Saving Money as Prices Increase

[Oaktree]

I sometimes will use a small fan to move the air around. I also have a little unit on the woodstove which somehow uses disimilar metals to generate enough electricity to turn the fan.

Do those actually move any air? My BIL has one, but it doesn't seem to do much.

 

[Alan W.]

My wife is taking the money that we were paying on the house and car and investing it.
At least thats what she tells me.

 

[Oaktree]

I have a BIL who is a truck driver, and he said he could make about $250k/year, if he was willing to do long distance transport. It's a tough life, with about one weekend per month at home, but it is a way to make good money for a while.

My BIL used to do that too, don't think he made that kind of money but he's been retired for 10+ years now. Doing that came in handy right after 9/11 when they grounded all planes. My sister had been on a business trip somewhere in the midwest and got stranded there. He was able to pick up a load to the area and go get her.

 

[oosik]

The service shop at the local Kubota dealership is heated with a waste oil furnace. The service mgr showed me the operation a few years ago. It's a bigger operation than I thought it would be.

There is a receiving tank and a storage/delivery tank. One honking big filtering system and pump between the two tanks. Then a smaller pump that pressurizes the oil into the furnace.

He said you get use to the smell of burning oil pretty quickly. I didn't notice that it smelled all that bad/strong. He said it would pay for itself in eight to ten years.

 

[Jstpssng]

Do those actually move any air? My BIL has one, but it doesn't seem to do much.

I wondered the same thing, but last year did some experimenting with a piece of thread and it did seem to make a difference to about 15 feet. Nevertheless it's probably more psychological than anything else. I just find it an interesting concept, using heat from the stove top to generate electricity. I also keep 5 gallons of water on all winter... why pay to run the hot water heater more than I have to?

 

[RickB]

I wondered the same thing, but last year did some experimenting with a piece of thread and it did seem to make a difference to about 15 feet. Nevertheless it's probably more psychological than anything else. I just find it an interesting concept, using heat from the stove top to generate electricity. I also keep 5 gallons of water on all winter... why pay to run the hot water heater more than I have to?

Adding humidity to indoor air in winter (for free) is a big plus too.

 

[Alan W.]

In the cold weather while Im doin my chores I always keep two large containers of water on the stove to use in the laundry. Makes a big difference.

 

[drssg]

My BIL used to do that too, don't think he made that kind of money but he's been retired for 10+ years now. Doing that came in handy right after 9/11 when they grounded all planes. My sister had been on a business trip somewhere in the midwest and got stranded there. He was able to pick up a load to the area and go get her.

Yes, I believe the high salary that I quoted is more of a current phenomenon, due to the current difficulties in getting truck drivers.

 

[sandman2234]

I have a BIL who is a truck driver, and he said he could make about $250k/year, if he was willing to do long distance transport. It's a tough life, with about one weekend per month at home, but it is a way to make good money for a while.

Owner operator most likely, not a company driver. He has a huge investment, has to do the work of a driver, dispatcher and load planner, plus an accountant along with being a mechanic to do all the maintenance of the truck as well as breakdowns. He buys the tires, feeds the diesel and generally has to make sure it all works together.
A company driver makes 40-100k, depending on if local, otr and if dedicated route or on a dedicate area.
There is a huge difference, which is one of the reasons drivers change jobs as often as they do.Tick off your dispatcher and your pay drops significantly. Blow a tranny, or rear end, or even an engine and an owner operator can look at bankruptcy quickly if he isn't extremely good at managing his money. Too many want to spend their engine rebuild as personal income instead of putting it away for when the big items break.
David from jax

 

[repete]

Just out of curiosity, how much does power cost in your area?

In our county we pay our PUD $0.95 per day basic charge, plus $0.06755 per kilowatt hour.