4.01.2024 Snow storm chaos 2.

 ~o~

  The original post was getting far too long. So I split it here:

 11.00 I have just been clearing snow along the drive and around the house. Quite breathless! Two hours later and the red Repair mode light is still flashing on the battery charger. My understanding, from YT videos, is that the charger tries higher voltage pulses. To de-sulphate the battery electrodes. I am hoping the new battery arrives before lunch. So I can go and do some shopping. I have completely run out of bread rolls. The freight company is continuing to narrow the delivery times via its track and trace system. Now expected before 12.00. Now changed to 12.30. 

 The battery has arrived at 11.50. Nice young bloke. Came from Odense in a box van. Said the snow was variable. I'll go with the old battery as the new one won't be fully charged. Fingers crossed. 

 12.15 The Repair mode never finished. Not even after three hours. So I stopped it and disconnected the charger. The new battery is causing the charger's green LED to pulse slowly. Presumably it is charging up to full capacity. The car started immediately on the old battery. I'll leave it running to defrost the windows. They are completely opaque. 

 12.30 Windows all clear. Battery reads 14.35V with the engine idling. 13.11V switched off. Should be good enough for a trip to the village. The new battery reads 13.10V on charge. 

 13.15 The car managed the journey but was showing intermittent unwillingness to accelerate. I found everything I needed except bananas. The roads were still covered in hard packed snow and slippery in places. I pulled into a lay-bye to let an impatient driver go past. He was sitting on my bumper as I hovered between 50 and 60kph or 30 to 40mph. Another driver stopped in the high street to complain to another impatient car driver. Who was tailgating while pulling a loaded trailer!

 Vehicles were stuck on the M45 for 22 hours without any outside help. Worse, was not knowing how long they would be there. It seems that many heavy lorries could not climb the hills due to wheelspin. It is remarkable that there were no  deaths due to hypothermia. Many children and even babies were involved. They went out expecting a normal drive and then they were simply abandoned to their fate. Many would  not have enough fuel to let the engine run all night. Heads should roll IMO. It is totally unacceptable that so many innocent people should suffer for so long in such conditions. The forecast was perfectly clear. Heavy snow! 

 Lorries should have been automatically refused access to hilly motorways. Given the situation and forecast snow. Lanes on motorways should be left clear in snow conditions for access by emergency vehicles. Why aren't the armed forces involved in such moments of extreme need? Their hideously expensive vehicles sit idle for most of the time. The forces personnel would surely benefit from dealing with such complex situations in real life. 

 14.00 62F/17C in the room after six hours of heating. A [very] brief glimpse of brightness. The old battery is reading 12.91V after 3/4 of an hour disconnected. Meanwhile, the charger is still pulsing slowly on green on the new battery. Reading 13.2V on the terminals under charge.

 21.00 27F/-3C. Dinner was fish fingers, peas and chips. The new battery is still charging after nine hours. .

 ~o~