What did you do today?

[Stormin 9,976]

   Well the lilac bush/tree and hedge had to come out. The lilac wasn't to much of a problem, but the hedge was something else. Got them cut back after extracting the old fence running through them and the existing post. That was 2ft into the ground and took some pulling out.

  The hedge had one trunk about 8" diameter. Cut all the branches off and cut the trunk down to about a foot. That had roots going everywhere and quite thick. Started to dig/chop that out and SWMBO, taking pity on me, called number 3 grandson to come over.

  With his help and the Sears, we got it out. Didn't half put up a fight though. After cutting through all the roots we could see/find with a felling axe, we attached a rope between stump and the Sears. On the first attempt all that happened was it's ag tyres dug two nice ruts in the verge and the front end went about 3ft off the ground. That was exciting. No photo I'm afraid. Carol was in charge of the camera and panicked a bit. 

  Some photo's below.

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

Edited July 24, 2022 by Stormin

[8ntruck 6,479]

A line of thunderstorms rolled through last night.  Broke the temperature a bit for today, but the humidity went up.  Walked the dog about 1 3/4 miles.  I've gotten the picknick table disassembled, sanded, and the first coat of spar varnish on it.  More sanding on it today so it will be ready for another coat of spar varnish tomorrow.

[squonk 39,147]

1 hour ago, Stormin said:

   Well the lilac bush/tree and hedge had to come out. The lilac wasn't to much of a problem, but the hedge was something else. Got them cut back after extracting the old fence running through them and the existing post. That was 2ft into the ground and took some pulling out.

  The hedge had one trunk about 8" diameter. Cut all the branches off and cut the trunk down to about a foot. That had roots going everywhere and quite thick. Started to dig/chop that out and SWMBO, taking pity on me, called number 3 grandson to come over.

  With his help and the Sears, we got it out. Didn't half put up a fight though. After cutting through all the roots we could see/find with a felling axe, we attached a rope between stump and the Sears. On the first attempt all that happened was it's ag tyres dug two nice ruts in the verge and the front end went about 3ft off the ground. That was exciting. No photo I'm afraid. Carol was in charge of the camera and panicked a bit. 

  Some photo's below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

My retired engineer  neighbor wanted to build a "Taj Mahal" fence along out property line which meant removing 8 mull berry bushes that I was happy to see go. but cents  they were mine it was my problem. But I lucked out. His son was on vacation in Florida so his business vehicle was being stored at his dads. A tow truck.  We used the wheel lift and a chain an in 2 hours had them all ripped out of the ground.

[Stormin 9,976]

51 minutes ago, squonk said:

  We used the wheel lift and a chain an in 2 hours had them all ripped out of the ground.

 

  The original hedge was all privet. Carol and I removed them in a similar fashion. But used my V8 competition Land Rover and winch.

[Pullstart 60,192]

I got a call, a big oak came down and took out some elm too.  All cut up, just come load it.  About a 35 minute drive each way, but well worth the price of admission.  Perfect!

 

 

[Ed Kennell 36,095]

17 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

19 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

I got a call,                The calls I get...".A tree fell in my field"

My price of admission is a bit higher .... cut it up and remove everything from the field                               

 

 

 

 

 

[Stormin 9,976]

  I was one fence panel short so had a run into Carlisle for another this morning. Back home and took the remainder of the old fence down. The last post was a bugger to get out. Put up a real fight. Serves the person right who put it in two foot deep. Suppose I didn't intend it to come out 20+ years later.

  Finally finished a couple of hours ago. SWMBO is well pleased with it. Just need to clear the rubbish away.

[Tractorhead 8,684]

after the weeds are Grows strong, i decided to leave them there because of 90*F

so the soil doesn't dry out so much.

 

  

it seems to have paid off...

[Ed Kennell 36,095]

On 6/16/2022 at 9:57 AM, lynnmor said:

us "normal" people.

Not sure this is the best adjective to describe most of us Lynn. 

[ebinmaine 63,546]

31 minutes ago, Ed Kennell said:

Not sure this is the best adjective to describe ANY of Redsquare Lynn. 

Fixed it for ya Ed. 

 

 

 

 

 

Doesn't include me of course.....

 

[Pullstart 60,192]

Caught up on this thread… emptied the trap near the chicken house again, weed whacked the tall stuff around the perimeter, got some errands to run then time for mowing.  It’s rained a few times here in the last week, but the grass is still parched and the weeds are tall.

[Stormin 9,976]

Cleared all the rubbish from outside the fence. All nice and tidy now. 

 

[Dan.gerous 2,696]

29 minutes ago, Stormin said:

Cleared all the rubbish from outside the fence. All nice and tidy now. 

 

Wish our yard was like thar, looks great.

[EB-80/8inPA 1,527]

4 hours ago, Stormin said:

Cleared all the rubbish from outside the fence. All nice and tidy now. 

 

No extant signs of the struggle that went into preparing for that installation equates to complete success, I would say.  Looks very nice.  May it last another 20 years!

[8ntruck 6,479]

It was 'fun with drains' day today.  My wife discovered that the toilet in the lake house was weeping some water at the floor line when flushed.  She also pointed out that it seemed to be running slower than usual.

 

I had that system apart last year when I had to replace the lift pump.  The closet flange has an ID if 4 3/4".  This is unusually large and I could not find a matching size of wax seal.  I got creative with a couple of seals to get it back together.  

 

I figured that the new issue was the result of that 'fix' coming apart.  Well, that was partially true.  When I pulled the toilet off of the floor, I saw that the wax seal was sketchy.  But, I also noticed some roots growing in the pipe!  Down to the hardware store to rent an auger.  Sure enough, it snagged a ball of roots about a foot and a half down the pipe the size of a softball. 

 

A closer look at the pipe revealed that it is cast iron and possibly cracked.  Wonderful!  The house is built on a slab. Will have to bust the slab to do a proper repair.  We've got people coming to stay this weekend, so that won't happen right away.

 

I ended up making a giant washer looking piece out of some stainless sheet to give proper support to the wax seal to get it up and running for now. 

 

We have been talking about a remodel of that bathroom.  This news opens up more possibilities for the remodel, I guess.

[ohiofarmer 3,163]

pretty simple step rebuild. i have been asked time and again to do projects for a friend. He had some poorly built steps leading to a deck three steps high. These steps were screwed together with drywall screws and quite rickety as the base sat in the mud. I found a scrap treated board and levered the mess from the mud and sat it on top of the plank. it was a good guess as the steps became level once again and fit the stringer angle pretty well. The previous owner used drywall screws and many were just broken or gone. i replaced as needed with ceramic coated square drive screws

  i cut up some large joist hangers to use as angles to fasten the newly fitting stringers. cut some more angles to fit under a deteriating step that was not supported by the stringer that was undercut too far. Finally i cut another joist hanger to stiffen the hand rail connection.  Tools used were a worm drive saw, and impact gun and battery drill. Anyway, he appreciated that I made the beast strong and solid when before it was nearly disconnected from the deck. it will do until we pour a new deck next summer and come up with some nice steps and planters and such to make a nice setting. There is a huge outdoor store of trex built furniture owned by the Amish. i see this guy buying a flame table and some nice outdoor stuff to outfit it in the future

  There are actually guys out there who insist that everything was bad and refused to fix it.   The key to stuff like this is just listen to what people NEED and save them money doing it

Edited July 28, 2022 by ohiofarmer

[Pullstart 60,192]

@8ntruck have you ever seen those rubber “wax” seals?  They are adjustable in height and are reusable without the wax mess.  Well worth it in my opinion!

 

I’m working on a friend’s new RV.  Came in with a shower leak, I ended up finding the roof needed new lap sealant too.  @ebinmaine check out this pano view from 12’ up. Flat lander indeed!

 

 

[8ntruck 6,479]

I've got two of those seals.  One that fits a 3 1/2" pipe and one to fit a 4" pipe.  The closet flange is an oddball ancient iron piece that has an ID of 4 3/4".

[ebinmaine 63,546]

1 hour ago, Pullstart said:

check out this pano view from 12’ up. Flat lander indeed!

Good gravy man! What's your total elevation gain there? .... 4 ft?

😂😂😂

[Pullstart 60,192]

 

[Pullstart 60,192]

 

[Pullstart 60,192]

@ebinmaine the end of this video has flat lander commentary…

 

 

[lynnmor 6,862]

42 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

Good gravy man! What's your total elevation gain there? .... 4 ft?

😂😂😂

 

Before or after he cuts the grass?

[ebinmaine 63,546]

Just now, lynnmor said:

 

Before or after he cuts the grass?

You do bring up a valid question. 

[Rob J. 1,940]

Today I finished a little project of mine. I built an engine/workbench crate. I used what scrap wood I had laying around. Had to buy the hardware of course. Had a set of old brass hinges laying around. A couple of handles off an ambulance. Cavity is large enough to fit all the Kohler single jugs. Captured bolts in bottom to secure engine to crate. Top doubles as a workbench to work on motor if need be. Gitty up!