Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[Baymule]

It was 66 in the house when I got up, 45 outside. Yesterday was clear and sunny, today too. I'm trying to get all I can do outside on days like this. I had on a long sleeved thermal shirt with a flannel shirt over it. Started with my Carhart jacket to block the wind, but took it off once I got moving.

 

[Baymule]

EIGHTEEN DEGREES??? Aw HE// NO! Than would be a full on disaster here. We get temps like that here, thankfully they only last maybe a week and it is awful trying to get animals fed and watered. I generally cut water off, drain pipes and have a large tub full outside to dip water out of. I carry a shovel to bust ice with. Not any fun.

 

[farmerjan]

I filled several 5 gal and a couple 2 gal buckets, from the hose 2 days ago...then drained it.... brought 2 in yesterday to thaw and will use them for water today... so much easier to fill them with the hose outside, since this kitchen sink is too small for 5 gal buckets... the 2 gal barely fits under the faucet.... and it's just a pita to do it in the bathtub... will bring the other ones in today/tonight... they sit in the hallway near the door and can thaw... yesterday there was a good amount of ice on them... today the ones left out there will have more... as long as it doesn't stay too cold for too many days, they don't split.... they started to thaw a little even yesterday in the sun... today the ones out there ought to thaw some in the sun, before they come in for the night... I only use about 2-3 gal for the chickens/turkeys..... so they last a few days... It will warm up more by the end of next week and I will fill them again.... not using the automatic waterers now.... not that big a deal because you just do what has to be done...
Got to stop and fill the 5 gal bucket with chicken feed from the bin and bring it home to mix with the higher protein stuff for them all too...
Turkeys are showing their true "colors"... Got 3 male royal palms, 1 white male, 1 royal palm female and 2 naragansette females I am pretty sure.... males are starting to pick on the females... showing off...They need more space or leave....

 

[fuzzi]

It's 18 here... at 6:30 this morning... the wind has laid down so no terrible wind chill. Supposed to be a little warmer, low 40's today..
Thinking a cup of hot cocoa would be a nice way to start. Sky is getting lighter across the road...

Yesterday felt like Sat and I keep thinking today is Sunday...

Now forecasting for freezing rain on Tuesday morning.... Of course, we have the 500+cow herd scheduled.... have to leave here at 3:15 A.M.; just what I needed.... Don't laugh, but I do not know how to put the explorer into 4 wd... going to have to get out the manual and learn.... even DS said he has no idea how to do it... Oh for the SIMPLER DAYS of just locking the hubs and pulling the lever inside....

Going to work on getting the vinyl around the side/back of the 2 pens for the chickens... I am sure they would have liked it before that horrible wind the last couple days....There are some wind breaks but not "snug"..... Been researching what the company suggests for putting it up and they talk about putting grommets through the vinyl and then using a screw with a large washer to hold the grommets against the boards .... if you want to take it down in the warmer weather, like a porch or chicken pens or something, then you use a screw that actually screws into an "anchor".... the anchor stays in the wood and the screw screws into that.. The idea is to NOT keep making holes in the wood.... so that is what I am going to do....

NOW, have got to get the little stuff to do that... maybe in the meantime I can put it up with duct tape so as to not damage it.... wouldn't have to hold forever.... or make a trip to Lowes to see if I can find what I need. Supposedly they have anchor screws and such.... not sure about the grommet tool. Not a huge expense... so got some possibilities... Then I can take down all or part of it in the heat of the summer.... going to make the piece over the top permanent attachment I think... Since I wasn't sure if I would even really like the stuff, I did not go all out to get the "whole nine yards" ... and I just looked and the vinyl company is out of the grommet making stuff.. so I went on Amazon and Ebay... and Ebay is cheaper... then checked out Lowes... more expensive... Will have the stuff from Ebay in a couple days...

And am going to see how much more I need and order it since even the vinyl company is having a "Black Friday" sale on the stuff... irregular ends and all that... SOOOOO, I need to see which weight/gauge I like better for the sides and order it this weekend... A project to get on today...

Inbetween seeing if I can get the 5 c/cf pairs in at snyder's... and DS wanting to work the cow/calves at the barn later today...

SO NICE to NOT have that wind whipping around out there this morning...

Okay, breakfast of some sort is the first order of the day... stomach is growling... There was not alot of spaghetti left last night... so it is well digested according to my stomach just now.... need food....

Can you share your vinyl company information?

Greenworks has their lawnmowers 25% off this weekend, and based upon my positive experience with their push trimmer, I just might buy one. Some have the drive wheels, and come with a catcher bag, too. Do you have one?

 

[farmerjan]

@fuzzi ... Okay, the Greenworks mower... Have the self propelled push mower and love it. So nice for the hilly spots to not have to manhandle it.. but don't have to use the self propelled part...Takes a little getting used to, to not have to shove and push so hard.... It has the catch bag... but it is quite small and I would be emptying it every 20 ft because I didn't like to mow all that often... but yes.. it is nice. I bought mine at TSC on sale...couple years ago...... that is how I got into the "battery powered mower" thing...
For the little extra get the ones that have the drive wheels, "self-propelled"... then it's there if you need it... mine came with a battery... then with the trimmer, you always can have a battery charged up. DO NOT leave the batteries out in the cold all winter... an "unheated" room, some place in the house is fine, but they say they last longer/better if not left out in the freezing cold... and since they are not cheap... not a big deal to just bring them into the mud room or somewhere...just not out in the freezing cold...

The vinyl is from MarineVinylFabric.com... it was an ad that popped up so I looked it up... sent for their little pack of all the different thicknesses.. like a fabric swatch pack, maybe 20, 2x4 squares.... Like $5 or $10 for that... but it was a real eye opener for me to feel, and look at all the different thickness and several different tints and shades... and I was very impressed with their fast service to send that... then when I ordered the "irregulars"... the "ends"... they sent it in like 3 days.... Very very good company in my opinion...
When you figure in the cost of what tarps are... and they last like a year....and all the plastic that cracks so much in the cold... this is not so terrible expensive... I am going to see about getting the next "irregular" piece for the next section of the top of another pen, in a tinted color I think... just for more "shade" qualities... don't know what they have... Have to look it over maybe tonight...
They also make "fabric" for things like boat cushions and such... so would work for someone to cover some cushions and all ...
I was just very impressed with their quick service... and their vinyl, for using on the chicken runs... to have "light" in the pens and still have wind and weather protection...
I used the 30 gauge for the roof piece... got a 30 gauge and a 20 gauge irregular pieces for the sides... the lower the number the thinner the piece...will put them up and then compare... might go with a 40 gauge for the next roof piece... but the 30 seems pretty good...
They are not cheap... but if you replace the "plastic" every year or 2 and this lasts 5... you are ahead of the game I think...

If you do contact them/get something... pass along that you got info from me and that I was very pleased and impressed with their quality and service... not anything in it for me... just want to promote a company that has quality and exceptional service...

 

[fuzzi]

@fuzzi ... Okay, the Greenworks mower... Have the self propelled push mower and love it. So nice for the hilly spots to not have to manhandle it.. but don't have to use the self propelled part...Takes a little getting used to, to not have to shove and push so hard.... It has the catch bag... but it is quite small and I would be emptying it every 20 ft because I didn't like to mow all that often... but yes.. it is nice. I bought mine at TSC on sale...couple years ago...... that is how I got into the "battery powered mower" thing...
For the little extra get the ones that have the drive wheels, "self-propelled"... then it's there if you need it... mine came with a battery... then with the trimmer, you always can have a battery charged up. DO NOT leave the batteries out in the cold all winter... an "unheated" room, some place in the house is fine, but they say they last longer/better if not left out in the freezing cold... and since they are not cheap... not a big deal to just bring them into the mud room or somewhere...just not out in the freezing cold...

The vinyl is from MarineVinylFabric.com... it was an ad that popped up so I looked it up... sent for their little pack of all the different thicknesses.. like a fabric swatch pack, maybe 20, 2x4 squares.... Like $5 or $10 for that... but it was a real eye opener for me to feel, and look at all the different thickness and several different tints and shades... and I was very impressed with their fast service to send that... then when I ordered the "irregulars"... the "ends"... they sent it in like 3 days.... Very very good company in my opinion...
When you figure in the cost of what tarps are... and they last like a year....and all the plastic that cracks so much in the cold... this is not so terrible expensive... I am going to see about getting the next "irregular" piece for the next section of the top of another pen, in a tinted color I think... just for more "shade" qualities... don't know what they have... Have to look it over maybe tonight...
They also make "fabric" for things like boat cushions and such... so would work for someone to cover some cushions and all ...
I was just very impressed with their quick service... and their vinyl, for using on the chicken runs... to have "light" in the pens and still have wind and weather protection...
I used the 30 gauge for the roof piece... got a 30 gauge and a 20 gauge irregular pieces for the sides... the lower the number the thinner the piece...will put them up and then compare... might go with a 40 gauge for the next roof piece... but the 30 seems pretty good...
They are not cheap... but if you replace the "plastic" every year or 2 and this lasts 5... you are ahead of the game I think...

If you do contact them/get something... pass along that you got info from me and that I was very pleased and impressed with their quality and service... not anything in it for me... just want to promote a company that has quality and exceptional service...

That is very helpful. I don't service my gas mower, have a nice local guy do the work. He isn't expensive, but a couple hundred a year in maintenance vs. $400 for a battery mower makes me consider options.

Have you had to change your blade, yet?

I will check out the vinyl place. It doesn't get as cold here as your location, but I use vinyl on my gardens, to prolong the growing season. And I will have to eventually replace the tarps on the hoop coops.

 

[drstratton]

To put our pickup in 4 low, we have to put it in neutral first. I wonder if that's what you might have to do. For regular 4 wheel drive we just turn the knob to that position, can even do that while driving down the road. It's so convenient.

Hope it warms up soon.

 

[farmerjan]

@drstratton ... I can't even figure out where the 4x4 knob/control is... they have a knob with 4 pictures and none make a lick of sense to me... GOD forbid they use words for us normal people... got to use pictures for those that can't read things....
My NORMAL 4x4 trucks have a simple lever... 4H 2H N 4L... yes, have to go in neutral to go into 4L...
This explorer is just a .......#@%&

@fuzzi , I put the blade on that is more like "high capacity" or something... not the normal blade for normal people's nice even lawns.... and no, I have not changed it or had it sharpened... that is a project for this winter/year... Going to take both the riding one and the other one to the guy that is their service dealer... to go over both completely... there are a few things on the riding mower that the manual says to check... and some thing that needs to be changed after like 250 hours or something... I have the 4 yr extended warranty so want to make sure any servicing is done...and a certified Greenworks service dealer will make sure the warranty is done right... want to get the blades sharpened since I have been cutting some rough stuff too...but I will be using it a bit yet for last mowing and then the lawn sweeper to pick up any grass and stuff for the chicken coops... probably after the first of the year... going to call the guy and see what will work for him..

 

[murphysranch]

I hate to tell you Easterners this, but its been chilly here. It almost got down to 49 this morning. We sleep with the bedroom window open about 3".

 

[farmerjan]

Well,,, turkeys are gone... DS sent the pics to the guy... he said he wanted them... they made arrangements with DS, this morning.... to come this morning... they came, we haggled a little over the price... the hens were alot smaller... got cash in hand, they loaded them... and are gone!!!!! So next year (only a couple months away) I will hopefully raise a bunch more... and they wanted to know if I had anything else to sell... looked at the chickens, and I said no, that they were all for breeding to get eggs to hatch... so going to raise up a bunch of the NH's as the cull roosters will be good to sell them too.... and they wanted more turkeys.

They bought DS's rams that had broken horns so a good source to sell to for the ones he can't sell to the guy for the hunting preserve...really liked the turkeys... and since I like raising them... a good deal all around... Less on the feed bill, hopefully next year I will have the fields here fenced... and can raise a bunch... and not have them get on the road or attacked by mangy foxes or dogs or anything.... I am getting psyched for it now...
The NH's are so nice and quiet... and now I can actually give the Langshan bantams their own pen so there are no roosters wanting to bother them... they seem to be getting along so for now they can stay together for the ease of feeding and watering... but I intend to get some NH bantams too... like little cornish game hen sized....
AND I have that line on the VorWerks that the guy lives an hour or so south of here... get eggs to hatch... love the red/black contrasting color... kind of similar to the NH colors.... like that red/black contrasting....
The buff leghorns are going to have a short life here I think...

DS said he wants to get the cows across the driveway with the calves to work them in an hour or 2... move them to grants field behind me... get with the bull... and I have to get the 5 pairs in at snyder's.... would be nice to get everyone moved around.... and settled in, in the next few days...