More Power!

 Tim the Tool Man Taylor's got nothin' on me!

Good neighbor Eric has come through for me again. Back in March, he generously gave me two great solar panels to add to my system.  I installed them on the shop roof, and they gave the batteries a nice boost. It's been so hot this summer that I started dreaming about putting an air conditioner in the shop, but that would mean even more solar panels, so I contacted Eric again.

Not only did he find four more panels for me at a great price, he dug into his own stock again and gave me virtually everything I needed to install them, including the rails, roof mounts, wire, and a few other goodies.

It takes a lot of stuff to install solar panels

Another good friend, and well-known Campo fixture "Rat Rod" Andy came over to help me hoist the panels up on the roof and get them fastened down. He doesn't share my terror of heights, so his help was much appreciated.

I installed a "weather head" to get the wires down into the shop...

... and a small breaker box in the shop to act as a combiner.  All the panel wires come in, with one breaker for each set, then two wires go back up and out, to connect to the house.

Fourth breaker arrived broken.  Didn't need it.

E, C, W for East, Center, and West.

The wires connecting to the house are cleverly (sez I) disguised by piggybacking on party lights.  

Still waiting to actually use those lights for a party.

The astute among you will notice that I am also using my solar clothes-drying system...

As well as my patent-pending laundry cart and manly clothespin carrier.

Sign of the times...

This won't mean much unless you're a nerd, but the new array is putting 25 amps into the batteries.  That's about a 50% increase over what I had, so now I'm definitely thinking air conditioning!  I'll give the system a while to prove itself first.

A Visitor

Yesterday I opened my back door to do something, I forget what, and found Molly's twin on my porch.  Surprised the hell out of me.  I asked her what the heck she was doing there, but got only a blank stare and a couple cautious yips.  I was able to sweet-talk her into coming in the house, she wasn't interested in water or food, and she and Molly just sniffed each other.  A couple attempts to mark my rug, but I barked at her and she stopped.  She was well-groomed and healthy, but no collar or tags, so I put her in the truck and went to visit the nearest neighbors.  Only two were home and they didn't recognize her, so I posted on a community Facebook page and sat on the couch to wait, with one little white dog curled up on each side of me.

Within a few minutes I saw a frantic post from the owner and arranged to meet her at the gas station.  She was teary-eyed with gratitude. I like that in a woman...😁

Just looked at the map, and the little critter had come nearly two miles to my doorstep.  And I don't think it was the first time.  A long time ago, maybe a year or two, I had Molly in the truck under the oak tree and had gone back to the house for something, when what to my wondering eyes should appear but Molly, way over south of the house!  WTF? How did she get out of the truck and over there so quickly? Using my best dog-whisperer techniques, I screamed bloody murder at her for being a naughty girl, and of course she took off, never to be seen again.  Turned around to look back at the truck, and there was the real Molly, wondering what all the fuss was about.

My visitor.  A well-groomed version of Molly

A shortcut would have been over coyote-infested hills.

Train Table and Screen Door

A few days after the van project, my big brother Fred arrived from Arizona. The projects this time were a ginormous model train table and a custom eight-foot-high screen door for his house in Prescott Valley. He had come up with a clever design that would allow the big train layout to be folded up and rolled to the side of the garage to make room for the car.

My first task was 3D renderings using Sketchup.

The "Wings" were four feet wide by eight feet long, making this thing ten and a half feet wide by eight feet long.  That's a lot of model trains.

We were able to build the parts in my shop, but to attach the wings, we had to move outside, and then could only set the hinges on one wing at a time.

Once the train table was done, we moved on to the screen door, which we made out of two layers of nice poplar hardwood.  We had planned to take another trip to town to buy the wood, but that would have been about a 90-mile round trip and would have killed half a day, no doubt.

Luckily, Brian had left enough wood here from the van project to save us a long drive.

Projects complete, we loaded up for the trip to Arizona.

This is where Fred really shines.  Anything electrical or electronic.

He designed the front panel and had it printed on metal. 
Mesa Lines was the name our dad used on his train layouts.
Keeping the tradition alive.

When we got to Arizona, we set the table up in Fred and Gayle's garage. This should keep him occupied for quite some time.

Rolled against the wall, it's only about 3 feet wide and leaves plenty of room for the car.

New screen door and happy wife

If you're interested in following Fred's progress on the new train layout, check out his new blog at: https://fredstraintable.blogspot.com/

Da Van

For the last three weeks we've been working on buddy Brian's Sprinter van.
It's starting to look like a little motor home!

The Picture Window

Nothing initiates an expensive new vehicle like cutting a giant hole in the side.

Looks "Factory" to me.

 The Galley

The gray box is an electric refrigerator/freezer

Nice big sink and induction cooktop

The faucet has a long hose and will double as a shower, once he gets the sheet-metal shower pan built. 

The pan will pull out from under the galley counter.

Flip-up extra counter space.
Small water heater peeking out from under the bed

The new aromatic cedar ceiling with LED can lights

The Dining Room

Brian is calling the van Buck, after the main character in The Call of the Wild, a dog who goes from a relatively cushy life to adventures in the wild - a good analogy for the van life.

So we gave Ol' Buck a good place in the new table

The Bedroom

The bed and table can be removed in minutes if the van needs to haul big things.

The raised floor hides a surfboard!

The Bathroom

The toilet box will get a cushion and be a seat for dining.

Composting toilet, which I thought might be a pain, but it has a powered vent system and can go up to two months before emptying!  Try that with your RV holding tank!

The Library

Brian's nifty automated locking system to keep books in place

Once the bar is in the slot, gravity drops the little locking piece in place.

The Control Panel

This van has four big lithium batteries, an inverter, solar on the roof, and more electronics than the Space Shuttle!

330-watt solar panel flat on the roof.

...Barely visible from the ground

The Garage

He who dies with the most toys wins...

 The Man, the Myth, the Legend