How Should you Dress During the Winter?
Taking Care of Your Car During the Winter.
What is Frostbite?

How Should You Dress During the Winter?

Winter is here. From this point on you need to be prepared.

I know that many of you have never been exposed to harsh weather as we have had. Here are some useful tips to keep in mind about winter (more detailed information can be found in the ISSS homepage under “Winter in Troy”):

Get in the habit of listening to weather reports on the radio or TV.

How should you dress?

• Wear many layers of loose fitting clothing it ensures that there are pockets of air between the clothing that insulates your body from the cold. For example: undershirt, long sleeved shirt, sweater and a coat. For the lower half of the body, long underwear will also keep you warm. Tight fitting pants do not keep you warm.



• If you haven't bought a Heavy Jacket yet, try to get one with a hood and one that comes below your hips. Down jackets and full-length are the warmest. If it has a nylon outer shell, it provides good protection from the wind. Wool is a good insulator but not effective against the wind. Leather is effective against the wind, but it is a poor insulator. If your coat doesn't have a hood then make sure it has a collar to protect your neck.



• All Stores are having sales now on winter items.



• Get gloves or mittens as they keep hands warm. I suggest at least 2 pairs because one always gets lost. My daughter thinks mittens keep her hands warmer. I use gloves to drive a car because I have better control of the wheel.



• Get a hat! At least 60% of the heat lost by the body is through the head. When the wind blows your ears get very cold.



• Get a scarf because you can wrap the scarf around your face when the wind blows.



• Boots! Another must wear item. Many students wear very strong sneakers with good traction



• When dressing, don't put on so much you can't walk. (Remember layer) When you get inside your lab or classroom, take off your coat. Otherwise, when you go back outside it will not feel like your coat is helping you stay warm. When you leave your apartment or dorm room in the morning, always bring your gloves or mittens.



• When you are walking keep your hands out of your pocket. If you slip and fall and your hands are in your pocket, they will not help you with your balance and you could really hurt your elbow along with other parts of your body.

Take Care of Your Car

• Try to keep your car's gas tank at least half full at all times.



• Keep the radiator filled with antifreeze/coolant.



• Keep the wiper reservoir filled; do not use water (it freezes), use special windshield fluid. This can be bought at Walmart’s or Price Chopper



• Put dry-gas in your gas tank so your fuel line does not freeze. This can be purchased at a gas station
  Many people keep a bag of "CAT LITTER", ROCK SALT or SAND in the trunk of their care in case they get stuck on ice. You can sprinkle it under the tires to give you more traction.



• If your car starts to slide, turn the wheel slowly in the direction you want to go. PUMP the brakes. If you step on the brakes hard they will cause you to slide more.



• Be careful walking or driving, often times you won't see ice on the sidewalks or road. This is called "Black ice"; the ice is thin and smooth and the light makes it shiny, so you don't notice it until you slide on it. Road reports often talk about "black ice".



• If you have to drive always keep a “ice scraper” in your car. This helps you scrape the snow and ice off your windows. You can buy it at Walmarts or Price Chopper. Clean your windows completely before you drive. I always put a broom and shovel in the trunk of my car. Push the snow off the front hood so it doesn't blow onto the windshield while you're driving. I strongly recommend you brush all the snow off your car before you drive and make sure your headlights and tail-lights are clear of ice and snow. I recommend you start your car and let it warm-up while you're brushing the snow off it.



• When driving, remember to allow a little extra distance between you and the car in front of you. If you have to stop quickly and the roads are slippery that extra distance could save you from an accident. REMEMBER PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE.


! Be aware of children, many times when the weather is bad, they put their head down as they walk and forget to think about cars. !


If you don't like driving in the snow take the shuttle bus. Parking becomes more difficult with snow.

What is Frostbite

This was taken from Rensselaer’s Office of Environmental Health and Safety

Frostbite is injury to the skin and sometimes the deeper tissues of the body due to freezing or formation of ice crystals in the tissue cells. Frostbite usually develops when the air temperature is below -12C (10F), but may occur at a temperature nearer the freezing point (oc/32F) when other elements, such as high winds, dampness, or general chilling of the body, are present. Frostbite develops in three stages: a reddening of the skin, formation of blisters, and finally death of some of the skin cells and the underlying tissues. The parts of the body most often affected are the hands, feet (especially the heels and toes), ears, cheeks, chin, and nose. Preventative measures include: wearing layered clothing, keeping your skin dry, avoiding sitting still outdoors for long periods of time, taking frequent breaks out of the cold, and avoiding cigarettes and caffeine. If you believe that an exposure has occurred:

• Get out of the cold immediately
• Warm the effected area with warm water/towels- not hot, do not rub the area
• Do not warm close to a fire as the area has lost its sense of warmth and may be burned, keep the area elevated-as blood returns the area will become painful.

When I was a freshman in college my ears were exposed going to class and they became frostbitten. It was very painful. So please dress properly.