Spring is finally upon us in Northern Idaho. The snow is melting away, giving way to mud season. Now that I have a few moments, I can share some snow thrower maintenance videos. If you have a snow thrower, put these in your archives. If you don't ever have snow, then these videos should be … Continue reading Spring is upon us / Oil Change: Snow Thrower Maintenance
Weather
Easy to fix snow blower, all is not lost.
My snow thrower was the easiest fix I have had since being on the property. It was so easy that I was shocked by it, especially after working on the generator. After attempting to fix our Ridgid generator, I was beginning to lose confidence in after market parts. Until, I had to fix the snow … Continue reading Easy to fix snow blower, all is not lost.
Time to go sledding…
During the weekends and the winter break, we found ourselves sledding quite a bit. When we need to walk the dog, we drag along the sleds and hit the hill on the road near our house. The snow season this year has not been as deep as we are use to in the past We … Continue reading Time to go sledding…
“Generating” Repairs: Winter requires more than just solar.
Living off the grid and relying totally on solar power is not a great idea. There are days and even a month or two in the winter in which only a few sunny days will appear. If we only had solar to rely on for electricity, it would become very unnerving seeing our battery bank’s … Continue reading “Generating” Repairs: Winter requires more than just solar.
A Walk in a Winter Wonderland
On our day off this week, we decided to break routine and change our walk. Instead of walking down the plowed snow road, we decided to go back country. We layered up our clothing, dawned our snow shoes and headed out into the 8 degree Fahrenheit (-13 Celsius) weather to enjoy the sunny day. Our … Continue reading A Walk in a Winter Wonderland
Are you grounded? Electrical issues with the plow truck
Our plow truck has been let's just say a challenge since we bought it. First, I have had to rebuild the transmission and rebuild the plow head last year. This year, I decided I wanted to use the rear lights mounted on the bed of the truck to make sure I wasn't reversing into a … Continue reading Are you grounded? Electrical issues with the plow truck
How to fell a hung up tree
During one of the bad wind storms last year, I noticed an entire birch tree partially broke at the base of the trunk. The tree continued to live, but it was hung up on another birch tree and couldn't fall completely to the ground. Even though the tree was still living per se, it was … Continue reading How to fell a hung up tree
Road Warriors: The Last Battle Against Mud Season
For the past few years, we have been coping with our dirt road. Anyone who has lived on a dirt road may possibly relate to this. In north Idaho the local joke is there are 5 seasons, summer, fall, winter, mud, and spring. During the time between winter and spring we have what we call … Continue reading Road Warriors: The Last Battle Against Mud Season
Here comes the sun…
After a dreary month of January, the sun is making its appearance again. We are all relieved and choose our own way to bask in sun's warm rays. The solar panels have produced very little and we have relied on the storage capacity of our battery banks and the back up generator on a weekly … Continue reading Here comes the sun…
Snow Plow Madness Continues…
If it isn't the truck, it's the plow. If it isn’t the plow, it’s the truck. For the first few weeks of January, the truck has been running great and pushing snow like a champ, that is, until this past holiday weekend. With the three day weekend, I worked at moving heavy, slushy snow from … Continue reading Snow Plow Madness Continues…
Living a Sustainable Dream 