Texas Fall/Winter thread!

[Bird]

Our official temperature is 11 and the TV news is running a banner across the bottom of the screen saying an energy emergency has been declared and for us to cut back on electricity usage to avoid rolling blackouts. I'm sure a lot of people get up and go to work without seeing the news, and then as businesses open for the day, I assume energy use goes up. So we're hoping we don't have a power outage.

 

[jinman]

Well, I dragged my lazy hide out of bed just before 8 AM this morning and my temperature gage says 10 F. Blueriver has me beat, but I'd expect that with him being from the Oklahoma Tundra. My Bowie airport weather station is having problems and not reporting properly or I could just go there and look at the series of overnight temperatures. Their current temperature is 12 F. You look outside here and it looks clear and warm with the sun shining brightly, but I know better.

FG, I'm with you. I'll take summer over winter any day. My body just does not understand cold.

 

[bindian]

Will have to wait until I get back home to try a Potbelly. There is one near my home. Ann Arbor has 3. Must be a college town thing.

I guess it is a college thing. There are 4 or 5, maybe 6 Jimmy Johns around the UT campus. They have bicycle delivery people.
hugs, Brandi

 

[Lou66]

Going to the beach today,, so I can surf the waves,, When we get a strong north wind like this the surf is calm.. the water is flat,, That's the only time I can stand on a surf board without falling over,, As long as it's on the sand not the water.. surfside here I come.. going to eat at the purple cow the crowds this time of year is small.. like one every five miles of beach.,:laughing:, Lou

 

[jinman]

My grandson just told me that our downstairs bathroom is frozen up (lavatory and commode). The tub still runs, but it has no pipes on the outside north wall like the lav and commode. I put some vents into the wall so warm air could go in, but I need to finish the job by cutting holes and installing grills up high so warm air can move up inside the wall with convection current. Luckily, the pipes are PEX, so there is little danger of freezing and bursting. I don't want a repeat performance of my flooded basement from a few years ago. The only thing I really worry about is the PEX fittings (unions and 90 degree Ls) that could be pushed apart by ice in the pipes. We really don't build well for cold weather here.

 

[pacerron]

My grandson just told me that our downstairs bathroom is frozen up (lavatory and commode). The tub still runs, but it has no pipes on the outside north wall like the lav and commode. I put some vents into the wall so warm air could go in, but I need to finish the job by cutting holes and installing grills up high so warm air can move up inside the wall with convection current. Luckily, the pipes are PEX, so there is little danger of freezing and bursting. I don't want a repeat performance of my flooded basement from a few years ago. The only thing I really worry about is the PEX fittings (unions and 90 degree Ls) that could be pushed apart by ice in the pipes. We really don't build well for cold weather here.

If your lavatory is in a cabinet open the cabinet doors and leave them open. Leave the bathroom door open as well, unless you have guests. :laughing:That sometimes makes the difference
with pipes in outside walls.

How low can the temperature go outside before your heating system can't maintain normal temperature in your house?

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

Don,
Glad your better. Elgin doesn't have 24/7 emergency room?

I was in Austin and Kyle yesterday. I helped move my daughter in with a friend that was also an ex room mate. She has a 3 bedroom house down in Kyle. The no good fiancee didn't want to get married. They had to move out anyway, as Rebecca's other friend is coming home from deployment and will move back into the house Rebecca was renting for a song.

I sure pray Rebecca learned her lesson. Now, new room mate is letting her stay 6 months to get on her feet. So we got six months breathing room, if Rebecca can manage a new baby and an hour work commute.

Now, to help her might jeopardize my retirement plans. Best plan would be to do my retirement plans and include her and my Grand daughter. That would entail me moving retirement plan property closer to north Austin, (she works for the state near I-35 and 290) or her commuting a distance, like she will do now from Kyle. I wanted to be within an hour of her in retirement. She is fixin' to file for child support. They parted with a good friendship, so we will see. He works for the state, so getting child support should be easy. But I am still holding my breath.

On a happier note....My Big RED Beast will be paid off April Fools Day.

Thanks for letting me vent.
hugs, Brandi

Sorry for your drama. Hope it all works out for your daughter. Does your company have any operations/jobs you could transfer to ABIA? Or can your daughter transfer near you?

 

[pacerron]

Jim,
Here I was thinking about buying property in Wise county TX to be warm in the winter and I'm warmer than you
you are, at least till this evening.
FG says you measure distance in time rather than miles. Very comparable weather right now considering that I'm
38 minutes north of you in Latitude at mach 1. :confused3:

 

[jinman]

If your lavatory is in a cabinet open the cabinet doors and leave them open. Leave the bathroom door open as well, unless you have guests. :laughing:That sometimes makes the difference
with pipes in outside walls.

How low can the temperature go outside before your heating system can't maintain normal temperature in your house?

Ron, we not only leave our lav doors open, but also put a small space heater in front of the opening to provide heat. The pipes run through the ceiling and drop down the wall. I believe the freeze is happening between the upper header plate and the sink as the pipes drop down the inside of the wall.

My house has no problem maintaining heat in the bathroom. We even have a supplemental heat-pump unit mounted in the wall that can easily put the room temperature up at 80+ degrees. The trouble is that heat is not making it inside the wall. I just need to open up wall vent holes and cover them with nice louvered plates I have purchased.

 

[bindian]

Sorry for your drama. Hope it all works out for your daughter. Does your company have any operations/jobs you could transfer to ABIA? Or can your daughter transfer near you?

Kyle,
I gather you are referring to the new Austin airport/old Air Force base. I don't know the airport 3 letter identifer is for that airport. Old Austin airport was AUS. It might be the new one also. I need to check.

I could transfer to a lot of positions there, if I wanted to cut my pay about in half and loose all my weekend off senority. Also, it could be up to a year or more before an opening was available. I would wind up with Tuesday and Wednesdays off. I could transfer, if there is an opening, to ground equipment, for a 4 dollar pay cut, and work on tugs or such,......... just like an auto mechanic. Again, if an opening was vacate. I never have considered any of these options and do not want to. I would keep my vacation senority, but everything else would be like a new hire.
hugs, Brandi