Page 4, Fire News, November 2021
FireNews.com
From the Editor’s Desk Dennis Whittam, Editor
Are You Ready for Winter Whoa’s? The other day, I responded to a call, only to find that my car windows were totally fogged up and I was unable to safely drive. While I was waiting for my car windows to clear, I realized that before we know it, we will be dealing with horrendous weather conditions that affect our response to the firehouse. I thought it would be fun to share some of the remedies that firefighters shared with me over the years. So, let’s have some fun. Reminiscing over my past 50 years of driving, I thought of some of the advice I received on the topic of dealing with the cold conditions of winter. Many of the experienced drivers I talked to had to deal with weather conditions in areas like Alaska, the Dakotas and the Adirondacks. My first real lesson on the adverse effects of weather was in the early 70s. I learned how members of the military in Alaska kept their cars from freezing. I learned that drivers had to install battery warmers, oil warmers, coolant warmers and interior warmers. Interior warmer? Yes, the vinyl seats in cars would crack into pieces if the seats were not kept warm. Thankfully, Long Island only must deal with frosted windows, weak batteries losing their charge and black ice.
In 1979, I learned that cold conditions, even on Long Island, created havoc for my Volkswagen diesel engine. A few of my truck driver friends suggested installing coolant heaters to keep my engine block warm. Voila! The problem of starting my car was solved. The downside was that I had to plug my car in at night. I joined the volunteer fire service in 1992. It didn’t take me long to figure out that my response in the wee hours of the morning was detained because my car’s windshield had to be defrosted before I could respond. Thankfully, remote starts came into play. When a call came in at 0300, I reached over, hit the remote start, got dressed and ran out to my car which was starting to warm up. I also kept a spray bottle of windshield washer fluid that I added a few ounces of dry gas to. Dry gas is an alcohol-based liquid that further lowered the freezing temperature of my windshield washer fluid. It worked well to rapidly defrost my windshield. I also learned not to turn on my windshield wipers right away. Turning the wipers on would remove the fluid and the windows would fog up again. If you go to your local auto parts store,
you will find windshield covers, spray deicer, and other items to help you overcome frosted windows. If you are in a cold area, do a search online to find all kinds of heaters that can keep your car warm at night. Why am I sharing my stories of winter whoa’s with you? Over the years, I have seen members scrape a small hole in the frost that covered their windshield. Then, they would drive to the firehouse only realizing that the ice that was scraped off reappeared halfway to the firehouse. Be smart and safe. Don’t respond to the firehouse until your car’s windshield is clear. Have a safe winter. Think of winter whoa’s before they happen. - Dennis
