Moving to Alaska..need info

[Troyfrezze]

Well, while sitting around the office Thursday morning I suddenly get this email in. Get to reading it, and it states i'm heading to Alaska next year. Which is fine with me! I've grown up in the south, and after living in Texas with one climate all year long, I'm ready to move to a new location! I report to Elmendorf no later then June 30 of 2006, but there is alot of stuff to get ready before then. Namely cold weather equipment for the family, the new baby on the way, and the car's! So I'm asking anyone who lives in the really cold climates, and I know there is at least one of you that lives in Canada on here, to give me any info reguarding outfitting my 93 I4 and my 95 1mz with what they are going to need to survive in Alaska. I will more then likely sell off the 93 prior to the move, or after we get there to get something with 4WD. So if again, if anyone here can through me some info I'd greatly appreicate it!
And on a side note I still think this is funny..in my previous thread about my engine having issues a few times, I mentioned that I live in Texas where it's like 89 outside right now at 10pm so I wasn't worried about cold weather for my car, and now...now I'm trying to figure out winter tires, engine block heater, protecting the paint from snow and salt and so on! Anyways...thanks for the info guys and gals!

[prnc_chrmng]

you should probly PM Nick, he had a camry up there

[Homerfaith]

Hello
I live on the southern tip of the Kenai Peninsula. I have lived here since 1994, after living in KS and OK most of my life.
You will be living in Anchorage, or right outside it. Regardless of what everyone "Outside" believes, the weather here is not that different from Minn. or SD. The only thing you will need on your car is a battery heater which you will plug in in REALLY cold weather, maybe a couple times a year every few years or so, and 4 wheel drive if you live anywhere outside of town or off Base. Mostly you will need studded tires as ice here is awful and the most that you have to worry about.
A word of advice, do not do what I did when I moved here, believing like all outsiders that it is terribly cold everywhere in AK. DO NOT buy really heavy parkas, etc. YOu will acclimate to the weather and before long you will begin to think that 60 degrees is HOT, i mean shorts and topless kinda hot, especisally if you are playing softball or some other summer sport. Convince your wife and kids that they WILL survive without lots of long johns and woolens. The schools are kept pretty warm and most kids wear sleeveless or shoirt sleeved shirts to school in the winter. Of course, get good gloves, scarves, ear muffs, etc for outdoor play, and YES the schools WILL make the kids go out to play unless it is a certain temperture outside or the windchill factor is incredibly high. Good quality boots are a must and do not forget rain boots. They double for walking oin the beach while fishing so they will get lots of use.
Any other questions? Feel free to write
Homer

[Troyfrezze]

Thanks for the info! Yea, I'm thinking about buying a house up there seeing as how I'm going to be there for several years. Growing quite tired of renting homes all the time! Couple of people had mentioned to us the weather there wasn't really that bad. That it was actually quite fair compared to places like Fairbanks. Either way I'm really excited about going there next year. Any recomdation as far as tires go? We are planning right now on having our stuff moved, shipping one car and then the wife and I and our new son will just drive up there. Pretty much take a tour of the country, and see everything we have never seen before. Not sure yet if we will be taking the ALCAN or going by Ferry. Due to the pets *dog and cat* we will probably going via the ALCAN so we have time to stop with them and all. Any other things you can think of for protecting the cars for there time in Ak? Also, how much do the battery warmers run?

[.tony. .riot.]

If you can, I'd recommend Atlas Van Lines for your move.

[Troyfrezze]

It's the military, so they will choose who does the move. They finally updated the way they do it. They used to just select the lowest bidder, but now they are going for quality. If the company gets alot of complaints they loose there contract with the goverment. Plus everything is insured by the military also, so if they break my stuff, they have to replace it or give me money.

[.tony. .riot.]

Originally Posted by Troyfrezze

It's the military, so they will choose who does the move. They finally updated the way they do it. They used to just select the lowest bidder, but now they are going for quality. If the company gets alot of complaints they loose there contract with the goverment. Plus everything is insured by the military also, so if they break my stuff, they have to replace it or give me money.

I know how it works, my brother used to work as a QC Supervisor in TMO in the Air Force for a few years, and I worked in Warner Robins with Atlas Van Lines. Depends on how TMO works down there and if you know a few people, you can ask for a specific carrier and they could meet your request. It also depends on your rank.

[mcelligott]

Make sure you get a block heater too and some extra tires if youre driving your car there. My buddy just made the drive from Dayton, Ohio to Fairbanks, Alaska in an 04 wrangler v6 and had no issues.

[Kep]

If you plan to keep the Camry change out your antifreeze and maybe go to synthetic oil. Make sure that your thermostat is working at the right temperature (we're spoiled in Houston, you hardly need a thermostat) If you plan to buy another vehicle check out the prices up there on line. I suspect that they will be quite a bit higher there than Texas. You would probably do better getting the new car here and having the maintenance done on it here initially (I heard a lady on Car Talk today mentioning $100 hr for a mechanic!).

I'm sure there is more. Don't forget to take some fishing gear. I hear it is great up there!

Kep

[jackfrost1031]

Originally Posted by mcelligott

Make sure you get a block heater too and some extra tires if youre driving your car there. My buddy just made the drive from Dayton, Ohio to Fairbanks, Alaska in an 04 wrangler v6 and had no issues.

bleh on you, Jeeps don't have no stinkin v6

but more to the point, I hear a block heater is needed sometimes from my friend in Canada.

[Troyfrezze]

How easy are the block and battery heaters to install? Any idea on where I could find them for sale? Also, anyone that lives in snow and Ice, what's a good tire to own as well as the size? Right now i'm still using the stock rims on my 95, I was going to get new rims and tires next year...but I'm not so sure I'll be wanting to do that now!?!?!?!

[95camguy]

Originally Posted by jackfrost1031

bleh on you, Jeeps don't have no stinkin v6

but more to the point, I hear a block heater is needed sometimes from my friend in Canada.

http://www.jeep.com/wrangler/

they have 4.0L I6

[Homerfaith]

I would suggest going to your local KMart or Walmart and buying a battery heater before you go. They are EXTREEMELY easy to install and I KNOW you can buy it cheaper in TX than here. Prices ARE quite a bit higher, for every thing. Get ready for some shocking gas prices. We are up to $2.78 and that is at Petro, it is higher at Shell.
The best place in town to take your car to get fixed asks $80/hr for labor. A Toyota guru I know who works out of his shop charges $50/hr. Still, we get paid more too so a bit hard to complain. Just try to prepare yourself for a a little culture shock. On Base it probably won't be that great a difference (PX keeps prices fairly steady) but here in the non-military world, a take- out hamburger costs $5 and UP!!!
In terms of tires, they all work, go with what you know and like. Really, it is not that different. You will need two sets of tires and there are laws that require that you change from studded to non studded in May or June (depending on what kind of winter we had). But ytou will quickly see that it all works out.
Good luck and if you take the AlCan, use the MAJOR roads as there are still some roads that are NOT paved and you will experience hours of seeing no one else which can be great unless you have car trouble. There are also very few gas stations/food places along those roads. Otherwise, you will have no problems due to road conditrions. It is like any other highway system now, not like in the Old Days. AK is beautiful. You will enjoy it here and regret having to leave whewn yor transport papers come in. If you do get to travel a bit, take the 5 hour trip to Homer. We are at the "End of the Road" but it is WELL Worth the trip.

[morris]

Hi!, having lived in Saskatchewan for 25 years you should consider:
Block heater, install by knocking out the freeze plug on the block (Canadian Tire-ish $25)
There was also one you could install directly on the rad hose.

Battery blanket - also 110V ($25)
Interior warmer - like a little hairdryer for the inside of your car. Use it on a timer for your work schedule. It's great leaving your warm cosy house to face the cold blasts of winter and get into a pre-warmed car. ($30) check the wattage to compare power.
Maybe a remote starter?
Slushy-deep floor mats, My OEM mats got so frozen they actually shattered.

Also;
Blizzak tires, you can't beat em'
Warm gloves, the "mitten type"
A really good ice scraper / snow brush, Cd cases are not good enough.
Lock de-icer, especially if you plan to wash your car.
If you're going to the boonies take your emergency kit: shovel, candles, beer and corn dogs.

I'm serious about the last two.

[dandxg]

If I could chime in, if you don't want dedicated snow tires, which you may very well want in Alaska, try Nokian or BF Goodrich Traction TA. I just swtiched to Traction TA here in Denver and they work damn good, not as good as Blizzak, but they last alot longer, because they aren't dedicated snow tires. Make sure to change your coolant with a good flush and fill! For tire ratings check out tirerack.com