Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[ValerieJ]

Cant hear my generator if your more than 50 feet away. It's running on Eco because no huge draw. It being super quiet was one reason we wanted this one. That way it doesn't attract tweakers

I'd like to know what you have!!! Ours is very noisy. But it does run a lot of things in the house. Unfortunately not the stove or oven, so I have thought about going bigger. I think we're talking about the $25K range or more though, and that is a big decision.

 

[TeePants]

I don’t know if the solar back up batteries would be sufficient for your needs, but Jackery has a sale and their 3600 watt one plus a solar panel is a little over 2k. Supposedly at 3600 it can run a full size fridge for two weeks. Obviously less when you’re running other systems. Nice not to have to remember to get gas, but YMMV.

I have been looking at them if we ever end up getting a weekender eurovan or similar for road trips. Seems easier to pack an electric cooktop than a propane camping stove, plus it can power our devices so my wife can work on the road.

 

[Hinotori]

It's a portable one. Has handle and wheels. With effort we can pull it up the ramp into the truck bed.

Lives under the awning and I just run power cords. Yes it's dirty. Anything under there for awhile starts looking like that. Just needs wiped down.

 

[pennyJo1960]

We have generator but really.
We not loose power it is rare.
If there is one they put calls to us or on their line.
We have propane in to our cook stove so even without power I can cook.

 

[ValerieJ]

Oh, I see. Well, we have mostly a whole house generator that is hardwired in. It does run on propane, but we have a 500 gallon tank of that and only use it in outages. But, we'd like a generator that runs all of the whole house, not just mostly. We would have to go to something really large, like commercial size, so we are still in the talking stage of spending that kind of money on it. Unfortunately, they are not quiet at all. But, I am thankful for what it does, that's for sure.

Unfortunately outages are not rare out here at all. There are several danger zones, especially for trees to come down. Our electricity is all underground, but between here and "there" are many places where it is above ground. Those are nearly always our trouble areas.

But, like I said, LCPUD does a great job. They are familiar with their territory and generally can find and fix the problem quick enough.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Oh, I see. Well, we have mostly a whole house generator that is hardwired in. It does run on propane, but we have a 500 gallon tank of that and only use it in outages. But, we'd like a generator that runs all of the whole house, not just mostly. We would have to go to something really large, like commercial size, so we are still in the talking stage of spending that kind of money on it. Unfortunately, they are not quiet at all. But, I am thankful for what it does, that's for sure.

Unfortunately outages are not rare out here at all. There are several danger zones, especially for trees to come down. Our electricity is all underground, but between here and "there" are many places where it is above ground. Those are nearly always our trouble areas.

Same, every windstorm is an outage risk. The line to our house is buried but everything else is above ground, and with trees everywhere it's not uncommon for big clumps in my area to get knocked out.

We only have a generator because my in laws were upgrading so they had it brought over and had us wired up. It powers half the house (mainly kitchen and furnace) which is better than nothing. That massive storm just before last Thanksgiving chewed through all our little propane tanks so we now have a much bigger tank in place to draw from, because being stuck without heat for 5 days straight was not my idea of a good time.

 

[ValerieJ]

Same, every windstorm is an outage risk. The line to our house is buried but everything else is above ground, and with trees everywhere it's not uncommon for big clumps in my area to get knocked out.

We only have a generator because my in laws were upgrading so they had it brought over and had us wired up. It powers half the house (mainly kitchen and furnace) which is better than nothing. That massive storm just before last Thanksgiving chewed through all our little propane tanks so we now have a much bigger tank in place to draw from, because being stuck without heat for 5 days straight was not my idea of a good time.

Yep, it only takes one good outage to make you rethink the size of your tank. We have not been without power for days at a time though. That had to be terrible. For us they are always hours. I don't know how LCPUD does it, but they are really good about getting things fixed in a hurry.

The joys of living in the country. We pay a price for having the beauty of the forest all around us, and lining our roads.

 

[TeePants]

It’s the final coop day! The floor is in so I’ve just got to put in roosting bars and the auto door, and then the tedious task of lining the floor with hardware cloth to keep rats out.

The girls go in tomorrow, if the paint cooperates. I wanted painted roosting bars but we ran out of our pre painted lumber so I have to paint some more 2x4s. I am hoping they cure enough to not smell too much because these girls have gotta go! The coop is more spacious than their indoor pen anyway - it’s 3x5, and that doesn’t include the 1ftx3ft nest boxes. Their brooder is 4x4.

The plan is to keep them penned in the coop for the first couple days with food and water and then let them explore the run.

And then when it’s all said and done, I ended up with SO MUCH extra plywood and 2x4s. I’m going to throw them in our little shed we store our bikes in for now, but I have some ideas for what to do with them.

 

[ValerieJ]

It’s the final coop day! The floor is in so I’ve just got to put in roosting bars and the auto door, and then the tedious task of lining the floor with hardware cloth to keep rats out.

The girls go in tomorrow, if the paint cooperates. I wanted painted roosting bars but we ran out of our pre painted lumber so I have to paint some more 2x4s. I am hoping they cure enough to not smell too much because these girls have gotta go! The coop is more spacious than their indoor pen anyway - it’s 3x5, and that doesn’t include the 1ftx3ft nest boxes. Their brooder is 4x4.

The plan is to keep them penned in the coop for the first couple days with food and water and then let them explore the run.

And then when it’s all said and done, I ended up with SO MUCH extra plywood and 2x4s. I’m going to throw them in our little shed we store our bikes in for now, but I have some ideas for what to do with them.

I wouldn't bother to paint roosting bars. Just a thought to save you some time. It won't stay painted. Those little claws walking back and forth will wear off the paint, I think. Anyway, ours are not painted.

 

[Smokerbill]

Just got back from an Onalaska feed run. 13 chickens are going through a bag every couple of weeks, and not worth it for 3 to 5 eggs a day. Time to downsize to one cockerel and six pullets I think.