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Texas deep freeze carnage thread

immamac

By immamac
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CHIEF
CHIEF

I am beat. My friend Chris, that I get my oysters and crawfish from, came home to a flooded yard, and water coming out from around exterior doors. Two story house built in the late 80's. He put the wo

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After 73 hours    

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utbone04

utbone04 15

Posted
Posted (edited)
10 hours ago, RexWilson said:

An upstairs bathroom is not getting hot water. It gets cold water and hot water flows everywhere else.

I don't have access to any pipes besides what is under the sink. Anything I should try to resolve this or am I just going to have to wait it out?

This happened to me today. What's happening is that there is a section of your hot water line going to your bathroom that is frozen. What you need to do is backflow the cold water line into your hot water line in an attempt to thaw/melt the ice that's stuck. I did this back turning my shower on to where both the hot and water lines were open and confirmed that the cold water was backflowing into the hot water line by seeing water come out of my sink faucet with only the hot side open. I did the same thing on the other side of the hot water line by running my kitchen sink between hot, cold, and hot/cold. After about 5 minutes heard some sputtering in the water lines and then hot water finally flowed through my bathroom. 

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FORTY NINE TO ZERO

FORTY NINE TO ZERO 2652

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So how do insurance claims work?  Can i contact them, start work and save receipts or do i need to wait for inspection and preapproval?   
 

Literally right when i was walking down the hallway to turn off the water this moring i noticed a small leak developing under my master bathroom.  The good news is that I caught it before it could do any damage to the 140 year old wood floors. 
 

I already have the plumber on standby ready to go as soon as it thaws out and would hate for insurance BS to slow it down.   I want to sleep in my own bed asap. 

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HOOKEM4

HOOKEM4 5036

Posted
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1 hour ago, Xian said:

So how do insurance claims work?  Can i contact them, start work and save receipts or do i need to wait for inspection and preapproval?   
 

Literally right when i was walking down the hallway to turn off the water this moring i noticed a small leak developing under my master bathroom.  The good news is that I caught it before it could do any damage to the 140 year old wood floors. 
 

I already have the plumber on standby ready to go as soon as it thaws out and would hate for insurance BS to slow it down.   I want to sleep in my own bed asap. 

If you call insurance, just assume the position and get ready to get no lube. I had to basically decide between paying am attorney or just eat it last pipe break. I ate it bc I decided to pay what was known and not play with fire. Fuck insurance. Their only real goal is to take. They aren't insuring anything but a shitshow. Good luck.

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Guest Lobo

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Posted
Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, Dr. Beeper said:

Not sure my response went through. All showers upstairs. No water dripping out of the 2 that won’t run. They are on the NE side and central west of the house. Son’s bathroom is on SE corner. All pipes on outside of house (I think). Son’s bathroom definitely hits the sun - others are blocked. We’re in a fairly dense, treed area and I have two huge live oaks that would block sunlight from other bedrooms. 

That's weird that the sinks next to them flow okay.  I would have suggested shutting off your water supply and flush the lines (the home one out near curb, not the city valve), but sounds like you've got flowing water in other parts of the house.  the NE one is probably already freezed out from outside given the orientation (maybe the Central West one as well).  Second floor, you can't get heat on those from the outside obviously.  May still be worth trying to backflow them tomorrow during "heat" of the day (have somebody at the ready at the shut-off valve outside if shit goes sideways on you).  Also sounds weird, but try flushing the toilets near those showers with greater frequency.  If you have attic access to either of the clogged ones at the drop-in point from the exterior---there's a couple other steps to try but if it's just flush inside the framing that's another pickle (is the NE shower the one that is farthest from the city line at your street in terms of angular distance?)  ,but anyway consider the backflow/water-cut.  

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wildcat09

wildcat09 29347

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5 hours ago, slorch said:

Those turbines ain't cranking at 1 degree across the Panhandle/ South Plains....

 

Let the potheads figure it out.  The self-anointed fart smellers can figure it out...

It’s like you’ve been cursed by a witch to be wrong about everything and to have no ability to restrain yourself from constantly reminding the entire world.

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utbone04

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7 hours ago, slorch said:

Those turbines ain't cranking at 1 degree across the Panhandle/ South Plains....

 

Let the potheads figure it out.  The self-anointed fart smellers can figure it out...

Maybe not Texas turbines, but the turbines in Antarctica are turning just fine. So it can be done with proper equipment, planning, and management.... all of which seems to be lacking for Texas power plants including natural gas and coal powering ones.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/02/texas-power-grid-crumples-under-the-cold/

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Homercles

Homercles 10205

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8 hours ago, Dahobbs said:

And the gas flowing and burning, and the nuclear plants steaming, and the coal plants, and , well, I guess solar isn't going to do anything right now. Everything is down. Apparently, that is bad. 

Forget it, the whole ‘this is green energy’s fault’ is what some of these people will forever espouse despite facts to the contrary.  Oh and apparently the ‘potheads’?

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49 minutes ago, utbone04 said:

Maybe not Texas turbines, but the turbines in Antarctica are turning just fine. So it can be done with proper equipment, planning, and management.... all of which seems to be lacking for Texas power plants including natural gas and coal powering ones.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/02/texas-power-grid-crumples-under-the-cold/

Yeah the penguins are drawing on that Antarctic power grid something fierce.

And we don't disagree with having a better plan/ less bureaucracy  involved...

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2 hours ago, wildcat09 said:

It’s like you’ve been cursed by a witch to be wrong about everything and to have no ability to restrain yourself from constantly reminding the entire world.

so the turbines are cranking or the tree huggers have helped solve something energy related?

 

Carry the fuck on dude...

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Bill Lumbergh

Bill Lumbergh 7171

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I was able to talk to a plumber yesterday, so here's what we're doing based on his feedback:

- we still have no water through the line to our fridge, and he recommended space heaters towards the wall behind the fridge (outside facing). We ran two strong heaters behind it for 8+ hrs yesterday, still nothing, so we'll try again today.
- we've had hot and cold running out of every faucet since yesterday morning. Some of the pressure is pretty low now, but he recommended keeping it running.
- I've only had my outdoor pipes wrapped, not dripped, and he said he's doing the same at his home. I have no idea if that's going to end up being better or not. I almost went out last night to test them and possibly drip them, but I have zero expertise in this area and could easily go wrong either way. If the one plumber I was able to talk to said just keep it wrapped, that's what I'll do for now and we'll see how it goes.

Hope everyone gets through this safe and damage free. I miss being a kid when snow storms could just be fun.

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Shaddie

Shaddie 1651

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7 minutes ago, slorch said:

so the turbines are cranking or the tree huggers have helped solve something energy related?

 

Carry the fuck on dude...

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2021/02/16/expert-says-power-outages-in-texas-result-of-poor-planning-on-multiple-levels/?outputType=amp&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=snd&utm_content=kprc2&__twitter_impression=true
 

Read this and then come back and explain why all the power generating plants are down due to your mythical boogeyman arguments. 

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SubliminalHorn

SubliminalHorn 6786

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47 minutes ago, Shaddie said:

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2021/02/16/expert-says-power-outages-in-texas-result-of-poor-planning-on-multiple-levels/?outputType=amp&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=snd&utm_content=kprc2&__twitter_impression=true
 

Read this and then come back and explain why all the power generating plants are down due to your mythical boogeyman arguments. 

Pfft it’s the pot heads’ fault bro, slorch the moron says so

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mdmost

mdmost 43001

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Posted (edited)

The lines to my washing machine in the utility room that’s on a north facing wall have froze up. I’m imagining the pipes behind the wall are also frozen. Not sure I should bother doing anything and just hope for the best. At least if it bursts, it will be towards the outside of the house. I wrapped some towels around the pipes. Don’t have any space heaters. All indoor taps are working fine. We’ve been doing the pencil trickle on all faucets.

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HornOnTheBayou

HornOnTheBayou 8919

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2 minutes ago, mdmost said:

The lines to my washing machine in the utility room that’s on a north facing wall have froze up. I’m imagining the pipes behind the wall are also frozen. Not sure I should bother doing anything and just hope for the best. At least if it bursts, it will be towards the outside of the house. I wrapped some towels around the pipes. Don’t have any space heaters.

Same thing happened to my washer in the unheated garage yesterday. I ended up knocking out some sheetrock just to make sure it hadn't burst. Then I spent ten minutes thawing it out with a hairdryer. I'll babysit it through the day to make sure it stays unfrozen.

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LebongJames

LebongJames 1791

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15 minutes ago, Sandman said:

I woke up to find that I have no hot water. Cold water is flowing strong. Water heater is in the garage. I have no idea how to get those lines heated up. Water heater is gas, FWIW.

Do you have power? Did the pilot light go out? Try to build a make shift barrier with blankets and put a space heater out there if you have one

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Murfdogg21

Murfdogg21 4412

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Has anyone attempted inter city travel today? We have been stranded in Houston since Sunday morning when DPS turned us around on 290 (before the precipitation came through). I want to time the break in action to get back and check on our house, which just went under contract yesterday and needs inspection by Friday. 

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gmr548

gmr548 16576

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I have a friend just on the other side of Mopac from Lamplight Village area (north of Duval west of Mopac), and they haven't lost power.  With St. David's North being nearby, I suspect your mom's area is not going to get the power turned off for blackouts.

South of parmer, west of Mopac across st from St David’s. Been down since 230 am. 

Thanks for the Intel. She’s East of the highway, same side as St. David’s. Also very close to a fire station (pretty sure that’s been the saving grace for our place in Houston). Hoping for the best.
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Skipper

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2 hours ago, ZB'Tejas said:

My backup power on my pool finally gave out and stopped therefore pool froze overnight. Anyone trying anything to help that? Break up the ice or just wait it out?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So far my pump still running.  I was out at minight, 4AM and 7AM breaking up ice in pool.  If power out I found this video.   Also, I've read/been told to put inflatables, floating chairs in pool.  Cut up noodles or tennis balls in skimmers (to try to relieve ice pressure from your skimmer/tiles)

 

 

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GhostOfTomJoad

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50 minutes ago, Goofyboy said:

I lost cold water to my island in my kitchen. Hot water is fine. Cold works everywhere else. Just gonna hold our breath and hope for the best.

This happened to our kitchen sink cold water line. I warmed it with my wife's hairdryer for 45 minutes until it thawed. Steady flow now (on cold) and I'll mix in hot water throughout the day.

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Sandman

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31 minutes ago, LebongJames said:

Do you have power? Did the pilot light go out? Try to build a make shift barrier with blankets and put a space heater out there if you have one

I have power. I get no water at all from the hot side, it's not flowing. The cold side is fine. I'm sure the main pipe/line from the water tank is frozen.

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abuelo gringo

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16 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

Yep.  My two have had the stryofoam covers on for a couple of weeks at least.  I'm not uncovering them to find out.

Same here.  I hope the styrofoam covers are adequate to 5 degrees (@6:30 this AM).  I have kept all faucets in house dripping or light stream and open under sink cabinets at night.  Normally, we turn heat off at night, but have set it at 60 the past two.  Also have lights in unheated garage where wife has several plants stored.  Seems to keep it just below 40.  One of my outdoor faucets is on this wall, so hopefully that helps with it also.

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BigHorn'13

BigHorn'13 3363

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Also day 3 no power and my signal is spotty at best. Pipes have been frozen since this shit started Saturday for us out in the hill country. Definitely one of those times to count blessings. Could describe all the ways this shit has truly fucked me over for a long time, but instead I'm warm, in my truck, reading Surly.

 

Live is good

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DaysOff

DaysOff 7947

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Posted
My backup power on my pool finally gave out and stopped therefore pool froze overnight. Anyone trying anything to help that? Break up the ice or just wait it out?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Turn off the breaker to the pump. Make sure everything is thawed before testing it.
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DonkeyCigars

DonkeyCigars 144

Posted
Posted (edited)
15 hours ago, JimmyJames said:

You were going to drive to a Home Depot in order to buy a second generator even though you already have one working? Ok.

Yea; my generator is a little wussy 1200 honda inverter for the Airstream (which is in Oklahoma). Good for being quiet and electronics and coffee; only has one plug so I could only run one heater (and technically I wasn’t really supposed to even run that space heater). I was looking for a big ugly obscene 4-5000 construction, beat up the block, generator you see in some people’s front yards when they have birthdays that involve blow up slides or bounce houses. I was prescient too, because around 4am the generator wouldn’t work due to not being made for sub zero temperatures (it was -2 last night here). Does that make more sense to you? Did I make the case for your approval?

Edited by DonkeyCigars
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ballrific

ballrific 215

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Really stupid question here probably but we had a hot water pipe burst behind downstairs bathroom sink wall. Turned off water from hot water heater and cleaned up water that ran out of wall. If I turn hot water back on and try to use hot water in another part of house, will that burst portion on other side of house leak again even if we're not pulling hot water from that bathroom? We're lucky, cold water is fine so can flush toilets, etc

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Bigpoppapump

Bigpoppapump 529

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4 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Someone explain to me how cold weather electricity usage even approaches mid summer usage. At least half of Texas residences use gas for heat whereas close to 100% use electricity for air conditioning. 

First result in heat vs ac electrical usage.

 

https://www.fplblog.com/does-running-the-heat-really-cost-three-times-as-much-as-ac/#:~:text=The simple answer to your,your home with A%2FC.&text=In fact%2C it can take,equates to a higher bill.

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SizzleChest

SizzleChest 8283

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Posted (edited)
5 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Someone explain to me how cold weather electricity usage even approaches mid summer usage. At least half of Texas residences use gas for heat whereas close to 100% use electricity for air conditioning. 

A shitload of the power plants that produce electricity and distribute nat gas are shut down.  Mainly because their infrastructure (insulation for pipes and wiring mainly) is so far out of date, it's fucking comical.

So, that doesn't happen in the summer because it's not 5 degrees.

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Samson's Wig

Samson's Wig 3191

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3 minutes ago, Bigpoppapump said:

First result in heat vs ac electrical usage.

 

https://www.fplblog.com/does-running-the-heat-really-cost-three-times-as-much-as-ac/#:~:text=The simple answer to your,your home with A%2FC.&text=In fact%2C it can take,equates to a higher bill.

I still don't really get this either.  The electric bill in August is usually ten times the bill in January, not just in Texas but anywhere else I've lived and still had GFA - including colder climates. 

Is it possible that the electric providers, in cahoots with ERCOT, just don't want to pay the spiked costs during a situation like this so they cook up some bullshit about energy shortage as an excuse to shut down half the state?  I know it's more likely they are merely incompetent and have just failed to secure the system despite this same thing happening a decade ago, but I don't want to fully discount the possibility of malfeasance.  Either way, fuck all of them and I hope heads roll.

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BrazilHorn

BrazilHorn 6586

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My family and I extended our DT hotel stay til Thursday. Hopefully power on after then, if not then no fucking clue. Got a text from my daughter (no pics) that her and her BF are without power in central Austin area and are running low on food. I am going to make a run to my house and grab some stuff and see if I cannot get to his place. This is just such crazy shit. I am waiting til like 2 or 3 for more ice to melt.

Nuts.

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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31440

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15 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Someone explain to me how cold weather electricity usage even approaches mid summer usage. At least half of Texas residences use gas for heat whereas close to 100% use electricity for air conditioning. 

The temperature differential.  Even though AC consumes more power per degree, the difference is almost double. 

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