As promised… Winter Survival Tips and Tricks

ON THE ROAD…
FIRST you should always warm up your vehicle before driving in the winter. Revving a chilly engine causes more wear, and a heated car with clear windows is much safer and much more comfortable to drive.

Annoying icy windshield? To help loosen a solid sheet of ice, keep a box of fine grain salt with you. Pour the salt on it and rub it in. Give it a few minutes, then scrape.
Prevention: Icy windshields are a pain and unsafe. Prevent them with these tips: place a large, piece of cardboard, large garbage bags taped together, or the mats from your car over the windshield, and secure under the wipers. Windows will be ice free.

Missing ice scraper: In this case try using the edge of a credit card, or a longer, and strong kitchen tool.

Frozen Locks… you can get lock deicer, but where do you usually keep that? In the car right? Try these tips:

Warm the key with a match or lighter, then thaw your way into the frozen lock; or put the key in as far as it will go, then burn a piece of twisted paper near the lock.
Prevention: when you lock the car, cover the locks with thin magnet strips. Remove them for frost-free locks when you are ready to go.

To remove the salt from your car: Place a short lawn sprinkler underneath the car and run it for half an hour, OR, take frequent trips to the car was to prevent build-up.

Getting Stuck: rocking the car doesn’t work, try these tips: keep a couple of asphalt roof shingles, carry coffee cans filled with salt and sand, boards, canvas, or an old rubber bathmat. You can use tree branches or your interior floor mats for traction.

For safety’s sake: Check all your fluids, wires, and plugs, including washer fluid and very importantly, the radiator’s antifreeze. Check tires for traction and proper inflation.

Emergency kit essentials (God forbid anyone get stuck):
Lock deicer,
Washer fluid,
Jumper cables,
Markers or flairs,
Gloves,
A blanket,
Snack foods,
& water.

There is a lot more information out there than on this post, if you wish to look further into surviving the winter… glance at this handbook: http://dma.mt.gov/des/library/wshandbk02.pdf

ON YOU:
You know you have winter issues like static hair or red nose… here is how to remedy these things:

FLYAWAY HAIRS-spray static guard on a hairbrush and brush through hair

ROUGH ELBOWS-exfoliate 2x a week, and use creams or Vaseline to moisturize

FLAKY FACE-avoid products that contain alcohol and use a gentle and use a rich moisturizer several times a day (if possible)

RED NOSE-you must create a barrier between your nose and the sun… sun block. Or just wait until you get indoors and press a warm cloth on the tip for a few minutes. It should fade.

DRY HANDS-every time you wash your hands, they get drier and drier… the key is too keep them moisturized! You can even wear thick lotion to bed with cotton gloves. The moisture will absorb better.

DRY EYES-start wearing sunglasses that protect from both UVB and UVA rays, you could also use non-medicated eye drops as often as you need to.

I hope you all will be careful on the roads this winter and keep those flyaway’s down! And if you have extra comments or have a question about winter survival… let me know! Thanks, readers!
-Weathergirl