Lessons from this year's snowmageddon

[lman]

If you price cheapo 5 gallon jugs, this is not much different in price, from Amazon,,

A couple of these tanks, and forget handling any more 5 gallon jugs!!

The last 5 gal. tank I got was $15. I located this tank on Amazon for $177! I can buy a lot of 5 gal. tanks for that price.

 

[TheMan419]

The biggest thing I have learned is how much generator run time you actually need vs what SWMBO will actually want. Part of the need is dependent on the ambient temp. We had a polar vortex a couple years ago where the actual air temp was -22 and the windchill was like -80. The boiler ran continuously. That means had the power gone out the generator would have had to run continuously. So my fuel needs are greater than I thought they would be.

As a result I have increased the number of 5 gallon cans I keep on hand when we know the weather is going to turn to crap. I just cycle them through my daily driver to keep them fresh. I keep enough on hand to run for a good 36 hours of actual engine run time.

If it was a situation where power was out in a wide area SWMBO would consent to using generator sparingly to keep us going for much much longer than 36 hours without the need for a refill.

 

[RickB]

The biggest thing I have learned is how much generator run time you actually need vs what SWMBO will actually want. Part of the need is dependent on the ambient temp. We had a polar vortex a couple years ago where the actual air temp was -22 and the windchill was like -80. The boiler ran continuously. That means had the power gone out the generator would have had to run continuously. So my fuel needs are greater than I thought they would be.

As a result I have increased the number of 5 gallon cans I keep on hand when we know the weather is going to turn to crap. I just cycle them through my daily driver to keep them fresh. I keep enough on hand to run for a good 36 hours of actual engine run time.

If it was a situation where power was out in a wide area SWMBO would consent to using generator sparingly to keep us going for much much longer than 36 hours without the need for a refill.

Just start sending her out to fuel the unit. Her tolerance for a cool house will increase dramatically.

 

[LouNY]

Yep, and you will be getting a whole house3 auto start unit with a large fuel tank

 

[TheMan419]

Just start sending her out to fuel the unit. Her tolerance for a cool house will increase dramatically.

She will be nice and warm after she spills gas on the hot engine and lights herself on fire.....

 

[TheMan419]

Yep, and you will be getting a whole house3 auto start unit with a large fuel tank

Oh she already wants one of those..... so do I honestly, but I just can't justify the cost, not only of the unit but the fuel cost to run it. We have natural gas at the property so no need for a large fuel tank.

We bought the portable when we lived "in town" and had no easy way to hook it to the natural gas the way the property was set up. If/when this generator goes belly up the next one will be a tri-fuel so I can hook to the natural gas and be done with it.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Got the yard cleaned up and the firewood stacked. A cord and a half of downed limbs, mostly rounds too small to bother splitting. Most people don't bother cutting and stacking the small limbs, but I use the small rounds in the morning for quick heat. 4-6 small rounds on last night's coals, whoof them with the bellows to get going, then open the draft. It takes about 20 minutes to get the stove hot. The fire box is 24" deep with a 12" x 20" opening, so it will take big wood that holds a fire all night.

The problem with rounds is that they dry slowly. I'll have to re-stack this wood in the sun this summer and separate the ricks for air circulation. Fortunately, we have a lot of 100 degree 10% humidity days here in the summer, so it should be dry enough to put in the wood shed by September. It's a nuisance to handle the wood three times, but I didn't want it sitting in the yard all summer, and it's way too wet to put in the wood shed.

I have another couple of cords cut on the back 60 that will stay where it is until the end of summer. Firewood farming lasts until the end of February, then I'll move on to other things.

 

[JethroB]

Got the yard cleaned up and the firewood stacked. A cord and a half of downed limbs, mostly rounds too small to bother splitting. Most people don't bother cutting and stacking the small limbs, but I use the small rounds in the morning for quick heat. 4-6 small rounds on last night's coals, whoof them with the bellows to get going, then open the draft. It takes about 20 minutes to get the stove hot. The fire box is 24" deep with a 12" x 20" opening, so it will take big wood that holds a fire all night.

The problem with rounds is that they dry slowly. I'll have to re-stack this wood in the sun this summer and separate the ricks for air circulation. Fortunately, we have a lot of 100 degree 10% humidity days here in the summer, so it should be dry enough to put in the wood shed by September. It's a nuisance to handle the wood three times, but I didn't want it sitting in the yard all summer, and it's way too wet to put in the wood shed.

I have another couple of cords cut on the back 60 that will stay where it is until the end of summer. Firewood farming lasts until the end of February, then I'll move on to other things.

View attachment 733013

UnFortunately, we have a lot of 100 degree 90% humidity days here in the summer to balance things out.