What do you do about winter?

OK, I know that is far to general of a question, but we have had our first fall frosts here and I was thinking again about the season changing yesterday.
(partly because of Desperado's thread about Ontario)

There is a bunch of stuff to do with vehicles and around the house to be winter ready again.
everything from ice scrapers, furnace cleaning, snow shovels, road sand, and winter clothing to picking up and putting away the summer toys.

So what kind of things do you guys need to do before winter is here full force?

I moved 2 months ago to southern Virginia. Moved from Michigan, before that northern Missouri.

I ain't doing a darn thing (and loving it!)





That's cuz I already have more winter clothes than necessary, a bunch of gear in my truck (appropriate for midwest winter storms), don't need to prep the car or house for an onslaught of the white stuff, and frankly, am working too much to care anyway.

The big thing for me is mainly related to hunting season starting. In my truck I add my insulated coveralls (camo) and my hunting fanny pack which is equipped enough to see me through a couple of nights in the woods if needs be. Everything else is already there.

I live in a condo so there really isn't much to do with the house other than the fall furnace check up. Someone else shovels my snow and rakes my leaves.

Will replace the windbreaker in my car with fleece clothes, long underwear, warm gloves, neck gaiter, etc., and a fleece blanket.

Have to get my car serviced -- a pre-winter ritual.

It's been so long since we had a big snow (2003) that my snow shovel still looks brand new.

Winter prep starts with my truck, I get out the box that has the tire chains, the extra tow straps and winter gear, and put it in the bed of the truck. pull out the rain gear bag and add a complet change of warm cloths. add fleece clothing, add L.L. Bean sleeping bag and thow in show shovels. When winter gets closer I will, hopefully, swap tires and thow sand in the bed of my truck.

I live in an apartment building so all I have to do is winterize the motorcycle,, and whimper at the passing of another awsome riding season.

Winters here are the best season of the year. It much more like a PNW or Canadian summer. High's ~75%, Low's ~45. I can actually put a case of bottled water in my car and it won't be 160* by lunch.

not much really,i'm retired and my wife walks a few blocks to work.we don't do a lot of travel outside the Metro area so a cell phone and a old sleeping bag is all we need but our SUV is new so a break down is not in the works and we just stay home in bad weather.if we are going up north it would be to winter camp so the car would be filled with gear and food.we are putting in new windows so just a couple storms have to be put in on the ground floor.i fire up the show blower just to make sure it runs,it's also new so no sweat there..winter in Minnesota is such a "normal" thing with a summer so short that a lot of things are not really put away but just set aside.when you look at other people yards it looks like they don't do much more than turn the bird bath over and lean the deck chairs over to keep the snow from piling up on them.

For car prep I throw in my army issue sleeping bag (the newer kind with the goretex cover), snowshovel, and ice scraper. Thats it. I have a cool little seat cover that has MOLLE attachments all over the back, and allows me to keep an alcohol stove, food, some clothing, and necessary survival gear there all year long. Other than changing out the fuel in the stove every few months, and rotating the food, nothing else really needs to be done.
I also live in an apartment complex, so I usually keep a few gallons of water that I store in 1 quart jugs, handy, just in case the pipes freeze. I also put plastic on the windows-thats about it!

Retape all hockey sticks.
Inventory pucks - buy more if needed.
Sharpen skates.
Smell pads - apply baking soda if needed.
Inspect broomball shoes for wear - evaluate - purchase new shoes as needed.
Inflate broomballs.
Get kids' sleds out of storage - inspect tow ropes for wear - replace if needed.

We love winter.

What do I do about winter? Laugh, and go for a swim. Okay, sorry, Floridian attitude there. Seriously, though, this part of Florida does get cold, with hard freezes and even occasional risks of very slight dustings of snow.

Sleeping bag gets added to BOB, thin long underwear goes into emergency clothing/uniforms bag, and spare fleece jacket stays in car. That's about it for me.

The real danger here is that nobody respects or knows how to drive on icy roads. I once stopped at at least a half dozen wrecks on the way to work one winter morning, including one with serious injuries.

I just realized I haven't seen my jeans since about the early part of May and I can't find them. I've been in shorts pretty much since then.

Other than that, not a whole lot, unless the forecast is for snow, whereupon I laugh and watch the natives attempt to drive in the snow.

- Clean the chimney
- Replace top/vent chimney some kids shot it before I moved in...
- Make a patio cover then roof it
- Replace window in 2nd story of garage
- Get firewood (more)
- Build wood shed
- Possibly paint side of garage
- lots more

FUN STUFF!

I'm in the San Francisco Bay Area, so winter is more like the rainy season than winter (I've lived in North Dakota [4 years] and Pennsylvania [~20 years], so I know what winter can be like).

We'll add some fleeces to our change of clothes in the van, along with waterproof windbreakers, and that's about it. Nights in the summer are cool enough for long pants and shoes, so we have them in the van already.

We've live here since '94 - never been below freezing, no snow shovels, no cat litter/gravel, no chains, no ice scrapers. My winter coat is a windbreaker with no lining.

(When we get to summer prep, I'll tell you we've lived here since '94 with no air conditioning, but that's for another season. :->)

Well last winter I finally put the shorts and short sleeve shirts up around the end of November. Had to heat the pool if we wanted to swim, but usually just the DW and I used the hot tub.

This winter:





Uh, can I get back to you on that?

Load up rifle ammo; dress warm; go hunting.

Pretty simple.

Check every-day, reserve, and vehicle clothing to make sure there are, present, clean, in good condition:
Rain jacket with hood.
Rain pants.
Poly fleece jacket
Poly pants
gloves
socks
rain/sun hat
insulating watch cap similar.

In the house check reserve appliances for function:
Propane single-burner stove
Propane heater
Propane lantern

8 or more one pound bottles propane on hand and full (by weight).

Pots with lids, coffee pot (percolator), mantles, spare gaskets, etcetera on hand, in good condition, and accessible.

This is also a good time to inventory and evaluate FAK and survival kits.

Usually I just look for my long pants and jacket.

But this year is different: I'm going to have an arborist out to inspect the trees. We had a bad drought in the summer and are forecast to have a wet winter, and I'm worried about an ice storm knocking over trees. I have a heavily wooded lot with 30+ trees within easy reach of the house, perhaps a dozen with limbs over the house. I like the rural/wooded feel, but the price for that is that the trees need a lot of attention.

I am with Ed, I go so hard throughout the fall hunting season that before you know it Christmas is here. I do not really think about winter until it is early January and I have to accept that there will be snow and ice till sometime in May.

Frost tonight and the bull moose are rutting, too bad I have to work tomorrow!

Mike

I used to live on a heavily wooded lot. Hurricane Ivan took care of that. Three trees hit the house, two the pool, numerous fences damaged, etc. The cleanup was huge, and the repairs were expensive. You're wise to get that under control in advance.

Clean out the cave.

Oh, and get the sign repainted.


The one that say's:

Do Not Disturbe.....

Get a load of sand and a load of gravel. sand for around the house. gravel for the driveway. Having a switchback in the middle of a hill is not fun in snow and ice! Get out/check shovels. (yes three different kinds) Put cold weather gear in car/truck. Check over everything/recheck/check again. Put my digging bar by the back door. We had about three inches of ice a couple of years ago, I had to have the bar as a staff just to walk. Now my bar (17lb San Angelo Digging Bar) is my favorite winter tool.

Put a new tube of sunblock in the car. Now it is not to hot put the top down when the sun is up.

"Put a new tube of sunblock in the car. Now it is not to hot put the top down when the sun is up."

YOU, TOO, can die a painful death. The rains have started here in the PNW.

Sue

I go online and bother a bunch of people from a neighboring country about how to prepare for winter in their area. Then I take all of their suggestions, combined with my own limited knowledge and develop preparations for said season. A list of said prep's is created and shared with the viewing audience for further suggestions. Once those are implemented, the entire reason for going to THAT provence is cancelled.

Apropos of nothing whatsoever, would anyone have any knowledge regarding Alberta (Calgary specifically), and British Columbia (Vancouver)?

LOL

I may just tell them NO.

Vancouver and the western parts of B.C. are said to mostly like Washington state, maritime.

Jeez, Desperado, like the song says: "... you've been shuffled around / like a pawned wedding ring."

Exasperating.

If you want Alberta info, I can help you out. Just add questions to the original thread.

Overall, I think your Toronto winter list is valid.

But it's a long drive from Texas.

Cheers,
Doug

Everything in Canada is a long drive from Texas.

Heck, everyplace in Texas is a long drive.

Okay, even in San Diego, I do have some winter prep:

Get my jacket out of my GHB and start actually wearing it.

Light the pilot on the heater.

Take down the smoke/CO alarm and run the heater for a few minutes to burn off the dust.

While it's down, check the batteries in the smoke/CO alarm.

Take the light blanket off the bed and put on the heavy one.

Winter in Vancouver means putting the good road bike on the trainer in the garage and getting out the other bike with fenders.

(And this year preparing to get mad about the extra traffic for the olympics.)

For the car - I leave snow tires on the car year round, so I just throw in a snow brush, and fill the washer fluid with my special no-freeze mix. If I have any water bottles in the trunk, I remove them.

For the garage - If I'm smart, I winterize the lawn mowers. Usually I'm not smart.

For the house - Check the fuel supply, have the furnace checked if it's been a while, bring in any hoses, possibly prune trees.

I have a backup kerosene heater, and I should do the annual check up on it. I should have my trees checked, too. Have the name of a guy to call, just haven't made the call yet.

We've had a little taste of winter here, with snow lying on the ground as low as 1000 feet. Temperatures are now hoovering around 30-40. Not really that much of preparations as most of our stuff is ready to use anyway, and the really important stuff is mostly done.

Get all the winter clothing for us and the kids (done).

Snow tires on the car (done).

Shovel + ice scraper in the car (done).

Lubricate cars door locks and rubber gaskets. (I use anti-freeze coolant solution all year, better rust protection and no reason not too, so that's not an issue)

Stuff the canoe indoors.

Snow tires on my bike.

Move the lawn one final time before it frosts. (If it gets dry enough during the day, that is... little "drying power" left in the sun at this time of year.)

Clean and prep the skis.

Buy a new scraper. Check the fluid levels in the vehicle. Think about snow tires.

And on the night of the first snow fall being forcasted, bangers and mash.

You can wait that long?

Snow tires have been mentioned by others in this thread and by myself in another thread.
The odd thing is I have been using all season radials for years. Other than the fact you need to replace them when they get worn enough that they don't grab as well instead of when the tread is down to the limit they have been fine.

Raining now.

Getting into mid 40s at night low / mid 50s during day.

Then 70 by friday!

There is a huge difference between snow tires and all-season tires. I think the term is "does not excel at ANY conditions" is appropriate for all-season tires.... Snow tires excel at snow and ice and has crappy performance on wet or dry asphalt, particular when the temperature is above 50F. (Not to mention you wear them out them pretty fast in high temperatures). If you try it, you'll be amazed of the performance gap between "all season" and a dedicated snow/ice tire.

That being said, those all-season tires may be appropriate for you and your climate. You can rotate tires for the season, but you can't rotate tires each time the weather changes...

Reducing speed to match your grip is the key, plus a little bit of slippery road training does not hurt either .... Another tip: At the start of the season I always test my grip when I'm uncertain of how much grip I really have. I brake hard at a safe location and speed to see what happens. (If your car hasn't ABS you should be ready to release that brake pedal PDQ). I will also seek out areas where I can play and practice - just provoking a little slip so I get the feeling of it, and how to control and correct it. Rundabouts are great for this purpose (when empty!)...

I used to believe all-season tires were useless in winter, and probably most brands are, but some aren't bad. I still don't like them, and don't believe even the best all seasons are a match for decent snow tires in snow, but the good ones do work in snow. That all seasons don't work well at all with moderate tread wear is also true.

As far as using snow tires on dry or wet pavement, it depends on the tire. I run Goodyear Ultra Grips, which are H rated and work great in wet weather and just fine dry. They do wear faster than the "million mile" summer tires that some people like, but they also stick far better in the corners than those things do, too. In a hot climate I'm sure snow tires in summer would be a poor choice, but where it barely gets above 80f in the summer, no problem. The biggest differences compared to all seasons in summer is that they're noisy, but I don't mind that, and also that these particular tires, on my car, are very resistant to hydroplaning.

Driving experience is certainly a big part of snow driving, but even a great driver can't make a car go up a steep snowy grade with bad tires.

As they say - YMMV.

There are a few "all season" tires that are "Mountain and Snowflake" rated - Nokian makes the WRG2 - they don't all them "all season" - they call them "all weather"

Most "all season" tires are designed around summer, and they "work" in winter. Nokian does it the other way - design a snow tire that is OK in the summer

I had a set of the earlier generation of the WRg2 - amazing tires,. Other folks would be getting stuck, and in stuff my previous tires would not grip, I just kept going. One thing - Hard to get (unless you live in snow country) and NOT cheap

Only thing I have to do with them is a happy customer

http://www.nokiantires.com/tyre?id=11899&group=1.01&name=Nokian+WRG2

I moved to Florida ... problem solved. Except for the hurricanes, gators, snakes, mosquitoes, wildfires, galloping fungus ...

SOCAL here. Polo shirts and shorts give way to long sleeves and jeans.

Winter kit/duffel goes in the truck for any unforeseen problems away from home.

Art, what kind of tires are good against the 'gators?

Sue

Where I live in Missouri we see very few snow tires, but I have dealt with them. They are pretty tough. They hold up really well on light cars, There is a couple of Ford Aspire type cars that run Goodyear Grippers year round for the past 2-3 years (same set, I sold them/put them on)

I run the Uniroyal Liberators. Great all-around tire. They hold their own in snow, especially with extra weight in the back of my truck. They are aggressive without being noisy. They are not snow tires though, but IMO the best for my truck.

The Goodyear Tracker 2 is pretty much only good for the highway. If they are 1/2 worn they are useless in snow/ice/water/wet pavement/hard cornering/general traction (yes I owned a set, yes I hated them). The new Bridgestone tires look good but are not tough, they have tread designs that appeal to people, not tire guys. I ran a set of Firestone FireHawks about 8 years ago and loved them, but remember having a lot of fun in snow too (traction problems) I have yet to hear about Bridgestone performance in snow.

If I wanted an outstanding set of mind-blowing tires I would look into Michelin, they will blow out your wallet too but are worth the hit.

I sell these tires so I am biased. You can get any of these tires at your local Wal-mart.

Word to the wise, Wal-mart has some funny ideas on tires.

Calgary winters are hard to predict.
There will be snow & ice, but nobody knows when, or how long it will last.
I used to have a Subaru WRX (all-wheel drive) and it was terrible on ice until I put on winter tires.
I never bothered with snow tires on the Chevy Avalanche, all-season radials & 4-wheel drive worked fine even in really nasty conditions. Really good traction control on that vehicle.
Now we have a Chev Traverse, still all-wheel drive, and early snows indicate it won't be all that the Avalanche was.
So it's somewhat vehicle dependent.

As to the OP; we have a BIG duffle of winter gear that gets tossed into the car if going out of town. Snow shovel, candles, food, tuques, gloves, stove/pot, etc, etc.

At the house the generator gets checked over & that's about it.

I'll bet the AV was most likely not AWD but a more traditional 4x4. AWD gived 4wheel drive via some form of clutches or coupling in the center which is reactive to road conditions and tire slip. A traditional 4x4 system locks the front and rear together solid so you really can't have one end slip without the other slipping, so the traction on one end keeps the other from slipping. It also makes a simple form of ABS, hard to get a whell on one end to lock since the others will force it to turn. GM only has one AWD transfer case and I think its only available on the Cadalic version of the AV which is why I beleive you have a more simple always locked in 4x4 system. You may have the push button switch on the dash with an auto setting but its simply a motor moving what would be a shift lever and still locking solid.

yes, the Avalanche is more traditional 4-wheel drive.
It had some pretty impressive traction control tho.
In normal rear-wheel drive, if it sensed any wheel-spin it would transfer power to the front almost instantly.
No need to push the '4x4' button.
I tried to deliberately put it into a skid on ice: computer takes over & controls the skid using the 4x4 and individual wheel braking.
Don't ask me just how it works, but it does work.

The Subaru is all-wheel drive all the time.
For some reason the all-season tires on the front would push instead of steer on ice.
Once snow tires (Goodyear, I think) were installed, it was good.
But it would not correct driver error like the Avalanche.

I haven't had the Traverse through a winter yet, but we did have some early snow.
It is front wheel drive with rear drive assist.
Computer traction control similar to the Avalanche, but doesn't correct driver error to the same extent the Avalanche does.
Likely several factors at play: front-wheel drive & rear assist instead of rear-wheel drive with front assist and it's a much lighter vehicle, shorter & narrower wheelbase.
I'm thinking snow tires would be a very good idea on this car, just have to get used to the $1200+ price tag!

hmmm, seem to have hijacked the thread into a discussion about traction control...

Yeah, the price tag on good snow/ice tires is a shocker.

But I can tell you they're worth every penny.

I have a complete set, mounted on rims, for every car I own. Blizzaks on one, Michelin X-ice on the other.

In terms of mitigating the hard, measurable risks that we face daily, they're the best survival investment you can make.

- - - - -

(BTW, fasteer, cheers from Edmonton. Keep your stick on the ice, and your shiny side up, eh!)

+1 on the Blizzaks.

I used to live in NE PA, Pike County, across the river from Narrowsburg, NY. We could get some snow and ice up there, so much that some years I ran out of room to plow my driveway. Put a set of Blizzaks on a 94 Camaro Z28 to use it as a spare car, and they worked great. I was able to drive up and down twisty, narrow and mountainous country roads at reasonable speed and with excellent control in moderate snow and ice (as long as I kept a very light foot on the gas). People would be stuck or going sideways up the big hill on Route 6 as I drove past. Of course the Camaro is too low if the snow's deeper than 6 inches.

I think what you're describing is Electronic Stability Control (ESC), which is a separate system from Traction Control (TCS). Traction Control is designed to keep your wheels from slipping. It does this by monitoring the speed at which each wheel is turning and applying either brakes or additional power to correct. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traction_control_system.

Electronic Stability Control (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_stability_control is designed to prevent a vehicle from going into a spin, oversteer or understeer situation due to wheel slippage or driver overcorrection. It does this by sensing vehicle yaw (rotation), lateral acceleration, individual wheel speed and steering inputs and applies the brakes to individual wheels to try and make the vehicle go in the direction the system thinks the driver wants.

Unfortunately, if you are an experienced driver and are not familiar with ESC, and are purposefully pushing your vehicle outside of normal limits, you may be unpleasantly surprised when ESC "corrects" your intended skid and continues to "correct" you off the road, despite your resistance. My (now ex-) wife wasn't happy with me for doing that with her 2-week old Highlander. Fortunately, the damaged buffed out fine (mostly ).

Moral of story: Practice using ESC on big, empty parking lots, and not on narrow, twisty-turny, country roads.

Blizzaks ARE good

Another good tire, if you don't want to go quite that far is Nokian Tire. The make what they call an "All Weather" (vs All season) radial that actualyy has a Mountain and Snowflake rating. Most "all season" tires are optimized for good weather, and are "OK" (hahah) in snow

Nokian went the other way - a snow tire that is OK in the dry. NOT inexpensive, but do hold up better than the Blizzaks (I don't know about current Blizzaks, but part of their trick was that they used a very very soft compound, and they were great until they wore down to the somewhat hard compund below)