Buzzing

Mountain Climb

Our solar installation in the Solitario is moving along.  We are currently waiting on parts, but there is still much to do with what we have.

Our group has some experience with wireless technology, and when you have a large area to cover with electronics that becomes useful. My parents' new property does not have internet service, but we do. So our solution is to wirelessly (WiFi) transmit internet to their house.

The distance between the two homes is only a mile, which would not be a problem if we were making a point to point connection, but there is a hill between the properties. WiFi is usually transmitted line-of-sight, meaning if you cannot see the source of your signal, you probably can't receive the signal no mater how powerful it may be. Arick has recently been modifying wireless routers for use as WiFi repeaters, meaning that it simply takes a signal and repeats it. So, voila! The perfect device to put on the hill between the two homes.

We built version 1.0 with a 15 watt solar panel a 20 amp-hour AGM battery. We put the router in a five-gallon bucket for weatherproofing. We have set our repeater up and it works, but it still needs a few more design tweaks before it will be perfect. Right now the signal on the other end is a little weak, so we are raising the antenna five feet.

Recently, we all went for hike up the mountain on the new property and it was quite the journey. We chose to ascend the steep side. There was plenty of lechugilla in our path, but some carefully steps protected our shins. Also, we followed Sprocket's lead, since he usually knows the best path to climb.

At the top of the mountain (technically the foothill of the West Corazon) we found a spacious ridge with all kinds of geological features and foliage. But some of the most amazing sights were the 360 degree views.

We descended the other side of the mountain which was more gradual, and for much of the way we were able to use a solid limestone water runoff that was carved into the mountain. Beautiful and functional.

Yesterday we visited our friend Dennis to see how the results of our solar consulting turned out. The amended setup was a success! Dennis added three 200 watt Sun Electric panels and a MorningStar charge controller.

After that, Sara and I did a run to Alpine for food, building supplies, and Sprocket's booster shots. We got supplies to finish our workshop/shed and lots of materials for Tim's job.

triskaidekaphilia

I'm going to try to sum up our activities for the past several weeks in fewer than five hundred words.

Here goes...
On April 16th, we got to talk to a documentarian from East Texas about living off the grid.  We had a great time talking about what we love, and we got to know fellow interviewees Tim and Julie McKenna, who recently became full-time Ranch residents.

We were sad to see that the Grub Shack is closed until they get their septic system installed.  Hopefully Jerry and Eva will reopen soon -- we currently have three closed businesses at the end of the Ranch Road.

Even though there was no food or drinks for sale, Casey found something interesting to check out.  John's motorcycle and sidecar seem like a perfect Ranch buggy.

Last weekend we set up a small solar array for neighbors Julie and Whitebear.

We had to walk away from the project before it was 100% finished so that we could meet with Tim Dean and Fred Porter in the Solitario.

After marking the locations for the pole-mounted arrays, Tim took us on a beautiful walk along the water drainage.

The erosion caused by the water flow is dramatic and stunning.  The Solitario area of the Ranch has many natural wonders, though Tim's piece is one of the most picturesque.

A day later we went back to the Spirit Tracks Ranch to finish the solar setup we had started.  Working there is always a pleasure, not only because Julie and Whitebear are so nice, but because there are so many beautiful and friendly animals around.  Mishka (above) kept coming around for petting, and the cats we very interested in the panels.

And our truck!

Then there was the wonderful, but brief, rain we enjoyed last week! 
There is a 20% chance of storms tomorrow, so let's hope this is the
beginning of the rainy season and not just a tease.

We even managed to get some work done on the chicken coop last week.  It still needs a lot more attention, but the chickens love their new extension.

The camouflage netting from Bennet works like a dream and gives the birds tons of shade to enjoy, while being protected from hawks and owls.

The metal Casey and Tim picked up in Midland/Odessa is currently in the yard, waiting to be cut and welded into pole-mounted racks.  The new Polish welder is on it's way!

We headed back into the Solitario last Monday to see the holes and trench excavated by Porter Construction.

We were met there by Jack Sullivan and former Ranch road crew operator Mayo Villa. I was surprised and pleased to see my former coworker.
 

Jack and Mayo set the poles in concrete, and we drove the ground rods.

Casey even got to use their nice Miller arc welder to attach reinforcing bar to the poles.

The poles are arranged in a V formation pointing north/south for optimal insolation.

The fires burning in Alpine/Sanderson/Marathon are really affecting our air quality.  At night and sometimes during the day the smell of woodsmoke is quite strong.

The particulates in the air are really dense today, and are obscuring even the very close West Corazon (above) and Turtle/Mummy Mountain (below).

Usually when you look down our valley, you can see clear to Nine Points Mesa, Jack Edom Mesa, and even Black Hill, which is a neighbor of Santiago Peak.

But today, all you can see is gray, polluted air.

594 words.  Not too bad.

RAIN!

Wildfires Wreak Havoc

There have been three fires burning in our area of Far West Texas: the Rock House fire, a new fire that allegedly started behind a restaurant in Fort Davis, and another new fire on the Shurley Ranch south of Marfa.

The infamous Rock House, 26 miles west of Marfa, Texas, after burning to the ground and setting off the eponymous wildfire.

The Rock House Fire started on April 9th, 26 miles west of Marfa and has thus far consumed well over 275,000 acres.  The fire is considered 66% contained according to KRTS and CBS7 reports that firefighters are staying clear of the head of the fire where winds and plentiful dry fuel endanger the lives of volunteers.  The high winds in West Texas are also pushing the fires within 8 miles of the town of Balmorhea, which has issued a voluntary evacuation and set up an emergency center in town.

Cattle threatened by the spreading fires.  Some ranchers have lost countless horses, cattle, and up to 100% of their grazing land, which will take 8-12 months to restore.

A recent map of the area burned in the Rock House fire. Click for larger image.

The Fort Davis Motor Lodge/Poco Mexico restaurant fire started yesterday, April 26th, in the town of Fort Davis.  The Fort Davis and Alpine Volunteer Fire Departments were called to the scene and immediately began working to control and impede the spread of that fire.

Smoke over the town of Fort Davis, indicating a new fire in West Texas.

Smoke darkens the sky and reduces visibility along Hwy 17 near Fort Davis, Texas.

According to KRTS, this fire was successfully extinguished around 3:30 this morning despite the extremely high winds which hampered other firefighting efforts in West Texas.

Also reported yesterday was the fire on the Shurley Ranch which lies about 20 miles south of Marfa, Texas.  Specific information on this fire is still scarce, but the most up to date info can be found on the KRTS website when it becomes available.

The most danger is posed by the Rock House fire, which has been thwarting firefighters for over two weeks and continues to threaten wildlife, their habitat, ranchers, their livelihood, as well as towns and residences throughout the Davis Mountains region.

Fires surround the world-famous McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis, Texas on April 19th, 2011.

The McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis has ceased tourist activities and
become a sort of crisis headquarters, with a briefing last night open
to public and the press about the fire status.

There are also reports of fires burning in the Midland/Odessa area, which is home to thousands of oil wells and associated infrastructure.

With so many fires running rampant and the region's limited resources stretched thin across so many hundreds of thousands of acres, residents are beginning to wonder if and when FEMA will step in and lend a hand to West Texas.

Backlog

We painted our ceiling and mounted a ceiling fan. We purchased a medium efficiency model, which uses on low use ~10 watts on high uses ~50 watts. Very happy with our fan addition, it adds a little style and function to our home. For a ceiling fan we strongly considered a 12VDC unit, but we were disappointed at the high price tags, lack of lighting, and overall unattractive look. We will do a homemade DC fan DIY in the future.

At this point it seemed a good time to install the true sign wave Xantrex. Thank you, Lee.  After installing it, all of our electrical devices were instantly happier to run on the correct wave form, versus our old, cheaper square-wave unit. With true sine wave we don't get the excessive buzzing and heat from motors and transformers. Overall our devices run more efficiently and will last longer.


We are wrapping up our interior, and our walls are almost done being
painted. So at this point we are able to finalize some interior designs
and we are putting a lot of thought into planning our shelves and
cabinets.  In a 300 square foot home layout and storage space is crucial.

We are also working hard on various clients' solar needs. One in particular has an interesting install which calls for 10 pole mounts of PV modules for a total 8kW of PV cells. We are fabricating the mounting structure in-house, with our own engineering. This job also will give us the opportunity to upgrade our welder.


And some things we did in the past month not yet mentioned:


Our workshop/shed. Not bad for ~$500 including the slab. Very happy with this addition, and it's holding us over until the real shop is built.
Big Bend Telecommunications got our circuit board upgrade completed, so now our phone and internet is running direct on 12 volts. At the same time, we also moved the dish to a friendlier location (not pointing at our heads).

 

Events

As
you are probably all aware, there have been some serious wildfires in
West Texas. The Fort Davis/Marfa fire has consumed 166,00 acres and is
60% contained, according to KRTS as of yesterday.  Because of the
extended drought and the rampant fires up north, many people have
started clearing the brush around their homes in hopes of creating a
protective firebreak. There is still no sign of rain for months.

Sara
spent a week in Southern California visiting my sister and her family.
While she was gone, my friend Arick and I took a big step toward
finishing the house: installing our drywall. The drywall turned out
great and definitely sharpened my skills.  It took about 1100 pounds of
the stuff to cover the main portion of our home.

We
would also like to give a huge thanks to Lee Allen (Sara's dad) for
donating some very useful equipment to our system: five 85 watt solar
modules, a pure sine wave inverter, a MPPT charge controller, and a
powerful notebook computer.  We will be posting some stats on these
components as we use and learn about them in the upcoming weeks.

Our
power system has been operating from a sort of a quick-and-dirty
initial setup, but now we are overhauling everything and we want to do
the best possible job; a model installation we can be proud of.  We
initially bought three 85W panels to add to our system, and then when my
Dad picked them up from the warehouse in Miami he surprised us with a
gift of three more.  With these six panels and the five from Sara's dad
added to our two 130W monos and one Harbor Freight unit, we will now
have over a kilowatt of PV modules.  The planned overhaul also includes
relocating the batteries and control/distribution system into a
ferro-concrete utility room that is separate from the house.