You Should Know

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.

While I see the wisdom in cleaning the snow off your car roof before driving around for everyone's safety, I also think it looks hilarious when a car is driving around with that tall Kid N' Play hairstyle on top.

Note to add to the stuck part:

Keep two small lengths of wood in your trunk. When stuck, wedge them underneath your powered wheels in the direction your going, i.e. in front if your going forward, and behind if trying to reverse.

Edit: spelling

Hey South Western British Columbian here, please send me as much of your snow as you feel comfortable giving us

Something I picked up when driving in Wisconsin is if you are driving and need to change lanes take your foot off the acceleration pedal if there is a layer of Snow/slush/ice between the lanes. If the tires slip your not adding power to the wheels. Also take your time and slowly drift into the lane. It's not a race.

A tip someone gave me if you can't see the lane markers well is to slowly move towards the rumble strip. This can help you know where the edge of the road is.

I suggest you keep a reflective jacket or vest in the car just so you can be seen IF you need to get out of the car if you get stuck or putting on chains.

Was that just all a set up for the ICE bit at the end?!

Lots of great advice here and in the comments. To add some clarity to driving carefully, imagine that you are driving with an open fish tank on the floor of the passenger side and you don't want to lose any fish.

Rocking back and forth doesn't help me when I watch the news, so I doubt it'll help me get out of a snow drift.

Learn where the water shutoff is to your house.

If the worst happens and you lose power for any significant amount of time with no way to heat your home, and you face leaving your house find someplace warm, shut the water off. Some might suggest leaving taps trickling, and that might work for sinks, but won’t for toilets and other pipes.

Open the lowest spigot in the house to drain as much water as possible. Flush the toilets enough times to empty the tanks. Pour cheap vodka in the toilet “S” traps and sink “U” traps as a cheap antifreeze.

I’ve had to winterize a house on several occasions, learned the hard way on a couple occasions when I came back to a busted toilet or cracked drain.

E: oh, and clean your damn car roof off. I’m tired of chunks of snow flying off cars into mine, or almost as bad, the clowns that hit the brakes and the snowpack slides forward completely blocking their windshield. Now they can’t see and are blocking the road.

Yall have any recommendations for thin gloves that could fit under mittens that preferably don't have seams and don't costn an arm and a leg?

Swede here, when driving, drive as if there is a raw egg between your foot and the pedals.

Also, winter tires makes a huge difference, here they are mandatory, but you should get/use them as well even if they are not.

Do brake tests! Make sure you have a clear road ahead and no one behind you, break hardish, and remember how far you slid.

If you know you need to stop just after a hidden bend in the road, make sure to start braking before the curve, this is to light up your brake lights, giving other, less attentive drivers the chance to stop earlier.

Remember that you don't HAVE to drive the speed limit, you should adjust your speed to suit the conditions.

Unless in an emergency, never ever make a quick, sharp turn when driving in snow

Canadian here: Storm chips and whisky.

If you're just going to pop out to the store, don't neglect your wardrobe! Dress for the ditch, not your destination. If you slide off the road you don't want to be freezing to death in your sneakers and hoody trying to dig your car out. Bonus points for bringing a shovel, trying to dig your car out with an ice scraper sucks.

Excellent advice.

Regarding windshield wipers: my mechanic advises people not to leave them up. He says that doing this too often can stretch the springs in your wipers, ultimately reducing the downforce that makes them effective. Someone else in the comments mentioned using a vinyl (or cardboard) cover for your windshield - this can be a good timesaver that is kind to your wipers.

When walking with a lot of ice, always walk on the snowy, cloudy, and/or crunchy looking areas. You'll get more grip with the crunch of the ice and snow than on just ice. If it looks clear, didn't go near. (Or something like that)

Another small one for driving: unless you need to stop/slow down, it's far better to just let of the gas/accelerator and coast that to touch the brakes and risk breaking traction. This goes for things like, unsure if person in lane a wants to move over? Unsure if person is going to pull out? Similar things. If its slick, you really don't want to overuse your brakes.

And for the love of all things good in the world, do NOT throw hot water on your car to melt the ice/snow. The glass -will- crack from thermal expansion. Use the defrost and sit there until it’s melted enough for your ice scraper to slide it off. If you have plain water in your wiper fluid compartment, drain it or it’ll rupture the lines when it freezes. If you can get low-temp wiper fluid you can use that, otherwise it’s probably best to leave it empty or maybe throw some isopropyl alcohol in it. Not super sure, I’ve always used low-temp fluid.

I watched my ex from Texas throw hot water on their windshield after they followed me to my very northern-tundra state. They had never really seen snow before, outside of occasional falls that melted by noon. Not even close to the same thing as a sustained hard freeze. I did tell them not to do it but they knew better. They were an abusive asshole so meh. Lessons learned the hard way are valuable. For me as an onlooker. That popping sound as it shattered was just 👨‍🍳💋.

Bonus SLPT: make sure to clean out your local store of milk, eggs, and bread ahead of the storm. It's very important to have French toast available during a storm.

If you’re in a location that will get a significant amount of snow, 8” or more, find the fire hydrant closest to your house and clear an area around it to at least a couple feet.

Nothing upsets me more than people driving with a pothole carved into their windshield and 6 inches of mobile smoke bomb/death shelf on their roof.

Waddle like a penguin on ice. They rarely fall over

A helpful list! I think an additional point worth mentioning is that a heated blanket can keep you warm while consuming much less electricity than a space heater can.

If you're stuck in a parking spot, and you can't seem to rock your car out, turn OFF your traction control! (It should be a button with a car and wavy lines that you probably have never pressed before). The traction control takes power away from slipping wheels so if they're both/all slipping, you get wheels that barely move as you're stepping in the gas.

Just remember to turn it back on once you're free

I can't remember the last time I had french toast but after reading the comments here it seems like necessary step to survive the weekend.