[jimjamuser]

I have 2 outside plants that I really like. so I cover them with sheets. I also have been experimenting with putting out I gal jugs of HOT water around 10 PM. A little bit of work, but for my 2 most liked plants. It is worth the little bit of time and work.

[Stu from NYC]

Some posts say trickle the hot water. Since the water is inside the house and presumably hot, would it not make more sense to trickle the cold water?

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by jimjamuser

I have 2 outside plants that I really like. so I cover them with sheets. I also have been experimenting with putting out I gal jugs of HOT water around 10 PM. A little bit of work, but for my 2 most liked plants. It is worth the little bit of time and work.

The 2 plants are some distance apart so I would have the hassle of using and picking up 2 different hoses from different faucets and setting the drip. This way is easier. I just leave the hot water in the containers, then in the next morning, I pour them on the plant's roots.

[Velvet]

Or use Christmas lights, mine are unfortunately LED so no heat. ChatGPT suggested covering with cardboard box or bucket but not letting plant touch sides, under the Planket I use. Says the temperature can be 6 to 8 degrees higher inside the box. Which I will take off a bit during the day so plant can get a bit of sun. This plant has struggled with me over the years in the cold and I just want to see if I can help it through this winter.

[Dr.SammieMD]

I think they're talking about trickling the hot water in the house so that the exposed pipes on the on-demand hot water heater (if you have one) don't freeze.

[Velvet]

Anybody worried about the irrigation pipes? The ones that are about 15” high in the flower beds?

[asianthree]

This isn’t the first time temps have reached 30° or lower. The first winter we bought I remember our home watch emails no worries on irrigation freeze. At the time our irrigation guy emailed the same. So have always used that rule of thumb.

Interesting to see how plants fair cover with planket or a box. One poster is using hot water bottles. This is the first morning of light frost, definitely have had very heavy frost in earlier years. Hope those will chime in with info.

Our pool freeze protection kicked in @3:34a, stopped at 8ish. Pool temp monitors and temp gage on birdcage both ticked at 30° when I got up at 4:30a. I’m sure the tips of TV registered how much lower temp.

[Pondboy]

Sadly, many of us will loose a lot of plants this weekend. I’m seeing temps in the mid 20’s so that’s not good. So I’m sure there will be a lot of Hibiscus, Majestic Palms, Acrea Palms and Foxtail Palms dead or severely injured….to name a few. For these plants, I'm not even going to bother covering them. A frost blanket might get you around 5 degrees cushion. That’s if you install it correctly, taking advantage of radiant heat from the ground. Adding insult to injury will be the 25 mph winds that we’re expecting on Saturday. So keeping any covering secure will be a challenge.

What I am focusing my attention on is wrapping my Birds of Paradise, Citrus Trees (but I’ll loose the fruit) and Robellini Palms. These can handle brief periods in the 20’s with some protection.

If you are in doubt about how much cold your plants can take, simply google the name of the plant and add “cold tolerance” behind its name. This will give you some idea on how to proceed.

Please see photo on how to protect your Robellini. You must wrap the part where the green fronds come out of the trunk. Im going to even wrap the entire trunk and cover the fronds completely. I’m thinking the easiest way to do this is to try using a Hula Hoop (cut on one end to get around the trunk and then lift it up around the fronds to get them close together). From there I’m going to use a bungee cord to keep the fronds in place, and then wrap it all up in a bath towel.

A garden hose might help in place of the Hula hoop….just be careful of those thorns. They have been known to cause infections. There are “thorn proof” gloves available on Amazon that I’ll be using in this adventure.

As far as your lawn, hopefully you have watered it sufficiently (at least an 1” of water) so that the soil is moist. This will help protect it from freezing. Sadly, the Torpedo and Bermuda Grass won’t die and will be back in the spring.

Best of luck!

[Larryandlinda]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

To clarify, I would add that cold wind blowing on a water pipe will freeze the pipe a lot faster than if there is no wind.

some get it and some don't
if it's a pipe with liquid or gas passing through and that liquid or gas is a different temperature than the ambient, wind will make a difference op or down.
+
topic stray:
likely not applicable in Florida other than during these cold snaps, our groundwater loops at 'home' farther north feed the heat pumps with constant 55 degree water from which it seeks to extract heat, compared to trying to extract heat from below-freezing air.
There should be a way to use the 55 degree water to cool in the summer with a simple vanes heat exchanger.

[GreggC69]

The referenced Villages District Gov recommendations are to drain the sprinkler system supply lines. How do you do that?

[Pondboy]

Originally Posted by GreggC69

The referenced Villages District Gov recommendations are to drain the sprinkler system supply lines. How do you do that?

Find the lowest irrigation head in each zone. Pull up on the head with a pair of pliers, twist of head (lefty Lucy) and the line will drain.

While you have the head off, run the zone to flush any sediment out of line.

You’ll probably need to get an irrigation head tool (big box stores) to align the spray pattern.

If your new to irrigation systems, you tube would be a good source of do it yourself videos.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Velvet

Anybody worried about the irrigation pipes? The ones that are about 15” high in the flower beds?

If the zone includes popup heads then I wouldn’t be concerned about the risers at all. I would expect water in that zone to flow to the lowest point, draining it out of the risers.

[Maker]

If you want to run water during the freeze time, perhaps set washing machine or dishwasher to start after a delay. Have a load of clean clothing or dishes when you wake up.

[Battlebasset]

Originally Posted by Maker

If you want to run water during the freeze time, perhaps set washing machine or dishwasher to start after a delay. Have a load of clean clothing or dishes when you wake up.

Exactly. Use the timer/delay on your dishwasher so it kicks on at 2:00 am. It will run water through the pipes, and kick your outside tankless water heater on. You need to wash your dishes anyway, so no wasting of water just letting it trickle down the drain/ground.

Not that I think any of that will be necessary, but it's a pretty easy thing to do, so why not?

[Bay Kid]

Good day for cleaning the house and a crockpot meal.