I’m officially over this blast of below zero temperatures. My creeks are frozen. My hydrants at the barn and other outdoor faucets are frozen. I’ve been hauling buckets from the house to get water to the animals. Now the water at the house is frozen. I’m heading out to fill buckets at a neighbor’s, and trying to find a torpedo heater to borrow to try to unfreeze my pipes.
Temperatures are supposed to finally rise above the freezing point sometime tomorrow, and stay above freezing for several days, so I’m looking forward to melting and thawing.
I’m tired.
P.S. No school here again today. Morgan hasn’t been to school in 12 days.
lavana says:
Oh my, sounds like my sister, she has a farm with 34 horses and she is in the boat you are….be careful with the torpedo heater, do NOT set close to anything it will burn and melt and start a fire….keep in center of the room away from everything……blessing your way! Love this site!
On January 29, 2014 at 9:49 am
Suzanne McMinn says:
I’m not using the heater inside…. I’m using it outside, pointed toward my craw space opening–that’s where the frozen pipes are, under the house.
On January 29, 2014 at 1:50 pm
BrownsFan says:
This frigid weather has been a hardship on a lot of people, but especially the small family farms. I feel so bad for you Suzanne…if its any consolation to you, its been brutal here in NE Ohio, as well. We are all SO OVER IT!!! Hope you can get your pipes unfrozen in the house and in the barn area. Come on 30’s!!!
On January 29, 2014 at 10:50 am
Sheila Hemler says:
Good Morning, That stinks having to carry water to the barn, I did it for years, I know you have a frost free spicket that is frozen. When we finally installed our frost/freeze free spicket we put it inside the barn for a little extra protection as we live in Upstate NY (DeRuyter) and it has not frozen in the past 7 years. Are temps with windchill are 20-25 below zero for the past 2-3 weeks. It has not frozen at all this winter and we live on a mountain top with brutal winds. That might be an idea for you or you may need to dig deeper in the ground and reinstall your spicket. Keep warm!!
On January 29, 2014 at 11:14 am
DeniseS says:
I hope your heater idea works and you get those pipes thawed out soon. Here in Chicago and suburbs we will actually see 20 degrees today. I am ready for Spring, but we are looking at more snow in the next week. Oh well, March 20th is not that far away.
On January 29, 2014 at 11:35 am
Joell says:
:happyflower:
This has been an extremely diffucult Winter for so many folks, I hope we dont have another like it for a very long time, it seem almost every morning we see a house fire due to people having to use electric heaters just to keep warm, I cant even imagine what it must be like to have the responsibilty to provide water for farm animals and all of the sources frozen. We were at -11 this morning, the wind chill was -30. Thank goodness tomorrow will bring warmer temps and into the week end—which will bring more snow. 😥
On January 29, 2014 at 11:46 am
California Paintbrush says:
I think all of you need to start thinking of floods. I am starting to worry for my relatives in Iowa and SDakota! If we could only move some of that snowy weather to the Sierras where we have almost no snow! We are looking forward to our first rain since Thanksgiving tonight.
On January 29, 2014 at 1:35 pm
Ann W says:
Can you utilize your tractor or the ATV to haul your water for you? Attach a wagon to one of them? That’s hard on the arms to lug all that water around. But you will have more muscles!
On January 29, 2014 at 1:46 pm
GrammieEarth says:
Wonky weather for sure… Far north, in Nova Scotia, Canada we are sitting at 18F (feels like 10)with a good pile of snow that has fallen today. I’m guessing a mere foot +/- . North vs South is off the rails! You get cold and white winter stuff, we get too hot, too humid summer stuff. I have no idea where I would move if I sought a location for wonderful weather!! Stay safe everyone!
Pam
On January 29, 2014 at 2:15 pm
Della says:
:wave: May I suggest wrapping your pipes in electric pipe heater strips? We live in Co and all of our out side pipes are wrapped they have not frozen in several years. The temp has dropped to 26 below and that’s without the wind chill.
Good luck!!
On January 29, 2014 at 2:57 pm
Glenda says:
I am going to ask the obvious: Did you leave the water dripping in the house? We do when the temps dip down to l0° or lower.
On January 29, 2014 at 3:10 pm
Suzanne McMinn says:
Yes, I have had water dripping for a week.
On January 29, 2014 at 6:03 pm
hotdogdee says:
If you clothes dryer vent goes through the floor and then outside redirect it so it blows into your crawlspace. Turn on the dryer and it will warm up under there in a hurry! I have done this before just don’t forget to fix it after pipes thaw out
On January 29, 2014 at 5:49 pm
lattelady says:
My normally cold and snowy weather (Northeast WA state, on the ID border) has not happened this year. Seems to have decided to affect all of you in the east. I am not missing it, but am very sorry all of you are affected by this.
That said, I am moving this summer/fall to just north of Seattle. No farm, no country roads. I will be in a senior complex. My type of farm: I will be planting my vegetables in amongst the rose and rhododendron bushes, watching someone else do yard work!
On January 29, 2014 at 8:00 pm
dmcfarland says:
So sorry this to hear you are faced with this again. Not to add to your worries but my one time history with frozen pipes involved the freezing and splitting of the pipe with of course water all over when the pipe thawed. You have probably already thought of that and have a plan to shut off the water at your main if you see water or hear it. And the comment about the dryer vent turned into a living space or connected space could easily kill someone from carbon monoxide poisoning. Horrible idea.
On January 29, 2014 at 8:43 pm
holstein woman says:
Suzanne my heart goes out to ALL of you who are going through this weather even those in Hawaii who have no house heat and it snowed 6″ today. God is turning things upside down and we all need to heed the warnings of His will.
On January 29, 2014 at 11:05 pm