This weather is awful!! 2008-2021

[Time2]

I've been in Florida 27 years after moving from Michigan. I no longer want to work in the cold!!! I have a woodworking project going and went out the this morning to do some sanding, it is 41*F and windy. I lasted about 5 minutes. I will try again when it's a little warmer.
Sorry about all you talking about below freezing temperatures.


As a kid, I would run out in the snow barefoot to get the mail, then one day mom, locked the door! OK, it was just to be funny, she let me in after a short delay.

 

[finnski1]

I had oil heat in Connecticut and had a tank for storage in the ground. It held 550 gallons of No. 1 kerosene and fired a boiler that had a copper heating coil in it which circulated hot water through baseboard radiant heaters. It worked pretty well and I also installed a Vermont Castings wood stove to save on oil.

Of course, I cut and split my own hardwood being on three acres with a large state forest behind us. There were 12 homes in the area and all were on large lots, and we all had oil plus wood stoves.

I was a real pioneer back then! LOL

Where we lived back east there were no natural gas pipelines nearby forcing us to either use oil or very expensive electric heat.

Well here in NH that is the exact set up I still use(with my 275 gal tank in the basement) as do many in the area. It does work very well and because my house is all SIP panels (no thermal bridging from stud walls)it is very energy efficient.

 

[Car-Guy]

North of Houston, TX - raining here and freezing at 32 F. Make tough roads on top of the ice/snow of the other day. Everything is closed around here too.

~100 miles north of you... Temps near 30 and very light mist here at this time... Snow is melting but the roads have too much ice to travel. Rolling power outages and a good number of "normal" infrastructure outages too... I talked to some of the neighbors... Many have frozen water "and sewer" pipes... Lot's of house's are built on blocks (pier and beam) in the area so they are more exposed. Only thing that seems to be working at 100% is the Internet.

Yesterday the water company sent out a note recommending to keep the water dripping to help prevent water pipes from freezing.... This morning they sent out a note saying water usage is at an all time high and pressure may be low or non existent in some places.

 

[W2R]

At last! We are above freezing, at 44F this morning. WHEW!

As soon as I awakened I shut off the dripping faucets, closed the sink cabinets, and so on. We have 100% chance of rain today and tonight and we are having heavy wind gusts, but overall today's weather in New Orleans is a lot better than freezing rain and no power like what Texas is going through. We never lost power or water but were told that was more likely than not during the past few days, so it has been pretty stressful. We just aren't used to dealing with hard freezes at all in my area.

Our extended forecast says no more freezing weather is expected for the next two weeks, or probably until next winter.

 

[ABQ2015]

Family in three different west Texas cities are still without electricity (hence no central heating) and water. They are reporting on FB how much warmer and easier it is to sleep at night when the temperatures are in the teens versus 2 degrees. One family has a generator (but not sure about fuel supply) and my niece and her kids are sleeping in a tent in the warmest room to share body heat I guess. All are getting stinky and miss having a bath.

 

[Exchme]

Houston area here, we were out of power for 48 hours. Our internet/phone access was via text only, so couldn't even keep up on the news/weather. Power has been back on for the last few hours at our house, but they plan to keep blackouts going. Now they are telling us to boil water as it's not safe.

The local electrical distributor, CenterPoint, says that only 41% of generation capacity is on line (they don't produce, they just own the wires). So it's not a demand issue, it's that a lot of plants went offline because they aren't winterized properly and renewable generation dropped dramatically due to the snow/ice.

When we lost power, we had only had a couple inches of snow and temperatures about 16 F. For the area, that's bad weather, but hardly unique.

 

[aja8888]

Family in three different west Texas cities are still without electricity (hence no central heating) and water. They are reporting on FB how much warmer and easier it is to sleep at night when the temperatures are in the teens versus 2 degrees. One family has a generator (but not sure about fuel supply) and my niece and her kids are sleeping in a tent in the warmest room to share body heat I guess. All are getting stinky and miss having a bath.

Ouch! We did not lose power through all of this as we are lucky to be on the same grid as the three big hospitals a mile away. Our daughter and her husband stayed with us yesterday and took showers. There home got power back late yesterday.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

As you point out the issue seems to be more supply than demand.

Much has been made about wind generation being offline (frozen) but coal and gas plants offline also.

It seems like we have stopped prioritizing making the grid resilient. Capacity that goes down when needed is useless. Certainly this is fixable. The Midwest manages. Texas surely got caught flat-footed by the unusually cold weather. But losing lives to it is not acceptable.

Except in the real world, it is acceptable (to a degree). If it wasn't acceptable, then there would be no commercial flights. People wouldn't be allowed to live on the coast during hurricane season. You wouldn't be allowed to drive a car that was older than 10 years old. There is risk in almost everything and while much of it can be mitigated, it's difficult to mitigate all of it.

Our local example was a crippling ice storm we had in October. Because it was so early in the fall season, most trees still had foliage, so there was extensive damage which resulted in the worst power outage in the state's history. Lots of folks went 7+ days with no power (we went 10) and there was a very loud call for "improving the grid"...such as burying every power line possible. Obviously, this would cost BILLIONS of dollars and our reasonable rates would sky rocket. So instead, we suck up these relatively rare events which yes...can result in the loss of life.

Texas *could* spend BILLIONS of dollars improving the distro and production that mirrors what the north or midwest does, but it really doesn't make sense when this type of event is so very rare.

As far as generators and gasoline goes...for those that have NG available, give consideration to getting a dual fuel generator. They are a little more expensive but could come in very handy in the event you 1) can't get more gasoline, or 2) there are NG distribution issues.

 

[timo2]

Texas *could* spend BILLIONS of dollars improving the distro and production that mirrors what the north or midwest does, but it really doesn't make sense when this type of event is so very rare.

1) Except that 'loss of life thing'. If they don't want to upgrade their infrastructure, they could at least mitigate the loss of life with an organized system of warming centers and other life saving emergency management activities. It seems fairly ad-hoc from the news reports. That would probably be the most economical tradeoff.

2) another financial tradeoff with not upgrading the power grid is the repairs that need to be done. The insurance companies are not going to be happy. And all sort of criminal types will be showing up to do half-arse and over priced repairs. Are those societal cost worth it?

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

1) Except that 'loss of life thing'. If they don't want to upgrade their infrastructure, they could at least mitigate the loss of life with an organized system of warming centers and other life saving emergency management activities. It seems fairly ad-hoc from the news reports. That would probably be the most economical tradeoff.

2) another financial tradeoff with not upgrading the power grid is the repairs that need to be done. The insurance companies are not going to be happy. And all sort of criminal types will be showing up to do half-arse and over priced repairs. Are those societal cost worth it?

I most certainly agree about the warming centers. This extreme weather system wasn't a surprise and Texas has the resources to protect their population and failed. I am sure there will be a lot of "lessons learned" that come from this.

In regards to the criminal element, this occurs everywhere during any catastrophe. The onus should be on the individual who is seeking out the repairs. If you hire someone out of state who has no credentials, no insurance and isn't licensed, then you get what you pay for. I could get more in depth, but I would be treading light ice (no pun intended) and really isn't constructive on a RE forum.

 

[Montecfo]

Except in the real world, it is acceptable (to a degree). If it wasn't acceptable, then there would be no commercial flights. People wouldn't be allowed to live on the coast during hurricane season. You wouldn't be allowed to drive a car that was older than 10 years old. There is risk in almost everything and while much of it can be mitigated, it's difficult to mitigate all of it.

Our local example was a crippling ice storm we had in October. Because it was so early in the fall season, most trees still had foliage, so there was extensive damage which resulted in the worst power outage in the state's history. Lots of folks went 7+ days with no power (we went 10) and there was a very loud call for "improving the grid"...such as burying every power line possible. Obviously, this would cost BILLIONS of dollars and our reasonable rates would sky rocket. So instead, we suck up these relatively rare events which yes...can result in the loss of life.

Texas *could* spend BILLIONS of dollars improving the distro and production that mirrors what the north or midwest does, but it really doesn't make sense when this type of event is so very rare.

As far as generators and gasoline goes...for those that have NG available, give consideration to getting a dual fuel generator. They are a little more expensive but could come in very handy in the event you 1) can't get more gasoline, or 2) there are NG distribution issues.

Freezing to death in your home is not ok. Especially when it is completely preventable with better governance. And it is not akin to a hurricane, car wreck or an airplane crash. And temps in Texas well below freezing as far from rare. Even single digits. They happen.

And Texas HAS spent billions on wind generation and decommissioning coal-fired and gas plants which can be more resilient than wind or solar. So it's not a money thing but maybe a spending money wisely thing.

But if you argue that it is acceptable for people to freeze to death in America, well, we will have to disagree.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Freezing to death in your home is not ok. Especially when it is completely preventable with better governance. And it is not akin to a hurricane, car wreck or an airplane crash.

Not comparable. But if you argue that it is acceptable for people to freeze to death in America, well, we will have to disagree.

I figured my message wouldn't be heard as intended...and that's one of the downfalls of internet forums. I do not find it acceptable for people to die unnecessarily but the fact remains that there IS a price on a human life. Yes, Texas probably failed in many respects (as discussed in the above post) but spending BILLIONS to "keep EVERYONE alive" (strictly as to the POWER GRID) is not feasible.

And DO NOT equate my post as saying, "it is acceptable for people to freeze to death in America." After Katrina, I was PROUD to be part of the rescue effort and was HONORED to crew 7 flights that rescued HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE. I have said my piece and will show myself out.

 

[aja8888]

I figured my message wouldn't be heard as intended...and that's one of the downfalls of internet forums. I do not find it acceptable for people to die unnecessarily but the fact remains that there IS a price on a human life. Yes, Texas probably failed in many respects (as discussed in the above post) but spending BILLIONS to "keep EVERYONE alive" (strictly as to the POWER GRID) is not feasible.

I have to agree. There is a certain amount of responsibility on the part of the citizen to look out for themselves.

 

[Montecfo]

I figured my message wouldn't be heard as intended...and that's one of the downfalls of internet forums. I do not find it acceptable for people to die unnecessarily but the fact remains that there IS a price on a human life. Yes, Texas probably failed in many respects (as discussed in the above post) but spending BILLIONS to "keep EVERYONE alive" (strictly as to the POWER GRID) is not feasible.

And DO NOT equate my post as saying, "it is acceptable for people to freeze to death in America." After Katrina, I was PROUD to be part of the rescue effort and was HONORED to crew 7 flights that rescued HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE. I have said my piece and will show myself out.

Ok. But I said it was not acceptable to freeze to death in your home in America. Your response was: "It is acceptable (to a degree)". If you are now saying you didn't mean that then maybe you should say so.

I completely respect your volunteer service. I also understand that many human endeavors cannot be accomplished without risking loss of human life. That can be one of the accepted costs of such undertakings and part of progress.

I just don't think people that are simply living in their homes should be subjecting themselves to possibly freezing to death in America. I find that unacceptable.

 

[ls99]

Long ago, out of w*rk, winter, out of heating oil, seriously considered tearing up my hardwood floor for keeping house warm. was down to eating two eggs per day as total source of food. Drove around found wood on roadside, got it home to burn. Never asked for help, my problem was mine to solve.


A texas mayor resigned after posting some now deleted rant, which I agree with! Too many whine, and not willing to solve their own problems.

https://people.com/human-interest/t...no-one-owes-you-anything-amid-calls-for-help/

"Tim Boyd, the mayor of Colorado City, Texas, shared a scathing message on Facebook Tuesday claiming residents seeking help were looking for "handouts" — and by that afternoon, had announced his resignation, ABC affiliate KTXS reported.

The since-deleted message — which lives on in screenshots and is riddled with spelling and grammar errors — began with an introductory line that said he intended to "hurt some feelings."

"No one owes you [or] your family anything; nor is it the local government's responsibility to support you during trying times like this! Sink or swim it's your choice!" Boyd wrote. "The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING! I'm sick and tired of people looking for a damn handout!""

 

[Koolau]

We are 60 miles sw of Chicago and got about 7". I shoveled and plowed for 7 hours today. My driveway was previously walled in by plowed snow and I had nowhere to push snow to the side. So spent a lot of time creating spaces to put the new snow.

We're fortunate that we only have the snow problem, and don't have the power outages that the Texas folks have.

I forgot about Packzi's today. Hopefully they will have some tomorrow.

Just one of the reasons I moved to a place that the nearest snow is always 200 miles away. I would do pretty much what you describe - clean the drive, dig out to the street, shovel the walks, etc. etc. THEN just before it was time to leave for w*rk. The city snow plow would come along and deposit all the snow from the last 100 feet of street BACK into my nice clean drive way - and to add insult to injury, the same plow would often through wet slush onto my clean walks. Usually, this was a "rinse, repeat" scenario as the plow never actually gets all the snow until the NEXT time through. YMMV

 

[Walt34]

Up here in northeastern WV it is still a balmy 41°F but the easy days are about to end. The snow starts tonight, continues all through tomorrow and into Friday, then it turns to freezing rain. We have the gas cans full for the generator if needed, the snow blower is ready, we did a minor grocery run this morning (picked up a bucket of fried chicken at the deli) and picked up some prescriptions. Oh, and I have the batteries charged for my electrically heated jacket and gloves.

Still, we have no expectations of anything terribly out of the ordinary since the snow accumulation is forecast to total six to eight inches, well within the boundaries of normal for this area.

 

[W2R]

It's 53F here right now (yay!!) so I checked on Houston, and it's up to 38F there right at the moment. So glad for Houston. Hopefully the power outages will lessen now that it's above freezing.

 

[Walt34]

When you're retired:

 

[Exchme]

In Houston, several friends are finding that they have burst pipes as the town has been above freezing for a while now so things are thawing. Since it's very hard to turn off water to most homes, that causes a lot of damage before people can get it shut off and of course dumps a lot of water pressure that everyone else needs. Our water is still on, but silty and not safe to drink.

When we lost power, we also lost cell phones so all we had was some texts could occasionally get through, but nobody seemed to know anything, so that wasn't very helpful. Why didn't someone fire up the Amber alert system to communicate? I get that they had no idea how long anyone would be out (we were out for 48 straight hours and could go out again) but some commonsense ideas about keeping faucets dripping, draining pipes if water pressure is lost, keeping food from spoiling as refrigerators warm, etc. might have helped. I put our food outside when it was below freezing and then when it got above freezing, I scooped up some remaining snow and ice from the yard, put that in plastic bags and packed it around the food. Everything seemed to come through unscathed.

Wind and Solar failed big time as you would expect given their nature, but it was crazy that the coal and gas fired plants also went down due to freeze ups. Hard to believe there isn't something in the contracts to reward/penalize for availability when power needs are high.

The CenterPointEnergy.com site shows the fraction of capacity the system is operating at, so you can follow the mess in real time. Last I checked, it was still under 44% operational so it isn't over yet.

 

[REWahoo]

After roughly 60 hours of no electricity (I don't count the three 10 minute teasers) our power came on at 10:45 am today and is still on almost six ours later. It warmed up enough for all the water pipes to thaw, and thankfully our well, pressure pump and all associated piping to and in the house is unscathed. Two thumbs up for the luxury of a hot shower!

I'd hate to be a member of the board of directors at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas right now. Strange how a career choice can suddenly become detrimental to your health and welfare. And talk about a misnomer, the Electric Reliability Council?

 

[W2R]

After roughly 60 hours of no electricity (I don't count the three 10 minute teasers) our power came on at 10:45 am today and is still on almost six ours later. It warmed up enough for all the water pipes to thaw, and thankfully our well, pressure pump and all associated piping to and in the house is unscathed. Two thumbs up for the luxury of a hot shower!

I'd hate to be a member of the board of directors at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas right now. Strange how a career choice can suddenly become detrimental to your health and welfare. And talk about a misnomer, the Electric Reliability Council?

So glad to read that you not only have electricity, but even got a hot shower! And water, too. I have to admit that if I were in your shoes, I'd be filling every available container with water just in case.

That reminds me - - I did that too but with no freezing temperatures or power outages in sight, it's time for me to empty them now.

 

[Walt34]

I'd hate to be a member of the board of directors at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas right now.

Hey, at least he's not the guy who fat-fingered a $900 million mistake. I'm pretty sure that's a career-ender for somebody....

 

[bbbamI]

When dh went outside to check the mail, he found this hanging off the side of our house....

Ralphie's mom was right!

 

[W2R]

When dh went outside to check the mail, he found this hanging off the side of our house....

Ralphie's mom was right!

WOW!!!!