Rain, Grain Run, Starlink Dead, Patio Roof Extension, Kraken, LiPo Pack, Dinner - Thursday

in Homesteading7 hours ago

And so the week of rainy weather is here with a pretty solid round of rain yesterday morning. I was up early to head to town for the grain run and left the house as the harder rains began to fall.

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The highway was pretty empty at 5am, thankfully, and I had a nice clear road all the way to the brewery.

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Only a pair of barrels waiting but they were quickly slid onto the trailer then emptied to the bed liner.

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My timing is always pretty damn good that as I step out of my truck to load the grain the FedEx cargo plane is almost always inbound to Spokane airport and flying overhead.

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I booked it for home and as I headed up the bypass there was a constant stream of cars heading into town.

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It was a couple hours later I went and emptied the grain to the sheep pen where they dove in and then the birds all piled on.

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The goal for the day was to get the Starlink antenna moved to a better location that won't be as obstructed. I used my fish tape and pulled the wire through the various sleeves outside the house and got it to the tree.

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Then I climbed the ladder with my tree climbing gear on but then decided I didn't need the gear.

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So I got it mounted on the tree and the router recognized the antenna and we had internet for about 10 minutes, then it died. The router refuses to talk to the antenna and I have tried everything I can to get it to work but no dice. And of course Starlink support is nonexistent so I will have to call and get a new antenna most likely. So SO SOOOOOOOO frustrating. Thankfully I can tether my phone so I still have some internet capacity.

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I was not a happy camper after the Starlink debacle and needed something to focus my frustration at. The battery for J's laptop showed up and I quickly swapped it out to see if it would fix his computer but a big fat ole nothing. Quite annoying to say the least. The Kraken game came on local station so I had that on while I worked. I have wanted to build an extension on the patio roof for years and finally took the time to do so. Started with four 2x4x4' screwed to the ends of the rafters.

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The piece of OSB I had was the EXACT right width. The piece used to be the pantry door but has sat in the coop for a few years.

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Tyvek laid down and folded to keep anything from trending back up and I got the edging all on.

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I had to cut one of the pieces of roofing down to fit and I was again super thankful for having the correct tool for the job. Even if I only use it once or twice a year it saves me a ton of heartache when I do.

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Within an hour I had the extension installed and by the time we got back from dinner later in the evening the rain started and I could see the drip line better.

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I might need to add a brace to the underside depending on the way the snow load impacts it.

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@stryeyz and the boys were in town so I had a little time at the board. I was amazed at the deflection I got off the dart in the 18 that bounced right into the center bull.

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The Kraken got whooped bad but that is not unheard of after a blowout the other way.

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It took me a bit to work out the right pattern of connecting my LiPo pack. They are S3P3, so 6 cells per series and 3 series gives me 12 volts and about 20K mah, or would it be 60k...

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Anyway I got the strips cut to the right lengths and then spot welded them to the cells.

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I have to run the wires and solder the BMS but I got a nice even 12.4 volts measured with my multimeter. I will be working on the wiring and finishing it off in the next days.

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The boys and @stryeyz got back from town and we loaded up to go out to eat. Our local place was closed for the night so we headed to Hop Mountain pub for dinner. Played a bit of the meme game which is a bit like cards against humanity. As we left the weather was heading our way.

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We got a slug of rain then it quit long enough for us to go out and soak. The extension works wonderfully and puts the drip edge far from the concrete of the patio and keeps the entryway much drier.

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Today is looking to be nonstop rain, everyone is home from work and school, I have the battery ready to return, have to call Starlink and try to get this dealt with, my garlic has FINALLY shipped (3 weeks late), still no word on my S19 order, and we may be going to Sandpoint today.


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2024 Y/E Hive GoalsGoalCurrent+/- Goal+/Week
HP30,00028,476+104123
HBD Savings4,0303,680-1965
Hive Posting Streak Days1,6811,621/6


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For more information about our farm:
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FLEMING FAMILY FARM, LLC
Sustainable & Organic Methods | Heirloom Produce
All images are original works of Fleming Family Farm unless otherwise notated and credited.

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farmers are essential in society, but in third world countries are the forgotten ones

Manually curated by scroogergotchiheroes.com from the @qurator Team. Keep up the good work!

I just waiting for the winters rain here. Dry weather is always harmful.

I love the metal shears excellent tool to have on hand, I really wish I had one!!!
I'll have to check out Harbor freight next time we head that way to see how expensive they are!
Hope you get Starlink up and running soon I'm sure that's frustrating....

The HF ones are only like $30 or something and well worth having on hand. The nice smooth edged cuts compared to the jagged hand shears cut edges. I roofed 2 buildings and metal sided one with these.

Very good to know!👍
After my last metal roof on my wood shed I was expecting to need to go to Harbor freight and pick up a pair, but the size worked out just perfect!
Still, I need a pair for the next metal roof!😊