Snowy day schedule

It's a snowy day schedule here at Gypsy's Rest.

That means it's a lot like an art movie. We talk slowly, we move around slowly, music plays in the background. It's supposed to snow all day. So we ran the generator (Genny) this morning to top off the batteries, and we're sitting in bed with coffee and internet (laptops and using the personal hotspot on the iphone) while we watch the snow come down and hear the wood stove tic from time to time as logs move around.

Hopefully I won't get called out to work.

We're doing a little shopping and planning. Our rock climbers are back this spring, although not today :D. I'm hunting up a gas grill for them to use and trying to think up a shaded seating option. I originally thought about one of those charcoal park grills for up by the rock, but it gets so dry the charcoal would be a fire danger we're not willing to bear. We'll probably use the little 2 burner gas grill we keep down by the creek. It's a little rough from having been blown off the deck a couple times and hammered back to something close to normal with a hammer. (Thanks art school). For the shaded seating what I have to avoid is making too big a project for myself. I'm thinking of using the poles I have laying around. I'll dig a hold and set up 2 of them straight up, then angle another 2 up to those from a few feet away. Then I can cover it with whatever I can find handy. They're good kids and I'm betting they'll help out if I'm doing the heavy parts while they're here. It'll make a nice spot for them to rest up between climbs and a shady place for their dogs.

Oh and we're thinking of getting some more pans from Le Creuset for our cook pan pile. Stainless steel this time.

So far the solar panels are staying mostly clear from the little bit of weak sun they're getting. We'll see how that goes.

Framing done on the dome.

 So we started putting up the dome last Saturday

 And I got called to work but I got one part done and the next part ready.

 Then on Sunday I started getting this part up since I'd prepped it the day before.

 This was the most pain in the ass part of the whole thing. It's where the bottom realigned so that the top could come out right.

 Between the previous step and the completion of this step it was maddeningly slow.

 But then it started coming together.

 And by here it was actually starting to make sense.

SO I kept working until it all came together. :D

Invisible invested hours

One of the things that never shows in a project is the hours and hours invested in research and prep to even get started on a job.

Our current solar upgrade has materials on site but nothing actually installed yet. I spent at least 40 hours on research and development to ensure that I have the correct stuff and that all of it will play well together. It took about a day to get everything on site from the place I bought all the solar stuff. We've just spent at least 4 hours working through all the customer service issues to get the 2 satellite dishes moved from their current spots on the roof to make room for the new panels without shading.

(Shading is BAD m'K?)

It'll take a day to do a bit of reconstruction to clear a roof obstruction.

After alla that? We'll actually get to start putting some of the damned stuff up. That'll be 24 new 260 watt panels, 8.8 KW in new inverters and a whopping huge assed 100 amp charge controller.

Of course to put the new stuff up we have to take the old stuff down. We'll do that in stages. Stage 1 will be swapping out the old inverter/charge controller for the new one. That's a day at least. Then we'll swap out the solar panel combiner box. Probably a half day. Then I can set up the new rails as much as possible before changing panels. The panels will be another day. They have to get done in a day or we don't get to shower.

As opposed to common beliefs held by some of our friends, I do like to shower.

SO that's the job plan. I'm sure it'll come off without a hitch. :D

AND pigs can fly.