At Home In The Woods

[jinman]

Good luck Obed! Keep your head down. Those tornados sure have surprised a lot of folks. In my experience, hail can be up to quarter size and not do a lot of damage, especially on newer composition roofs. Older roofs seem to be more brittle and crack easier. A roof that looks fine to the untrained eye can still be damaged. Adjusters are trained to spot problems and will lift shingles to look under them for telltale cracks. I hope all your vehicles (especially your little green buddy) are okay.:thumbsup:

 

[Obed]

Our cars seem to be mostly ok from the hail. Our Honda has 4 new dents; our Olds didn't appear rented. The tractor didn't appear to have damage. I haven't yet inspected the house gutters ot the F-350.

The larger pieces of hail were about the size of a quarter. I'll be curious to see if any of our neighbors file any insurance claims.

 

[Obed]

I'm feeling much better today. I've been fighting a sinus infection that turned into bronchitis. During the past 2 weeks I've had about 3 good nights of sleep so last nights full night's rest was wonderful.

This morning we went to a local farm implements consignment auction. We were hoping to see a 3PH tiller but no such luck. But it was a beautiful day and we had fun watching our 2 yr old girl run all over the place. I had to go get her out of the men's restroom once.

I took a long nice nap this afternoon. Thanks all for the well-wishes.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Glad all is ok.

Chris

 

[Obed]

The dryer exhaust duct came apart in the basement as a result of shoddy installation. The ductwork at that point was only supported by the aluminum tape used where the two pieces of ductwork jointed. I removed the old aluminum tape, cleaned the duct surface with a damp rag, then reattached the ducts together. I then added support to that duct by attaching an aluminum duct strap to the truss. Lastly, I put some more aluminum tape around the duct joint.

This ductwork was installed by the HVAC sub with whom we were not happy. He is the one that we fought with toward the end of the HVAC job as described here. We ended up not paying the HVAC guy for his final invoice and instead used that money to pay another HVAC company to finish the job the way we wanted it done.

I guess I was not surprised when the dryer vent ductwork fell apart.

 

[Obed]

Today was a gorgeous day, high of 60 and clear blue skies. I spent most of the day in bed. My cold is much better but I took advantage of the day off by getting lots of rest.

Later this afternoon I got in some seat time. First I added some gravel beside our back porch where some steps will eventually reside.

 

[Obed]

Then I did some badly needed maintenance on the driveway. A spot recently appeared where the water started crossing the driveway. That part needed fixing immediately before it became a big rut.

I borrowed a scraper blade from my dad many months ago but never used it until today. After attaching the blade to the 3PH, I forgot to put the pins in the sway bars. When I realized the blade was swinging too much, I noticed that one of my sway bar pins was missing. I spent 5 minutes looking on the ground for the pin but it was hopeless. I expect that replacing the pin will be a bit of a headache.

Fixing that newly forming rut across the driveway took almost no time. So next I started working on the swell on the uphill side of the driveway. The water path along the uphill side of the driveway had started encroaching on the driveway and needed to be filled in and reshaped.

I have never fine tuned the driveway grading since it was installed. When the gravel was laid down, the gravel truck poured gravel in our swell on the uphill side of the driveway. So we had gravel on the bank on the uphill side of the driveway. I've needed to scrape the gravel off the bank and put it on the driveway where it belongs.

I was curious how well the scraper blade would work for reshaping the swell on the uphill side of the driveway. I debated using the box blade but thought I would try the scraper blade first. Like any tool, it took some experimenting to figure out a technique that worked well. I got better with the blade as I used it. The winter is the wet season here so conditions were ideal for doing this job. The ground was soft from the winter rains but it wasn't muddy.

I was able to reshape the swell rather well with the scraper blade. It seemed to be the right tool for the job today. If the ground had been harder, I might have had to use the backhoe. After I reshaped the uphill swell, I graded the driveway by back-dragging with both the blade and the FEL. That method worked rather well.

Being able to get outdoors and accomplish something did wonders for my spirits. I have more work to do on the driveway. The success of this afternoon's work is encouraging me to get going on the rest of the driveway.

 

[scoutcub]

Then I did some badly needed maintenance on the driveway. A spot recently appeared where the water started crossing the driveway. That part needed fixing immediately before it became a big rut.

I borrowed a scraper blade from my dad many months ago but never used it until today. After attaching the blade to the 3PH, I forgot to put the pins in the sway bars. When I realized the blade was swinging too much, I noticed that one of my sway bar pins was missing. I spent 5 minutes looking on the ground for the pin but it was hopeless. I expect that replacing the pin will be a bit of a headache.

Fixing that newly forming rut across the driveway took almost no time. So next I started working on the swell on the uphill side of the driveway. The water path along the uphill side of the driveway had started encroaching on the driveway and needed to be filled in and reshaped.

I have never fine tuned the driveway grading since it was installed. When the gravel was laid down, the gravel truck poured gravel in our swell on the uphill side of the driveway. So we had gravel on the bank on the uphill side of the driveway. I've needed to scrape the gravel off the bank and put it on the driveway where it belongs.

I was curious how well the scraper blade would work for reshaping the swell on the uphill side of the driveway. I debated using the box blade but thought I would try the scraper blade first. Like any tool, it took some experimenting to figure out a technique that worked well. I got better with the blade as I used it. The winter is the wet season here so conditions were ideal for doing this job. The ground was soft from the winter rains but it wasn't muddy.

I was able to reshape the swell rather well with the scraper blade. It seemed to be the right tool for the job today. If the ground had been harder, I might have had to use the backhoe. After I reshaped the uphill swell, I graded the driveway by back-dragging with both the blade and the FEL. That method worked rather well.

Being able to get outdoors and accomplish something did wonders for my spirits. I have more work to do on the driveway. The success of this afternoon's work is encouraging me to get going on the rest of the driveway.

Looking great Obed! I'm very jealous, I'm stuck overseas for another 4 weeks, before I can get back home, and get some quality outdoor and seat time.
That picture with your green lawn in the background (middle of the woods) is great!

Frank

 

[Obed]

Looking great Obed! I'm very jealous, I'm stuck overseas for another 4 weeks, before I can get back home, and get some quality outdoor and seat time.
That picture with your green lawn in the background (middle of the woods) is great!

Frank

Thanks Frank. I don't know how you manage things around the homesite with all the traveling you do.
Obed

 

[Obed]

I finally bought a dehumidifier for the basement. I paid $320 including shipping for this Winix dehumidifier. I started looking for dehumidiers over a year ago but couldn't find anything that seemed worth buying. The reviews were really bad for most dehumidifiers. I got the impression that often they don't last much more than 2 or 3 years so I couldn't justify paying a lot of money for one. Finally I saw that Winix dehumidifiers got really good reviews by buyers online, something quite unusual for dehumidifiers.

My unit arrived 3 days ago. This unit is almost filling up its bucket twice a day. I estimate it is removing about 3 gallons of water a day from our 2100 SF unfinished basement. I will soon hook up a hose in order to gravity drain the water into our one of our basement floor drains so I don't have to empty the bucket twice a day. However, I wanted to use the built in bucket for a few days so I could see how much water it collects.

So far I'm happy with the dehumidifier assuming it keeps working. My wife has expressed that the dehumidifier is making the basement feel colder; she's not thrilled about aspect.

 

[PAGUY]

Obed - I solved my basement moisture problem by having a stoker stove that blows "hot air" and keeps the basement toasty. It has its own thermostat set at 70°. In the summer I use the dehumidifier. The stoker stove actually helps keep the house warmer and not needing my gas furnace to run as much. This is my way of solving the problem a cold basement in the winter and a damp basement in the summer.

 

[brin]

Obed, we built our house 7 yrs. ago and have been through 2 dehumidifiers for the basement...believe it or not our first one stopped working a week before the warranty expired so we got a new one under the warranty and so far so good with it...So be sure to fill out your warranty and email or mail it in...it may come in handy. I have mine set up with a plastic hose and emptying outside and it is cooler in the basement . I figure the dehumidifier costs at least $50.00 a month to operate in electricity...see if yours is the same...if your bill goes up.

 

[clemsonfor]

I finally bought a dehumidifier for the basement. I paid $320 including shipping for this Winix dehumidifier. I started looking for dehumidiers over a year ago but couldn't find anything that seemed worth buying. The reviews were really bad for most dehumidifiers. I got the impression that often they don't last much more than 2 or 3 years so I couldn't justify paying a lot of money for one. Finally I saw that Winix dehumidifiers got really good reviews by buyers online, something quite unusual for dehumidifiers.

My unit arrived 3 days ago. This unit is almost filling up its bucket twice a day. I estimate it is removing about 3 gallons of water a day from our 2100 SF unfinished basement. I will soon hook up a hose in order to gravity drain the water into our one of our basement floor drains so I don't have to empty the bucket twice a day. However, I wanted to use the built in bucket for a few days so I could see how much water it collects.

So far I'm happy with the dehumidifier assuming it keeps working. My wife has expressed that the dehumidifier is making the basement feel colder; she's not thrilled about aspect.

It will go down over time i think as the moisture in the room is lowered.

 

[clemsonfor]

Obed, we built our house 7 yrs. ago and have been through 2 dehumidifiers for the basement...believe it or not our first one stopped working a week before the warranty expired so we got a new one under the warranty and so far so good with it...So be sure to fill out your warranty and email or mail it in...it may come in handy. I have mine set up with a plastic hose and emptying outside and it is cooler in the basement . I figure the dehumidifier costs at least $50.00 a month to operate in electricity...see if yours is the same...if your bill goes up.

This is why i only run mine occasonally when the humidity goes up in my tv room, which is up on a slab instead of a crawl. It also only has one vent that is ducted into the room so really its not heated or cooled by central unit and thus gets humid in here.

 

[Obed]

Obed - I solved my basement moisture problem by having a stoker stove that blows "hot air" and keeps the basement toasty. It has its own thermostat set at 70ｰ. In the summer I use the dehumidifier. The stoker stove actually helps keep the house warmer and not needing my gas furnace to run as much. This is my way of solving the problem a cold basement in the winter and a damp basement in the summer.

PAGUY,
What is a "stoker stove"?
Obed

 

[Obed]

Obed, we built our house 7 yrs. ago and have been through 2 dehumidifiers for the basement...believe it or not our first one stopped working a week before the warranty expired so we got a new one under the warranty and so far so good with it...So be sure to fill out your warranty and email or mail it in...it may come in handy. I have mine set up with a plastic hose and emptying outside and it is cooler in the basement . I figure the dehumidifier costs at least $50.00 a month to operate in electricity...see if yours is the same...if your bill goes up.

Bob,
I'm really hoping it doesn't raise our bill $50/mo. If it does, it might justify putting an HVAC vent and return in the basement. In the long run that might be cheaper once I consider the electric bill and the cost of replacing dehumidifiers. I believe EEPete recommended running the HVAC system in the basement.
Obed

 

[Obed]

It will go down over time i think as the moisture in the room is lowered.

clemsonfor,
Tonight for the first time since I started running the dehumidifier, I noticed it was finally not running. It has been running continuously until now for the best of my knowledge. It will be interesting to see how much water is in the bucket each day for the next few days.
Obed

 

[PAGUY]

Obed - A stoker stove is a hot air furnace that can run on coal (rice or pea) or wood pellets. It has a 100lb hopper on the back and requires electricity to run. It has three small motors - one runs the feeder, another the blower that keeps the fire lit and another that operates the hot air blower. They do NOT run all the time only when called for to do their specfic function. It has its own thermostat to control area temperature. It can be located anywhere in a home. Mine happens to be in the basement where my washer/dryer is located along with a large shower stall. The basement is a livable area which I believe you mentioned may be in your future use for your basement. It doesnot require a chimney like most modern heating units. Just the use of out the wall sources for exhaust and fresh air intake. Mine cost $2K but I'm sure I have already recouped that and saved more off my main source of heat which is a natural gas hot water furnace. I burn 2 ton of rice coal per winter season.

 

[Obed]

Obed - A stoker stove is a hot air furnace that can run on coal (rice or pea) or wood pellets...

Thanks PAGUY. That's very interesting.
Obed

 

[Obed]

I have a neighbor who said I could borrow his plow to turn over our garden. Today after work I started up my tractor with intentions of driving it to the neighbor's house and picking up the plow. My tractor ran for about 30 seconds just fine then quickly died. It then would not restart and didn't sound like it wanted to even fire. After looking for some obvious things like a loose wire, I tried starting it again. The tractor finally started again and seemed to run fine.

I decided not to go pick up the plow tonight because I was afraid my tractor might stall on the road and then I would be in a pickle. I'm going to have to check the filters, etc. and see if I have water in the bowl that needs draining. I'm definitely not a mechanic but will have to make due.