[ftp]

Walked my girl to school and the main roads were pretty good so time for work!
Started the van up and left it running for quarter of an hour whilst I scraped the snow off, walked round the back and forced the back door open to check everything.
My van is a foot away from the garage door and plugged into the mains with a 120w tube heater running day and night, on top of the tank I have a sheet of cardboard up to the back doors to trap the warm air, on top of this I have an old quilt.
Well my microbore is frozen as is the van floor with about five millimetres of ice with the quilt frozen into that. My pipes are double lagged with proper lagging surrounded by bubble wrap. My 650l tank has a skin of ice even though it's also covered in foam rubber.
The thing is we only had -12 last night - god help you guys who get - 20! 

[ian1972]

i am in wigan and i cant even open back doors on my van i aint risking ripping door handle off

[matt]

i ran my wife to work and couldnt open the passenger side doors, still cannot open them

then 6yr off to school at 10.00

back home and in the warm 

[Nathanael Jones]

i am in wigan and i cant even open back doors on my van i aint risking ripping door handle off

I broke the door handle on my van just before xmas trying to force it open when it was frozen shut. ;(

[Window Washers]

i am in wigan and i cant even open back doors on my van i aint risking ripping door handle off

I broke the door handle on my van just before xmas trying to force it open when it was frozen shut. ;(

Little tip for you Nat,

Do not try and force your van does if they are frozen shut, as you will break the handles 

[GBWWFC]

ive been out to do some weekly shops. The temperature was -5 when i went out  but i never froze up. I was just skating on the ice by the window !
My aluminium A frame froze  tho.
Lets hope next week we can all get going a bit ..

[Ken]

2 litres of screenwash to 5 litres of water, I've had no probs this morning. Just going to trad some flats now. See ya!

[Mike #1]

temp now upto -1 from -12 out to work once i have my pheasant curry to warm me up

[martinsadie]

i am in wigan and i cant even open back doors on my van i aint risking ripping door handle off

I broke the door handle on my van just before xmas trying to force it open when it was frozen shut. ;(

Little tip for you Nat,

Do not try and force your van does if they are frozen shut, as you will break the handles 

l put a hot water bottle against mine to thaw it out 

[JRDEasiReach]

I couldnt go this morning at all, -9 when i woke up this morning, its now 3pm in afternoon and its tinkering around the -3 - 4 mark, only time its warm is when you stand in the direct sunlight and even then its not totally warm so all my endeavours to defrost my outside pipes would have been in vain so im glad i didnt, inside is nice and warm though, going to pay for some leccy from my business account this time and then when tax man asks ill explain why, surely this is allowable? 

[martinsadie]

I couldnt go this morning at all, -9 when i woke up this morning, its now 3pm in afternoon and its tinkering around the -3 - 4 mark, only time its warm is when you stand in the direct sunlight and even then its not totally warm so all my endeavours to defrost my outside pipes would have been in vain so im glad i didnt, inside is nice and warm though, going to pay for some leccy from my business account this time and then when tax man asks ill explain why, surely this is allowable? 

dream on 

[JRDEasiReach]

i have a powercard meter installed not on a quarterly bill so a 10 once should be ok after all i have to use the leccy for my heater for my business

[Ken]

Out for 6 hours today, cleared over a ton, try screenwash/gg4/water mix. Only a little bit of freezing on an unheated cons and one customer gave me a bit extra for coming round in the snow!

[stu_thomson]

going back to frozen doors not opening, I spray a heavy duty silicone spray around all the rubbers and its not sticking any more

stu

[Dave Turley]

i've just tried silicon spray!

ptfe spray and vaseline just ain't cutting it!

worked thurs/fri no probs with hot

[[GQC] Tim]

You know what the problem is ftp? The tube heater. They are utterly rubbish. I've had one, they do not work. What you need is a fan heater, which circulates the air. My van is nice and warm everytime I open it up. My van is the only car in the road with no snow on it, and frost free. 

Mine has got a thermostat, with two heat settings, 1000w and 2000w.

[AuRavelling79]

Sun came out at noon and so I went and did trad on a bungalow and cleared a drive! (Johnny Coyle would be proud!) Cleared £30   and then at 2pm the sun went in and the water started freezing on the glass and so I visited me mammy and then went home.

[Mike #1]

worked just over 2 hrs and made £30.00 better than nothing pleased to be earning

[jouk45]

it was 21 here last night, all my 25ltr water containers where solid ice