J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by AllyG

Hi Zell Belle :D

Have a great time in Zell am See. We went there and loved it. My husband doesn't ski either. We leave him behind to get on with all the work whilst we're on holiday :D

Ally

Have fun both of you :D

How much holiday time have you got before you have to start work?

snowb4ndit wrote:-2 sleeps! :mrgreen: Lifts open tomorrow and plenty, plenty, plenty of white fluffy stuff falling from sky as I write this...Happy days! :D

Are we allowed minus numbers now? In that case I've got minus 38 and plus 75 or so :lol:

Have fun Snowbandit, and let us know how it goes with the marmite consumption rate, the ski-ing, and managing the child care.

Ally

We have rain here now, with a few icy patches still hanging about, and last night I skidded a bit out in the car (couldn't stop coming up to a roundabout) but I was okay :D

It's supposed to freeze here again Sunday night so unless the roads have a chance to dry up first it's going to be really lethal :shock:

We've filled up our tanks with central heating oil, and I've brought a load of seasoned firewood into the shed, so we should be fine. At least I haven't had to smash any more ice in the drinking troughs today, and they're running okay.

Take care everyone in these extreme weather conditions ...

Ally

Tony_H wrote:

AllyG wrote:Fortunately the car I have now is petrol so it starts okay, in spite of the cold.

Are you suggesting diesel cars don't start when its cold?
I've had diesels for years, and never has one not started in cold weather - thats why they have glow plugs.
Funnily enough, 2 of my old cars (going back a while now) never used to start when it was cold and they were both petrol.

Tony,
I'm glad to hear that your diesel cars have always started okay in cold weather. It is, however, a scientific fact that it's much harder to start a diesel engine in cold weather. The engine will use a lot more battery power to get going, because the diesel fuel will be colder and thicker, and the block and battery will be colder, and diesel ignites using the heat of compression unlike a petrol engine which has an electrical ignition system.

I agree, modern diesel cars do have glow plugs (small heaters) but these wear out with age and require quite a bit of battery power to work. In fact, a couple of days ago my husband had to come to the rescue of one of our friends by fitting new glow plugs for him because the cold weather resulted in him having difficulty starting his car.

If you're not careful the battery of a diesel car will soon run down in very cold weather, especially if you're doing short runs, because of the extra electrical energy required to start it plus run the rear windscreen heaters etc.

In the past I have coped with this by using hot water bottles, blankets, bringing the battery inside overnight and re-charging it, bump starting or towing, aerostart (on the tractors) and even hot water.

It is of course more of a problem with older vehicles (like the sort I usually have!).

Petrol cars usually have more of a problem starting in damp wet weather, especially if you do something daft like leave the bonnet up when it's raining, because of the electrical ignition system.

Ally

Emma - I thought you had a couple of weeks still to go? I reckon you should be fine. I've just checked our forecast, and it says up to 6 degrees (positive I mean) for us tomorrow and then up to 8 on Saturday, so maybe it will be the end of our winter blast for now.

I wonder if Snowbandit and JonG managed to get away okay?

Ally

We haven't had any snow since the sprinkling we had (page 4). So I am very pleased - thanks Nelly for sorting that out for me (page 2 I think).

But it is extremely cold, especially for our location and time of year. We are using the electric blanket, wood stove, and central heating (had to order some more oil) to keep warm. And I am back to breaking ice in the cattle/sheep water troughs again. Fortunately the car I have now is petrol so it starts okay, in spite of the cold.

The minor roads are pretty dangerous because we had a lot of rain before the big freeze and there are several minor streams crossing/going down the roads which are now hazardous ice rinks, particularly on the hills.

55cm of snow Salski :shock:
That figure would be quite respectable for the upper slopes on a well known ski resort!

I hope everyone manages to get away for their ski holidays. After worrying for months that there wouldn't be enough snow it would be too awful to miss it because of too much snow here in the U.K.

Ally

Emma,
You can easily make a bobble - we had to do it in Primary school, and then you could sew it on your hat and satisfy these very strict bobble rules :D

Ally