alley" so that explains some of it. Just wondering how similar or different it will be just a few hours away. It would be nice to not have to worry about damaging storms as much!
Yes. We had 2 new roofs in 10 years in Austin due to hail damage
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Unread 06-10-2012, 01:15 AM
 
Location: Austin
18 posts, read 6,129 times
Reputation: 16
Quote:
Originally Posted by timfountain View Post
Yes. We had 2 new roofs in 10 years in Austin due to hail damage
Where in town do you live? I've never had roof damage due to hail in my 21 years here.
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Unread 06-10-2012, 05:22 AM
 
Location: The People's Republic of Austin
772 posts, read 296,486 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HFamily View Post
Hello, like many others, we are strongly considering a move to Austin. We'd be moving from the Denton area. Does Austin get many crazy windstorms with hail, minor tornadoes, and downburst winds?
Quite different climates between the two places, believe it or not. One dominate factor for both places is the moisture coming up from the Gulf. When that warm, moist air hits frontal activity, you get the convection that sets off the thunderstorms and tornadoes you see in Oklahoma and sometimes on into N. Texas. The cooler air is heavier, and slides under the warm moist air, lifting it and causing the instability that makes for storms. That's why your rainiest months are March, April, and May - the fronts still have some force behind them before they weaken as it gets warmer.

BUT, and it is a big but, many of the fronts that set off your storms run out of steam, typically just south of Waco and start sliding off to the east. Far fewer maintain enough power to reach Austin. That is also good news in that we don't get your winter weather - not nearly the days of snow and ice, for the same reason.

Austin is in sort of a triangle - we are too far inland to get e afternoon on-shore flow of thunderstorms you see along the coast and inland for about 100 miles - and too far south for the front triggered convective activity N. Texas gets. That's why we have about seven inches less of annual precip than N. Texas.

Probably more than you wanted to know.
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Unread 06-10-2012, 09:37 AM
 
Location: Cedar Park/NW Austin
1,215 posts, read 1,115,165 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cdelite View Post
Where in town do you live? I've never had roof damage due to hail in my 21 years here.
The hail storm in 2009 pretty much tore up N/NW Austin. My house had its roof replaced about 3 years ago from that and my car had to have a lot of bodywork done to remove the dents.
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Unread 06-10-2012, 09:41 AM
 
Location: The Lone Star State
2,797 posts, read 1,647,494 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cdelite View Post
Where in town do you live? I've never had roof damage due to hail in my 21 years here.
You've been lucky then, because A LOT of us needed a new roof after the big hail storm in '09.


Quote:
Originally Posted by calel View Post
The hail storm in 2009 pretty much tore up N/NW Austin. My house had its roof replaced about 3 years ago from that and my car had to have a lot of bodywork done to remove the dents.
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Unread 06-10-2012, 02:22 PM
 
Location: In a state of denial
1,291 posts, read 875,942 times
Reputation: 852
We had hail in 09 but our roof survived (NW). Our cars are garaged so they didn't get hail damage. The last time I had a car get hail damage it was back in 2004. It was pretty minor.
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Unread 06-10-2012, 05:18 PM
 
Location: Round Rock, TX
1,103 posts, read 1,474,678 times
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I had my roof replaced in 2009 from that big hailstorm. I got "stuck" driving down Greenlawn here in RR thru it all trying to get home, and ended up with a few little dings on top of my car - nothing major tho, thankfully. I saw one car driving thru town a day or so later with really bad hail damage - front window cracked, almost the whole car looking as if someone ran around it with a sledgehammer!
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