At this point I’m sure we here in Atlanta have had our fill of the national media coverage of the Nor’easter that hit the northeastern states and caused massive flight delays and cancellations all over the country. While we won’t see the massive snow fall that our cousins in the North saw, we are going to see some of the arctic temperatures that impacted the Midwest and New England. Expected low temperatures in Atlanta tonight are in the single digits. I don’t care if you are from Chicago or Boston, that’s mighty cold.
“I see temperatures falling from the twenties on Monday to the single digits after midnight and staying there through sunrise,” said WSB-TV Meteorologist David Chandley. “Tuesday will be the coldest morning since January of 2003 and will bust the record of 10 degrees (Jan. 7) set in 1970.”
As we in Georgia brace for the bitter cold tonight and tomorrow, today is the perfect time to make sure your automobile is ready for such frigid temperatures. We have precious little time to “winterize” our cars.
If you get a chance today, before the temps drop into the single digits, the National Safety Council has some ways you can help your car survive the arctic chill.
The NSC suggests that you:
— Check the concentration level of the antifreeze in your vehicle’s engine. This is done by using an antifreeze tester which is inserted into the water reservoir of your car. Do not open the radiator cap!
— Add a stronger windshield cleaning/deicer fluid solution to keep the spray from freezing.
— Check air pressure in your tires (including the spare) and replace any worn tires.
If you have time, you also might want to take your car or truck in for a full maintenance service today. Make sure to have your radiator and battery checked, have your ignition system looked at and all fluids including oil, replaced. It’s also a good idea to fill up your gas tank. Not only will this help prevent freezing, if, God forbid, you are stranded in the cold somewhere, you have enough fuel to stay warm until help arrives.
This winterising process will help make sure that your car is best equipped to handle to cold driving conditions. I expect that on Tuesday morning a lot of people will head out to work only to find cars that won’t be able to start in the cold. Those that do start but aren’t ready to drive in the cold temperatures are more likely to stall out or catch fire. Historically in the traffic world, the colder it gets, the more vehicle fires we see.
So, if you haven’t already prepared your automobile for tomorrow’s frigid commute, try to find time today to get it done.
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