COLD: Extreme Weather Preparation

[Scott Brady]

With my Arctic Ocean Expedition research underway, I wanted a place to record my findings and preparation. Please feel free to add comments from your experience, as I can use all of the insight I can get.


COLD:

[pskhaat]

I did an article many years ago on snow condition travelling (as Scott I told you about). Total satellite overview:

The primary preparation gear includes:
Chains (amazing benefits)
Block, battery, and cabin heaters,
Tire recommendations (it's the MT for a suprise); studding and siping,
Radiator canvas or skirts.
Benefits of older engine design on cold conditions (exhaust and intake manifold on same side)And particularly, it was important to note the benefits of having open differentials front rear and center in most driving and backroad situations.

Techniques for driving can be summed in
Cadence braking, accelerator, and turning.
Vehicle warming procedures (shift tcase into N for the evening to facilitate tranny warm in the morn)
Don't engage parking brake, and keep hubs engaged (each can freeze)
Ice, snow, and rut placement for tires (stay on top of snow ruts, even on highways)
Snow is good, ice is bad.Oils are primarily engine at 0-30, 5-30, or 0-40 (0-20 with newer vehicles) engine weight oils. Gear was all the obvious, plus:
Steel toed boots,
``Eskimo hoods'',
tons of Rain-X

[bigreen505]

For those of you with external water tanks, they should be heated and insulated. Water freezes very quickly at -20F, which is not a totally unusual nighttime temperture. Also all valving and hoses need to be insulated as well if they are external.

[91xlt]

be prepared...shiver me timbers!

have done a bunch of winter camping, but nothing of arctic magnitude...a friend of mine has done the...get dropped of by a plane on a frozen lake in the middle of Alaska thing! he now is a PH in Africa, will contact him for any advice. but good luck:exclaim:

[bigreen505]

My experience is that you will need more cooking fuel than you need in hot weather. Iso fuel canisters are more adversely effected than liquid fuel (propane, white gas, diesel).

[18seeds]

I did a lot of winter camping in my 4x4 van. I had a honda eu2000i generator to power a small household space heater and I was toasty warm at night.

[Life_in_4Lo]

To you guys who use chains alot:

What is your opinion of the rubber tire chains? While I understand how regular steel chains can grip like a mofo, I don't see how rubber ones do.

The rubber ones look like a criss-cross, flat rubber strips w/ traction molded into it... I like the idea of them but am skeptical on performance.

[pskhaat]

What is your opinion of the rubber tire chains?

I wish I could say that I've used them :(

[Seldom Seen]

When I lived in Fairbanks this was standard equipment http://www.alaskatent.com/products/covers/winter_fronts.htm They were even a dealer installed option on new cars. Quality is 1st class and they can make them for any vehicle.

*edit* Check out the "Arctic Oven" on that site. Spent the night in one once. At -20* I was sleeping on top of, instead of in, my sleeping bag.

[Willman]

Great list!! Never thought about shifting my Tcase into "N"! Thanks for sharing!!


Steel toed boots

With living in this extreme weather....whats the need for steel toe boots??

The steel shank is going to freeze your toes off!!! Normal cool temp. snow boots will do fine!

I lived in northern Alberta, Canada for a year or so in Ft. McMurray!! In the winter...it got down to -40!!! Your eyes and skin freeze on contact!! Not very fun!

Great thread Scott!

[bigreen505]

With living in this extreme weather....whats the need for steel toe boots??

Crampons?

If it is really cold you can't beat Sorrels. The rest of the time Salomon snow clogs or similar Merrills are wonderful. Haflingers or Birks are good too, thouugh neither have any traction.

[Willman]

Crampons?

Funny!!....Hummm...The sole of your boot is thick in most cases! Whereas, in most cases..there is only a thin piece of leather between your foot and steel shank! :yikes:

[Seldom Seen]

With living in this extreme weather....whats the need for steel toe boots??


Crampons?

:xxrotflma

Naw, ya need steel toes to kick the "fenderburgs" off. Ya know, the ice that builds up on the rocker panels and mud flaps

:hehe:

[Scott Brady]

When I lived in Fairbanks this was standard equipment http://www.alaskatent.com/products/covers/winter_fronts.htm They were even a dealer installed option on new cars. Quality is 1st class and they can make them for any vehicle.


Very nice, thanks. This is now on the list!

[jeffryscott]

synthetic lubricants all around.

When I graduated from college I lived in NW Colorado (Craig) and it routinely got to minus 40 (no wind chill factored in) and with Mobil 1 in the crankcase the car started up every time - it took half an hour before the heater worked, but the engine started fine.

Can't beat Sorrells.

Neoprene gloves like scuba gloves and some fly fishing gloves - grippy in the cold and warm. Used them to photograph outdoors and they were much better than similar wool gloves.

[Freezer]

Don't forget a good snowbrush and a tool for scraping the ice off from your windshield.

If you get temperatures below -40 be prepared to keep the engine running 24/7.

[OutbacKamper]

If you get temperatures below -40 be prepared to keep the engine running 24/7.

On a long expedition the fuel usage would be brutal!
I still say that it makes more sense to run an Espar or Webasto coolant heater (available in gas and diesel) rather than run you engine 24 hrs a day.
Of course you can plug in your block heater, battery blanket and interior heaters when in areas with power, or run these on a generator.
Idleing (sp?) for extended time can also cause engine problems. Ford diesels have a special control unit to vary engine rpm when idleing, to help avoid these issues.

Cheers
Mark

[Freezer]

I remember seeing a story in the local news last winter where they had to keep vehicles running up in northern Finland, because the block heaters didn't help.
In the story they didn't mention anyting about the Webasto-type heaters.
The temperature was below -40.

Personally i wouldn't want to risk the vehicle not starting in those temperatures, but the amount of fuel is limited on expedition conditions. So there are only bad solutions to the problem.

One would think that temperatures like that would be pretty rare.
It's just someting to think about.

[Brian McVickers]

Cadence braking, accelerator, and turning.

Vehicle warming procedures (shift tcase into N for the evening to facilitate tranny warm in the morn)

Don't engage parking brake, and keep hubs engaged (each can freeze)


What do you mean by cadence braking?, pumping the breaks?

How does shifting the tcase into N for the eve help as described?

Do you keep the vehicle running overnight or can you shut the engine off?

Do you have to block the tires if you have the tcase in N and no parking brake engaged?

Thanks
Learning is fun!:smiley_drive: ;)

[pskhaat]

What do you mean by cadence braking?
Yes, basically pumping the brakes or playing with the brakes so you get maximum friction; just like grandfather. Even with ABS. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadence_braking and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threshold_braking



How does shifting the tcase into N for the eve help as described?
Put the tcase in N, then with either a manual or auto, you can shift into the forward and reverse gears in the tranny allowing some of the fluid to get moving. Also when cold it can be really hard to get out of a gear (L|H), but not as hard to get into one.




Do you keep the vehicle running overnight or can you shut the engine off? .. Do you have to block the tires if you have the tcase in N and no parking brake engaged?

Shut off, but as mentioned I've heard of quite a few folks who keep 'em running if they're diesel. Just park in some deeper snow. :)


As for the -40 debate (F & C are the same at -40), I don't think it's as rare as people say. Those temperatures are certainly not unheard of in the Northern US, Canada, and Alaska by any stretch.

[HenryJ]

I picked up a small 2-cycle generator that is just enough to run my block heater , cabin heater and should the need arise, it also has a 12 volt charger that could be used to warm the battery.
The generator is an older Coleman "Ultimite". I believe it is the same unit that was marketed and sold with the Subarus in a promotion. Nice small power plant.
The cabin heater I have been using is a Zerostart (http://www.zerostart.com/) "Little Buddy" 120V cabin heater. (Zerostart interior car warmer part number: ZRO 260-0900 heater $51) . It was hard to find and not listed on the Temro or Zerostart websites. Any Zerostart dealer should be able to order one. Here it is listed in JCWhitney (http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/Search?catalogId=10101&storeId=10101&sku=sv478184).

This heater measures 4.5" wide x 3" high x 7" deep.

http://www.s-10crewcab.com/coppermine/albums/userpics/10006/buddy.jpg

This heater does not come with a thermostat , or the LED shown. I disassembled a small space heater for those additions. The LED lights when plugged in, so I can look through the window and know I have it ready. The thermostatic switch was an easy addition and allows me to adjust the temperature where I want it as well as a nice safety feature , since it shuts the heater off to prevent overheating.
I have been using one of these for the last eight years. Before I was able to find this compact unit I did mount one of the small cube shaped ceramic heaters. It worked fine , but took up more space. This one mounts with a slide on clip and has a connector not far from the unit so removal for the summer months is easy. I usually just leave it in there though.

It really is nice to have a warm truck to jump into, and no windows to scrape :D
For the engine I used a freeze plug immersion engine block heater.

[kcowyo]

So where the hell is he gonna plug in a block heater? There's no current bushes blooming on the Dempster Highway in January.....:confused:

[HenryJ]

So where the hell is he gonna plug in a block heater? There's no current bushes blooming on the Dempster Highway in January.....:confused:
Bring your own current bush-
...a small 2-cycle generator ...

[kcowyo]

Oh.......:o




* note to self: read whole post before asking stupid questions

[pskhaat]

Dempster Highway in January.....:confused:

It's right there, on the right hand side of the ice road, but this picture was taken in February, so they may have been in bloom by then:


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/BC_Iceroad.JPG

[Freezer]

A small generator would be the heat (no pun intended:D ) for running aux. equipment in cold weather, because most batteries don't perform so well in the cold.

[Life_in_4Lo]

scott, that is a beautiful photo but looks scary to drive on! I haven't seen weather like that in years

just a bump about rubber tire chains- good/bad? (thinking about big bear & mammoth in the winter)

[Desertdude]

Best part of your trip will be "zero mosquitoes" ;) The fellow we spoke with operating the ferry - who also made the ice bridge - mentioned the cold is not to big of a deal as long as you dress in layers and don't dress to warmly all at once - you have to get acclimated and toughen up the exposed skin - he also said with a big laugh "the cold is not to hard to take but", "your not going to wear jeans and a jean jacket" ...he was a real funny guy :)

The message here is; get to the cold ( early as you can) and enjoy it for as long as you can before making the journey - otherwise that first chain brake will be painful


I did however notice on the side of the road (Dempster that is) ever once and a while an electrical junction box was popping up - I really could not figure out why they were there and where "it" was coming from...

You will have a few small towns along the way to stop into - get warm and see a few humans - the darkness will be an interesting twist - the road will be smooth, vast, and crispy

[BajaTaco]

Very cool info info all of you are posting up! Henry never ceases to amaze me with his ultra-cool and super-useful modifications.



Best part of your trip will be "zero mosquitoes" ;)

One of the biggest reasons I am going ;)




You will have a few small towns along the way to stop into - get warm and see a few humans - the darkness will be an interesting twist - the road will be smooth, vast, and crispy

I can't wait :jumping: Great post Dude :ylsmoke:

[HenryJ]

...Henry never ceases to amaze me with his ultra-cool and super-useful modifications.I learn from the best, and inform the rest! :victory:

[michaelgroves]

We never did any really cold-weather regions on our trip, but we investigated it thoroughly. Firstly, a diesel (or petrol) powered engine heater is unbeatable. We fitted a 5kW Eberspacher, and Webasto make a similar unit.

They can be set with a timer to warm the engine in the morning and optionally, turn on the interior heater fan in the car. And you can leave them running permanently if the engine is struggling to keep up to operating temp (esp diesels). They use about 1 to 2 litres per hour at full capacity, and they take about 10-15 mins to bring the engine from cold to operating temp. They are virtually silent and don't require re-fuelling, so they can be used all night

If you have one fitted, it's not a bad idea to make a habit of using it before starting up in the mornings even in warmer weather - cold engines wear literally hundreds of times faster than warm ones.

People with experience travelling in Siberia and Mongolia told us that when it's really cold - below 40 (C or F) - it's better to keep the engine running, even if you have block, battery, sump and radiator heaters! At that temp, other things like belts start becoming brittle.

Another thing to keep in mind in really cold conditions is that your tyres can get damaged easily when they are brittle too. Also, when parking up for the night, your warm tyres can end up frozen into the ice!

For an interesting read on a winter Siberia expedition:
http://turtleexpedition.com/adventures/intro.php

Rgds,

Michael...

[Scott Brady]

Great feedback on the fuel heaters Michael. Time to start investigating them...

Having a warm heater in even the moderate mornings would be very nice

[YJ Dave]

When on several night long trips here in Co I have had a few nights where the temps dropped to minus 20 F at 13K feet. Getting the Jeep running in the AM can be a chore.

What we did, after the Jeep would not start, was build up a wall of snow around the base of the Jeep (to block the wind) and set up our camp stoves to warm the oil pan. After 30 minutes the Jeep fired up. It worked well for pulling ideas out of thin air, but I'm sure that a true engine heater may have worked better.

Has any one tried to seal the underside of the engine bay with cardboard to reduce the air flow over the oil pan in cold weather?

[flyingwil]

When I lived in WI and temps would reach -5, the tires would freeze. I also would research this a bit, but frankly do not have time. I would suggest, airing up when stopped, for an overnight.

Also the $3 cans of Lock De-Icers, work wonders on frozen valve stems.

[pskhaat]

When I lived in WI ...

My wife's from WI. We're usually back in that are around the winter solstice and -5F sounds like a warm sunny day there. There's something about that state that seems to trap the cold weather systems, I have had my shocks freeze, the springs pretty much stiff as wood, tires out of round until warm, DOT3 fluid freeze solid on the clutch/brake systems and get me stuck in gear (thus no starty). Ahh Wisconsin, where the 0w-20 runs like frozen honey. Also had a windshield wiper crack in half and just fly off.

[bigreen505]

Also had a windshield wiper crack in half and just fly off.

Carry a complete spare set of winter wipers. When it gets really cold they can freeze and break. The Winter SilBlades that Nathan carries are proven. I am testing the Bosch Icon blades and so far so good. They seem relatively indestructible compared with standard blades (winter or regular), but I have not had them for a winter yet, so the jury is still out.

Oh yeah, speaking of that, either get wipper nozzel heaters or mix rubbing alcohol with your windshield wiper fluid, roughly one bottle of alcohol (normal size bottle, not sure how big they are) with a gallon of washer fluid, of half that if it is not terribly cold. The washer fluid bottles say that freezing point is -25F, but in actual use the stuff will freeze on your windshield at highway speeds as warm as 10F. You don't have to mix well, just dump both in the washer fluid bottle in the car, driving will make sure everything is well mixed.

I like the concept of heated washer fluid in theory, but in practice I worry about squirting heated liquid on cold glass.

Also, see if you can rig up some sort of headlight washer system, it really makes a huge difference.

[bigreen505]

Tire chains are a good idea, especially in very deep snow.

There is a lot of debate on tire siping. My feeling is it makes the tires more flexible and significantly increases traction on ice and hardpack snow.

[asteffes]

Tire chains are a good idea, especially in very deep snow.

There is a lot of debate on tire siping. My feeling is it makes the tires more flexible and significantly increases traction on ice and hardpack snow.

So, along these lines, has anyone ever asked a tire shop to sipe new tires only, say, half the usual amount? If they do X sipes per inch, maybe X/2? This might provide some of the advantages of a fully-siped tire without sacrificing as much lifespan. Just a crazy thought that I came up with while thinking about the Revos I plan to buy this winter. They're already heavily siped from Bridgestone, but not as much as a tire siped by a shop.

[bigreen505]

You would have to buy your own siping tool. I think the hand tools run about $60 and you can put the sipes exactly where you want them.

[bigreen505]

One more thing to add to the list, not really a mod though. Use Rain-X liberally on all your windows, ice doesn't really stick to the stuff, so scraping is a much easier job. Also consider a tarp or something to go over your windshield -- pull it off and you are good to go, no scraping required.

[BajaTaco]

One more thing to add to the list, not really a mod though. Use Rain-X liberally on all your windows, ice doesn't really stick to the stuff, so scraping is a much easier job. Also consider a tarp or something to go over your windshield -- pull it off and you are good to go, no scraping required.

Excellent tips and very easy to do. Thank you :)

[pskhaat]

A little late to respond, I just noticed this post:



With living in this extreme weather....whats the need for steel toe boots??


Has nothing to do about keeping warm/cold. Driving through freezing rain, and thousands of miles of snow make a lot of ice/snow/grit buildup on the suspension components (like packing in between springs) and on the mud flap areas, and all in the wheel wells that can get so hard you can't pry it off/out with your hands. You can either hammer it off or simply kick it. It's the kicking of the buildup where steel toed boots really come in handy.

Additionally, you can then use your foot to chock the chains for instance, and other handy uses.

[jmeadows]

synthetic lubricants all around.

When I graduated from college I lived in NW Colorado (Craig) and it routinely got to minus 40 (no wind chill factored in) and with Mobil 1 in the crankcase the car started up every time - it took half an hour before the heater worked, but the engine started fine.


I dont think this was mentioned, but it should be. Wind chill does not affect inanimate objects, it acually only affects warm blooded animals without fur. Essentially wind chill is the wind blowing the 1/2" think layer of warm air away from your skin, exposing it to the full cold. So when you see that the temp is -20 and -40 with wind chill, your gear will act as if it is -20, you will act as if it is -40.

-Jordan

[devinsixtyseven]

yes. it's roughly calculated based on the rate of temperature change of exposed skin...the "high end" would be if you put bare skin against a very good conductor at the same temperature as ambient air, or jumped in the water (if it werent completely frozen). the rate is higher as the differential increases, so the wind chill temperature is just the calc'd temp of still air that would cause the same cooling rate on exposed flesh as constantly moving warmer air.

basically it just means it's really frickin' windy :p. anything that isn't at ambient temperature will get there much quicker if the wind is blowing, and warm up slower--engine and drivetrain for example.

i dont know how wind chill affects cooling rates of engines and such, but a simple calculation assuming a constant ambient temperature (reality is the boundary layer like jordan mentioned) would probably get something close enough, if you needed to turn off the engine and were concerned with how quickly it would cool or warm up again.

-sean

[DaveInDenver]

I dont think this was mentioned, but it should be. Wind chill does not affect inanimate objects, it acually only affects warm blooded animals without fur. Essentially wind chill is the wind blowing the 1/2" think layer of warm air away from your skin, exposing it to the full cold. So when you see that the temp is -20 and -40 with wind chill, your gear will act as if it is -20, you will act as if it is -40.

Good point. While a wind chill has no real correlation to an inert object, since it will only cool to the ambient temperature and that's it, a wind /will/ cause things to cool faster. So for example your engine will reach ambient temperature faster with a wind than without. Ultimately it's really an academic point because if the air temp is cold enough to require block heaters or that the engine can't be shut off, whether your engine freezes in 10 minutes with a breeze or 20 minutes with still air is probably not important.

[Doin_It]

My next door neighbor is an "old guy" (72) and we've spent many an hour talking about our experience's trucking up the Alaska highway as we both worked the oil patch up north. For him though things were tough as much of that north country was being opened up when he was young fellow. He's got a ton of stories of truckers bringing oil equipment up from Texas going to Alaska and when they hit the cold.....that was it for there trucks, takeing days to thaw them out. Freeezing up cause it was -60 +, etc etc. If it wasn't for tough 'ol guys like him and others, I don't know where the north would be today....they had tough times. Anyway, it's sort of ironic, perhaps funny, cause for us who live here, we take it all in stride. We are carefull and think of what we need, to be safe, but after that we just hop in the our truck/car and go where we need to be. I know half the fun of the trip is in the planning, but at the end of the day we just go. Funny thing is I'd love to spend time in the Baja, but I think I need all this "stuff" to do it, but deep down I know all I really need to do is just pack up like I do here and go do it.

[oly884]

Speaking of tire chains, anybody know of chains for 255's?

[Scenic WonderRunner]

When I used to drive big rigs cross country.....lots of times up north I would have trouble getting my key in the door locks and the pad lock on the trailer.

It was really bad when I would have a thaw then freeze situation. I kept a cig lighter with me to warm the door locks and padlock. This worked easier on the padlock out back though.

I think they have liquid de icer in a can with a spray tube now.

But I just now found this neat little thing.


Lock De Icer........... (http://www.jcpenney.com/jcp/Products.aspx?DeptID=0&CatID=029374&Grptyp=PRD&ItemId=1108f54&cm_mmc=Yahoo-_-SSP-_-Men-_-Gifts-_-jcpenney&mscssid=6c6e043f9451742baa28b97dcf51a14d5xMnVNoV5a 3oxMnVNoV5a3W200B944A837A360A6D9397F30E134CE6325F0 633904)


anyway........you don't really think about this problem until it happens to you and you can't get back in your truck because your lock is frozen up!

.

[pskhaat]

I've just hyperventilated whilst blowing on the key slot for hours :)

[kcowyo]

too.....many....jokes....choking....on....reply... .:mixed-smiley-030:


Oh, and if your locks freeze, run a cig lighter back & forth over your key. A heated key will usually free up a frozen lock. And never use your e-brake under 10 degrees.

[bigreen505]

too.....many....jokes....choking....on....reply... .:mixed-smiley-030:


Oh, and if your locks freeze, run a cig lighter back & forth over your key. A heated key will usually free up a frozen lock. And never use your e-brake under 10 degrees.

Well, when you use your e-brake when it is really cold, there is plenty of time for hyperventilation. Hey, there is one benefit of MagChloride -- the underside of your car will never freeze.

[Lost Canadian]

I don't think anyone has mentioned them but Silblade wipers would be on my list. I used them last winter and they were hands down a much better blade then anything I've used in the past. I've tried all sorts of rubber winter blades over the years, sealed blades,teflon coated blades you name it, most despite being built for winter will still freeze up and /or become loaded with ice or freeze to the windshield. The Silblades don't collect ice as easily and remain flexable even in extreme cold.

I second the vote for using a good amount of rain-X as well. It's amazing how much easier it is to clear ice off the windshield when it's been coated with Rain-X.