Hand Tools and Machinery for Country Living

[j44ke]

You don't have early drops from apple trees, do you? Seems like an odd time of year for turkeys to be jousting over females. I'm wondering if they got into some fermented fruit and were merely having a drunken brawl.

These are three bachelors who travel and chase women together, and they had just returned to earth from their roosting trees out front. There's an uneasy pecking order, but a few too many hip checks before morning coffee and gloves drop. The goal seems to be to press the other's head firmly onto the ground. This edition was fairly evenly matched though. One of them got stronger or weaker or something - a pre-season match-up forecasting the battles to come this fall.

[jclay]

Generators.

Down here “It’s the refrigerator, stupid”. With modest planning & savvy, everything else can be managed well enough even on a well pump. So the refrigerator, a smattering of lights, a couple of ceiling fans and of course Internet/TV/DVD, plus some stockpiled water and we’re good. A 2kw inverter is adequate to simultaneously handle our refrigerator’s maximum current draw (defrost cycle) plus the other tasks, runs quietly and is miserly with gas which means that when we have to survive for days to weeks, fuel will not be the problem that it can be for whole house generators or merely 10kw class portables; like they were over just the two days of this outage for several neighbors.

I keep a generator log: For the 31h, 40min runtime this go-around our 79cc iPower SC2000i consumed fuel at 0.095 gph. With 15 gallons in cans and two full car tanks (SOP), my bicycles for getting stuff if necessary (which we obviously plan against needing) we had enough fuel for nearly 500 hours of runtime. The cars were dispersed such that no single tree could hit both and while possible it would be difficult for a single tree to have hit the cans and either car.

That said I’m thinking about making water supply physically easier and more convenient. A second inverter unit sized to accommodate our 1/2hp well pump but wired to be a swith-throw convenient backup to the SC2000i, or full-time fixed placement of a couple of 50-ish gallon water tanks such that one needs only throw a couple of valves to fill, drain or use. It depends on how often we’re in the cross-hairs going forward and how much I value a backup. Initially leaning towards the generator, I’m starting to lean towards the tanks; I'm a fan of low tech; di2 will never be spoken here.

[Mabouya]

Generators...our 79cc iPower SC2000i

John, how do you handle the "keeping gas fresh" issue? Keep it in cans for a while, transfer it to the car, and get new for the generator cans?

Also, since your generator isn't that big I assume you keep it inside when it isn't in use then take it out to run it in an emergency? Or something else? If it isn't outside how do you handle the exhaust?

My sister lives in Maine, and looses power often enough that she's thinking of getting a generator. She has fuel oil for heat, so she doesn't need a lot of KW. However, she does have a well. (Not a deep one, so I doubt it's a big pump.)

Thanks.

[jclay]

John, how do you handle the "keeping gas fresh" issue? Keep it in cans for a while, transfer it to the car, and get new for the generator cans?

Also, since your generator isn't that big I assume you keep it inside when it isn't in use then take it out to run it in an emergency? Or something else? If it isn't outside how do you handle the exhaust?

My sister lives in Maine, and looses power often enough that she's thinking of getting a generator. She has fuel oil for heat, so she doesn't need a lot of KW. However, she does have a well. (Not a deep one, so I doubt it's a big pump.)

Thanks.

I installed a six circuit transfer switch by the main house power cab, wired it to the six existing circuits I wanted and then located the receptacle for generator power on the exterior wall near the usual operation locations; it’s this one: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Reliance-30...it-P2/50436688

This arrangement works but it means that I have to tote the unit to a wind/rain-suitable corner, connect the power cable and fire it up. That’s manageable but it is 50# or so and starting it up while scrunched up on the deck is awkward; my wife couldn’t possibly do either and I'm not getting any younger. This winter I’m going to trench the 50’ to the adjacent carport, permanently mount the unit on a stand at a convenient height (with removable weather cover) and make the electrical connection permanent, in conduit. That will be safer, far more convenient, exhaust a non-issue and the whole thing manageable for my wife; just walk out, pull the cord, walk back in and flip some switches. I’ll also install power cable for the proposed well-pump/house service backup generator along with Cat6 cable for the shop.

With a well it’s the startup in-rush current that has to be accommodated; and I’d guess hers is 240vac. If so the smaller Honda/Yamaha/iPower units like mine don't’ offer it. I generally see 240 availability starting with units in the 5kw range, usually heavy enough to be on wheels. Note that a refrigerator’s max current draw can be substantial; someone will need to do a power budget.

It’s definitely worth putting some thought into the location and protection from weather and blow-down debris if your sis doesn’t have a situation similar to mine…which after three years of using is going to get upgraded as described above.

She's going to have some electronics so I recommend a quiet, inverter unit from a first tier mfg and use of synthetic oil (Amsoil here since the late '70s as it still has the best overall test results I've seen). Everybody else around here, and we’re on two acre lots in thick woods, has second-tier brand, non-inverter units that work but are remarkably loud; hearing protection needed loud. We can hear when the folks on the road behind our place have lost power.

Holler if you have any more questions or want to discuss.

[Too Tall]

John, I feel your pain. Only because I just went thru this at the Airstream Park I've been managing. If you have the start up specs for your submersible pump you can size the generator. In my case we have Franklin pumps that require 9000kv to safely start and run so a 10,000kv genny will do the trick...just don't run it on propane where you lose capacity.

Pulling a fried well pump is not a small deal.

[jclay]

John, how do you handle the "keeping gas fresh" issue? Keep it in cans for a while, transfer it to the car, and get new for the generator cans?

Also, since your generator isn't that big I assume you keep it inside when it isn't in use then take it out to run it in an emergency? Or something else? If it isn't outside how do you handle the exhaust?

My sister lives in Maine, and looses power often enough that she's thinking of getting a generator. She has fuel oil for heat, so she doesn't need a lot of KW. However, she does have a well. (Not a deep one, so I doubt it's a big pump.)

Thanks.

Oops....I didn't cut/paste the answer to your first question: Yes, I cycle fuel through the cars but i keep much less on hand until the first relevant storm of the hurricane season develops.

[Too Tall]

FWIIW If you can buy ethanol free gas for cans the shelf life is a full season.

[caleb]

John, how do you handle the "keeping gas fresh" issue? Keep it in cans for a while, transfer it to the car, and get new for the generator cans?

If it's for something that might go 6+ months between uses, the canned, stabilized, e-free gas at the hardware store is a good option. Yes, it's $20+ for a gallon, but it lasts basically forever without causing issues.

I've had trouble keeping e-free gas from the pump at a place with a dedicated hose over a single Minnesota (humid) summer. On paper there shouldn't be water issues, but I've had them in practice.

[bigbill]

I have a three-gallon gas container. I put STA-BIL storage additive in the gas. My generator is dual fuel, but I've never run it on propane, although I always have the hose handy. I've considered connecting it to the trailer propane line near the rear of the trailer. It's a 4,000-watt generator so even with reduced capacity from propane, it's more than enough to run everything.

It's been a rough monsoon season in NW Arizona with downed powerlines and snapped poles. I only know this from Facebook because I am in Wyoming for the summer and monsoon season. My wife is making soap at the AZ house this week, and everything was good.

[j44ke]

I've seen battery generator + solar panel setups that run necessities when power goes down. They range from extension cord attached to state of the art controllers wired into the panel. A lot of the batteries now are plug-and-play inverters with built-in controllers for input/output. And run with a phone interface. I've been thinking of testing one out as backup for the garage.

[jclay]

I've seen battery generator + solar panel setups that run necessities when power goes down. They range from extension cord attached to state of the art controllers wired into the panel. A lot of the batteries now are plug-and-play inverters with built-in controllers for input/output. And run with a phone interface. I've been thinking of testing one out as backup for the garage.

I think that's a great idea where damage from the relevant weather threats isn't a concern. In most places down here there's just too much debris flying around if you're in or fairly close to hurricane force winds; there's also the matter of having panels and the associated structural design being up to hurricane conditions; given our main threat, better to to have small footprint backup equipment as safely stored as possible until after the storm....and not build on barrier islands or the coast (for more reasons than hurricanes).

[j44ke]

Pete and I went tractor shopping and the prices were not optimal. Read an article that said tractor prices are up 20-30% from pre-covid 2019. Partly supply but also a lot of demand, especially in the horsepower range I'm looking at. Move from the city, buy/build house, buy tractor. I have met the enemy and the enemy are us. Higher horsepower tractors increased less because most of them can't run mower decks and they also have newer pollution controls which already increased their prices before 2019.

So I either need to downsize or buy a used one.

Or get a helicopter. A helicopter seems to be the solution to everything.

[72gmc]

A used tractor seems a good direction to go. I wonder if there aren't a lot of Kubotas and the like that were fun to buy new, but now some projects are done and the cost of ownership doesn't make so much sense.

[Mabouya]

Or get a helicopter. A helicopter seems to be the solution to everything.

An aerial saw will certainly help:

[Too Tall]

The Amish >> https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing...City=LANCASTER

Bob's your uncle >>> https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing...40-hp-tractors

[j44ke]

The Amish >> https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing...City=LANCASTER

Bob's your uncle >>> https://www.tractorhouse.com/listing...40-hp-tractors

Bob has a good deal there. Geezus.

[j44ke]

So I bought one of these. I think it will work. Salesman was a giant red-haired Viking with a beard and few words but all of them were helpful. Needs a 3rd function valve installed and different tires plus the tires get antifreeze solution for weight. Front loader is on it but hydraulic snowplow is incoming. Later I’ll figure out weight box and decide on York rake versus box blade for gravel.

https://www.kioti.com/products/tract...es/ck2620-hst/

Spending money like this makes me queasy.

[bigbill]

There is a Kioti dealer down the road from us in Wyoming. This past summer, they had a zero down, zero interest, deal but it was too late in the summer. I didn't want to buy and use a tractor for three weeks and then park it for seven months. The models I looked at will fit in our shed, even with a front loader. We will probably buy one in May along with a mowing deck and box scraper.

In other news, I needed the generator at home for an extended power outage. It started and ran for the five hours I needed it, but it was surging and sounding a little rough. It was 25% loaded so that might have caused some surging. I plan on running it again next week connected to the travel trailer with the AC running to fully load it. I might add half a can of Seafoam to the gas in case the gas is the issue. We don't have a gasoline powered vehicle so I can't drain the fuel and run it in a car.

[j44ke]

Some generators don’t like ethanol. Try some ethanol-free gas. Don’t mix it though. Empty the tank and put in the ethanol-free stuff. Seems like a generator should be able to run on fermented cat pee filtered with an old sweat sock but for some reason some are fussy.

You can also adjust the throttle - or the governor on the throttle - up a notch.

[rwsaunders]

So I bought one of these. I think it will work. Salesman was a giant red-haired Viking with a beard and few words but all of them were helpful. Needs a 3rd function valve installed and different tires plus the tires get antifreeze solution for weight. Front loader is on it but hydraulic snowplow is incoming. Later I’ll figure out weight box and decide on York rake versus box blade for gravel.

https://www.kioti.com/products/tract...es/ck2620-hst/

Spending money like this makes me queasy.

Great...another OT thread...farm implements.