If your state salts the roads in the winter, it's strongly recommended to undercoat your vehicle with a coating to preserve it from rusting and shortening its useful life. Fluid Film is one of the better coatings, and is based on sheep lanolin, so it's not toxic to the environment.

4wheel drive is nice, but tires are EVERYTHING. You absolutely cannot rely on all season tires, you MUST get proper Winter tires if your region snows heavily, or you will have a bad time.

There are now fabric snow 'socks' for cars that act like snow chains to get you out if a bind, which would be worth having in the trunk.

In the winter, ALWAYS bring winter rated clothing in the car along with water, a small amount of food, heavy duty blanket, and a small liquid paraffin candle for heat in the event you get stuck in a storm, or go off the road from ice.

This is mostly if doing outdoor outings.

Dress in layers. If you find it cold, you can always add multiple pairs of gloves, socks, and scarves and take them off as you get hot. There are balaclava type things and long John's available as well.

They sell little hot pockets you can activate and they stay warm for 2-3 hours or so, you can keep them in your gloves and boots. There are self heating gloves as well with batteries.

Keeping a thermos with a hot beverage helps as well.

Don't get wet, this includes sweating a lot.

Depends how much it snows and how cold it gets. Much of this may sound over-cautious if your winters are mild.

• Most cities/towns have by-laws regulating property owners clear and rock-salt their walkways within a set amount of time after snow has ceased falling,

• If you use a shovel, get an ergonomic one. It is very easy to hurt your back clearing snow. No matter how long you wait, the plow always comes AFTER you've cleared your driveway,

• If you have kids, get into the routine of checking local news for 'snow days', or in other words the schools have announced they are closed due to poor road conditions,

• Keep an eye on your (and I guess your neighbours if you want to be helpful) house' roof and make sure the snow doesn't build up too much as this can cause damage/leaks/collapses if it gets too heavy

Sprinkle cat litter after you shovel and salt, it'll provide traction and prevent ice from reforming. You can get one good and warm set of winter clothes, or you can do a fuckton of layers. The former is simpler but can leave you with less flexibility and will probably be more expensive than wearing 3-5 layers of clothes you probably already own. If you don't have them, long johns/thermal pants are a godsend. Gloves and a hat that covers the ears are also godsends, but if you're willing to tough it out (and maybe lose a few extremities) you can do without them as eventually you'll stop feeling the sting. Tuck your shirt and/or jacket into your pants, this will trap heat. Tuck your gloves into your coat or vice versa. Get good boots, i cannot stress this enough. It is not fun or a good idea dealing with snow in sneakers.

Depending where you are moving to, snow may not be the only sort of inclement winter weather you may have to deal with. For instance, ice may build up on trees, power lines, and/or roads.

If on roads, don't drive unless you absolutely have to, and if you do, be way more careful than you think you need to be. Look up safety tips for driving in icy conditions before you have to put them into practice.

If you have any trees that might fall on anything of value, kindof watch their condition. If any are splitting down the middle, hire someone to treat them before the winter season to avoid major problems like this.

Or it's possible you'll live somewhere ice buildup is unlikely to be an issue. Maybe look into the history of the area or talk to someone who has been there a long time to find out what conditions might be an issue.

Also, the ability to work remotely is kinda nice, I guess. It's a double-edged sword, though. If you can work remotely, you never get days off due to weather. But if you can't, you may be pressured to drive into the office when it's very dangerous.

Get cleats for your shoes. Black ice (nearly invisible ice) is terrifying. It can form basically everywhere and sometimes salt doesn't always remove all of it.

When using salt, its the salt water that melts the ice. So if theres a slope on your driveway, then place most of the salt at the top, so the sale water flows down and melts the rest. Same with stairs.

Not sure where you are moving to, but here in the states the mailman tried to sue my parents because he slipped on their stairs and broke something. So make sure to clear the area to your mail box thoroughly.

We all know its stupid to stick our tongue on a steel pole but it can happen to any part of you if its cold enough. Be careful touching metal without gloves on.

Get a scraper/brush and keep it in your car.

Use it before you start driving. Don't just clear a "porthole" to see out of. Clear the snow off the roof too. If you don't it'll fly off and hit the guy behind you or it'll slide down over your windshield.

If you don't have your scraper, a credit card will work in a pinch for the windshield.

Don't pour hot water over your windshield to melt ice. At best it just doesn't work, at worst you'll crack the windshield

If you're new to driving on icy/snowy roads, get a sense for how/when your car will break traction. Find an empty parking lot, accelerate a bit and then brake increasingly harder until you start to slide. This will give you a feel for the conditions under which you'll lose traction to brake. This is also a good way to learn how to recover from a slide.

It can in fact thunderstorm and snow at the same time. can even do it while alternating between rain and snow causing layers of ice hidden in snow. if you're moving to a place that does this, just stay in doors and enjoy the show. if it's one of the regions that can also spawn tornados during these storms. you watch the storm on tv from a basement.

oh i dont see it in the comments yet. all of which are great. proper snow boots. even it only snows a little where you are. just because i can walk across an ice rink on leather soles doesnt mean i'm ever going to. if the experiance of walking on ice and snow is new, use footwear meant to help you from slipping. plus they hold up better to road salts and deicing chemiclas if they're used there.

Don't eat the yellow snow

Don't dive in head first, it will break your neck.

If it snows much at all, get some waterproof boots that either have insulation or plenty of room for socks. Get ones either intended for snow or look similar to ones that are, as soles of boots have different traction in snow than dirt just like tires. They don't need to be marshmallow looking snow boots, just purpose made winter boots.

Snow pants and a good winter coat is good for keeping dry while shoveling snow. Dress in layers, so that you can remove one or two if you start to get warm. If exerting yourself avoid sweating by going a little lighter than you would when stationary or walking as sweat will.make you a lot colder. If you can find and handle wool it is absolutely amazing at keeping you dry, even if it gets wet, and it is a lot better at leeping you a constant temp through a wide variety of temps.

Where I live we get strong winds, and even down to 0F with wind I generally wear a long sleeve wool shirt, light jacket as a windbreak, snow pants, and some insulated work boots made for snow. Plus gloves and a hat of course, which are the two things that tend to get sweaty!

Layers are the key. Lots of small layers especially something sweat wicking on the bottom layers. It's good to have lots of layers to add and subtract

For driving: If there's snow on the ground and you're in a safe place to do this, get up to 5 mph or so and slam on the brakes. That'll give you a good feel for your much traction you have. Of course, conditions vary, so don't sue me if you had grip on your home street but not the freeway. Other than that, keep acceleration to a minimum, and I mean that in any direction. Ease on the gas, ease on the brake, slow down BEFORE you need to turn, and turn easy. Be calm, a panicked reaction to a slide can make it worse. Abs and traction control can save your ass, but they're emergency systems. If they are activating frequently, SLOW THE FUCK DOWN.

Driving aside, nice winter clothes are great, but how you wear them is much more important in my experience. Keep body heat in and cold wind out. Assuming that your clothes actually fit, the best, free way to do this is to simply tuck your shirt into your pants, and if you have them, coat sleeves over your gloves and neck gaiter into your coat. You lose so much heat in those areas, by addressing them you can be out many degrees colder before you need another layer. However, if you're physically exerting yourself in the cold, don't let yourself sweat, because as soon as you stop that shit will freeze. Be mindful of when you start getting warm and be prepared to untuck clothes, open vents, or remove layers.

Finally, and you should be doing this anyway but people forget in winter, drink plenty of water.

All season tires aren't for all seasons, get real snow tires. They work better in the cold in general even if its not snowing out. 4 wheel drive doesn't matter once you're moving.

Invest in electric heaters.

If you already had a place picked that's in the north, make sure you settle in as early as a month or two before it's winter season starts.

Do not ever neglect snow tires. If you're tight on money, getting even 2 sets of tires for wintry conditions is better than none. But 4 is still recommended and no, All-Seasons are terrible for winters regardless of brand. They just aren't designed for winter conditions, they're designed mostly for Spring/Summer/Fall.

Buy winter emergency sets for your vehicle. Buy one for the glove compartment, the ones where they actually have emergency power banks in them. Buy another for general use, especially ones equipped with a piece together shovel.

Use HEET only in 30 below temperatures.

• If you're the owner of the home, know what bylaws there are regarding snow removal near your home. Where I live you can get a fine + snow removal costs if you aren't reasonably prompt getting snow off the sidewalk.

• Snowy surfaces (sidewalks, driveways, roads) are often icy surfaces = slip and fall hazard. This is especially serious for older folks but it can hurt/injure at any age. This gets worse if it snows then melts then refreezes. Don't run if you don't have to. Sand/grit on these surfaces can help, and in my area you can get sand for free at certain town facilities.

• Frostbite on exposed skin is a genuine hazard. Look up the weather forecast when it's cold and take time-to-frostbite warnings seriously.

If you don't have a car that can drive in snow, don't drive in snow.

Last blizzard I was in, I had to pull over to try to help two people get up a small hill.

The first woman was afraid to steer while me and and a tow truck driver pushed her up. She wanted one of us to steer her car, but that just couldn't happen. She ended up paying the tow truck driver more than $300 to tow her.

While that was going on, a Honda Civic ended up sliding backwards down the hill. I pushed that one about 100ft along the road until it leveled out enough to move on its own.

We have a Civic, but it sits in the driveway for blizzards.

If you get serious snow where you're moving, and you have to drive, get something with all wheel drive. Just remember that all wheel drive doesn't mean you can stop. You still need to drive like a Granny in Sunday church traffic.

In warmer weather, mind the geese. They're really fucking aggressive!

Regularly go through a car wash WITH UNDERCARRIAGE CLEANING or your car will be ruined by the road salt and rust.

Find a snow brush long enough to reach every part of your vehicle, buy two; keep one inside your home and one in the vehicle at all times until the weather is consistently above 50f.

You can be pulled over in places for not completely clearing snow off your vehicle; it will fly off in chunks that can smash windshields of others.

Dress warmly, but not so warm as to sweat. Sweat is moisture, moisture freezes, you'll be colder than if you had dressed lighter. Multiple thinner layers, with a moisture wicking innermost layer to keep it off your skin.

Everywhere will absolutely blast the heater in every office and store, so if you're going to be outside very little, probably best to leave the heavy coat in the car.

Keep in your trunk the following: a portable snow shovel, an ice scraper, a window snow brush, a spare set of gloves, one of those emergency mylar blankets, a little spray-bottle of deicer, an extra jug of wiper fluid.

Stack up on basic meds for when you catch cold. You're likely to have it a lot, it's kinda normal.

Also, if you're gonna live in an area with central heating, make sure heaters in your home are fully operational and don't need to have air removed. They should be hot all throughout their surface.

Snowshoeing is super fun. Snowboarding is rad. Fatbiking is awesome. Get the right clothing and gear to enjoy the season.

If you have gas motor equipment in your garage (mower, snowplow, leafblower, boat), you should try to winterize it with specific stabilizers, otherwise you will have a hard time starting it in the spring.

Wear layers, layers, layers and a proper winter jacket on top. Winter mittens or gloves, a hat, scarf, neck warmer, balaclava or face covering, ear muffs, snow pants, could all be stuff you need depending on how far north you go and how thick the snow piles up. Almost universally in cold climates you will need proper boots.

Similar to Humidex, there's a value called wind chill, because the layer of heat you radiate gets blown away making you feel colder. Pay attention to that, and remember that hands and ears left exposed will get frostbite after some time. You can find charts online (Celsius and Fahrenheit).

Watch for black ice on roads and sidewalks, it looks just "wet" but it is very slippery ice. Use road salt or other de-icing compounds on your walkways and driveways so that you and others don't slide around or fall.

A bunch of driving stuff:

Do NOT go posted speed on roads that aren't fully cleared. In reduced visibility conditions like blizzards you might have to go half the usual freeway speed or less, with flashers on and follow the car in front. It's best to avoid driving in snowstorms.

Winter tires may be required in some areas, but they are strongly recommended even if not. Leave a safety kit and brush in the car, because in remote areas it may be an entire day before a tow can even get to you. Have blankets in the car in winter.

Test recovery out of a slide in a safe place so you know what to do in a pinch. You don't have to go too fast, just somewhere that doesn't get cleared well with no obstacles to crash into like a rarely cleared parking lot. Two modes are: brake fail going straight (with my old car you needed to be light but steady on the brakes for best effectiveness), and a turn going wider than you expected. The car will not respond to sudden maneuvers like you would expect on a clear surface.