Author: Richard

Takeuchi electrical problems

Much time since my last post.  My uncovered greens have held up well through the cold and I have begun germinating tomato seeds.  Read some excellent books and took a MOOC on software design in connection with 3D printing.  And I have spent considerable time diagnosing and fixing my silent Takeuchi TL26 (bobcat). I don't use it much but the compost heap needed turning and I wished to grade some ground for additional rainwater tanks,  and it stayed silent when I turned the key.  Not good. Previously Read more [...]

what’s growing

It's December 18, we have not had temps below 20 deg F, and greens are holding up well. Usually I plant out the garlic cloves in October or November but we had no rain in those months and the ground was dry.  When I returned from Australia and New Zealand early December the ground was moist and it was pleasurable to clear the beds, turn in the compost and populate with garlic.  I have noticed some leaves emerging and hope the delay will not affect their growth.  I used to store the garlic Read more [...]

Australia and New Zealand

I just returned from a trip to Australia and New Zealand.  Perth to attend a nephew's wedding and New Zealand because a) the cheapest tickets were via Auckland; b) I have never been to NZ. I have visited Perth numerous times since the 90's and seen it grow on the mining roller coaster to a significant city.  Australia has also grown and was rated best country in 2014.  As it made more money from mining (iron ore, petroleum, etc.) sales to China  its labor costs increased and manufacturing Read more [...]

making do

And so the north Georgia drought continues.  Yesterday was hellish - rolling clouds of smoke streamed down from Rabun county, where some houses were being evacuated, and from areas of South and North Carolina.   From my neighbors, who are weather hardened house builders, I heard hacking coughs and mine joined theirs as I pruned my trees.  And rain not in sight and maybe none until next spring. My house is on a well and I could pump water for irrigation but this depletes my well (and probably Read more [...]

cord-cutting and enhancing connectivity

It all began when the tv satellite bill for the Atlanta house jumped unexpectedly.  The company explained I was beyond the 6 month special discount period and offered to split the difference between old rate and new rate.  I decided to become a "cord-cutter" and canceled the contract.  They sent me a shipping box and I disconnected the LNB from the satellite dish and placed it and the receiver and remote in the box and bade farewell at the UPS office. "Now what?" M. demanded to know.  She Read more [...]

well repair – part 2

In my previous post (part 1) I describe the temporary repair I made to the expansion tank pressure switch.  However the pipe/nipple connecting the pressure switch to the water manifold is badly rusted and seeping water and just a matter of time before it disintegrates. I want the repair to proceed efficiently and so I researched how to removed broken nipples - Bob's plumbing video (how to remove a broken pipe) was very helpful.  So prior to commencing the repair I bought and assembled all the Read more [...]

well problem – diagnosis & repair – part 1

Unexpectedly, Friday evening, no water in the house.  No warning signs such as discolored water which could indicate the well was running dry.  Checked the power supply board and the switch was on.  Called the well repair guy and asked if any wells were running dry.  He said 12 in the mountains but none at my level and he would visit Saturday 6pm. Caution - following involves working with 240 volts and can result in serious injury or death and should not be undertaken by anyone not competent Read more [...]

Q&A – gravity fed irrigation

I received some comments on my rainwater harvesting and gravity feed irrigation system.  Luke from Australia is surprised at the amount I collect.  There are simple formula on the internet where you multiply annual, or monthly or daily rainfall in inches or cm by the area of the roof and can easily derive in gals or liters the amount collectible.  And the volume is often bigger than you would expect. Because of our continuing drought in N. Georgia I am going to expand my storage system from Read more [...]

am I a Maker?

There is a Maker movement afoot and a few weeks ago I visited my first Maker Faire, which was in Atlanta.  A few weeks prior I signed up for a MOOC (online course) on 3D printing and I was deciding which 3D printer I should buy - the large one in the photo above costs around $30k, I was thinking of $300.  Makers enjoy tinkering and making things most often using new technologies.  I think this is different from DIY where the focus is on repairing or installing things, which would usually be done Read more [...]

bees – preparing for winter

You can see my bee hive above.  It faces south, has an umbrella for summer sun protection and a window on the west side to allow the winter sun but not the winter winds.  Now that Fall has arrived I begin my winter preparations.  There are 2 larger boxes at the bottom, the brood boxes, where the queen resides and the 2 smaller boxes above are supers from which I collect honey.  My last honey harvesting was from the top super and I returned the super and its 10 frames to the hive for the bees Read more [...]