What are you doing today? [Part II]

[Mooseman]

Brought the Sierra to the dealer on Wed, they kept it overnight and Thur it was ready with a new #5 glow plug, all covered under warranty . This dealer is so much easier to work with than the one where I originally bought the truck and used to work at as well as much closer to home. I've also been bringing the GM vehicles from work for maintenance there and have they been pretty good to work with.

Finished that snowblower, just had to adjust the idle speed and it was ready to go. Gave it a test around the house to make sure it has no other issues. It shouldn't since it's basically new. Nice little unit, works well and has steering assist. It's just a 22" but it seems to work better than my 26". Mine always wants to climb over the snow rather than biting into it like this one does. I'll be dropping it back at the Legion tomorrow.

 

[mrrsm]

This was my Idea today of what a REAL “Bobby's Baker’s Dozen Chicken Salad” should look like for our Evening Meal:

Ingredients:

(1) A Bed of Fresh Spinach Leaves in Two Large White Corel Bowls
(2) Sliced Large Carrots.
(3) Fresh Cole Slaw.
(4) A Diced, Medium Sized Purple Onion.
(5) Diced Celery Stalks.
(6) Diced Yellow Bell Peppers.
(7) Whole Pearl Green Olives (with Pimento Centers).
(8) Shredded American Cheese.
(9) Diced (Cored) Large Green Granny Apples
(10) Two Large Polish Dill Pickles (Diced-with Seeds Scooped out)
(11) Brazed Dark Meat Chicken Pieces.
(12) Virgin Olive Oil and “Paul Newman’s Own” Balsamic Dressing.
(12+) Enough for TWO Meals per Person…per Bowl Bon Appétit ...!

 

[Blckshdw]

To get on the short pier/deck by the retention pond out back, I've always had to navigate this steep drop off. In the past I've laid pallets over it, with plywood or old fence panels, until they deteriorate. But I wanted to come up with something a bit better for this year.



The idea I came up with, was a half width bridge of sorts. Certainly don't need it where there's firm ground on one side, and don't need it to extend all the way out either, just enough for stable footing should I need to carry something, or have a guest with me.

I still have some old fence posts leftover from the replacement last fall, so the idea I had was to make the bridge modular and removable if needed. To do this, I cut a long post into 2, and notched both of them so they'd fit together in a tongue and groove manner.






Took a 3rd one and clamped it to the 2x6 on the side of the desk to act as an alignment support, and that let me get the 2 pieces aligned with the planks on the deck, so when I go get planks for the bridge, they'll be at the same level.




Ran four 6" TimberLok into the bottom piece to secure it, but had to back them off just a touch, as the top piece was in too tight and wouldn't budge at all. I may bevel the top edge where the planks are, and sand the vertical mating surfaces a bit, so the bottom piece can stay tight, but give me just enough freedom to lift the bridge when I need to.



I've got a few more fence posts leftover, so I'll use 3 of those for the rails ~18" apart. I plan to get a few 4x4 joist hangers to attach to the top piece, and have the rails come off there. Also have some scrap 2x4s, so I'll use those as bracing, and some random pavers found in the yard to keep the wood off the ground. Maybe next weekend...

Not pictured, got around to replacing the pickets on some short sections of wood fence that separate my property from some county utilities. The neighborhood cats that pass through will be pissed, as they were using those gaps to come and go without having to climb like they used to.

Towards the back of the property, some of the trees were pretty tangled with vines, so spent a couple of hours pulling and cutting down a bunch of that crap. Filled 2 garbage cans worth, but doesn't even look like I did anything to the trees

 

[Mooseman]

Day off today as I'm getting insulation added to the attic. We got an interest free 10 year loan from the Federal Gov't for "Greener Homes" and one of the things lacking was attic insulation, probably original minimum for 1964. The other thing we're also getting on this program are new windows and doors, which will also help a lot. Some were replaced probably in the 90's and all have failed internal seals. We also have two huge original wooden bay windows that we're getting replaced with flat style instead which are cheaper but more efficient than actual rounded bay windows.

Took some before pictures of the ceiling in several places with the HKMicro thermal camera. The living room is especially bad with studs showing heat loss as well as spots of displaced insulation where animals made nests, which have since been evicted. They're also supposed to add more insulation to the trap door. Outdoor temps were -2c. Heat loss was especially bad when it was -20c but the patterns were the same.

 

[Mooseman]

Well, that didn't take long. They setup and were going to start the work and they found part of the house has vermiculite, a type of loose insulation that may (99% chance) contain asbestos. So they immediately stopped and told me the bad news. It would need to be tested to see if it does in fact contain asbestos, and if it does, we're talking about a 3 day expensive removal job with a machine that's as loud as a rock concert. And I'm pretty sure this extra work isn't covered by that loan so it's out of pocket

This old house is really screwed up. It was once a single bungalow that had a side split added. The side split had a fire years ago so it had newer fibreglass insulation however they said they saw a little under it so even that insulation probably has to be removed because it would be contaminated. And while we're at it, we might as well get the popcorn ceiling removed as it probably contains asbestos as well.

The shit we used to use in houses. I regret buying this thing in 2009 but my wife wanted the in-ground pool. I initially hated it because it had no real garage. Should have gone with my gut feeling.

 

[BrianF]

FFS moose, that sucks. Old houses can be a gem or can be a nightmare. We had one old house with a couple ass backwards additions. We sold it at a loss and years later, the new owner found a shit ton of rot in on of those additions.

Well, today, ai did a few odds and ends. Notably, my daughter's sled, Bitchy Mike had a brake down last week. She heard a pop and it shook real bad. We limped it home and I narrowed the issue down to the primary clutch. Well today I tore it down. Yep, main spring broke. Shit. Oh well I have a spare and in under an hour, it's back up. Tomorrow I'll test drive.

Then did some quick brake work on our little 2004 Escape. Brakes have a soft engagement but are still linear and don't pump up. Looks like the rear drums were not auto adjusting enough. I hit the spanner a bit and already they are a bit better. I need to grind the lip on the drums so I can adjust them further.

Oh, my 16 year old got her license today. She's pumped. First try, no deductions. She has logged a lot of hours and it shows.

 

[TJBaker57]

Not today but yesterday I was fiddling with a junkyard IPC just for the experience. While reflowing solder on a small surface mount resistor I accidentally dislodged the little sucker.

Thought while it was loose I would check the resistance. As I tried to probe it it flew into the air and I heard it hit the foam mat I was standing on.

The floor is not especially clean having 6 shop cats roaming about. Could not see it so I used a piece of sheet metal to gather up the area.

If I was not one of the stubbornest men on the face of the earth I never would have found it.

 

[Blckshdw]

Had been putting it off, but did my taxes today, so that's out of the way. No refund to get excited about, I usually always pay a few $$$ so it's not breaking the budget either. Got my monthly statement from the electric company, and the net metering credit from my solar production was added for the previous year. Always love seeing that, will take care of the taxes and service charges that make up the whole bill, for about 7 or 8 months.



Since I was already looking at numbers, did a quick review of the finances, due to some frugality over the last few months, I'm almost back to where I was pre-back to back hurricanes from last fall. Still planning to buy some accessories for the generator, and the manual transfer switch for the electrical panel, but I may be able to grab those a little earlier than planned which is nice.

Keeping fingers crossed for a relatively quiet tropical season for our area. While I fared pretty well in the end, some of my friends and coworkers still aren't back in their houses yet, or dealing with a lot of red tape to get repairs done.

 

[Matt]

Continuing to pack. My Mum's husband passed away last Thursday night and I'm making an emergency trip back home tomorrow.

I'll be staying with Mum until the 27th to give her a hand.

 

[Blckshdw]

Pulled out the generator, popped off the spark arrester, and gave a test fit with the new exhaust piping. It's listed as 1" but more accurately is 7/8", so it slipped inside the muffler with no resistance, and definitely won't seal as-is.

Doesn't appear that there are any options for a pipe spreader this small, so I'll have to come up with a plan B. I'm on the fence about applying some high temp silicone to the pipe, sit it inside the muffler, and let it set up to form a plug for a mostly permanent install? Or get some sort of silicone coupler, that would allow me to remove the pipe for easier mobility. Thinking the latter would be a better direction to go.




The length works well enough, reaches from the depth I plan to have it inside the garage, out into the driveway. I'll be buying a CO monitor for the garage just for safety's sake.

 

[mrrsm]

Might be worth dropping in on Amazon using a generic search for "Gas Powered Electrical Generator Exhaust Piping Kits" or something similar and seek out those that have enough length -Post-Penetration into the Outdoors to move the exhaust away from the Under-Eaves ingestion (Say... an Eight Foot Minimum) that can wind up silently "CO Killing" you with such subtlety of Carbon Monoxide inhalation via the Open Soffit and Fascia ... that you would never even see it coming:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BRC1XFNS/?tag=gmtnation-20

The Hoses and Clamps should be inspected each for Solid Connections and Security ...each and every time before Cranking Up the Generator... and the Batteries in the CO Monitors around the house at least once a week. if used regularly.

There is NO SECOND CHANCE here... consider the personal experience of having investigated Accidental (and Intentional Suicide ) CO Deaths over many years as proof of this dreadful understanding.

 

[TJBaker57]

Ran through a questionnaire at..

https://www.canada.ca/en/immigratio...dian-citizen/eligibility/already-citizen.html

And got this....




How about that !!

 

[mrrsm]

Very Interesting... Not a bad idea to look into the matter...While you still can.

 

[northcreek]

In light of recent events, can a person from the state of New York become a Canadian citizen ? asking for a friend.....

 

[Mooseman]

Trying to follow the rules really hard regarding political comments, I just have to answer this:

In light of recent events, can a person from the state of New York become a Canadian citizen ? asking for a friend.....

Well, actually your friend could apply like anyone else to immigrate the Canada and eventually apply for citizenship unless you sneak over the border and apply as a refugee if you (I mean your friend) has been persecuted for (insert forum rule breaking reasons here).

And this is an opportune time to remind everyone that ANY political posts are prohibited or anything that can antagonize anyone. So far, this little discussion has been civil and neutral(ish). I so wanted to post a recent funny and patriotic video reminiscent of an old Canadian beer ad. However, because it contained images and some lighthearted political views, I didn't.

 

[northcreek]

Thanks, and I'll tell my friend to cool it...

 

[Matt]

I made it!

A tick over 24 hours travel time and I'm back in God's country. There were some plane delays and close calls but it worked out.

I'm here enjoying the time with family and the warm weather until the end of the month.

 

[TJBaker57]

Well, as a follow-up:

My father was born in Amherst, Nova Scotia in 1916. He and his younger brother served with the RCAF in WWII. His brother was killed in action, shot down over France.

After the war my 3 eldest brothers were born in Alberta where my father and mother, who was from Boston, were having a go at farming outside of Edmonton.

The farming didn't work out so the family moved to the States in the winter of 1951/52. I came along after the move.

So it's not like there isn't a strong family connection there.

 

[Mooseman]

Love hearing family stories like this. Lots of history behind them.

So I hate this house a little less. Just got the news that the vermiculite tests revealed that it does not have any asbestos so the insulation job can go ahead.

However, the new windows we just had installed wound up costing an extra $5000 because the house was not built right, and it's not covered under the Greener Homes interest free loan. There was no proper joists or beams above the two bay windows so there was no proper support for the ceiling joists above them. The installers wound up having to add a proper beam to prevent damage to the windows otherwise they would not have honoured the warranty. And on top of that, the walls were constructed with thinner drywall and from appearances, these walls were added over older walls made of wood veneer . So the walls don't have normal studs neither. All the windows have been replaced and we can already feel a difference in heat retention. The additional insulation will be great.

 

[Blckshdw]

Worked from home today, so took advantage of some slow hours to do some tinkering. Received my CO detector and some multi ply silicone exhaust couplers yesterday rated for up to 900*, so after lunch, clamped one to the muffler port on the generator, inserted the exhaust tube, and clamped down the other side of the coupler to the tubing. Added a gallon of gas, set the CO detector a few feet away, and let it run for about 2 hours. Not a peep.

A couple of times while it was running, I used my IR thermometer to check some temp readings in a couple of spots out of curiosity. The muffler was the hottest on the exit side, in the 600* range, but other areas of it were as low as 300* which I thought was interesting. The hottest part of the exhaust tubing was in the upper 200 range, and quickly cooled off (relatively speaking) the closer I got to the opposite end. I considered getting some exhaust wrap for the tubing, but now I'm not so sure it'll be worth the effort.



After dinner, had to confront one of my neighbors. Since my property has a long main street that runs down one side, people are often out walking their dogs. Most of them us common sense, some of them let their dogs mark on my corner fence post, which is annoying but not the end of the world. Then there are the ones who have dogs that like to scrape afterwards, so there are ruts and bare spots. The worst are the ones that willingly let their dogs into my yard, and don't pick up afterwards.

Well today one of the guys with a "digging dog" brings his pup over, marks a couple of my fence posts, and then he reaches down and takes the leash off. Dog proceeds to start wandering around my front and side yards while he just stands there. That was enough, I went outside and got his attention, then pointed at his dog. He looked at me like I was crazy, so I had to ask him to keep his dog out of the yard. THEN the light went on, and he acted like he was sorry. I need to get a sprinkler system setup, that I could control from my phone. Then soak owners and their dogs when they wanna act like they have no home training.

 

[Mooseman]

Just became a grandpa for the third time. This one will be closer to home for Grandma to coddle over. Everyone is doing fine. His name is Maverick.

 

[Mooseman]

Just an update, name hasn't been decided yet. Not sure about Maverick. Myself, all I can think about is Tom Cruise and being called Mav all the time. Maybe that's why

 

[Blckshdw]

Just an update, name hasn't been decided yet. Not sure about Maverick. Myself, all I can think about is Tom Cruise and being called Mav all the time. Maybe that's why

To be fair, that's exactly where my mind went too!

Edit: t's been a day of cleaning here. Washed the EXT, swept out the garage, decluttered the workbench. Reorganized a few things, tossed out some others. Let music blast through the house while I cleaned up inside. About to head to the airport to pick up a VIP who'll be visiting for a few days.

 

[flyboy2610]

Just became a grandpa for the third time. This one will be closer to home for Grandma to coddle over. Everyone is doing fine. His name is Maverick.

View attachment 116415

Congrats, Grandpa! Hope all are doing well!
We're celebrating our grand son's 2nd B-day tomorrow. His actual B-day is Monday, 3-10.

 

[Matt]

I need to get a sprinkler system setup, that I could control from my phone. Then soak owners and their dogs when they wanna act like they have no home training.

I saw a video the other day of a guy in Australia that set up a motion controlled one for people parking in his driveway and going to the shop next door. It waits about 5 seconds before it starts so it usually gets them with their door open.

 

[Matt]

Just became a grandpa for the third time. This one will be closer to home for Grandma to coddle over. Everyone is doing fine. His name is Maverick.

View attachment 116415

Congratulations!

 

[flyboy2610]

Re-arranged everything in the shed (a 2x a year job) so the mower is in front of the door and the snowblower is off to the side. Don't think I'll need the snowblower again this year.
Also got my new pressure washer put together and filled with oil. https://gmtnation.com/forums/threads/what-came-in-your-mail-today.12962/page-58#post-650424
I bought some quick disconnects for the garden hose and pressure washer hose. Initial impressions of the included pressure hose aren't real positive. It feels pretty stiff. I'll give it some use and see if it limbers up, otherwise a new pressure hose will be in the future.
Didn't have any fresh gas so I didn't get to use it yet, though.

 

[Blckshdw]

Picked up one of our platform OGs, having dinner with @markmc before we have a few drinks for the evening.



Not sure how many members are left here that know him