Spring cleaning in the Fall

So going in to winter I decided that the shop was not clean or organized enough and did something about it. I made a HUGE mess while painting and cleaning and rearranging the shop equipment. I actually went for a few days with no room to work on anything but getting the shop cleaned up and painted! The ceilings and upper half of the shop we painted white and the lower half we painted grey. Really cleans the place up, makes it a lot brighter in there. At the same time we painted the office area with a new coat of white to clean it up in there as well. While it is not quite done yet, still have to do the floors in the shop, some touch up on the walls, and make all the overhead lights match (we are trying out some different color bulbs to see how they work and really like them, but we only have them in one corner of the shop currently) it looks so much better out there.

Sorry no pictures you are just going to have to come see yourself!

I dont know if you noticed this...

But it is cold out!

Now cold is not really a good thing for your vehicle. Not a bad thing as long as you are prepared for it, but the engine really does not like the cold. When the temp gets as low as it has over the last few days (i.e. -12 in come places) there are a few tings that become really important. Firat and foremost you need to have your car start! The main component of this is the battery. Each car battery comes with a CCA rating, this is Cold Cranking Amps. Or how much electricity it can push at 32 degrees F. If you felt your car struggle to start yesterday or today in the AM it means your battery was not quite holding the charge it needed to start the car easily and you should get a battery. Compared to a tow bill for not starting and the possibility of being stuck in the weather it is an excellent investment. You want your engine to start right up when you turn the key.

The next thing is do NOT just drive off when you turn the engine over! At below freezing temps your engine oil takes a while to get moving through the engine. I went out this morning and started the car, then came back inside and waited about 15 in before driving away. When it is this cold you should really wait till you see some temperature on your vehicles temp gauge before driving the vehicle. This will keep your engine alive much longer, and keep you from getting some bad wear and tear on the internal moving parts. It really isnt a good idea to just start and engine in any weather and drive off, you should actually give it a bit to get settled before driving. In normal weather I usually jump in, turn the key an dthen get settled before I start driving. This includes getting the wallet out of the back pocket, getting my seatbelt on, checking the mirrors and that everyone with me is buckled before moving.

One more thing you may wish to consider in this weather is it is a good idea to have some supplies in the vehicle just in case. A blanket, some food and water (probably frozen by now) and heavy clothes, especially if you are doing any sort of road trip. Personally I carry enough that if I get stranded on the side of the road I can walk comfortably to the nearest help if Ireally need to. Well, last time I went to Cody WY comfort would have a been a relative term. If I had had to walk I would have been a cold, cold man. Alive, but very cold. Thankfully I did not have any issues.