This is going to be tedious stuff, but necessary knowledge if you don’t want your solar installation going up in smoke. The voltages of most solar/battery/inverter installations are relatively easy to manage, but the currents used are not. I’ve seen all kinds of errors in installations, even from supposed professionals. I am NOT a professional, …
I’ve had a few questions about how and why I’m doing a solar/battery system for Fritz, what I’m using and how I chose it. This is going to be a fairly long post with a bit of math, so if you’re interested, get a cup of coffee and settle in. Fritz is an extreme experiment. …
The big plan for Fritz is for it to be all electric and capable of extended dry camping, meaning no campground, no plugging in to handy electric outlets, self-contained–and still comfortable. That’s kind of a big requirement to pull off without propane, but I think I’m in the ballpark. Most RV solar installations put a …
No, it’s not a medical condition. As I mentioned in the last post I stripped one of the bolts on the driver’s side output flange. I ordered a rather expensive TimeSert kit to repair it. At least it wasn’t the $400 these kits used to cost–a more reasonable but still stiff eighty bucks. Expense aside, …
Fritz has taken up a HUGE amount of my time this summer. It’s not a terrible thing since I’m enjoying the creative work, and the grunt side–the mechanic-ing–is familiar and comfortable. The interior design is basically complete, though anyone looking at it might find that a surprise. It’s sparse. Diane and I really don’t like …
More progress on Fritz. I think people will be puzzled when they see the interior. Minimal. Actually, the far edge of minimal. The living area will be two chairs, a bar cabinet, facing cabinet, and some shelves. The chairs detach and can move outside. Nice little side tables. An aluminum plank that converts the side …
Several people emailed me, saying that they thought the interior is great. They should come get it before I haul it to the dump. I don’t mean to sound cruel, but it just isn’t what we want. My goal is pretty simple: Have a nice bedroom, a usable and simple kitchen, and a space that’s …
I’ve been looking at a lot of videos about Sprinter van conversions, mostly because I’ve got a major league surf jones that I can’t do much about, because I just had carpal tunnel surgery on both hands, and the doc says NO for about 6 more weeks. But the more I looked, the more I …
30 May 2007 Well, actually a cancer, but it’s the same principle. And the cancer is now sliced into 10-micron slices and arrayed like purple Proscuitto on slides in my doctor’s office. Now I can’t hear you because my ear is full of at least ten pounds of gauze. Before anyone freaks, it’s just Basal …
Sorry, Can’t Hear You, I Have A Banana In My Ear Read More »
Last year foils on SUP showed up in the Gorge. I was getting my downwind board off the shuttle at Viento Park for another run a few days before the Gorge Paddle Challenge when I faintly heard someone yell “Uncle Bill”. I don’t have any nieces or nephews in a reasonable range, so I didn’t think …
About thirty years ago I was sitting in a barber chair, reading an article in a car magazine (I think it was Motor Trend) that said used exotic cars were selling for amazingly low prices. My imagination was fired by the notion of a Ferrari, Maserati or Aston Martin sitting in my garage. I certainly …
I’ve been playing with tail handles for quite a few years, ever since a surly guy named Sam Pae and I started insulting each other on the Standup Zone. Sam had started a thread talking about tail handles, wondering if anyone else was using them. I chimed in that I had added a strap to …
I got an Amazon Echo–I didn’t learn my lesson with Google Glass so I signed up for early release when they first announced it. But unlike Google Glass this was a cheap foray into the leading edge–$99 if you have Amazon Prime. You have to request an invitation to buy, and you can only buy …
I’ve got a nice shop. I used to have a great one under my house in Portland, but when we moved our new home only had a one car garage with what looks like a bomb shelter under it–concrete ceiling seven feet high. I rented warehouse space for my tools and toys but there was …
A few years ago, after a downwinder on the south side of Maui, Dave Kalama showed me his rope system for tying down boards. He had small boat-mooring cleats attached to his rack to tie the rope off to. I didn’t see the point of his system–why not just use straps? But when my new …