Temps down from mid summer highs for sure. Longer nights, etc. No moisture, the entire west is is bone dry still. Until we start to get some rain it s still not over.

We FINALLY got some rain today!!! It wasn't a large amount, but it was a soft rain and soaked in instead of running off, and the temp dropped 20+ degrees. My weeds are sooooo happy!!!

A beautiful Fall day here, our second in a row.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
A beautiful Fall day here, our second in a row.

Same here. Which in our third year of residence in KS has to be a record. It seems it usually goes from hot and dry to grey and windy. Been an awesome couple days though. 45° this morning when I woke up.

Switched the thermostat from AC to Heating a few minutes ago. 60 now, morning low will be 41.

We've already paid for our five tons of 100% hardwood pellets for the 2023/2024 winter season.
Forty pounds per plastic bag, fifty bags on a shrink wrapped standard pallet.
Five pallets will do us for the winter.
I just haven't retrieved them yet from the stove/pellet dealer.

It's easy enough to do, the big trailer I use for hauling the Kubota can take two tons at a time, and it's a ~ 20 mile round trip.
We had four plastic bags leftover from last season. We have run the pellet stove for short intervals already this fall.
Three people can unload/stack two tons in 45 minutes, it will however elevate your heart and respiration rate.

We did get the oil fired boiler heating loops drained and refilled with 50% antifreeze/50% water last winter.
We used no home heating oil last winter for heating the house, now it's only for domestic hot water.

I didn't give the better half the credit she was due. She researched pellet stove brands and sizes, sources for buying pellets and installation. (She's a Civil Engineer)
The pellet stove was originally tasked with providing only supplemental heat to the oil fired boiler.
It has turned out that it will heat the entire house, without using any oil at all for heating the house.
This upcoming winter will be our third winter with the pellet stove.

When I say heat, I mean HEAT. The average temperature inside during winter is about 80+ Fahrenheit.
She also sold her Harley Davidson motorcycle to pay for the pellet stove & installation.
She had dual rotator cuff surgeries some years back and could no longer drive a motorcycle. Her bike had sat unused for a number of years, and she decided to recoup her monies.

We don't have a basement, and the oil boiler is in a utility room with an outside wall. The well pressure tank and the water softener are also in the utility room.
The oil boiler waste heat heated the utility room, and kept the well system along with the water softener from freezing when the oil boiler was heating the entire house.
With the oil boiler running only occasionally for domestic hot water needs now, we were concerned about the utility room freezing when outside ambient temperatures approached 10 degrees Fahrenheit.

I added a 120 VAC 20 AMP circuit in the utility room, purchased two of the infrared "chicken coop" heating lamps, along with a ten inch diameter analog dial type thermometer.
You don't need to open the utility room door now to check the interior temperature, the "chicken coop" heating lamps provide enough heat to keep the utility room from freezing,
and enough orange light to read the thermometer. You just duck outside quickly under the covered carport roof, and peek through the utility room door window for an accurate reading.
With outside temperatures slightly below zero, the two "chicken coop" lights keep the utility room about 40 degrees inside.

Two tons of pellets reduces to about a five gallon pail of ashes. The exhaust stack on the pellet stove runs surprisingly cool, and can be mounted within one inch of combustible surfaces.
We do struggle somewhat with indoor humidity. We put gallons of water through a good sized humidifier daily, and struggle to attain 25% RH.
The Bulldogs will run around roughhousing on the carpet, and then shock each other with the tips of their noses.

So F*** JB and the 'ho, and all the others that have conspired to take away the USA's energy independence. We are Americans, and will figure out another way.