2025: What are you doing today?

Crosley.In.AZ · January 01, 2025, 07:16:51 AM

A new year , a new thread.

Home Depot and Harbor Freight are open today in my area. Winning in 2025 already .

TV is on. Hearing aids are charging. Its 5am here in AZ

WZ JUNK · January 01, 2025, 07:59:45 AM

I just built a fire in the shop furnace. I will work on the front suspension today but I might take a break and watch some football.

I wish everyone a great, healthy new year.

58 Yeoman · January 01, 2025, 08:20:32 AM

My wife woke me up this am and said it's getting cold in the house and the furnace isn't kicking on. This has happened a couple times in the last month. I showed her how to relight the furnace. I think the thermocouple is dying. I'll work on changing it out tomorrow. Why wait till tomorrow?

Well, the electric company is turning off the power tomorrow and the company is installing my new backup generator. It's going to take a couple hours, because they're going to have to change the meter base also, as it no longer meets code, I guess (built in '79). Propane and power will be off, so I'll pull the t'couple and head to the hardware store for a new one.

We ordered this backup gennie a couple months ago, but they're really busy installing these. Last week would've been perfect, as it was ~50*, now it's less than 30*. You just can't plan for these things.

jaybee · January 01, 2025, 07:28:30 PM

My last gas furnace required the thermocouple to be cleaned about once per year. An HVAC guy showed me how to do it by rubbing the surface with a dollar bill. Sufficiently abrasive/absorbent to get the job done, but not too much and it won't contaminate the surface with anything which will be problematic.

58 Yeoman · January 01, 2025, 07:59:46 PM

Jaybee, I didn't know they COULD be cleaned until I looked it up on the 'net today to be sure I was going to change it correctly. I think I'll try cleaning it first, as it does work sometimes. My understanding is when they go, they're gone.

kb426 · January 01, 2025, 08:33:18 PM

Just as a note, there is a difference in a flame sensor and a thermocouple. I have cleaned flame sensors but have never been successful with thermocouples.

Crosley.In.AZ · January 01, 2025, 11:08:19 PM

Some small jobs on my car trailer.. Re-wire the power feed for the break away switch for the trailer brakes. My car trailer has 4 wheel brakes. Trailer is 1990 yr model.. Wires are little dry , brittle.?

I need to pickup my 1948 Simca car from a friends house. he has stored the car for over 3 yrs for me.. He is the guy that recently bought a Rambler wagon project. 1962 model year. After he called local Rambler people and He could not give away the running power train from the Rambler car (196 cid inline 6 , auto).. So he put it on craigs list for phree , come get it. He thought his phone was gonna overheat from calls.

Crosley.In.AZ · January 04, 2025, 08:22:53 AM

Old and Slow Construction has been in the house attic again.. Removing the abandoned duct work from old HVAC system. Lot of work to get the metal duct work apart, then down and out the service entry to the attic .. Being old does not help.

I have my wife on popcorn texture scraping in the halls and another bedroom. She wants to help. I give her simpler jobs , with hope she does well. Have I mentioned she is a bit of a klutz ? I may train her on sheet rock repair for the cracks in various places. It involves sharp tools though.

Last photo shows entry door hallway after popcorn texture removed. Silver stuff to the right? It is insulation stuffed into the abandoned air return to old HVAC system. I will remove that duct work , sheet rock the hole closed. There are 2 air returns, twice the fun.

We are gonna try that texture splatter process with a Harbor Freight texture spray gun... May be interesting? LOL

Here is my daily process: I work in the house on a few items in the morning. Its cold outside, so I can Not do sheet rock mud work since the water hose is frozen. Near lunch times , I do sheet rock mud work. As that is drying , I work in the attic or what ever in the afternoon

Fun Fact: When we were looking at this place months ago with the real estate agent.. I mentioned the popcorn texture had glitter in it. She says "the popcorn texture is kinda making a come back" ? I looked at her and said "Not in my universe"

Crosley.In.AZ · January 04, 2025, 08:42:25 AM

On the furnace service work... I have followed a guy on various social media for a year now. He seems good, common sense process on simple stuff.

You know: Youtube, Tiktok , etc.. He does a lot of mini split installs. Furnace work .. He showed a mini split heat pump that can operate on solar if you have enough wattage panels. Kinda interesting stuff

DIY.HVAC.Guy

jaybee · January 04, 2025, 11:37:48 PM

Lol SURE the glittery popcorn is coming back! Believe whatever a Realtor is willing to write down.

58 Yeoman · January 05, 2025, 08:27:09 AM

jaybee, just like everyone selling cars now without a title must be a new comeback.

kb426 · January 05, 2025, 06:27:34 PM

I'm on the western edge of the storm. We had some ice and some snow but not enough to be terrible. I have cleaned the walks and the ice started to melt. Not very far east of me they received much more snow and the wind. Memorable way to start 2025.

Crosley.In.AZ · January 05, 2025, 10:51:16 PM

Quote from: 58 Yeoman on January 05, 2025, 08:27:09 AMjaybee, just like everyone selling cars now without a title must be a new comeback.

Yea , that "no title thing" seems to be growing. Couple utility trailers I've looked at online were No title. The owners think that since Arizona placed a permanent license plate tag on the trailer. So.... no title is needed in their mind. So many complete cars I look at online have No title. We have done the bonded title , inspections and related stuff on cars. I will not do that any longer.

This sunday morning I walk into the bathroom off the bedroom.. The floor behind the toilet looks too shiny. Yea , it was water. Hose connection at the tank had cracked, old plastic. The valve at the wall will not move , much less turn off .. We bought the parts. I changed the valve and hose out. Most items in the house are old , tired, need attention. Me too.

58 Yeoman · January 05, 2025, 11:01:28 PM

I removed the front end loader from my JD X738 sub compact tractor today, and put on the snow blade, as we're supposed to start getting serious snow starting this coming week. I also ran some wires from the battery to a more accessible spot in the engine compartment for connecting a battery tender. The battery is right above the front axle, and you have to remove the hood to get to it. If the end loader is on it, I can't reach it. I like to keep the battery tenders on my equipment when they're not being used.

The backup generator was installed January 2nd, so one of these days I'll have to put up my HF portable gennie up for sale. It sits outside the shop in a small Rubbermaid shed with a solar charger to keep that battery charged. Seems to work pretty well. My last HF gennie would charge the battery when it was running, but this one doesn't. That's pretty stupid, so I have a small charger plugged into a 110V outlet so it charges it up when the gennie is running.

Crosley.In.AZ · January 06, 2025, 07:59:43 AM

Quote from: kb426 on January 05, 2025, 06:27:34 PMI'm on the western edge of the storm. We had some ice and some snow but not enough to be terrible. I have cleaned the walks and the ice started to melt. Not very far east of me they received much more snow and the wind. Memorable way to start 2025.

I read a news blip that people are snow sledding down the main streets in Kansas City . Must be unusual?

All we hear about our area is a cold dry winter will happen. Not much snow on mountains, so the ski areas are purty dry.