Praise be to thy Snow Socks

aileth

Okay, so we've had a tight year, a very tight year. We would've loved to have bought some winter tyres in summer, but it just wasn't happening. Before Xmas we decided to spend £50-odd on some snow socks online. We were pretty skeptical as there were some mixed reviews.

Forecast overnight, bit of slush, light snow. We live midway down a hill and even without winter tyres our car copes fairly well, didn't worry. We gritted the road on the hill and went to bed. Cue waking up at 7am to 2-3 inches. B****r.

Attempted to get up, not a chance, whacked the snow socks on and sailed up our fairly steep hill like there wasn't even a sniff of snow. Pulled into a lay-by at the top of the clear and gritted main road, whacked them off, continued on. What a lifesaver! :T

Spicy_McHaggis

aileth wrote: »

Okay, so we've had a tight year, a very tight year. We would've loved to have bought some winter tyres in summer, but it just wasn't happening. Before Xmas we decided to spend £50-odd on some snow socks online. We were pretty skeptical as there were some mixed reviews.

Forecast overnight, bit of slush, light snow. We live midway down a hill and even without winter tyres our car copes fairly well, didn't worry. We gritted the road on the hill and went to bed. Cue waking up at 7am to 2-3 inches. B****r.

Attempted to get up, not a chance, whacked the snow socks on and sailed up our fairly steep hill like there wasn't even a sniff of snow. Pulled into a lay-by at the top of the clear and gritted main road, whacked them off, continued on. What a lifesaver! :T

Do you live in a cul-de-sac?

If not you could have saved £50 by driving down hill.

aileth

Spicy_McHaggis wrote: »

Do you live in a cul-de-sac?

If not you could have saved £50 by driving down hill.

Yes, we do. Only one way out of our road and it's up

OddballJamie

£50 for something that you can only use a few times and have to keep putting on and off.

My winter tyres were £50 each and will last me at least a few years and while they are on, my more expensive summer tyres aren't being worn down.

aileth

But you also have to put winter tyres on and off, right? We only need to use the socks once on a snowy morning as by the time we have to use the hill again, it's been gritted or general traffic has got rid of the snow. It's literally just to get up the hill as every other route to work is clear. Our winter tyres would have been £85 each, £340-50 up front was no chance in hell compared with £50 on our budget!

Iceweasel

Snow socks would be too much hassle for me - especially with arthritis in the fingers.

And they don't last long if you are tempted to leave then on too long until you find a convenient stopping place to remove them.

But I fully understand that not everyone has the cash available for a full set of winter tyres.

All respect to you aileth for getting the socks - as too many people make no provision at all for a snow-fall.

Everyone without winter tyres would be well advised to get a set of socks.

Of course that would deprive the TV news film-crews of their annual shots of cars crabbing it up a slight incline or sitting stationary with spinning wheels.

Paully232000

they do look good.
Do you think they would work as well on a RWD car as they do on a FWD. I watched the halfords video and seemed great in FWD.

aileth

Iceweasel wrote: »

Snow socks would be too much hassle for me - especially with arthritis in the fingers.

And they don't last long if you are tempted to leave then on too long until you find a convenient stopping place to remove them.

But I fully understand that not everyone has the cash available for a full set of winter tyres.

All respect to you aileth for getting the socks - as too many people make no provision at all for a snow-fall.

Everyone without winter tyres would be well advised to get a set of socks.

Of course that would deprive the TV news film-crews of their annual shots of cars crabbing it up a slight incline or sitting stationary with spinning wheels.

Yep 100% they are not for everyone, but just to razz up our annoying hill a couple of times a year on a limited budget they are fab. Hopefully this year we can get a set of winters, but for now they'll do!

AdrianC

aileth wrote: »

But you also have to put winter tyres on and off, right?

On in autumn, off in spring. A second set of cheap wheels means that you DIY that at home in half an hour, and that's it.

A few years back, I was on my usual back-lane commute across snowy Chilterns. The car in front didn't have winters (I did), and stopped - blocking the lane - whilst he put the socks on when we hit slippy. Then he stopped and took them off when we hit tarmac again. Then, when we hit slippy again, he stopped again. Fortunately, there was space for me to get past him.

That's the real benefit - as well as longevity. But, yes, if the choice is socks or stuck, the socks win.

aileth

AdrianC wrote: »

On in autumn, off in spring. A second set of cheap wheels means that you DIY that at home in half an hour, and that's it.

A few years back, I was on my usual back-lane commute across snowy Chilterns. The car in front didn't have winters (I did), and stopped - blocking the lane - whilst he put the socks on when we hit slippy. Then he stopped and took them off when we hit tarmac again. Then, when we hit slippy again, he stopped again. Fortunately, there was space for me to get past him.

That's the real benefit - as well as longevity. But, yes, if the choice is socks or stuck, the socks win.

That sounds bloody annoying! No, I wouldn't use socks for going a decent distance, especially not a full on back-road commute, madness! We just have to get up our hill to get to beautiful clear roads, and then only a few miles of ring-road to get to work!

OnanTheBarbarian

Just make sure you fit them to the right wheels :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: