Helpful hints for building coops

[aliciaplus3]

is anyone else having trouble logging into forums here on byc ?
this just started within the past half hour.
.........jiminwisc.....

Yes also adding likes seems to explode my browser

 

[CapricornFarm]

Yes, gateway errors they are trying to fix it.

 

[aart]

Yes, gateway errors they are trying to fix it.

Yep, had the same thing.

 

[jvls1942]

got an early start today. despite the vague instructions in the owners manual, I did manage to get the mower deck off..
the blades are not as bad as I thought they were going to be.
there was no grass stuck inside the deck either.. I guess the wash nozzle on the deck does really work..
OK, going back out to sharpen blades.
then put things back together..
.....jiminwisc.....

 

[aart]

there was no grass stuck inside the deck either.. I guess the wash nozzle on the deck does really work..

Well, that and brand new paint under there

 

[jvls1942]

Well, that and brand new paint under there

yup,,,that too..
a friend of mine said to spray it with something like Spam cooking spray..
I have seen people just painting it with motor oil. I don't really like that idea.
It would prevent rust, but I think grass would stick to it.
I have some slick spray that I use on my table saw and jointers. you spray it on, let it dry until it gets powdery looking. then wipe it down..
nothing sticks to the saw ..
it prevents rust also..
........jiminwisc......

 

[Molpet]

yup,,,that too..
a friend of mine said to spray it with something like Spam cooking spray..
I have seen people just painting it with motor oil. I don't really like that idea.
It would prevent rust, but I think grass would stick to it.
I have some slick spray that I use on my table saw and jointers. you spray it on, let it dry until it gets powdery looking. then wipe it down..
nothing sticks to the saw ..
it prevents rust also..
........jiminwisc......

Arnold Corporation 490-900-0062 Non-Stick Armortek Mower Spray is supposed to be the best.. it is graphite based..farm and fleet carries it.

others are selling silicone spray for mowers .. imagine any silicone spray would work

 

[jvls1942]

thanks Molpet, I did check at our F&F store.
I couldn't find any spray and as usual I couldn't find a clerk.
as we were driving to get a bowl of soup, we passed O'Reily's Auto. I said , just for the heck of it, let's stop here.
Of course the clerk there had no idea of what I wanted. He showed me to the section where the aerosol cans are. then he said, if you need any help, let me know, and walked away.
I found a can of Blaster silicon spray, it had " mower decks" listed as one of the uses for it.
down in the 50's this morning for outside temps.. nice sleeping weather..
.......jiminwisc.....

 

[Molpet]

umm here is what it looks like if the silicon doesn't work out

https://www.google.com/shopping/pro...X&ved=0ahUKEwid8YWCi43cAhXq1IMKHTFVB1gQljAICQ

 

[aart]

The cooler weather has been a blessed relief, 54° here this morning, Ahhhhh!
Long, cathartic story comes next.

Was going to catch up on cleaning and cooking yesterday, started bread, went to wash bowl and.... no hot water. Ceramic spark arrestor on water heater needs vacuuming a few times a year, so went at it but it wasn't too dusty, hadn't been long since last cleaning. Pilot wouldn't light...utoh...furnace pilot was out and dryer would not heat. No gas at all in house. SMH.

Called power company, someone would be out by 10:30 pm.....SMH...tech showed up around noon and disconnected meter outlet, no gas thru meter, took meter off, no gas at meter inlet. Which actually was great news as it meant the problem wasn't inside the house. Whew! Need to call in another crew....they'll be here today but don't know when. Sigh.

Utility marker guy showed up at 3 and told me crew would be there at 4.
Crew showed up at 4 and promptly backed digger trailer into and over mailbox, shattering the 4x4 wooden post but surprisingly no real damage to metal box. I was standing right there when it happened, and yelled but driver didn't hear me. He was embarrassed and very apologetic, saying he would personally make it right. I told him I don't give a crap about the mailbox, not to worry about it, everyone makes mistakes, just get the gas flowing again asap. Later he told me he would order me new mailbox, I said the box is fine just need a post put in, that I had looked but didn't have any 4x4 stock left but my biggest hurdle is getting a post put in the ground and I can fix the rest. Later he said he had someone coming with a post and sure enough he got a new post dug in 3' down, asked me where to cut it off for height and chatted with me while I reinstalled the box. I was flabbergasted and incredibly pleased to see this conscientiousness and find it to be truly sincere when backed up by his actions. He was still so apologetic, so I told him the saying I often employ that "it doesn't matter how bad you foul something up, it's how well you fix it that matters most" and that he done an excellent job taking care of his mistake.

All that happened throughout the 4+ hours it took the 2 man crew to find the problem then find the regulator that needed to be replaced(location was wrong on drawing) that had last been replaced damn near 30 years ago. They did some serious mini-backhoe and a lot of hand digging and finally found it across the road. I followed them around off and on asking a ton of questions, they were both very friendly and answered/explained everything along with some shucking and jiving about mailbox catastrophes and drawing snafus along with general chatting. So I've got a new regulator, riser(found to leak during pressure testing), and meter, and the hot water was up and running by about 8:30. Long day, that was bearable and ended well due to reasonable and good natured people treating each other kindly and with good humor despite numerous setbacks.