Severe/Extreme/Unusual Weather Thread

[Nobody]

Can anyone here (BB) that's in the New Jersey area tell us what it's like up there? I know 4 people in various parts of New Jersey that said it was rough for about 6 hours, but it was no big deal, and the damage isn't that bad. Then if you watch the news this morning, they're acting like it's Armageddon. Obviously, very conflicting descriptions, so I'm not sure what's going on. I tend to believe the residents over the sensationalist media though.

Side note - I love how any time there's a natural disaster anywhere, the reporter feels the need to find the lowest possible point of land and report from standing in the water, as if we can't see they're surrounded by shallow water. My favorite was when the guy on CNN was in NJ standing in water that he was trying to hype as being a few feet deep, even though it was clearly only halfway up his shins, and you could see the entire top half of every car's tires parked on the road. I think he must have been standing in a pot hole

Before I forget, does anyone know why the rest of the country doesn't matter when New York has to deal with anything? Let me explain. After coastal areas in North Carolina and Virginia had been getting obliterated by Sandy for 48 straight hours, she began to make a turn toward NY/NJ. Oddly, every single news site had a very similar headline along the lines of this......."Sandy Makes Turn, Begins To Batter East Coast" as if the previous two days hadn't even happened.

 

[tshile]

You know... between my job and my wife's job I'm not sure how having kids would work in these situations... I guess I'd have to take off and take care of them. Her job is more critical I would think since it's helping run a major hospital in the area... definitely would have made this morning more interesting...

 

[tshile]

Can anyone here (BB) that's in the New Jersey area tell us what it's like up there? I know 4 people in various parts of New Jersey that said it was rough for about 6 hours, but it was no big deal, and the damage isn't that bad. Then if you watch the news this morning, they're acting like it's Armageddon. Obviously, very conflicting descriptions, so I'm not sure what's going on. I tend to believe the residents over the sensationalist media though.

Side note - I love how any time there's a natural disaster anywhere, the reporter feels the need to find the lowest possible point of land and report from standing in the water, as if we can't see they're surrounded by shallow water. My favorite was when the guy on CNN was in NJ standing in water that he was trying to hype as being a few feet deep, even though it was clearly only halfway up his shins, and you could see the entire top half of every car's tires parked on the road. I think he must have been standing in a pot hole

My understanding is the parts of NJ near Atlantic city are devastated with flooding. I don't think this storm wrecked things the way we see in florida or after a tornado - it's not that places are flattened and houses are washed out to sea. But they had enough of a storm surge to put about 3-4 feet of sand in the road ways, and flood the first story of buildings/homes. The damage is going to be costly even if it's not visually alarming.

Before I forget, does anyone know why the rest of the country doesn't matter when New York has to deal with anything? Let me explain. After coastal areas in North Carolina and Virginia had been getting obliterated by Sandy for 48 straight hours, she began to make a turn toward NY/NJ. Oddly, every single news site had a very similar headline along the lines of this......."Sandy Makes Turn, Begins To Batter East Coast" as if the previous two days hadn't even happened.

Because the news centers are headquartered there? So the people covering it are more concerned about their area? Just guesses though.

It was interesting to see them all talking about the impending doom of New York all night when Maryland and Delaware were getting hammered at the time...

 

[Nobody]

Whenever you see the siding peeling off of a house, even as a result of a storm, it's because it was done wrong. Siding that is properly installed isn't peeled away by wind, because the wind isn't able to get behind it to pull it off the house. Unfortunately, a lot of companies care more about getting in and out and getting the quick check than they do about quality workmanship. As evidenced by the fact my fence that I built myself with no experience is still standing, when the one next door that was professionally installed by a crew in business for years decided to come live with us and take out a door and window. People just don't seem to care about their quality of work anymore, and it's aggravating.

 

[Nobody]

My understanding is the parts of NJ near Atlantic city are devastated with flooding. I don't think this storm wrecked things the way we see in florida or after a tornado - it's not that places are flattened and houses are washed out to sea. But they had enough of a storm surge to put about 3-4 feet of sand in the road ways, and flood the first story of buildings/homes. The damage is going to be costly even if it's not visually alarming.

I get all that, but route 12 in NC is just as bad off, sections of roadway are gone, new inlets formed, etc. and they haven't even mentioned it.

It was interesting to see them all talking about the impending doom of New York all night when Maryland and Delaware were getting hammered at the time...

Exactly. I just hate how they like to act like any state is more important than another.

 

[tshile]

so after canvasing the neighborhood breifly, somehow my tree's decided not to drop their limbs or fall over.

neighbors cannot say the same. thankfully the big branches that fell didn't take our their fence despite landing directly on it. doesn't look like any houses were taken out.

thankfully my basement didn't flood. not sure if I posted this but i'm waiting to have our basement door replaced by home depot because our door leaked. i sucked up quit a bit of water throughout the day, but it seemed to stop over night.

 

[Elephant]

Whenever you see the siding peeling off of a house, even as a result of a storm, it's because it was done wrong. Siding that is properly installed isn't peeled away by wind, because the wind isn't able to get behind it to pull it off the house.

That's just not true Ex. While in the majority of cases with smaller storms, the reason the siding comes off is usually because it's installed improperly, but if the winds are 70 or higher, vinyl siding just isn't meant to withstand sustained winds for any period of time. It's cheap stuff.

 

[MissU28]

That's just not true Ex. While in the majority of cases with smaller storms, the reason the siding comes off is usually because it's installed improperly, but if the winds are 70 or higher, vinyl siding just isn't meant to withstand sustained winds for any period of time. It's cheap stuff.

Also, our houses are all in a row, and a guy who came to fix a piece of our siding recently told us that our neighborhood has this straight lane that is perfect for wind to blow through, so we get really strong winds here. Nothing to really block the wind.

 

[Elephant]

And something that is going unnoticed for less damage than expected in the DC area is the Derecho that came through back in June. I am not sure how many of you have noticed over the past few months, but there have been tree crews out clearing old trees from power lines. They did this as a result of the outcries after the enormous power outages from that storm.

 

[Nobody]

That's just not true Ex. While in the majority of cases with smaller storms, the reason the siding comes off is usually because it's installed improperly, but if the winds are 70 or higher, vinyl siding just isn't meant to withstand sustained winds for any period of time. It's cheap stuff.

When siding is done right, there are no seams. Companies who don't do seamless installation don't do it because they're cheap and unwilling to throw away a 6 inch piece of siding. Sure, it saves the customer money on installation, but it costs them when a storm rips it to shreds. Seamless siding doesn't come off of houses, no matter the wind speed.

 

[tshile]

Looks like queens in new york had fires break out. Burned down about 80 homes

 

[Elephant]

When siding is done right, there are no seams. Companies who don't do seamless installation don't do it because they're cheap and unwilling to throw away a 6 inch piece of siding. Sure, it saves the customer money on installation, but it costs them when a storm rips it to shreds. Seamless siding doesn't come off of houses, no matter the wind speed.

OK Ex, this is ridiculous. Seamless siding installation? Are you telling me there is a company who will install lengths of siding 50ft long? Come one man! Vinyl siding is the most popular siding used today, it is sold in boxes with pieces that are the same length. That is a standard in the industry. They do not have 20, 30 or 50ft lengths of siding as a standard in the business. It's absurd.

And even if there is a section of a house that is done "seamless", vinyl siding is not going to withstand steady winds of 70 mph for long. It's just not made...or installed that way. Vinyl siding is cheap and you can only secure it so well.

 

[Nobody]

OK Ex, this is ridiculous. Seamless siding installation? Are you telling me there is a company who will install lengths of siding 50ft long? Come one man! Vinyl siding is the most popular siding used today, it is sold in boxes with pieces that are the same length. That is a standard in the industry. They do not have 20, 30 or 50ft lengths of siding as a standard in the business. It's absurd.

And even if there is a section of a house that is done "seamless", vinyl siding is not going to withstand steady winds of 70 mph for long. It's just not made...or installed that way. Vinyl siding is cheap and you can only secure it so well.

Vinyl siding comes in lengths as long as you want. After the whole blue vinyl fiasco, the vinyl siding used in the past no longer exists for purchase. Instead, what they have is a composite material they call vinyl siding, but it isn't the same thing. Companies today that aren't fly by night or tightwads, buy the siding in rolls up to 1,000 feet in length. They then feed it into a machine that will cut it exactly at the desired length. As a result, the siding job is seamless.

As with any industry, a lot of the workplace is flooded with cheap asses. Both on the business and consumer side. You can spot these companies as the ones unwilling to invest in the proper equipment, and instead go up to Home Depot and buy their stuff for the same price we could get it for, and buy it in 12, 16 or 20 ft sections. Then they put it up, leaving seams, which wind and weather destroy.

Seamless siding does not come off. It can withstand winds well over 70, and in a lot of cases are rated up to 200mph. And I'm not talking out of my ass either, I actually do have knowledge of this. My cousin is a contractor, my father's friends are all contractors, and my neighbors on both sides are contractors. I know way more about siding, roofing and insulation than I ever wish I did

 

[Elephant]

And I installed siding for a living for years! The most popular vinyl siding used today could not possibly be rolled off a portable machine, it has an insulation glued to the back of it!

 

[Ax]

Mother Nature can destroy any building material that has, does, or ever will exist. And it don't matter what size, or who installed it.

Only an imbecile would claim otherwise.

 

[Boone]

You guys are going to hijack a thread to start an argument over vinyl siding? Seriously? Give it a rest guys.

 

[Burgundy Burner]

Additional Thoughts On Sandy/Frankenstorm

I need to preface this statement with an apology. Early this morning – before the sun had risen – I presented a rosy picture of the aftermath. Quite frankly, I apologize for that assessment.

After seeing the devastation and destruction through countless videos, pictures, and first hand descriptions, the truths are far from what I was thinking this morning. All I did was look out beyond my own window and painted a false picture of serenity. The death toll is climbing. Scenes in the northeast and mid-Atlantic are unlike anything we have ever known. It was predicted several times in these posts and emails to weather friends, but it is still difficult to take these images in and make sense of them.

After driving around this area late in the morning, I encountered closed roads, flooding, and neighborhoods without power. A few blocks away, one neighborhood has been told that it will be without power until November 5. Some of us are fortunate, others are not. In the future, I will wait to make an assessment until the proper time.

 

[Burgundy Burner]

Expecting several inches of snow today, tonight, and early Thursday. Hurricane one week, snow the next. Supposed to be warmer by the weekend.

 

[renaissance]

Expecting several inches of snow today, tonight, and early Thursday. Hurricane one week, snow the next. Supposed to be warmer by the weekend.

What are the numbers for people still without power up there?

 

[Burgundy Burner]

Everyone inland has power. At the shore points, the totals are just under 400,000. Of course, some won't have power for months - total rebuild in those areas. About half of that 400,000 should have power by Thanksgiving.