The Newest Member of the Family :)

The weekend was blustery, blizzardy, cozy and fun. I've kept up with the shoveling, but we've received SO much snow already I've reached what's called "bank limitations" where the snow is built so high it's hard to throw more up and over the bank. This effort is exhausting even with a couple inches of snow.

Yesterday after extrapolating how much snow we'll get (my guess is well over 200"), I succumbed to logic, efficiency and safety and bought a snow blower. It cuts through the snow like butter! I was able to snow blow 6" of snow from my 200' driveway in 15 minutes...a task which previously was taking me 2 hours!

Obviously the snow blower I had a couple years ago was no match for the Northern Michican snow, because I ended up selling it after one winter because I could shovel 8" of snow as quickly. THIS new snowblower (Craftsman Pro 357cc/13 HP, 30") is AWESOME!! It even has heated handles, which is a great feature in snowblowers so your hands don't get cold at all.

Another fabulous feature is "power steering", a welcomed option for this 245 pound titan. Power steering you may be asking...how does power steering work on a snow blower? I'm SO glad you asked :) each of the two drive wheels has a "brake" on it that can be controlled at the handles. If you want to turn right, apply the break to the right wheel and depending on how much you brake determines how quickly you can turn it. If you apply the brake hard and all the way, you can pivot back around 180 degrees into the opposite direction! How cool is that?

So far this snow blower is surpassing my expectations, from easy start (firing on the 2nd pull of the recoil), to 30" path which makes clearing the driveway a breeze! Now that I have more time, I can enjoy the snow :)

Black Beauty's First Fire!

Tonight I lit my wood stove for the first time! The chimney height seems to be good, creating a sufficient draft to keep the stove in the "burn zone" (300-600°)...toasty warm inside with 20° temps outside :)

A couple safety items for peace of mind:
1. Buy a wood stove thermometer. I bought a Rutland stove thermometer at Menard's for $7.50.
2. Install a carbon-monoxide detector. I bought a First Alert  Battery Powered Carbon Monoxide Alarm at Lowe's for $18.00

When a wood stove is first fired up, it will stink because of the stove and pipe paint. Fire it slowly and then build a fire and maintain as hot as you can in the "burn zone" to help expedite the paint burning/curing. Make sure that no pets or children are in the home. Be sure to leave a couple windows open to vent the noxious fumes. I went outside and busied myself with shoveling, which helped to pass the time :) I'll fire it a few more times before sleeping in the cottage, particularly with my cat, Kokatat.

Overall, I'm so very excited with this wood stove. I've nicknamed her "Black Beauty"...so hereafter, you'll know who I'm referring to :) Black Beauty is more than simply a stove; she's the heart of my cottage and her heat will keep me warm throughout many cold nights. It's amazing to me how heat transforms a house into a home...almost like transforming into a living being with personality and character. My cottage truly has a heart and soul!

A Wood Stove Is Like A Pet

Tonight I read an informative article at Mother Earth News, How To Use Wood Stoves (And Use Them Safe!) and gleaned this delightful quote:

"Keeping a fire in a wood stove is like having a pet in the house with you. A fire needs your attention at regular intervals, and is in danger of either dying or running amok if your judgment slips. You have to feed it the right things at the appropriate times, and you have to carry its waste products out of the house."  ~ ~Ole Wilk (Alaska Northwest Publishing Company), 1977

Ship Shaping the Cottage

What a fab evening! I’m toasty and happy!! Tonight I stayed at my cottage until 7:30…puttering around, ship-shaping the cottage, shoveling and installing oil lamps (4 downstairs / 2 in the loft). The oil lamps REALLY create a LOT of light…not enough to read by, but enough to tell the difference between green beans and asparagus ;) Overall, I’m very happy with the lamps. Eventually I want to buy a trawler light…a large and very bright oil lamp that is used on sailboats. The trawler lamp will throw enough light to read by. For now, these will work great.

Last week when my wood guy, Norm, delivered wood, he told me about this cool electricity-free wood stove fan. He uses one on his stove and he said it makes a HUGE difference than simply convection heat. I found the Caframo Ecofan found here at Amazon. Check out how awesome it is! The fan allows the stove to work more efficiently, thereby uses less wood…which means less money. I ordered the fan tonight. I’ll let you know how it works!

Before I left the cottage for the night, I built up a good bed of coals and then loaded with wood, closing off the air inlet. I’m heading out there in the early morning to see how the coals fared in the night. It will give me an idea of how it will burn. Even with tonight’s calm wind, the chimney draw was AWESOME! The chimney is 1’ over the peak, but Sean was a little concerned with the “Tower of Love” and the tree coverage that I may not have the best draw. So far seems to be great. I’ll keep testing it and if need be, I’ll add another section of chimney.

So far, my nightly exercise consists of shoveling the driveway and the roof. Some of my friends and family think I’m nuts to shovel 150-200’ (I’m eyeballing the distance until I measure it) of driveway, but honestly I like to shovel and it keeps my kayaking arms in shape! It only takes me an hour and I can manually move up to 8” of snow in the same time as I can with a snow blower. Sean said I made quite the impression with the neighbors by shoveling my drive way. He said it showed them that I’m self-reliant and not afraid to really work around my place…a good first impression to the ‘hood! I’m also shoveling to see how long it takes me so “in a pinch” if I have to dig myself out, I know what timeline I’m looking at. I’m sure by the end of the month, I’ll be hiring the neighbor to plow. Eventually I want to buy a snowblower. In the meantime, I’m having fun!!

The neighbor at the end of the road, Glenn and his wife Vera, have lived back here off the grid for 20 years. On Sunday while Sean and I were working, I saw someone outside my window. I jumped and pointed out the window to Sean, “Someone’s here!” Sean looked out and said, “Oh that’s Glenn from the end of the road”. Glenn is about 70 years I’d guess, with no teeth and a weathered leathery friendly smile and a shy quiet way about him. He checked out our work and offered some roof flashing if we needed it. We chatted briefly about the weather and wood and then Glen was gone as stealthily as he had arrived. After Glenn left, Sean said I must be special because it took Glenn about 5 years to show up at Sean’s place! I just grinned!!

Life off the grid is good!

Building Chimneys & Friendships

Well my carpenter-neighbor Sean and I installed the stove and chimney! It was a great project that took 2 partial days only because we spent as much time talking and getting to know one another as we did actually working. I learned that he's been living back here for about 10 years. About 14 years ago, he was a Venture Capitalist Businessman. One day, while in Chicago with clients, he "awoke" to the futility of corporate-America rat race. He took 2 years or so to transition from that life to this one and hasn't looked back since. He said every now and again he'll be in a store or driving down the road and look around at "the world" and just laugh...like knowing the punchline to a private joke. I know the feeling...

Today it was very cold (about 20°), so I stoked up the sauna stove and propped open the door between the cottage and sauna. The sauna stove kept the cottage at a comfortable level today for working (around 52° with the door open between the cottage and sauna). Otherwise, with the door closed, the sauna would've been about 110°. We actually sweated while we worked in the loft...of course we had our Carhartt's on, but heat also rises! I estimate it was about 70° in the loft. Very comfy!

The generator fired up like a trooper the first day, but then today it fired and then sputtered back into silence. I smelled gas, so assumed I simply flooded/stalled it when trying to trim the throttle after starting. I let it sit for a while to dry out and tried to start it again, but smelled gas again. It was evident to me there was more of an issue. So I put on my thinking cap and recalled what my Dad taught me many years ago, that an engine needs three things to start: (1) air (2) gas and (3) fire. Since air is always available and rarely is an issue, Dad immediately rules it out. This leaves fire and gas. With the gas smell, this told me that the gas pump was working and bringing gas to the carburetor. So I ruled out gas as an issue.

It had to be fire. I removed the spark plug and discovered thick carbon soot build-up. I also recalled Dad telling last week to buy a new spark plug. Doh! In a pinch, I could clean it up with emery paper, but I didn't have any. Instead, I used a piece of stiff cardboard to clean it. It worked! I could see bare metal after a minute's worth of effort. I replaced the spark plug, choked the carb and gave the cord a pull. When the generator fired to life, I quickly trimmed the choke and she ran like a charm for the rest of our day. I made a mental note of two things:
(1) Listen to Dad: Buy and install a new carburetor.
(2) Be willing to try using something in place of something else. It just may work!

The rest of the day went without a hitch. While Sean was busy framing the chimney box into place, I spent an hour shoveling my driveway of 10" of snow. Since it was so cold, the snow was very light and fluffy...making it very easy shoveling. I love snow. I love shoveling snow. There is something purely Zen-like for me when I shovel snow. Clearing paths, cutting swaths, making paths...like taking apart a puzzle and leaving a smooth
surface.

When I first moved to Traverse City, I bought a snowblower because I was told that snow is SO deep and heavy...my first winter we received about 140".  It is true that snowblowers are good at moving
snow. But they are also loud, stinky and can be finicky to start in the cold. Mid-winter I bought a Garant® 24" Sleigh Snow Shovel and discovered that I could move as much snow with this snow-sleigh as quickly as I could with the snowblower. Plus the added bonus of no noise, no stink, no issues starting it and built-in gym membership! Just grab it and go!!

View from my front porch this morning.

Today was such a gorgeous day. There was no wind to speak of so when the snow fell, it fell straight down and swirled a little before landing on the ground, like white butterflies playfully dancing on a summer breeze. It was a magical feeling, like being in a giant snow globe! I looked out over the lake checking for wildlife, but saw nothing. Nearby sounds included trees creaking in the breeze and several woodpeckers gleaning bugs from trees. And in the far distance, I heard a snow blower. In the air, the sweet aroma of wood smoke from my fire and my neighbors...mingled in the air, like silent conversation. As the sun glistened through the crystalline powder, I was very grateful for many magical things that make the difference in life: Snow. Heat. Friendships. Life is good!

P.S. The wood stove chimney sealant has to cure for 24 hours and then I can fire it up. Stay tuned for my next post :)

Chimney Installation Steps

Stove installation - Step #1:I removed the existing LP wall heater. This heater was not safe for living spaces...good for garages. If anyone needs/wants one, let me know.


Stove installation - Step #2:Putting up the cement board on the wall and floor. Under the floor is 3/4" particle board to fortify the floor. My plan is to tile the board with rocks I've rock hounded over the years. One of my winter projects includes cutting and polishing rocks :)

Stove installation - Step #3:The stove in place! Wahoo!! Even with using an appliance dolly to wheel it into place, it was difficult to move. It's here to stay :)
Underneath each leg of the stove is a 1/2" piece of wood. The wood is a spacer and will be removed when I tile the hearth.

Stove installation - Step #4:Chimney fascia framed and set.

Stove installation - Step #5:Four foot section of pipe installed!

Stove installation - Step #6:Chimney "thimble" attached to stove pipe. The thimble is connected to double-walled stainless steel chimney which reaches 30" to the roof....

Stove installation - Step #7:...and 6' feet of double-walled stainless chimney with rain cap to finish it off. The chimney sealant has to cure for 24 hours and then I can fire it up! :)