As an impactful winter storm moves toward North Texas this weekend, state grid operators say they are taking steps to monitor electricity demand and grid reliability. ERCOT said grid conditions are expected to remain normal during the winter weather. However, power outages are not out of the question since they can be caused by a number of reasons, including ice.
An Arctic air mass is expected to arrive in North Texas on Friday and last through Sunday morning, bringing moderate to heavy accumulations of snow, sleet, and ice, and potentially knocking out power.
The ice can accumulate on power lines and weigh down tree limbs, which can also bring down lines, resulting in mass outages. Here are some ways you can prepare for potential outages before losing power.
- Download the free NBC DFW app to stay on top of changing weather conditions. You can find it here.
- Keep your phones and devices plugged in and fully charged. Charge any backup batteries.
- Locate a working flashlight and keep it, and a blanket, handy.
- If you lose power, keep freezers and refrigerators closed. Ready.gov says a refrigerator can keep food cold for about four hours. A full freezer can keep its temperature for about 48 hours if it’s fully stocked. You can freeze bottles of water before an outage to take up space if your freezer isn’t full.
- You can keep a thermometer in the fridge, freezer, or cooler to monitor food temperature. The USDA says the temperature in a fridge should stay at or below 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Do not use a gas stove or oven to heat your home.
- Follow the manufacturer’s instructions if using a generator. As the Consumer Product Safety Commission explains, never operate a portable generator inside a home or garage. Opening doors or windows will not provide enough ventilation to prevent carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. Remember, CO has no odor, so you won’t be able to smell a buildup of dangerous CO levels.
Also note that if you park your vehicle inside a garage, you may get stuck if your garage door opener doesn’t have a battery backup.
During an outage, Oncor said to use surge protectors to protect appliances or unplug electrical equipment to protect it from a potential surge when your power is restored.
If your power does go out, the National Weather Service in Fort Worth suggests the following tips for about how to stay warm:
- Close blinds or curtains to trap heat inside
- Close rooms to avoid wasting heat
- Stuff towels or rags in cracks under doors
- Eat and drink. Food can warm the body — but avoid caffeine and alcohol
- Wear layers of loose-fitting, lightweight, warm clothing
See the latest weather forecast from NBC 5’s team of Weather Experts below.
COLD WEATHER PREPARATION
Winterizing Your Home
Before the cold, replace worn weatherstripping on doors and windows to ensure a good seal. This will make sure warm air stays inside and cold air stays outside. Most modern windows are sealed inside the frame, but older windows may be sealed with a glaze that can crack and need replacing. The glaze may need to be applied above a certain temperature and it’ll need time to cure — this maintenance is ideally done in the spring or fall. Lastly, check your gutters to ensure they are clear and allow water to flow freely to the downspout. Blocked gutters can lead to water entering the home. The Texas Department of Insurance also recommends trimming trees away from power lines, homes, and cars and checking the insulation level in attics.
Protecting Your Pipes
Most North Texans know to insulate their outdoor faucets, but if the cold snap is prolonged it could be a good idea to also leave inside faucets on external walls dripping overnight so that they don’t freeze. The drip, drip, drip from running faucets, if heard, can be annoying, so put a sponge or towel in the sink to silently catch each drop. If you’re leaving town for a few days, the Texas Department of Insurance recommends leaving cabinet doors open so that pipes on external walls are more exposed to heat. If you have pipes in an attic or crawlspace or any other exposed pipes outdoors, they’ll need insulation, too. For external faucets, disconnect hoses and insulate the valves. Wrapping valves with towels is not the best long-term solution. Most, if not all, North Texas hardware stores sell inexpensive exterior faucet covers made of foam that easily attach to the faucet bib in just a few seconds and do a great job protecting the pipe from freezing. If you suspect a pipe has frozen, keep the faucet open so that water can flow when it melts. Additionally, make sure you know where your main water valve is located (and how to turn it off) in the event a pipe bursts.
Bring in Your Pets
Even if you have a pet or animal that normally lives or sleeps outdoors, they could be susceptible to cold, hypothermia, and pneumonia. The SPCA of Texas says if you’re cold outside, odds are your pet is cold too. Bring pets inside and make sure other outdoor animals have appropriate shelter, dry and well insulated, to protect them from frigid temperatures and possible death.
Protecting Your Plants
Perennial potted plants should be brought indoors. Plants that cannot be brought inside will need to be covered. Delicate plants can be covered with sheets, blankets, or landscaping frost blankets, which can trap heat. During times of extreme cold, multiple frost blankets may be used. For plants left outside a day or two before a freeze hits, the Dallas Arboretum recommends watering the soil only by hand, keeping the foliage dry to insulate the plant’s roots. The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension has more here on how to protect plants from frosts and freezes. AgriLife also has tips on how to plant for the winter.
Dallas Arboretum
Dallas Arboretum
Turn Off Your Sprinkler System
You want to turn off your irrigation system for several reasons. One is that you don’t want it running on its normal schedule, potentially throwing water on streets where it can freeze and be dangerous for passing cars. Second, you don’t want to risk any broken pipes or valves that may come with a system that has not been winterized. To winterize your system, the city of Fort Worth recommends that timers and back-flow devices both be turned off, even if you have freeze or rain sensors installed and that the main line be drained. Any pipes that are above the ground should also be insulated.
HVAC
Many air filters should be changed or cleaned every three months or every season. But that’s not the only winterizing needed for your HVAC system. You should check your ductwork regularly for holes (whether from vibration or rodents) to ensure the airflow is uninterrupted. If part of your HVAC is in the attic, it may also be home to rats, mice, and squirrels who find the unit’s warmth an ideal spot to build a nest.
Swimming Pools
Even if you have a freeze protector among your pool equipment, you’ll want to look at the pump daily to ensure it’s moving water through your pipes. Those pipes, too, can burst if they freeze.
Batteries
Having fresh batteries for flashlights during a power outage is always a good idea. If you didn’t replace the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors during daylight saving time — now is a good time to make the switch. It’s also a good idea to ensure your phone is charged so that you’ll have access to timely information in the event of a power loss. Having a backup battery or power source to recharge your phone is also a good idea.
Great Job Hannah Jones & the Team @ NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth for sharing this story.
