Chainsaw Happiness
The chainsaw is one of several essential items on our farm. Without it we cannot either prepare firewood or clear land. Freezing and starving is the result. The failure mode of our chainsaw was sudden engine stoppage. I suspected the issue was with the electrical system, considering the sudden transition from excellent performance to paper weight status.
As Betty remarked in her comment, exhaust manifold screens can get obstructed, causing starting and operating problems. I actually experienced this problem when the saw was new, since the mixture controls were set up by the Stihl legal team, apparently, who were concerned that if the saw should develop full power, someone might get hurt! 12 years ago I leaned out the combustion mixture (more air, less fuel), increased max engine speed, and have never revisited this problem.
My basic plan was to remove the electrical harness from another saw that I had inherited from my father, but was non functioning, having fallen down the stairs. Really. We have a multi-story utility building and one day while retrieving the saw in the dark (who needs lights, I know my way around!), groping about the storage shelving resulted in the saw bouncing down the stairs. Almost as spectacularly as the time I unloaded a 1000 pound round hay bale on a slope that went rogue, disregarded my threats and body english to blast its way through a new fence.
Electrical harness from the “spare parts” saw
Although my intention was to swap electrical harnesses, the big Farm Boss had a convoluted disassembly scheme, and I could not see how to safely remove the carburetor from the engine without damage. So I cleaned the electrical contacts, firmly seated the spark plug connector, and put the beast back together. Works great. Back in business.
Chainsaw Blues
I was slicing through pine logs the other day when the Stihl Farm Boss died. Just quit. Although this tool was new in 1997, it has given good service until now. Without a chainsaw, all land clearing and fence building operations stop. And soon we will be back in firewood collecting season. Sure, some of our ancestors used manual lumber saws on logs. Perhaps they had more time. I spend a big chunk of time earning cash to pay car insurance, real estate taxes, and licensing fees, confiscations that did not exist 150 years ago. Also, having used a chainsaw, it would be hard to go back to the old ways.
My current plan is to disassemble another non functioning Stihl that I have to see where the ignition components are located. The sudden engine stopping seems to be an intermittent problem, since I was able to restart the saw after the first occurrence. The culprit is possibly bad wiring, condenser, or ignition points. Must fix!
For Now
Life it too busy and this blog is taking up time that is better spent on more critical tasks. For now, we must put it on hold.
If you desire to contact us with any question, please email at:
solarfarmmom at solarfamilyfarm dot com
Thanks for visiting.
Roasted Tomato Puree
This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays hosted this week by Kelly the Kitchen Kop. Check out all the other Real Food links! And now on to the post…
Tomato Gardening
Gardening popularity is increasing. And many folks are growing tomatoes. After all, tomatoes are relatively simple to grow and they provide a product only available to the home gardener.
This year, we’ve tried a number of varieties we received from the nice folks at WinterSown.org. Those tomato varieties include:
- Stupice
- Homestead
- Brandywine
- Tennessee Surprise
- Cherokee Purple
- Amish Paste
and a few others I did not keep very good track of when planting.
What to do with Surplus Tomatoes
As usual, the tomato harvest starts as a trickle. We ravenously gobble each and every fruit as they ripen.
But eventually, you end up with more than you can eat at one time. Then you start making salsa, fresh tomato sauce, perhaps even drying a few. But what do you do if you have a few dozen tomatoes and your fridge is already full of these delicious tomato dishes?
Tuesday’s Tool: A Cast Iron Griddle
I’ve not much experience in cooking for a crowd. There was only my sister and I growing up. Cooking for four is not the same as cooking for 7. And this crew seems to be eating more everyday! What’s up with that?
Crowd-Cooking Inspiration
I love reading Katie’s blog because she can really cook for a crowd. After all, her family classifies as a crowd.
Recently, Katie blogged about omelets. I thought it was a great idea she had making them on her griddle so I gave it a try. Here are the results:
Omelets on the Griddle
The omelets don’t look so fancy when being cooked. Yet, in the end, Read the rest of this entry »
Keeping Cool without A/C
This is an updated post from last Summer titled No Air Conditioning? No Problem. Since we’re currently in the Dog Days of Summer, I thought our newer readers might appreciate a re-post on the subject.
Hot, Humid, High Summer
We’re just past high summer. August. Statistically the second hottest month of the year. Just far enough past the Summer Solstice that the warmth from the close up sun is now affecting us. We’ve also had plenty of rain in the last week. We’re pleased about the rain since it means there’s no drought. But the rain, of course, leads to humidity.
Subsidized Electricity and the Rise of Air Conditioning
Believe it or not, it is only the last 20 years or so that cheap, subsidized electricity has created the opportunity for cheap air conditioning. But with a solar power system and a limited budget, we don’t have it. And neither of us grew up with air conditioning.
How is it that we manage to live without air conditioning?
We manage rather well by utilizing some simple equipment, techniques, and planning. Here’s how we do it:
What do you need to harvest the sun?
We live in a solar powered house that includes solar panels on the roof and adjoining tower. When folks come to visit, they often mention their desire to “get some of those”, meaning the solar panels. But most people do not realize that you need more than just photovoltaic panels to use the sun’s energy.
Solar Panels Mounted on our Tower
What equipment do I need to build a home solar power system?
Read the rest of this entry »
How We Use All That Milk
This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays, hosted this week by Ann Marie the Cheeseslave.
I mentioned to Pop that we were getting 3-1/2 gallons of milk from Lois lately. He said, “Wow, that’s a lot of milk.” It may be a lot of milk if you are just drinking it. But milk is so much more than a simple beverage!
Truth be told, we are actually milking two cows right now. Ginger freshened with a little bull calf late last month and is producing 4-1/2 gallons a day, give or take a quart. That brings our daily average to 8 gallons a day. Yes, that is a lot of milk! But have no fear, it goes to good use.
