For Those of Us In Snow Country

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Despite being unseasonably warm here the past few days, we have had enough sub freezing nights to remind us that winter and the inevitable "white crap" will be here soon.  Over the last week, I have spent some time tuning up the snow blower and doing other odds and ends towards the day when "Clear and Still" in the forecast will mean "CLEAR UP TO YOUR BUTT and STILL SNOWING".After I got all the stuff done in and around the shop, I thought I had better put out the driveway markers.  Now for those of you folks that live in non-snowing climates, I realize you probably have never heard of such a thing, but for those of us that do they are a necessary fact of life.  I reached behind the cabinet where I store them and pull out these cheap a$$ plastic things that they sell at the hardware store.  The reflector promptly fell off of one, meaning either fix it or replace it with another equally chinsy piece of crap.The first pic is one of the hardware store variety markers for comparison.Picture 2 is of my design.  Simply a re-bar electric fence post with a 13" piece of 1"X1" square tube button hole welded to the top.  The reflective is Horrible Fright tape strips.Picture 3 is the finished installation.  The ditch on the left in the photo is about 3 feet deep and drifts full of snow.  If you miss the drive and drop off in that hole it means calling for a tow truck or getting the neighbor to tug it our with their tractor.The reflectors are brighter and easier to see at night than the store bought ones.  I stuck them out Friday and after a couple of days I got requests from some neighbors for replicas.  I get $30 a pair which covers the post, tubing and reflector tape.  I think I might make some for family members as Christmas presents. Attached ImagesRogerOld, Tired, and GRUMPYSalesman will call, Batteries not included, Assembly is required, and FREE ADVICE IS WORTH EXACTLY WHAT YOU PAY FOR IT!Dial Arc 250HFThunderbolt 225 AC/DCAssorted A/O torches
Reply:Now thats Handy, In the UK its pretty cold and already its been snowing in places, They reckon its gonna get colder in the next few weeks and snow will cover most of the UK.The Problems i've had driving, and thats why this is a great idea, is that when it snows it covers everything, you can't see where the road starts or finishes, so you either take a gamble or follow the car in front!!This is a great idea to mark out entrances etc.. especially if you live near ditches, or other obstructions
Reply:My family has a cabin at just below 3000 ft near Mt Rainier and they plow the roads with a bulldozer (dirt access roads off highway). They just use 3' "2x1" wood stakes to mark the driveway (they plow the driveway too so they line the whole driveway). Use the wood ones because they are inevitably going to get hit and brokent. it's cheaper and easier to replace wood than metal. plus less damage to the vehicle that hits it.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Originally Posted by Mick120Hey Gerry,  You guys would still be reeling from the floods....now snow??Nature can be a real bitch sometimes.
Reply:Sure dont miss the white crap...but buddy let me tell ya, if it craps here these original people drive like they are drunk...
Reply:Originally Posted by Gerry1964Now thats Handy, In the UK its pretty cold and already its been snowing in places, They reckon its gonna get colder in the next few weeks and snow will cover most of the UK.The Problems i've had driving, and thats why this is a great idea, is that when it snows it covers everything, you can't see where the road starts or finishes, so you either take a gamble or follow the car in front!!This is a great idea to mark out entrances etc.. especially if you live near ditches, or other obstructions
Reply:They've been putting in that fiber optic lines around here the last few years. The outfits doing it seem to have a never ending supply of that orange line conduit stuff that's about 4 to 6 feet long. Just get some rebar about 24 inches long pound about 6 to 8 inches of that in the ground and set your orange marker over it and there ya go.1942 Lincoln Lincwelder 180, 2 Cylinder Wisconsin Gas1981 Lincoln Shield Arc 250, 3 Cylinder Perkins DieselLincold Idealarc 250 Roundtop AC DC+ DC- (80's)Miller Millermatic 250x
Reply:I use old golf hole flag poles.
Reply:If you want some fun, take those wooden stakes and get the reflective tacks (we call em bright eyes) and put 2 tacks about 3-4" apart horizontally, place them randomly in the right of ways and watch the cars at night dynamite their brakes thinking theres deer everywhere. They also work great for marking your deer stand trails.Other than that little detour from the topic, those markers also really cut down on the number of new mailboxes you have to buy in a season, seems the snowplow is afraid of the markers but manage to catch just about every mailbox on a pass at least once a year, never one marker gets hit though.