Heat

[Bruno of NH]

How do you Southern folks deal with this heat.
I'm not built for it   :D
I'm waiting for a customer and my truck thermometer says 104°

[Southside]

Sawed 2000 bf of pine yesterday on a portable job, 107 with the heat index, lots of Gatorade, stay out of the direct sun, and keep your mind focused on what you need to do.  I hate hate the heat and did not grow up in it.  If I can do it anybody can.  

[Bruno of NH]

The customer showed up the 4th pretty lady in the last week.
She just graduated working school some place in Mass.
She showed me pictures of her work.
It was top shelve. 
She will do well.
She left with all my 2" black birch
I have her a deal
I like to help out folks just starting out and just maybe she will be a regular customer.

[WV Sawmiller]

    Grits have been proven to kick in and lower the body temperature approximately 20 degrees when consumed within 72 hours previously. :D

    I know I saw earlier and later and watch the heavy work during the middle of the day. I wear the thin dry back shirts and rip stock pants which are thinner and dry faster. I also try to drink plenty of water and sports drinks.

[Lawg Dawg]

Plenty of bottled water, and fans. I have a fridge in my barn thats about 40' from the sawmill.  But I have been in it all my life!  Will be picking a 20 acre field of 20 lbs. Watermelons in about 2 weeks  :'(. I do try to drink one sports drink every morning and one adult drink every evening, seems to be a good balance  :D

[Chuck White]

For the last three days, it has reached 96° here, so I've not been sawing anything, just hanging around the house!

I don't saw once the temp gets up to 86°, and if I'm already out sawing, I will shut down!

[WDH]

Been just plain awful around here.  Just plain awful . 

[Dave Shepard]

Low 90's here and humid. I simply can't take it. Worked a couple hours today, then got stung 8 times by yellow jackets and wasps and retreated to my air conditioning. My mill starts getting some shade early afternoon at the head end, and actually cools off noticeably in the evening, so that's when I try to be there.  I pick my battles. Plenty of sharpening and timbers waiting for me in the garage. It's still hot, but at least there is a fan and fridge at home. 

I've been dehydrated so many times i don't think there is any way I could deal with direct sun when it's this hot. 

[Lawg Dawg]

When I was 20 years old I could work 6am to 6pm in a watermelon field, not no more, Wednesday I'll be 41 and age will definitely slow you down.  But heat exhaustion/stroke creaps up on you slowly and silently. If you get caught up in your work in the middle of the day, you can be heat exhausted and don't even know it. Once it ever hits you one time, your time in 100 degree weather is limited, because it definitely has a lasting effect on your body, don't over do it, not worth it.

And it's an important discussion to have right now.

[barbender]

I don't know if it's age, the fact that I spent so much time in extreme heat on the paving crew, or a combination (likely) but I just can't take the heat anymore. Sometimes I wonder if I got overheated enough times that it affected my heat tolerance. I actually enjoyed hot weather when I was younger, and dreaded the cold winter. Now it's completely the opposite.

[PAmizerman]

95° here and humid yesterday.
First dry spell we got so hay making was in full swing. 
Never fails seems the last couple years we were packing hay in the barn in 90+ heat. I think I went through 2 gallon of water.

[Peter Drouin]

I love it, heat, cold, wet, bring it on. Yesterday I was chipping a cord of pine slabs. It was 90° 8) 8) 8)

[WDH]

I used to cruise timber all day in 95+ degree heat.  I would be dripping wet from head to toe.  Cannot do it now. 

[Ed_K]

 Set up the wood splitting op up by the sawmill and by 11am I was done. We live in the hills of w.ma. and it's away cooler,but yesterday it hit 101 in the truck at 4pm. I never minded the heat but a few time of getting dehydrated cutting timber has lowered my tolerance considerably.

[timberking]

Fixing to get on the paint gun for a little while.  Late start this morning.  About 3 hours and I'm soaked.  When the drawers are wet, time to come in dry out and apply poo poo powder.  Is this too much info?

[WV Sawmiller]

   Happy Birthday TK. I'm not even going to ask about the poo poo powder. Not sure I am ready for that answer.

[Magicman]

I have tried/used a variety of poo poo powders.  


 
I have used both the Gold Bond Orange and Green bottles but this is my new favorite.  

[lxskllr]

I despise summer. It's been 95+ here with the index into triple digits. I don't do a thing outside when I'm not at work, aside from making the stupid grass shorter every week or two. I keep looking at my new saw next to the kitchen table(The joy of being single!), but I won't be able to use it for another few months. Even if it's cool enough to cut, it'll be a long time til it's cool enough to split, and there's no point in leaving rounds laying around. It's tidier attached to the tree  :^(

[timberking]

Magic I imagine you can get damp in Miss.  You knew what I was talking about.  WV thanks for the reminder.

[samandothers]

Happy Birthday Timberking!

I have a fridge in my barn thats about 40' from the sawmill.  But I have been in it all my life!

Lawg Dawg glad you came out of the frig!  Just pullin your leg!

Yep heat is rough and my tolerance has dropped.  I will work in morning and or late afternoon.  I also try to work in areas were there is shade and avoid the sun for heat purposes as well as protecting the skin.

[Peter Drouin]

Baby Powder, Man you guys are too old to go back to diapers.
Remember, The less you do the less you can do. ;) :D

[Magicman]

 

 
When your drawers get wet you gotta Man Up and take action! 

[47sawdust]

MM,you are more than half baked!

[Wudman]

Try one of the "Starter" brand (WalMart) moisture wicking Cor Tee shirts.  They are about as thick as a piece of tissue paper but are the best I have found for keeping you cool.  The downside....they are not very tough (briars will pick them to death) and they stain very easily.  All the ones I have are safety lime green color.  A little bit of cover over your head (10 x 10 pop up tent) will help a lot too if it is feasible.  I have a couple of the water absorbing bead type neck collars that help too.  Throw them in the cooler to rehydrate and cool.  I haven't had much success with the "evaporative snap type" cooling rags.  Step on a set of scales in the morning and again at night to see how much water you are losing during the day.  Often, I will be 10 pounds lighter at the end of the day.  That has to be tough on the body when you dehydrate like that.  My woods days are based on how much water I can carry.  I will normally have a quart of Gatorade and a couple of quarts of water in my vest.  Camelbak water packs are pretty good if you are going to be away for an extended period of time.  With that said, about 4 hours is all I want in the woods this time of year.

Wudman   

[78NHTFY]

Was nice and cool for me yesterday--IN THE ER!!!!!  with the air conditioning going....  Wasn't paying too much attention to what my wife was doing: working in the garden in this heat (95 - 100°F), hanging clothes to dry, etc... Next thing you know she's not feeling well, lying on the couch throwing up (5X's), dizzy, nauseous, listless: basically totally out of it.  She doesn't remember me taking her to the hospital!  Five hours later, after a full drip bag IV, we were home but she's on "restricted" activity and eating/drinking as much as possible even though she still feels pretty weak.  She's pretty strong-willed but this was a wake up call for her, and me!!  So, be careful out there and check on your significant others, especially for those Easterners who aren't used to this it being this hot/humid for so long.  All the best, Rob.