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Do you remember it being colder
- Thread starter Howboutthemdawgs
- Start date
Bill
Administrator
Those tanks have pressure safety valves.
When I was a kid I had a neighbor who built a big fire out side of his barn then brought shovels full of hot coals to place on the Ground under his tractor engine to pre heat it. That's probably better than flames.
Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
There will be no habitat work or gun range trips this weekend..
Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
I'll take -40 wind chills over the ice storms and grid stability threats to the south every time with gratitude!
sandbur
5 year old buck +
-45 actual temp and what else can you do?
sandbur
5 year old buck +
I guess the technical term is that it won’t vaporize at -44.
At that temp, I will call it freezing.
I'm a fixed ops director at a large RV dealership, so you know I have to deal with the LP gas administration. The LP administration workers walk around swat team outfitted, fully loaded, and I believe have the same authority as sheriffs. Man, you wouldn't believe all the training/safety rules and the resulting penalties you face if you eff around and don't do things right. When I read that about a fire even next to an LP tank, I'm pretty sure I heard our LP gas guys here lose their breath. They don't play around for sure.
Telemark
5 year old buck +
Holy crap! Where?
sandbur
5 year old buck +
Feb. , 1996. Tower , Minnesota hit -60 at that time.
Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
Oof. The older and less cold tolerant i get, the more impressed I am with critters being able to survive this type of weather.
Just looked at forecast where my mom is..
Just looked at forecast where my mom is..
SD51555
5 year old buck +
If it's possible, bury the tank. It has to be done in summer, but it can be done. Nobody likes it. Propane company doesn't like it because it's a pain to maintain. Customer doesn't like it because it's expensive. Propane driver doesn't like it because nobody marks the location of the tank and they have to stomp around in the snow with a sticking poking around for a man hole.
In another life, I managed some propane drivers, and we serviced buried tanks. It's no fun, but they won't ever hit -45.
Telemark
5 year old buck +
My parents wanted to do that, but the gas company said they would have to buy the tank if they bury it. Next door neighbor has a big white tank sitting just off the property line, and a few years ago he cut his hedge down to about 18".
356
5 year old buck +
And I have the hat to prove it! After the recovery, the community turned the new record into something fun. Our property is just outside of Tower. Before they changed the Windchill Factor chart in 2002, we also had the only -100 windchill ever recorded in the state. In 1985 we lost our mobile home when the fuel oil in our 265 gallon tank turned to a solid, causing the furnace to stop, the water pipes to break and eventually, ruining everything. At that time we lived 5 miles east of Hibbing and the thermometer was pegged out at -50.
Currently it is -28 (-38 windchill). I am sure the old timers (and my brothers in law) are talking about how bad it used to be….
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Howboutthemdawgs
5 year old buck +
When I lived in steamboat springs I went duck hunting one morning and the bank sign read -36. My truck started overheating on the drive over. Luckily we hunted a haul truck owners land. When we were done hunting (which didn’t last long) I told him about. He said yeah your antifreeze froze…I’d never heard of such a thing. Had to park in his shop for a while and let it thaw. Ended up skiing that same day and the top half of the mountain was considerably warmer due to inversion. The valley had locked the cold in. Everyone was skiing from the top half up.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
Just to be clear, my Dad wasn’t told to light a raging bon fire, but just a small fire under the tank to warm it a bit.
Like SD said, in 96 our tank didn’t freeze as it was covered in snow. Neighbors exposed tanks did freeze.
That winter was also a test case for apple trees. Somewhere I have a paper copy and also have posted the results of that winter on the Apple trees at the Grand Rapids experimental station.
Like SD said, in 96 our tank didn’t freeze as it was covered in snow. Neighbors exposed tanks did freeze.
That winter was also a test case for apple trees. Somewhere I have a paper copy and also have posted the results of that winter on the Apple trees at the Grand Rapids experimental station.
Telemark
5 year old buck +
Is there a pressure gauge on it so you can monito the pressure and throw sand on your fire once the tank pressure is where it should be?
I do have my metal stud wading shoes that I use when needed. May need to look into some of those tire straps in the future, but can't get them in time for this event.
