What are /r/Fairbanks' favorite Products & Services?

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Yes, you can. Lay off the weed and save your cash for a while, then get this one on Amazon. I have a similar one, and it works.
Look, I grew up in North Pole. If you're going stir-crazy in October, you'll lose it by December. Get help from your family or someone to afford the thing, but do something. Your mental health is freaking important.

I'm from Fairbanks, but I live in Austin now, so I feel ya. Definitely layers, especially when you go ice fishing. 2 socks. They also have those hand warmers you activate and put in your pocket and shoes. HotHands from Amazon, they last around 7 hours, maybe?

Here's what I used to wear when I'd go snomachining when it was -20 degrees: winter hat, neckwarmer, t-shirt, long sleeve shirt or turtleneck?, jacket, tights/long johns, jeans , snow pants?, 2 socks (1st one is short, 2nd is taller), insulated boots, gloves/mittens. That way you can take off the jacket if you get to hot, and still have your arms covered.

FYI, people just say North Pole, not The North Pole. The North Pole is in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. :)

Have an awesome trip!

There's an app that's pretty good if you want to see the lights. It'll notify you and tell you your chance of seeing the lights.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jrustonapps.myauroraforecast

Aussie living in Fairbanks here! Where in Australia are you from? I'm sure you already know, but it is really cold in winter. It can get below -40C/F on a cold day, so if you plan to do anything outside you need to be prepared. There isn't much to do here in winter to be honest, but Chena Hot Springs is great as others have mentioned. I wouldn't stay here for more than a few days at that time of year. Flights with Ravn and Alaska are usually under $100 (US) from Anchorage to Fairbanks and it only takes about an hour. In contrast, the train costs $244 (US) from mid May to mid September and takes about 12 hours. I'm not even sure if it runs during winter. The snow and cold might cause problems. The advantage of the train though is that you would get to see some pretty great scenery.

Fandango is still selling tickets for their shows. And Fandango is awfully reliable; they have to be.

So the theater is still open.

Call Rocky's too. I suspect everything is going to be booked for a while now though, so you may just have to grin and bear it this winter.

If that's the case, spend a little money up front getting those window insulator kits for every window, and other things to seal up the house - drafts are the biggest cause for heat loss, and the easiest to mitigate.

Finding the right booties has been the key for my dog. I use these these and have had good luck with them. The soles are thicker rubber than other ones I've tried in the past. I've probably been through half a dozen different pairs, tried modifying them, and many are just crap.

My dog (mastiff) does decently well in the colder temperatures, but I only take her out to relieve herself and then we are back inside pronto.

I have two jackets that I put on her (I've been through a few of these as well). I don't have the info on these, but basically one is a lighter coat and the other is a heavy coat (for below zero temps). During really cold times, I put both jackets on her, her booties, and a neck gaiter.

I've also bought a few neck gaiters to insulate her head and ears. She doesn't like wearing these, but it does the job. Luckily, she pretty much knows the deal when we go out and does her business fairly quickly. After that, I reward her with a treat and have done this for a long time so she knows what's up.

I think you’ll find your personal accomplishment more rewarding! Put your money into more land then build as you go. No joke, lots of peeps I know have built their garages or basements first to live in while they built their family heirloom homes over half a generation.

One of my fav books is Working Alone. Building construction tips to simplify even if you have tons of friends helping. Priceless tips!

All the best Sourdough!

https://www.amazon.com/Working-Alone-Tips-Techniques-Building/dp/1561585459

Am in north pole and pops put one of these in the garage and receive most channels pretty much perfectly. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TS32GFV/

In the garage as doing minor adjustments outside in -40 degree weather is a pain in the ass, and as far as we can tell there has been 0 impact on what we can see otherwise.

>Sometimes a PBS station gets tossed in.

There are a fair number of those that get broadcast... i think there are something like 5, or 6 of them that can be seen here.

I'd also agree, it's a big maybe. A trickle charger is a valuable piece of kit here. They aren't that expensive, small ones tend to go for about $20. Bigger ones are more expensive, but can recharge your battery more quickly. You can also have these installed as part of your winterization, I think it's a better option than heated battery mats.

If you really want to protect yourself, I recommend Autowit capacitor based jump starters. These are somewhat like the battery based ones, but are immune to our cold temps, I've used mine down to -46F. This is probably my most valuable winter tool.

I believe that our last specialty shop has closed. We had two back in the day but I haven't seen anything from them in years. If it helps, for my last baby I wore regular nursing camisoles or bras and then slid this on when pumping at work. It was pretty easy to flip down my nursing bra and hook this on. I didn't use the straps.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00295MQLU/ref=twister\_B095T3P874?\_encoding=UTF8&th=1

This will require a little work and electricity but I would give it a shot. Drill a 3-4" hole (or use hot water to melt it) and insert a bucket heater and a little water. This is important because the heater needs water to work. It will begin heating the water around it and melt the ice, you'll need to empty it every so often.

Alternatively you could use the heater to get a trashcan full of water simmering and simply pour it on areas you need melted. IF you have a flatbed and melted the bottom of the ice you could likely anchor to a tree and drive away... Just don't pull down the tree.

https://www.amazon.com/Precision-Premier-Line-742G-Submersible/dp/B000BDB4UG

750W?! Wow. This tape runs 2W/ft:

https://www.amazon.com/Wrap-On-SEPTLS34731006-Pipe-Heating-Cables/dp/B0002YWM3M/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=heating+tape&qid=1608942781&sr=8-3

But like you said, depends on length of the run.

>I just want to live life peacefully in a comfortable house or apartment, finding a bar to watch soccer, make some friends.

I've never been as warm and cozy as I have been living here. Houses are well insulated against the cold - just make sure you see a rental place in person to ensure it's well built. Lots of landlords rent out scummy tiny cabins to unsuspecting people moving here. There are lots of houses here without plumbing, don't rent a "dry" cabin unless you're prepared to live without plumbing.

There are a ton of bars here, each kind of having their own scene. However I don't think I've ever seen soccer on any bar televisions here... you may need to search a bit to find one that suits your needs.

As far as making friends, people in Fairbanks are very welcoming, with the condition that you have to show that you're wanting to make friends. It's easy to come here and stay holed up at home all winter and meet absolutely nobody. But if you have interests that take you outside your house, you will meet people - and the people here are absolutely awesome. Almost everyone is here because they intentionally want to be, and many are world travelers with really interesting backgrounds. The community has a lot going on, as many people want to make Fairbanks a little more awesome. Fairbanks is seen as a unique city outpost just short of the untamed north, and that draws people and events like nowhere else.

Oh also about your cat freezing, get your kitty a heated pad to sit on outside like this one. Your cat will thank you!

And something like this or this doesn't work?

Or are you saying "My face hair hasn't been cut in 5 months and I look like a freak, so I want somebody that knows what they're doing to decide what I should do"