Was going to go out in the field today but woke up to -1. The sun is out and it's supposed to hit 20, but I didn't feel like waiting for that. Don't really have anything real pressing to get done so I think I will get caught up on some office work. I hate winter more each year (I'm pushing 60) Would like to some day close up shop Jan and Feb and head south.
We have a lot in common.
It has a lot more to do with the effective temp than the actual temp. It can be five degrees and still and things will be OK. Thirty degrees with a 30 mph breeze is no good.
It has much more to do with how far behind I am on a specific job than anything else. Guilt is a terrible thing.
Anything under 18 is too cold for me.
> Anything under 18 is too cold for me.
Anything under 68 is too cold for me. 😉
We often push the envelope with regard to the lower end of temperature operating specifications for equipment. Work is primarily governed by OH&S guidelines and safety hazard assessment by all involved. Cold weather training is part of our Safe Work Program.
The short answer is...it depends...
I agree. If it is in the 20's, and I don't HAVE to be out there, I will try to get caught up on office stuff.
My robot doesn't track well in the teens, so that is the "official" cut off for me doing robotic work. Having said that, I was out there last week in the teens doing some cross section work with the windchill in the single digits, but we had to get the job done. We were using my manual total station.
About every 5 years my no-go temp raises. I won't even head out until the temp reaches 15F. 15 years ago it was 0F and I don't give wind chill much thought. I can remember 15 years ago or so being chewed out be Ted Dura Dura when I questioned if anyone else was having trouble with their TDS Recon data collectors in 0 degree weather. He (yes the guy who wouldn't give a water break during a heat wave) for having my crews out when it was 0 degrees. Over the past 20 years or so if we didn't go out in such cold tempetures we wouldn't get much work do in Jan/Feb. Damned climate change...I'm going out and burning some styrofoam peanuts to try and get a little heat going. I liked the winters in the 80s and 90s much better.
When I was still in sales/support I had someone call one day asking why his digital level wouldn't work when the temperature (not the wind chill factor) in Northern Illinois was -25F. I think the cold spec on it was some where around 0F.
I had a survey crew on the front page of the paper last week because I had them out when it was 8 degrees.
When the liquid in the level bubble contracts to the point where the bubble cannot be seen...
I work alone, so the answer is that it's never too cold. Last week, I was working in northern ND near the Canadian border and the high temp was -14 degrees. I've also worked in -20 degree weather, not counting wind chill. It's just that the colder it gets, the more times I jump into the truck to warm up. Just cover up your skin and keep moving, it's not that bad.
If I was managing crews and sitting in the office all day, I would say the cutoff is 0 degrees F. I wouldn't expect them to be as nuts as I am.
I try to keep the thermostat in the office on 70...68 is a bit chilly. If it gets that cold, I usually bump it up a degree or two. 😉
It's one of those things to have to work out in the cold in order to get the job done. In 1972 we were doing a boundary survey of a ranch South of Wilson, Wyoming which is West of Jackson in order to subdivide it into lots. It was -42° and 3 to 4 feet of snow on the ground. There wasn't any wind, thank goodness. Anyway, we were using both, a Hewlett-Packard 3800 and Tellurometer MR3's. Believe it or not they worked fine, even though the HP wasn't rated to work in that temperature.
wimps. 😉
This winter my number is more affected by wind. Anything around 10MPH+. And anything around 20F.
I am good to -30.
The only thing that changes is the way I dress. And below 10, I closely resemble the dough boy.
Insulated Carharts, packs, mittens over gloves, funny hats, wool socks. The big pain for me is it takes 5 minutes to take a leak.
I figure if it is warm enough to hunt elk, it is warm enough to work.
M
HP 3800 series
If I remember the 3800 was the "dial-in" model, wasn't it? Did a lot of work with one of those. Did a lot of work also with the later "total stations" with the red LED display.
If they had been LCD display you might not have been able to read the damn thing in the cold. My last TS with LCD was a Nikon. It was only good to about zero or five above. After that the display was too cold to read.
How Cold is too Hot?
My body told me about 30 yrs ago that trying to survey in anything below 20 deg is counter productive. You spend more time trying to be warm than actually working. Throw in some wind, snow, wind, traffic, sleet, and oh yea wind.... get in the truck and go.
Nowadays my bottom line is about 40. I max out on the other side around 95, maybe 100 if there is a wind.
I've got a post pending about my bad experience attempting to move back to my home state of MI, but wound up with a mutual bye bye. Now I'm back in sunny AZ.
How Cold is too Hot?
I worked in FL for 11 years and got real sick of the heat and humidity. Moved back north 21 years ago and said I would never complain about the cold. Was doing pretty well up until a few years ago. Old age is creeping in, just can't take the cold as much anymore. I guess there are advantages to being a small shop, just myself, a draftsman and a part time field hand. Home office, low overhead, most everything paid for. If I don't really have to go out I don't.
> I try to keep the thermostat in the office on 70...68 is a bit chilly. If it gets that cold, I usually bump it up a degree or two. 😉
Better than what my wife does. I keep the temp at 69° and she bumps it up til she hears the heater turn on. Sometimes 72° or a more.
