this post was submitted on 22 Jan 2026
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YSK Tips for a Winter Storm (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by cymbal_king@lemmy.world to c/youshouldknow@lemmy.world
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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:

  • avoid cotton fabrics.

  • Use layers, take them off if you start to sweat.

  • I like tight gloves with thick mittens, which allows use of your hands sometimes without skin exposure.

  • A face mask works as a scarf or another layer in a pinch

  • Warm up your home in case you lose power. Power outages may happen after the snow/freezing rain stops

Snow removal:

  • Lift with your legs, not your back.

  • 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)

  • if you have a car, lift up the windshield wipers before it starts snowing/freezing rain

  • 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.

  • If you're parked on a street, move the car to a plowed area when possible so they can plow where you were parked

  • 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

  • stay home until streets are plowed if possible (thank you healthcare workers and emergency responders!)

  • Turn on ABS brake and traction control settings, if available

  • accelerate and take turns slowly

  • Have more time/distance to brake

  • Speed up before going up an incline, getting stuck and sliding back down is not fun

Sliding on ice:

  • If walking, keep your feet underneath your center of gravity

  • 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:

  • turn off traction control

  • don't just let the tires spin out

  • try shoveling, sand/kitty litter, and rocking back and forth

  • Once you get moving again, don't stop

Edit: if you do lose power, have a faucet or two drip water to prevent the pipes from freezing and bursting

Edit 2: if you see ICE, follow these steps

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[–] Buddahriffic@lemmy.world 1 points 9 hours ago

Other driving tips:

  • If there's no one behind you, do an occasional hard brake test to see where your traction fails.
  • Pump your brakes if your tires lose traction. This can help even if you have ABS (eg mine seems more tuned for wet or dry pavement, as it cycles too quickly and pumping noticeably reduces stopping distance any time they do kick in). Test it on your vehicle to determine whether pumping or not pumping works better for you because you'll want to already know if you do find yourself in an emergency braking scenario with low traction (though increase your following diatance to make emergency braking less likely).
  • If you lose traction with steering, don't just try to compensate on auto-pilot, or your wheels will end up pointing in a direction that either won't ever get traction, or if it does, will overcompensate and might make your situation even worse. Your best chance of getting control back is to steer into the slide (so your tires can spin with the movement again) followed by gently steering out of it. Realistically, you won't have enough space to do this before you end up in a ditch or hitting someone, and it's hard to override the automatic "steer away from the place you don't want to go", but I've pulled it off before when I was sure I was about to end up in the ditch.
  • If you do end up in the ditch, understand that the snow suddenly surrounding your car and going up into wherever it can under your hood can affect how it runs and how it ventilates. If you are waiting for someone to come help you with your car running, if it's safe to get out, it might be a good idea to dig out a path for your exhaust pipe. If you turn off your car while it's deep in snow, be aware that it can melt snow that will freeze into ice around parts that need to move, so it might be a good idea to let it sit in a heated garage for a few hours before starting it again.

Tip for heat when the power goes out:

  • Candles generate a decent amount of heat. You need to ventilate them, but I keep a stock of tea light candles in case power dies in the middle of winter. I keep them in the car in case I end up stranded and don't have enough gas to keep the motor running for heat.
  • I also bought a sleeping bag rated for -20°C that will just use my own body heat to keep me warm. And I have a full ski set of warm clothes that could be used in other extreme situations.

My full snow suit:

  • Long underwear
  • Loose pants (idea is loose pants trap an extra layer of air that slows heat transfer)
  • Snow pants (these are more for keeping the pants dry, but they do retain some heat as well... You can get insulated or non-insulated snow pants)
  • Warm socks
  • Insulated and water-resistant boots. I sometimes see boots that are only one or the other and don't know why they exist. You want your feet to be warm and dry. If you have to choose only one, pick dry, but seriously just keep looking until you find one with both.
  • Shirt (can add extras)
  • Sweater
  • Coat (again, this one should keep you warm and dry)
  • Hat that covers ears and as much scalp as possible (I go for toques, but there are other options). Balaclava takes that to the extreme by leaving only your eyes uncovered.
  • Gloves (I have a mix for different occasions, layering thin cloth gloves under thicker gloves or mittens works well, too. Thin gloves are good for when you need finger dexterity, and can come with finger pads that work with touchscreens, mittens are the best for when you don't need much hand dexterity, since your fingers share warmth with each other, and thick gloves are a decent compromise between the two cases)
  • Ski goggles or sunglasses. The snow reflects so much light that a cloudy snowy day can be brighter overall than a sunny summer day. Goggles are great for keeping the wind out of your eyes, sunglasses can suffice if that isn't an issue.

For temperatures:

  • 20°C (68°F) +: shorts and t-shirt weather
  • 10°C (50°F): Sweater weather, maybe a jacket depending on the wind/rain
  • 5°C (41°F): This is where it starts feeling cold instead of just chilly. Water isn't freezing yet, but I'm using my winter coat, but not going out of my way to get my boots out. If there's snow on my car, I might wear gloves as I easily brush the melting snow off.
  • 0°C (32°F): Freezing temperature. Gloves and hat go on, along with boots if there's snow. Coat isn't zipped up yet, gloves come off right away in the car.
  • -5°C (23°F): Here I'll zip up either sweater or coat and would consider layering gloves if I need to be outside for a while.
  • -10°C (14°F): It's cold enough that I'll keep my gloves on in the car, at least until it warms up.
  • -20°C (-4°F): I bought the balaclava in anticipation of being outside in this weather, not wanting to feel like my cheeks and nose are freezing while out skiing. If you don't take this temperature seriously, your life or limbs could be in danger. If visibility is low, don't take knowing which direction things are in for granted, or you could get lost and stuck out in the cold.
  • -30°C (-22°F): I avoid going out at all if possible. I believe the amount of time exposed skin gets frostbite at this temp is around several minutes (and be aware that it's super uncomfortable long before frostbite).
  • -40°C (-40°F): Stay near heat sources. Frostbite can kick in in under a minute, so just don't go out unless you know what you're doing. Like running out your front door 3m to grab something from your car without bundling up might be dangerous. This might be too cold for your phone battery to operate properly, so have a backup plan if you're relying on communication.

Your physical activity level can play a big role in how warm you feel. Be careful about peeling off layers when you start to sweat. Finding the right balance is important because sweating is dangerous (once the activity stops, it will continue cooling you, plus the layering traps it, so you'll have way more sweat than is needed), but opening it up too much will let too much heat escape. Open up vents for the sweat/heat but reasses often and close them up a bit when you start feeling cold instead of too warm.