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Posted
8 hours ago, Updawg said:

I’m buying generac stock

 

8 hours ago, dingleberryswitzer said:

I saw that they went up significantly in the last few days and I get pissed at myself for not seeing this angle.  

 

8 hours ago, fattyflattie said:

They’ve been up for awhile. I posted a screenshot of their chart on first couple pages of the thread. 

Next time we have a 10 day forecast with shit like this I'm going all in. 

I'll also get a short haircut so it's easier to wash with minimal water. 

Posted
On 2/23/2021 at 1:22 PM, gsoda3 said:

if you're planning on buying emergency supplies, hold off til april 24-26 if you can.  there's a state sales tax holiday on emergency prep items for both in-store and online purchases (although there are a few qualifies for online purchases, see link below).  here's a quick list of what qualifies.

 

 

 

https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/98-1017.php?fbclid=IwAR3_AeIPCO4tnXxlooO7S0K4bMr97h84_TZ1NXXCgslbkKxJ8-98vD8gQoA

you mean I could have gotten my hatchets tax free?

image.thumb.png.8ad2679d0c5f266a9171f4cccefbaf00.png

Posted

On a related topic, anyone get the adapter that allows you to fill 1# propane canisters from a bigger tank? Does it work well?
I’m thinking mainly about camping and stuff. Plus it seems wasteful to dispose of the 1# bottles.
Thanks

Posted
On a related topic, anyone get the adapter that allows you to fill 1# propane canisters from a bigger tank? Does it work well?
I’m thinking mainly about camping and stuff. Plus it seems wasteful to dispose of the 1# bottles.
Thanks

I’m gonna order one soon. I’ve got friends that have used them
Posted
39 minutes ago, Lhorn said:

On a related topic, anyone get the adapter that allows you to fill 1# propane canisters from a bigger tank? Does it work well?
I’m thinking mainly about camping and stuff. Plus it seems wasteful to dispose of the 1# bottles.
Thanks

I find it easier just to use the adapter hose and run the Coleman stove off a standard 20# or 30# tank.

I know it's not as easy to tote around a 20# tank, but to your point, using the little 1# bottles seems wasteful. 

 

Posted
1 hour ago, Lhorn said:

On a related topic, anyone get the adapter that allows you to fill 1# propane canisters from a bigger tank? Does it work well?
I’m thinking mainly about camping and stuff. Plus it seems wasteful to dispose of the 1# bottles.
Thanks

I've looked at them in the past.  I think they work, but technically, isn't the correct way to do it.  There are youtubes about why to/not to do it. 

  • 3 weeks later...
Posted
What am I looking at?
(am out of the loop on most of these threads)

Those are the forms for insulated concrete forms for the outer walls Troph’s house. (Concrete is poured into the gap. Insulation remains on both sides for R value). Done that way instead of using typical 2x6.
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Posted

Ah, newfangled construction technology!

Wonder how much it would increase the cost of a home if all the exterior walls up to the eaves were constructed like that instead of balloon frame? 

 

Posted
Ah, newfangled construction technology!
Wonder how much it would increase the cost of a home if all the exterior walls up to the eaves were constructed like that instead of balloon frame? 
 

I think most estimate it as about 5% cost of house, as opposed to closer to 2% for traditional framing. But you should get substantial saving on energy usage to offset much or all of those costs long term.
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Posted

There were waiting lists for Generacs before this happened.  They have been having supply issues since covid started.  Kohler is a really good alternative.  I have an engineer cousin who got one a few months ago.  He did quite a bit of research and thinks the Kohler ones are a little better because of something that is different with their windings compared to a Generac.  It's over my head, but he's super smart so I'll take his word on it.

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Posted
21 hours ago, troph said:

Zombie fortress under way... 

 

 

F160AB4D-B28A-47C5-B43F-78041AB7CFA2.jpeg

EE1BC7AB-EC13-4FF5-93A4-E169F56D6AA7.jpeg

BFC0143E-2C61-4891-A50B-ACAD253B2396.jpeg

ICF for the win.  Your house will be tighter than a nun's pussy with regard to air exchange.  Downside: if you ever need to get into the walls for any reason, that won't be as fun.  This is the walkout basement?  How high up are you doing ICF?  Are you putting in an ERV or any kind of in/outside air exchanger to make the house "breathe?"

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Posted

the concrete is sandwiched between the blue insulation?  how are they going to attach drywall?  and if you ever want to add plumbing to an exterior wall do you have to break the concrete?

Posted

Pic doesn't show it well, but you just hit the plastic ties with the drywall screws. The ties are designed for it.

Re: plumbing. The interior foam is +/- 2" thick, so there's room for your regular water lines. Sewer needs to be cast in, or run through an interior wall, which is better anyway. (Did you learn nothing from the Apocalypse?) New penetrations for new exterior faucets? Get you a hammer drill. It's a downside of ICF.d3d2e6b1be2910ed330e752af1073c9d.jpg

Posted
On 3/14/2021 at 10:28 AM, troph said:

Zombie fortress under way... 

 

 

F160AB4D-B28A-47C5-B43F-78041AB7CFA2.jpeg

EE1BC7AB-EC13-4FF5-93A4-E169F56D6AA7.jpeg

BFC0143E-2C61-4891-A50B-ACAD253B2396.jpeg

Built My House with this back in 2011.  Great energy bills and no exterior noise.

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Posted
1 hour ago, Parliament said:

Pic doesn't show it well, but you just hit the plastic ties with the drywall screws. The ties are designed for it.

Re: plumbing. The interior foam is +/- 2" thick, so there's room for your regular water lines. Sewer needs to be cast in, or run through an interior wall, which is better anyway. (Did you learn nothing from the Apocalypse?) New penetrations for new exterior faucets? Get you a hammer drill. It's a downside of ICF.d3d2e6b1be2910ed330e752af1073c9d.jpg
 

I should probably ask my husband but is there a better way than trial and error to find the plastic webbing? I can't imagine a typical stud finder would work.

Posted
I guess I'd be worried about voids in the concrete with tall narrow pours like that, but I suppose they know how to do it/mix it and avoid those problems.
Use South Austin's mom's vibrator as you pour.
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Posted
2 hours ago, CycleTex87 said:

I guess I'd be worried about voids in the concrete with tall narrow pours like that, but I suppose they know how to do it/mix it and avoid those problems.

The Essential Craftsman is one of my favorite YouTube channels and he is doing a series where they are building spec house solely for showing the build steps on his channel.  They are 3+ years in and just getting to hanging drywall.  Here they are pouring very tall walls and showing how to use a vibrator to consolidate the mixture down in the form.

 

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Posted
3 hours ago, troph said:

Haha the doors are mostly on the top floor but the downstairs doors haven’t been cut out yet. 

 

If you remember snap some pics of them cutting them out. That's pretty cool stuff.

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Posted

If Troph felt comfortable, a separate thread on the build and its processes would be a big hit, I would guess. I could understand not wanting to get too much into things for privacy reasons, though. And the endless second and third guessing. So, maybe not a good idea after all.

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Posted (edited)

Had a 3000w Champion generator (inverter) that kept the the 3 fridges/freezers, some LED lights, wifi and a tv powered during the storm but had to run extension cables across the house which was a pain.  My frigging "heater buddy" is in my blind at the lease... After about 6 hours - whatever batteries that were keeping the internet from Xfinity in their "substation" finally died so even with power in my casa - no internet... (Getting fiber in the coming months and those who had it didn't lose internet at all during the outage)  Glad I also have a digital antenna in the attic so could still watch crappy local TV.  Lesson learned - gas furnace still needs electricity to run the blower fan and thermostats...

Going forward, I'm going to buy a 13,000W portable generator to be able to power most of the house using an external 50A (male) connector and a lockout switch on the fuse panel. I will then manually turn on the fuses in the panel on what I want to power...  Costs for the generator - around $1000 and another $6-800 to put in the connector and lockout switch.  I have a 5 ton and 3 ton A/C but have the "soft start" switches in both so the start load won't bring the whole system down if running in the summer - would probably just run the smaller one upstairs.  VSP pump on pool can be set to slow/low wattage flow. Can't justify a $8000 Generac and another $6-8000 install cost (gas on opposite side of the house from the panel) when I can basically power what I need for $2000 and can take it with me if we move...

Info to consider if you go this route:

Don't buy more generator than you can use - if you put in a 30A connection, a generator larger than 7500W is useless. 

  • The max power you can put into a 30A switch is 7200W.

If you get a larger generator like 12000W, you've better off going with a 50A transfer switch...

Watts / Volts = Amps

  • A 7200W Gen is only really capable of feeding 30 Amps @ 240V (7200W/240V=30A) If you get a bigger generator like a 12000W unit, go for 50A @240V transfer switch. (12000W/240V=50A)
  • Put in LED lights as they draw less than incandescent bulbs.
  • Get a dual-fuel generator and a couple of propane tanks as they don't "spoil" like regular gas and use these first to save your carburetor from getting dirty.  If you run out of propane, you can always siphon your truck/auto gas tanks so get a pump.
  • Buy a small solar panel to trickle charge your batter in the generator when not in use.
  • Buy a cablelock or chain so your generator won't "walk away" in the middle of the night when it's running outside...
  • Once you fire up the A/C, set the thermostat (in the summer) to something like 60F so it just keeps running and doesn't have to turn on/off all the time... No need on a gas furnace(s) blower as it barely draws any power.
  • If you have an attached garage, buy a couple of sheets of the 4x8' sheets of styrofoam with foil on them and cut them to size and put on the back of the garage door - my temp in the garage stayed above freezing this round and in the summer, never gets above 80 degrees even with direct afternoon sun beating on them... Helps the garage freezer and fridge as well...
  • 15" of sprayed insulation in the attic helped keep the internal temp above 50F after 18 hours of no power with sub-freezing temps outside

I'm putting in a separate connector from outside (posted in this tread) to be able to plug in my smaller inverter generator so I can still power my computers/tv/internet/UPS with "clean power" when those batteries die - the large portable generators plugged into the panel produce "dirty" power that can fry electronics...

Total system to power most of the house is around $2k.   Wait for the Sales tax holiday in late April to buy new generator as generators under $3K get the sales tax waiver for "hurricane" supplies...

Edited by Grimas
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Posted
1 hour ago, shadetree said:

If Troph felt comfortable, a separate thread on the build and its processes would be a big hit, I would guess. I could understand not wanting to get too much into things for privacy reasons, though. And the endless second and third guessing. So, maybe not a good idea after all.

Seconded, came close to building one of those some years ago, but have since lost touch with that technology/method.

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