Submitted 8 months ago by FuglyDuck@lemmy.world to [deleted]
https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/68282b6e-c31e-4a3b-964d-3a137c4900de.jpeg
Saw this going to a friend’s house- they bagged the fire hydrants….one thought was snow; but this is the first year apparently. And snow has been a mild issue this year compared to most.
Just FYI, the striped pole attached to the hydrant is so it can be found under snow.
I was driving down a highway once and noticed that there was a blue reflective marker on top of the concrete barrier every few hundred feet or so.
Took me about an hour or two before I noticed that it aligned with where the drainage basins were, probably for snow removal in the winter.
Why wouldn’t they make the whole thing red?
It works in regular snow and blood snow
I believe there's some logic in alternating patterns being more attention-grabbing to our brains, which is why you usually see stripes on anything you need to be cautious around.
The pole isn't for locating the hydrant, per se, as much as it is for avoiding the hydrant. It's so you don't drive into it if it's covered in snow.
Because its easier to see
It’s also why flashing led road signs exist here in Australia around school zones
To maintain freshness
Duh. No one likes a soggy, limp hydrant.
Possibly out of service. There are dedicated high visibility bags for this purpose but if whoever did this didn’t have one, this looks like a stopgap to help make it more obvious.
It is amazing how many hyadrants I’ve suddenly noticed on the drive back. (and there were several new-looking ones that weren’t bagged. Or maybe the bag came off. Apparently it happened in the fall.)
It does look like there’s metal cables over the front and top thingamajigs.
For safe hydrant sex. Duhhh
Firefighter here:
They’re made from cast iron that likes to rust and the only thing protecting them is the Paint on them.
My guess is that the paint got scratched and they’re bagging it up until they can repaint it.
It's to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Always bag up your hydrants, boys!
Remember! Flies spread Disease, so keep yours CLOSED!
Autoerotic asphyxiation.
I’ve never heard of this, & I’m Canadian.
I imagine out east, in the Maritimes, they’d have to put marker-poles on the things, because they sometimes get 5’ of snow in a single onslaught, but …
… it simply isn’t something I’d ever heard-of.
Our fire-departments deal with the snow & ice every ( normal, not now ) winter.
shrug
Isn’t the street that concrete area from where the picture was taken? So if a snow plough comes to remove the snow, it essentially would burry the hydrant.
Related question. Why are north American hydrants all of the “stick up out of the ground as a permanent fixture” type, rather than the more discreet and less likely to be damaged “pipe fitting concealed beneath a removable plate” type?
Probably because it’s still liable to be damaged (especially by freeze/thaw cycles,), the plate is liable to be lost, it’s harder to find- especially under a foot of snow-
And my personal favorite: tradition.
So dogs can pee on them, dingus.
That deck post is looking a bit curved
Not my deck, not my post, lol.
My guess is to keep water from getting into the threads and freezing them shut.
if that were a problem, honestly, hydrants wouldn’t have lasted a freeze/thaw cycle. Water expands and breaks shit (potholes for example,) it might get frozen and harder to open, but they have massively huge hydrant wrenches for a reason. (and it ain’t compensating for their tiny hose…) (that’s what the big hose is for.)
The identify the troublemakers in your neighborhood.
You’ve been added to a list.
I’m on soooo many lists.
one more won’t hurt.
That’s another list, buddy
Evidence.
It's so we know what corner to turn at to find the Rave!!
MNByChoice@midwest.social 8 months ago
They go around way before the snow and do that in some places. The tall pole next to it is too highlight the location as well.
Think about a big snow with plows pushing snow into giant piles.
treadful@lemmy.zip 8 months ago
Isn’t that what paint’s for? Seems like a lot of unnecessary plastic trash.
plz1@lemmy.world 8 months ago
Cheaper to do bags than re-paint off-schedule. Usually cities have a schedule for maintenance, and the bag, in this case, is preventative for rust without being off-schedule for painting.
TheUncannyObserver@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 months ago
Salt resistant paint is industrial, and it’s expensive. Depending on the product, it can also be a two part system and need special preparation. And by expensive, I mean it can cost over a hundred dollars per gallon, if you aren’t getting a deal on it. That’s a big investment for a smaller town.
XeroxCool@lemmy.world 8 months ago
Paint gets scratches, especially where things turn and rub against each other. You don’t want the turning bits becoming seized and finding out at the worst time
kevincox@lemmy.ml 8 months ago
Isn’t the paint also unnecessary plastic trash?
JungleJim@sh.itjust.works 8 months ago
Maybe they reuse the bags. Bag up 5th Street, salt it, collect the bags and prep 6th.
MNByChoice@midwest.social 8 months ago
Apparently, the same gets in and corrosion starts. The second article mentions a city that stopped doing it.
FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 8 months ago
hmm thanks for that.