Subzero temps?! (Casper, Gillette, Superior: rent, mobile home, crawl space)

[BABsMom]

I checked the weather forecast for later this week and was surprised to see temps of 3 to 5, and then shocked to see subzero lows! I knew this was something that could happen, I just didn't realize it was often! Is there anything that we should be doing to our house to prepare or does it usually come and go with no problems?? Sorry if this is a dumb question, I've just never lived in a place where it's gotten below 15 degrees, by now it's usually still just raining with hardly any snow! What can happen with it being so cold??

[WyoNewk]

Houses in Wyoming were (or should have been) built for cold temperatures. I've owned a couple homes that had water pipes freeze during sub-zero temps, including one in which the pipes froze so hard they split. (It was designed and built by a Texas firm, and they placed some of the plumbing in an outside wall! ) Gads, some of the homes they built even had washing machine hook-ups in the unheated garages.

Now that I think about it, the other house also had some pipes in an outside wall. Not smart!

Generally speaking, you shouldn't have to worry if you live in a sticks/bricks built home. If you have any pipes freeze up, don't just have them repaired; find the problem. If it's an insulation problem, fix it, otherwise, reroute the plumbing.

It's a good idea to check weather stripping and caulking around doors and windows, and some people will add clear plastic over windows. Unless you're in an older home without thermopane or storm windows, that's probably not necessary.

[SkunkApe]

One thing I hate about extreme cold is when the wiper fluid in my car freezes up.

That cheapo stuff I usually buy says it's good to -20 degrees, but I find it freezes up well above zero. I use the better stuff that's rated to -50 for the winter.

(Glad you reminded me: I need to top off.)

[SkunkApe]

The Official Canadian Temperature Conversion Chart
50° Fahrenheit (10° C)

* New Yorkers try to turn on the heat.
* Canadians plant gardens.

40° Fahrenheit (4.4° C)

* Californians shiver uncontrollably.
* Canadians Sunbathe.

35° Fahrenheit (1.6° C)

* Italian Cars won't start
* Canadians drive with the windows down

32° Fahrenheit (0 ° C)

* Distilled water freezes
* Canadian water get thicker.

0° Fahrenheit (-17.9° C)

* New York City landlords finally turn on the heat.
* Canadians have the last cookout of the season.

-40° Fahrenheit (-40° C)

* Hollywood disintegrates.
* Canadians rent some videos.

-60° Fahrenheit (-51° C)

* Mt. St. Helens freezes.
* Canadian Girl Guides sell cookies door-to-door.

-100° Fahrenheit (-73° C)

* Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.
* Canadians pull down their ear flaps.

-173° Fahrenheit (-114° C)

* Ethyl alcohol Freezes.
* Canadians get frustrated when they can't thaw the keg.

-460° Fahrenheit (-273° C)

* Absolute zero; all atomic motion stops.
* Canadians start saying "cold, eh?"

-500° Fahrenheit (-295° C)

* Hell freezes over.
* The Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup.

[tekape]

yeah, read something about it being "unseasonably cold for the next 15 days".....it's winter....what's unseasonable about cold weather? LOL

the below zero temps here aren't like you'd think....we have little to no humidity so it doesn't seem that cold. I lived on the tip of Lake Superior.....when it's 28 below, it's CC-OOOOOO-LLLLL-DDDD because the humidity gets to your bones! Don't get too worried....won't last long.

BTW Skunkape....TOO FUNNY!! rofl

[septocaine_queen]

Oh Man...what have I gotten myself into. The DH and I will be in Casper this Fri and Gillette on Sat. Final stuff before the move. Here in San Diego the weather people tell us to get ready it is going to be in high 50's...get your winter stuff out because it is going to SO COLD. I have a feeling my wussy temperature intolerant blood will freeze my ass off this weekend. I better get use to it considering we are moving in Jan.

Skunkape: I am sending that to mom and stepdad who live in Toronto

[Wyomiles]

BabsMom, here are a few things to look for in your home. If it has a crawl space or unfinished basement. Go in there and look to see where the water piping is located. Look for copper colored piping or in some homes could be plastic or rubber tubing. A good way to be sure is to follow any pipe that runs into or out of your water heater. If the piping is anywhere away from the foundation you should be OK. I had a house where they ran some of the piping along the foundation cement and it froze . I had to repiped it. Be sure there is insulation stuck into the area where the floor beams sit on the cement foundation too. If you have a finished basement you will not be able to do this so one thing you can do is to pay attention to how cold your water is when you first turn on the tap. How long does it take to "warm" up. You should be able to get a feel for what is normal for your house and be able to tell if the water is getting too cold . On nights that get way below zero I have left my water running really ,really slow. Running water will not freeze as easilly.
Do you have a sprinkler system ? Be sure to drain it and I even shut off the main valve that goes to the system in case something does break outside the water will not run out to the broken line. Do not leave hoses connected to the outside water spigots. They might freeze and break. If the spigots are turned off you should not have a problem as they are designed to stop the water inside the house. Check your furnace filters and be sure they are clean. I always opened the heat ducts in the basement and let the heat travel upward through the house and close them in the warmer months. Thats just me, not sure if it is worth doing. Some folks put extra insulation in their attic and put up a layer of plastic on the windows. It depends on how old your house is I guess.
And do not put your fish tank in front of a window. When I was young we lived in a cabin near Yellowstone. I got up one cold morning and my aquarium was a block of ice!

[wyoquilter]

Originally Posted by septocaine_queen

Oh Man...what have I gotten myself into. The DH and I will be in Casper this Fri and Gillette on Sat. Final stuff before the move. Here in San Diego the weather people tell us to get ready it is going to be in high 50's...get your winter stuff out because it is going to SO COLD. I have a feeling my wussy temperature intolerant blood will freeze my ass off this weekend. I better get use to it considering we are moving in Jan.

Skunkape: I am sending that to mom and stepdad who live in Toronto

Just want to say that you should look into buying winter gear (coats, and boots especially) while you are up here this weekend that is designed for WY winters, if you haven't done so already. What you all might consider a warm coat and boots in CA might be what we would consider light-mid weight or protection. Once you get acclimated to the weather in WY you can decide what weight of coat or warmth of boot is best for the length of time you'll be out in the weather. But it always pays to have a real nice heavy weight coat and warm boots whether your acclimated or not.

As someone else said, the cold here in WY doesn't feel all that bad once you get used to it. Hopefully it won't take you to long to get used to it.

[Froggie Legs]

To convince my hubby it's not colder there, I've been watching the temps for Fremont county and here the past few months and nearly every day it's been 20-30 degrees warmer in Wyoming. We've already had -1 to -3ºF daytime temps in west central Minnesota and some snow. Right now it's a whopping 3ºF here

Just learn to dress in layers, and look for moisture-wicking under garments (t-shirts, long johns, socks, etc). I love my Columbia winter coat since it has a zip out liner which doubles as a fleece jacket..so it's actually 3 coats in one. And always wear a hat.. heat escapes the head rapidly... hat gloves/mittens and scarf, and you should be fine. Have your kids do the same.

I live in a mobile home and it leaks warm air like a sieve so definitely winterizing helps. Also bake goodies during the day, which always seems to warm my house. Do you have a wood burning stove?

Good luck! Cold does take time to get used to!

[Kristynwy]

Last year was the first time I had experienced weather in the -20's & -30's. The first year we moved here it didn't get that cold. But last year it did.
It's really not as bad as I thought it would be, it is cold. But when you are in layers, it really isn't that bad, because the humidity is so low. So it doesn't penetrate you if you are in appropriate clothing/thermals.

If you have a diesel truck, it is a good idea to have a block heater for it. We have an older Diesel though that doesn't like to crank in the 20's and 30's. There are also anti-gel additives you can buy and some gas stations already have it mixed it.

I also have a block heater in my Honda, for when it gets below zero.