A lot of people are about to be hit with a big winter storm who are not used to this kind of weather. Here are some tips from a Minnesotan:
Keeping warm:
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avoid cotton fabrics.
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Use layers, take them off if you start to sweat.
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I like tight gloves with thick mittens, which allows use of your hands sometimes without skin exposure.
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A face mask works as a scarf or another layer in a pinch
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Warm up your home in case you lose power. Power outages may happen after the snow/freezing rain stops
Snow removal:
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Lift with your legs, not your back.
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Don’t save all of the shoveling for the very end of the storm, it’ll be more difficult and will start to create an ice layer (especially where walked on)
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if you have a car, lift up the windshield wipers before it starts snowing/freezing rain
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Completely clean your car soon after the storm. In most places, it’s illegal to drive with a lot of snow/ice on your car and super dangerous.
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If you’re parked on a street, move the car to a plowed area when possible so they can plow where you were parked
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If you have a driveway, clear off part of the street in the direction the plow will come from, so that doesn’t end up blocking your driveway
Driving
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stay home until streets are plowed if possible (thank you healthcare workers and emergency responders!)
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Turn on ABS brake and traction control settings, if available
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accelerate and take turns slowly
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Have more time/distance to brake
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Speed up before going up an incline, getting stuck and sliding back down is not fun
Sliding on ice:
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If walking, keep your feet underneath your center of gravity
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If driving, switch to neutral and steer in the direction that the back of the car is sliding, but don’t overreact on steering. Slamming brakes will make sliding worse.
Car stuck in snow:
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turn off traction control
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don’t just let the tires spin out
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try shoveling, sand/kitty litter, and rocking back and forth
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Once you get moving again, don’t stop
And for the love of all things good in the world, do NOT throw hot water on your car to melt the ice/snow. The glass -will- crack from thermal expansion. Use the defrost and sit there until it’s melted enough for your ice scraper to slide it off. If you have plain water in your wiper fluid compartment, drain it or it’ll rupture the lines when it freezes. If you can get low-temp wiper fluid you can use that, otherwise it’s probably best to leave it empty or maybe throw some isopropyl alcohol in it. Not super sure, I’ve always used low-temp fluid.
I watched my ex from Texas throw hot water on their windshield after they followed me to my very northern-tundra state. They had never really seen snow before, outside of occasional falls that melted by noon. Not even close to the same thing as a sustained hard freeze. I did tell them not to do it but they knew better. They were an abusive asshole so meh. Lessons learned the hard way are valuable. For me as an onlooker. That popping sound as it shattered was just 👨🍳💋.
And turn the defrost and the fan on before the car gets warmed up. If you forget to turn the fan on, and only turn it on when the car is warmed up, you will also crack your windshield.
Good advice, I’ve genuinely never done that, just habit from a lifetime of winter.
That does remind me, though, I did find out years back that if you already have a crack, in my case a tiny crack from a rock, that hasn’t been sealed with a glass repair whatever it is they do, any significant amount of heat directed toward the glass in freezing conditions will cause the crack to spread. Bit. By. Bit. Suuuch a shit feeling to watch.
You can buy repair kits to fix those little bullseye chips from getting hit by rocks. They basically force a clear resin in, binding it together and making it clear again. It’s worth keeping one around just in case.