Two hour delays for merely cold weather? (Pittsburgh, Erie: renting, house)

[Velvet Jones]

Originally Posted by ditchdigger

I don't buy the "can't start the busses" excuse. Any competent fleet manager wouldn't order a diesel engine for this climate without a block heater (you plug it into a regular 110 volt outlet and it keeps the engine warm enough to start without any problems), and the fuel itself can be treated with cold weather additives to prevent gelling. I ran five different diesel engines yesterday, and didn't have issues with any of them.

In the South Fayette case a few years ago, it wasn't the block that was the problem, it was the fuel lines. Apparently they changed the anti-gel formula a few years ago due to environmental concerns(clean diesel?) and it does not work as well as it use to. Trust me, they cancelled school because they couldn't get the buses running. I think they now run heaters in the depot to try and prevent it, as I don't think they ever came up with a more permanent solution. I know other areas get it a lot worse, so I'm not sure how they manage. The air temperature in Grand Forks, ND was -22 yesterday. That is air, not wind chill. Makes 5' seem warm.

[SammyKhalifa]

Originally Posted by Clint.

They didn't do that stuff when I was a kid. Kids these days are coddled and are wimps.

How old are you? We had plenty of two hour delays when I was growing up. That was what, 25 or 30 years ago?

Of course people at the time were saying that the times had changed and back when they were kids things were different. I don't get this feeling that things never used to be "this way." I don't think the times have changed just our perceptions of them with old age and the passage of time.

One way or the other though, I agree that if it's cold as Hell it's gonna be cold as hell whether it's two hours later or not.

[youngabe]

Originally Posted by SammyKhalifa

How old are you? We had plenty of two hour delays when I was growing up. That was what, 25 or 30 years ago?

Of course people at the time were saying that the times had changed and back when they were kids things were different. I don't get this feeling that things never used to be "this way."

One way or the other, though I agree that if it's cold as Hell it's gonna be cold as hell whether it's two hours later or not.

Exactly. Kids were "wimps" when buses were introduced too and they didn't have to "walk 15 miles each way up hill in a blizzard" ... all while fighting the abominable snowman.

[theatergypsy]

Here in NEPA, we're also having two hour delays due to the low temps. I can remember once back in the late 70s/early 80s when school was closed for almost a full week. It was February and the temps were frigid. The schools were having problems not just with the buses but with the school heating systems that were having a tough time keeping the buildings warm. The school directors figured that people were keeping their houses warm so let the kids stay home until the cold snap ended. Which it did. Then those lost days had to be made up. A two hour delay counts as a day's attendance in the 180-day mandate and doesn't tack on extra days at the end of the school year.

So what's the big deal?

[Mtl-Cns]

Districts make these delays based upon recommendations from the Allegheny County Department of Health. This is a quote from a letter that we received earlier in the year from our district:

"Wind Chill
There may be times when the wind chill must be taken into consideration when making a weather call. The Allegheny
County Health Department (ACHD) recommends that schools consider a delay if the air temperature is in 0°F to 15° F
degree range, and school closure if the wind chill temperature dips to -15° F or lower."

[gg]

Originally Posted by SammyKhalifa

How old are you? We had plenty of two hour delays when I was growing up. That was what, 25 or 30 years ago?

We had one delay for temperature when I was growing up. It was -13 and that was the real temperature. I think it was back in '77 or around then. Other than that, we walked to school. My walk was about a mile. Riverview didn't close or delay very often. I think kids are sheltered to the point it is silly for the most part. Most aren't going to be very tough or self reliant. It is amazing how many parents drive their kids to and from school around here even though there are buses. Talk about wimpy kids. Pittsburgh people in general are pretty wimpy when it comes to weather though. Most wouldn't last a week in Minnesota or really cold areas.

Just a little note:
January 1977 saw an average monthly temperature of 11.4 degrees, meteorologist Lee Hendricks said, adding that the current average temperature this month is about three times higher.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/...#ixzz2IoGP1nTo

[hinsey86]

I always find these kind of topics funny. I bet each generation claims similar things. I can only imagine the head shaking that occurred when the school bus was introduced.

[ML North]

Originally Posted by Hopes

Been there, done that. It doesn't always work. Running water does freeze if it gets cold enough. Trickling the water does prevent the pipes from bursting so we do it for that reason. I have a brilliant solution but hubby won't hear of it. I think we should install vents in the wall where the pipes are located, like a return air vent that opens and shuts. Two of them, one on the first floor and one on the second floor. When it's cold, we can open the vents so warmer air can circulate around the pipes. Of course, the other solution is tearing out the drywall and properly resolving the matter, but he's not very motivated to do that either. They rarely freeze, just once or twice a year.

There are "heating wires" which are meant to be installed on gutters to prevent icicles from forming. I would purchase one of those wires and wrap it around the problem piping. I'd install a thermostat somewhere to automatically energize the heating wire at a predetermined temperature, say 15 degrees. You'll just need to make sure that the temperature of the wire doesn't present a fire hazard. You may need to do a little testing or tweaking to get it right, but I have to imagine that it would work.

Every time the temperature dips below 0 and you would normally be fussing with your pipes, sit on the couch and drink a beer.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by ML North

There are "heating wires" which are meant to be installed on gutters to prevent icicles from forming. I would purchase one of those wires and wrap it around the problem piping. I'd install a thermostat somewhere to automatically energize the heating wire at a predetermined temperature, say 15 degrees. You'll just need to make sure that the temperature of the wire doesn't present a fire hazard. Otherwise, problem solved!

Sounds like a plan. I'll tell hubby. We'll see if he is inspired by it.

On an up note, the pipes didn't freeze last night.

As for two hour delays, I'm shocked by how many old people claim they never had them. We did have them! I was there! I remember!

[ML North]

Originally Posted by Hopes

Sounds like a plan. I'll tell hubby. We'll see if he is inspired by it.

Good luck. As an aside, my plan is probably way more involved than simply dealing with the problem on the rare occasion it does arise, but it would be a nifty little system!