Thank God for country boys! Isn’t that a line in a song? Anyway, I do thank God for my country boys.
Last night it got down to 17 degrees Fahrenheit and the night before was below freezing too. I know for some of you that may be your normal winter temps, but not so here, in the south. Our houses and plumbing are not built for extreme cold weather.I had two water pipes split and then break in two. An outside one that was wrapped with insulation and an inside one that goes to the shower, that split about a foot down, so water went under the house and froze instead of inside my wall and floor. I text my grandson at 2:30 this afternoon. He had just came in from work and was feeding his animals. I told him it may be tomorrow before it would thaw so they could fix it.
However, he came right over and our son-in-law Richard came over too, bringing pipe fittings/tools he had that we might could use. I think he had one fitting for the outside pipe we used.
My hubby had to go to local little lumber yard about 2 miles from here and it cost less than $15 to repair the hot water line for the shower. Hubby can’t get up and down and sure can’t crawl under house anymore, but thank goodness our guys learned growing up, how to do things themselves. Also, they can move good too, being young. Everything was back in working order in no time.
So I thanked them and God for blessing us with these good old country boys! Trying to just stay warm now after getting my bath that felt so good-lol Tonight is supposed to be warmer but still 26, so I hope nothing else breaks, bc it will still be below freezing. ❤️to all-Toogie
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Gosh I hear ya Toogie. We have a few area's of piping in an outer wall sections and one bathroom we put in a wall heat unit, not very effective but at least some warmth to that bathroom and my husband leaves the closet door open and the under sink cabinet doors open. The little hall closet where I used to have a washer and dryer doors stay open too for some warmth. Then I have an upstairs hall bathroom with pipes near the wall, insulated but probably not enough for KY cold weather we are having now. So, cabinet doors are open. We turn on the water periodically in those area just to ck. that it is flowing. We had a handle on my cold water to my washer that twisted right off with water spewing everywhere [not from the cold but from the weak metal] I held my thumb over it while hubby crawled under the house [good thing it is taller under the house] but he had to reach the house water turn off knob. I also got a towel wrapped around so water wouldn't spew everywhere. Needless to say, we went and got a better turn on/off handle and an extra for the hot water that will eventually do the same thing and WAIT, I'll burn my finger or thumb holding it while he crawls again to turn water off. I am very careful and mindful when I turn that knob. So far no breaks outside. We sure have been cold and have had 4 inches of snow a couple days ago which still isn't melting off. UGH Hate winter. Yes, young country boys know their stuff. My boy knows his too---he's learned to cook, clean, work on cars, you name it I guess he can do it---like father like son.
18494Thank you to your country boys coming to the rescue! We had -7 and just today it might be +18. My son and a friend came and shoveled my roof. I worry about those ice jams causing so much damage. Snow was about 10 inches of drifting mess. It took them almost 3 hours to clear the snow. Of course, I fed them pot roast, they loved it. Looking forward to warmer weather for sure!
1 comment
by toogie
19 Jan 2024
I would be concerned too of the weight the snow and ice puts on your roofs. I bet they worked harder knowing they had that roast waiting!
18140I know. Our furnace went out the other night. Coldest days so far this winter and a bit below zero. Hubby was saying it was cold in the house all afternoon, then at 6 pm, he comes in and states. The furnace is not turning on. I am so glad he was able to fix it. the cause was dust on something in the thermostat. Ugh! My house is the absolute worst. It is a sieve. so dusty and drafty. Yet life is good. Best wishes to you all.
2 comments
by toogie
19 Jan 2024
I’m glad your husband got y’all warm again by fixing the problem. I couldn’t stand your temps even with heat.
by cfidl
20 Jan 2024
I also have an electric blanket, and 2 heating pads, one for my feet, and one to warm my pillow area before I get in. I am still wearing double pj's. Lol!
173694We lived in North Carolina for a time, and when we had the winter blast go through, we would lose power. And being "in the country" we had a well, so no power, no water. One time everything froze, and we had a big fireplace in the basement area that was our family room. We lived down there, used the fireplace for heat, cooking, and thawing ice for water. The girls did not like to eat from the cast iron pot we had to make soup in and thought it terrible that we went out to get ice off the trees for water. LOL I think that was the year that we decided that we were coming back down to Florida. Once we got power back and moved back upstairs the tile in our kitchen had popped up from the floor and had to all be redone.
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by toogie
19 Jan 2024
At least you kept the family fed and knew what needed to be done. We had a water well too but now hooked on to city water.
44904So glad to hear you are back to normal with running water. This Polar Vortex is reminding me of my years of growing up in New England. And now, here I am in NW FL experiencing the same temperatures. Thank goodness my citified hubby has learned to be a handy man and countrified to boot. And yes, I am wearing plenty of layers to stay warm.
1 comment
by toogie
19 Jan 2024
I should have said that the city boys we know aren’t handymen. I think one reason the country boys learned is watching their older guys fix things. No service guy wants to travel that far and no telling how long before they could even come, so fix it yourself. We always say but the time an ambulance finds you, you dead. It has gotten better since there are GPS.
169064I agree with you Toogie-Thank God for the families who teach their kids while they are growing up to do things for themselves. My husband could fix just about anything and I am glad he passed some of that on to our son. How do others afford to had to pay someone every time there is an issue? Hugs to your guys who came to your rescue. Nan
1 comment
by toogie
18 Jan 2024
I understand when you ask how does someone pay for others to fix their ‘problems’.
My youngest daughter Ashley’s first husband couldn’t do anything. His dad couldn’t either, so naturally Nick never learned. His dad fixed by writing a check but Ashley and Nick had just started out so money was tight. When Ashley couldn’t fix it, she would call her daddy, my husband, to go. Now they lived an hour and a half from us, one way. Her dad would go repair whatever , in order to help them out, even though Nicks dad lived in the same town, he didn’t know how to do anything.
11927Hi Toogie, it’s cold in the UK at the moment. ( below freezing) Very icy outside when I went to the swimming pool on Wednesday. I could see lots of snow on the hills as I came home from collecting Gruff from school. Burst pipes are no fun but your family have stepped in to help. I have to say I prefer warmer weather. Take care and hopefully stay dry and keep warm
4 comments
by toogie
18 Jan 2024
I too prefer the warmth and the sunshine than this bitter cold. I don’t know how to explain my thoughts when you talk about ‘below freezing’, ‘icy outside’, ‘snow on the hills’ and then swimming. Burr, I get cold chills even though I know your pool must be heated-lol It just doesn’t seem normal to me (lol) to talk about swimming in the winter!
by dlonnahawkins
18 Jan 2024
My husband was sent to the UK to work up in Harrogate. I remained in Florida so that our youngest daughter could continue with her scholarship for engineering from the State of Florida. I went over in February to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary and was hit with the colder weather. I didn't have the proper clothing for cold weather and had to go out to buy something to wear. I loved it there. Just not the cold.
by asterixsew
19 Jan 2024
Harrogate is a place I have visited many times when I lived in Yorkshire. Its currently cold in the UK at the moment though I dont have snow other parts do
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