Big storm / cold front

26 here in Eastern KY. Haven't been able to work for the past couple of days due to no power at the office. I think @rd400 up in Louisville has been hit pretty hard.

 

So in this case the water pipe drain in the wall is all filled up with water. So we are guessing there is ice in that line probably down at floor level? It is an outside wall and is in a laundry room area between the kitchen and the garage. The 0ther option, this is a coincidence, and there is blockage from debris so they will need to run a snake through the drain pipe.

 

I will suggest that. If it was the midwest, who knows when it might get above freezing, so I think they would do something with a heater or hair dryer. However, since it is supposed to get above freezing Saturday I think they will wait it out.

 

Rob, have your daughter pour a bottle of isopropyl alcohol down the washer drain.

Signed, the guy who pulls wires through iced up pipes

 

Well, never mind my post. I think waiting it out is probably the easiest route. If the sink drain is open, they could run the washer drain into the sink and keep doing laundry. My wife can't go 24 hrs without running the washer.

 

I wouldn't have thought of that, will suggest it, thank you.

On another note, my rental, about 10 minutes from my daughter's house, had a frozen hose bib outside on Saturday. The property manager said she couldn't find anyone to fix it and was being told it may take a week. Today I asked her the status. After calling 6-8 guys she found someone that went out on Sunday. He couldn't fix it from outside the house and had to go in and cut out the wall. She said it will be 450 labor and 50 parts. I asked if he put any foam insulation in there, and I will still have to pay to have the inside fixed.

My son said, "I'm glad that happened to your house instead of Dominique's, she definitely doesn't need anymore headaches or expense's right now". I definitely agreed with him.

Yea, funnily my daughter was saying to her boyfriend, "why did you do laundry I said we could wait until this weekend?" I think since he was working from home, while she was at the hospital, he was just trying to help get some more chores done. No good deed goes unpunished.

The sink is in the garage, so that wouldn't really work without leaving the door open and letting all that cold air in, they will just have to wait.

 

If you decide to do that, make sure the washer drain tube is securely anchored. Don't ask how I know that.

 

I know he can stick a hanger into the drain pipe 2-3 feet and doesn't hit the blockage. That entire pipe is filled with water. Will the alcohol still help? EDIT: Just googled because I wasn't sure and it looks like alcohol floats on top of water so I don't think that will help.

Her boyfriend did run hot water out in the garage sink and it did nothing, so if there is a frozen line it is upside where this sink connects into the drain.

 

The drain will be frozen at the trap. If he’s able to siphon any of the liquid in the standpipe out it will be significantly more effective.

 

71 degrees in Southern California.

Jokes aside, hoping you guys make it through. Been seeing lots of news about carbon monoxide poisoning and things along those lines. Unfortunate.

 

LOL it isn't 71 right now anywhere in S. Cal. Right now at work in Long Beach it is 52 with an expected high of 70.

 

I'm far enough north we only catch the edges of most of the big storms that dump on the NE. We got maybe 6 inches Tuesday night, hard to tell, wind was bad so I had bare spots and 3 ft. drifts. Supposed to get another 6 on Fri. where other places are supposed to get 2 ft. This is the first winter in several years where it's stayed cold and we've kept our snow, not thaw and rain bullshit. Good snowmobiling, busiest I've been in the shop thru the winter in a long time.

 

Funny, I work in Long Beach too and it was 71 yesterday. It's nice today!

 

We should get together for lunch sometime and bench race. LOL

 

We all have generators and the ability to get power to appliances running on electricity. After powering up at Road Atlanta back in the day, connecting a generator straight into the electrical panel is a breeze!

But........Carbon Monoxide is a silent killer. Be careful with kerosene heaters and the like. Warm is great but alive is better.

Hang in there Texans, I have a feeling this wont be the last winter event for you like this so use this as a trial run. Just like the fires in California and Hurricanes in the Atlantic and Gulf, weather events have been ramping up so next time you will know what to expect. Ask Atlanta about that.

Probably a good time to start an insulation company in Texas.

 

From last Thursday thru Sunday, we had continuous ice storms with dabs of snow.
Snowier near the epicenter.
Started melting late Sunday, two days of weather in the 40s has melted everything. Lots of downed trees, power lines down. People without power down from 300k to 100k this morning.
Our power blinked 4 times, enough to reset everything.
Up here in NW Oregon

 

I have three. But I haven't had power since 2 am Monday except for a 15 minute teaser Monday evening.

We are under a 'boil water' order that has something to do with our municipality can't pump water due to the power outage. (?) I do still have water flow from the city, but since I don't have power, I can't boil it on the stove.

I'm glad I went overboard on preparation, bought 4 extra grill-size propane tanks, 4 cases of water (2 cases of beer), and have 2 cords of firewood split, and another nearly a cord of fireplace length trunk slices that I can split if it comes to that.

I'm sitting in my truck charging all of our devices and actually sweating a bit under these layers. It got down to the 30s in my bedroom last night. My gel-foam pillow is hard as a rock. Had to get one of the froofy pillows off the couch.

Yesterday the water from the city slowed down to a trickle, no internet, so I couldn't find out what was going on. I figured my supply line was freezing up despite having been running the hot water lines. The water heaters were making thundering sounds as they cycled. I filled up about a dozen old plastic Folgers cans for flushing and set them by the fireplace.

The water is back up to normal now, so those coffee cans are sitting outside to freeze and be backup refrigeration if it comes to that. I got a bunch of this Styrofoam coolers like what Omaha Steaks ships in, but bigger.

We'll get through this.

I have permission to get a honder 2000 generator after all this, now.

 

In two years you might find one on the shelf to buy...




























And it will be electric powered.

 

I saw @Gorilla George yesterday...

 

Too wonky for him besides the load is not symmetrical.