With up to a foot of snow expected to pummel the East Coast, conditions may be ripe for building a snow fort. NewsFeed has rounded up some construction tips. Bundle up!
No Parking Lots: When picking the right location, avoid snow mounds near parking lots because carbon monoxide fumes could potentially collect in the snow shelter, Norbert E. Yankielun, a former research engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, writes in How to Build an Igloo: And Other Snow Shelters.
Kitchenware: Use loaf pans or plastic Tupperware to pack snow bricks together for the wall of the fort, the National Building Museum suggests.
Water: In below-freezing weather, sprinkle water over the walls so that it freezes and makes the fort sturdy, an AOL video explainer points out.
On Color: You can dye the snow with food coloring. A Northwestern Ontario Reddit user also made a multicolored snow fort by “freezing large, colored ice blocks in a shoe box — 30 per day,” NewsFeed reported last week.
On Lights: To illuminate the structure, use low-power LED lights, according to The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions.
Dedicate It: Kentucky resident Charles Collins, 73, built a snow fort to honor his son’s military service. When he ran low on snow, his neighbors let him use the snow in their yards.
Buddy Up: In Hermantown, Minnesota, a snow fort collapsed around a man and his dog over the weekend, and his son called the police to rescue him. Remember to build a fort with at least one other person, so that there is someone who can call for help if something goes wrong. The Appalachian Mountain Club suggests one person can shovel, another can build snowmen “guards.”
