COLD DARK ROOM

LJL1982

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Yes, you need to be sure he's passed them all and that his gut is empty before hibernation so there isn't anything that could turn toxic and kill him. It's a tricky business - I'm glad my tort isn't a hibernating species to save me making that decision.
Do you use a fridge to keep the temps constant in our milder winters?
Yes randomly one of our built in wardrobes has a socket in it so ideal for a mini fridge!

He pooed a few more today so unless I'm absolutely sure. I'm more concerned that the weight I'm weighing him at could be 'stones' weight not tortoise weight and he could be too light to hibernate though he would have to have a lot in him to be the case!

I might just not hibernate him anyway as I'm not convinced it's beneficial to then and is always a risk.
 

Maro2Bear

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Outdoor Shed Door project continues. Left door removed, exterior rotten surfaces removed, replaced with new panels/trim & painted & hung. Today, working on right-hand side. Similar rot if not more, especially on the bottom 1/3 of ply panels & trim. The trim had been glued, nailed & screwed into place, sooooooo, not the easiest to deconstruct. Lots of bugs, ants, wood worms, a few roaches, & lots of spiders.

I can see why (inexperienced woodworkers) ppl don’t tackle even small projects. Soooo, many tools used! Power & hand.
 

jeff kushner

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Spiderman song;
Spiderwebs
Spiderwebs
I got head-full of Spiderwebs!

4 hrs in a crawlspace, installing the sprinkler manifold near the well tank, wiring from the 6 valves up to the control panel upstairs, H2O sensor/alarms....one minor leak at a plastic to plastic threaded joint. I put a bucket under it (1 drop every 5 min) and bet Kerry that it stops before I see her again! She's on a well, it'll stop....the junk i9n the water will stop it.

Turned the big zone on...4 heads at 2.2gpm each, and the well pressure remained 60psi throughout my 1/2 hr test. Perfect! We still have the rear zones to add but the tough stuff is done and it all works beautifully. She ordered topsoil for Tues delivery.

Came home with my tail btwn my legs again.....this weekend warrior stuff's gonna kill me! I did dodge a bullet at home though....I set my rear robot lawn mower out on Thurs and I was in the garage when I heard it run up on a stump....I went out, reset it but it kept giving my a "Bumper-pushed" condition and wouldn't run. I took it apart, removed the sensors, reinstalled everything and it still gave me an error. Dang....so I buttoned it up to look at later. Today is later.....so I went out, turned him on, entered my codes, told him to mow and wa la....Hose A works!! Yay jeff!
 

Maro2Bear

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Spiderman song;
Spiderwebs
Spiderwebs
I got head-full of Spiderwebs!

4 hrs in a crawlspace, installing the sprinkler manifold near the well tank, wiring from the 6 valves up to the control panel upstairs, H2O sensor/alarms....one minor leak at a plastic to plastic threaded joint. I put a bucket under it (1 drop every 5 min) and bet Kerry that it stops before I see her again! She's on a well, it'll stop....the junk i9n the water will stop it.

Turned the big zone on...4 heads at 2.2gpm each, and the well pressure remained 60psi throughout my 1/2 hr test. Perfect! We still have the rear zones to add but the tough stuff is done and it all works beautifully. She ordered topsoil for Tues delivery.

Came home with my tail btwn my legs again.....this weekend warrior stuff's gonna kill me! I did dodge a bullet at home though....I set my rear robot lawn mower out on Thurs and I was in the garage when I heard it run up on a stump....I went out, reset it but it kept giving my a "Bumper-pushed" condition and wouldn't run. I took it apart, removed the sensors, reinstalled everything and it still gave me an error. Dang....so I buttoned it up to look at later. Today is later.....so I went out, turned him on, entered my codes, told him to mow and wa la....Hose A works!! Yay jeff!

All set to “winterize”…. Good job. First thing in Spring…checking for frozen lines! Nice that she is on a well. I wish we were 💦🌱🌿🍃
 

jeff kushner

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LOL...thanks Mark....no "winterization" needed for this system design. It's 100% completely maintenance-free system.....I shouldn't have to do a thing in the future other that to replace heads/valves as they wear out.

I designed this back in the 80's using Big Blue piping, now I use the crosslinked PEX....................w/auto drains at ea head. The PEX blue pipe is 6 times the cost of black poly or pvc but it can freeze solid with no issues.

The Well is free water and well water is usually so much better than the chlorinated stuff you buy from WSSC. I swear they have an injection site near my office....or, cause we're at the bottom of a hill but in the mornings our office water smells like a swimming pool!!

WSSC ("city") water will keep your grass alive, well water will make it grow....though your gardens seem to disprove that adage ...LOL
 

Maro2Bear

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LOL...thanks Mark....no "winterization" needed for this system design. It's 100% completely maintenance-free system.....I shouldn't have to do a thing in the future other that to replace heads/valves as they wear out.

I designed this back in the 80's using Big Blue piping, now I use the crosslinked PEX....................w/auto drains at ea head. The PEX blue pipe is 6 times the cost of black poly or pvc but it can freeze solid with no issues.

The Well is free water and well water is usually so much better than the chlorinated stuff you buy from WSSC. I swear they have an injection site near my office....or, cause we're at the bottom of a hill but in the mornings our office water smells like a swimming pool!!

WSSC ("city") water will keep your grass alive, well water will make it grow....though your gardens seem to disprove that adage ...LOL

Good job using the PEX ✅

We rarely water things other than plants in pots of course. Luckily this year there were just enough thunderstorms to keep things hydrated. I do have a rain barrel that i used this year to keep the sunflowers growing early on. Hate wasting water spraying lawns…..
 

Lyn W

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Good morning/afternoon/evening all.
It's been a long sad day here with processions and services for HRH - very moving; they had her horse and a couple of her corgis along the route at Windsor so a nice personal touch. It's not yet finished yet for the family who still have the private burial to attend later, some of them looked exhausted so hopefully they'll be able to rest and grieve in peace for a while.

It's been a chilly grey day in my part of the UK, I've worn socks for the first time in months!! Lola hasn't wanted to go out at all so he must feel the drop in temps but he's still eating a lot.

I hope you're all having a good start to the week.
 

Cathie G

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Good morning/afternoon/evening all.
It's been a long sad day here with processions and services for HRH - very moving; they had her horse and a couple of her corgis along the route at Windsor so a nice personal touch. It's not yet finished yet for the family who still have the private burial to attend later, some of them looked exhausted so hopefully they'll be able to rest and grieve in peace for a while.

It's been a chilly grey day in my part of the UK, I've worn socks for the first time in months!! Lola hasn't wanted to go out at all so he must feel the drop in temps but he's still eating a lot.

I hope you're all having a good start to the week.
Yes I hope they finally get some family time together.🙏 and it helps them heal a bit. Our news station played all of it. Of course I watched as much as I could with animals to deal with at that time of the morning. We are exactly 5 hours behind you here ☺️ I know because I had a power outage and one of my favorite clocks is now set to London time and I was too lazy to reset it. Then I googled and found out it was the UK time. After all that I have two clocks set. It's funny when younger family members can't remember that the atomic clock is our correct time.😉It ended up chilly here today, rainy and overcast also so Sapphire didn't get to go outside. But he'll be getting every single day of fresh air and sunshine that I can do before winter sets in. Most of our days are really warm but our nights are getting so cold. He's easy to carry outside for the day and back in at night though, so it's not a big deal.
 

jeff kushner

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Bless you guys in the UK....it's been quite a jolt to many emotionally and ALL of your lives have been impacted over the past few days. To me, she was the only Queen in my life and I will miss the little stories that would pop up here occasionally.

chilly grey day in my part of the UK
Isn't that the norm? LOL

It's a blah day here....not the weather, it seems fine...crisp and cool this morning....I'm blah....feel like I played a double-header yesterday...no, not baseball, football a h h me ball every play! I feel like I've been in a car accident..............this is one of those sucky mornings. LOL
Everything below the ears, hurts. Ahhhhh, I keep telling myself that these are just the reminders of all those "good times".....lol, I crack myself up sometimes..............that's why I "get" Tammy so well<LMAO>

I'm going to dig up some water and motrin....hate taking stuff but sometimes I give in when I know I have important stuff to do later....boss would prob like it if I play my A game here, right?

have a good one guys....
 

Lyn W

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Bless you guys in the UK....it's been quite a jolt to many emotionally and ALL of your lives have been impacted over the past few days. To me, she was the only Queen in my life and I will miss the little stories that would pop up here occasionally.


Isn't that the norm? LOL
It will be strange - especially when all our stamps, coins, bank notes and all the things that usually bear the Queen's image or EIIR, change.

Most years the weather is cold and damp especially in Wales, but climate change has really kicked in this year with most parts of the UK officially in drought - it's been hot and sunny most days for months - not our usual climate at all. We all complain about the weather usually when it's cold and damp - it's a British pastime - but we're all hoping for some good bouts of rain now. We're just getting light showers when we've had any - doesn't have a chance to soak in.
 
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Lyn W

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A bit of a late hello but just popped in to see what you've been up to today.
I've not done anything special.
I've bought myself a heated throw so I don't have to have too much heating on this winter. It only costs pence to run per hour - a lot cheaper than running the gas or electricity for hours. It's really cosy too so I should be nice and snuggly when I'm watching tv.
Lola has a warm hide and I have a small radiator to run with his lamps and che etc so should be able to keep his room warm enough for when he's out and about in the day - having to think ahead this year with the sky high price increases.
If we have a big freeze (anything's possible now!) then I can always burn the furniture - it all needs replacing anyway.😁
Hope you're all having a good day but time for me to hit the hay now so Nos Da!!
 

jeff kushner

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Those "letric throws are nice Lyn, bet you love it already! Yes guys, its cool to be comfy! You are smart to conserve $$ now for the winter heating costs.....no one knows what's coming but it likely won't be getting cheaper.


Very different day today....this is nice...no pain, no migraine, no meds....dang, I could get used to this stuff real fast!
LOL..I laugh instead of whine, cause it keeps my head level.

Speaking of laughing.....
You guys know Kerry and I are playing in her sandbox of a yard together....she got top soil delivered yesterday and I have in my possession more grass seed than anyone really should be allowed to have according to Homeland Security. That sets the scene; Kerry calls me yesterday on her way home from school to tell me that she would order more top soil from the place because she had to stop at the store to buy....you guessed it, grass seed for a teacher demonstration! It took me 3 full minutes to stop laughing......$$$ worth of seed not 15 feet away......the irony was just so rich in the moment!

Enjoy the day guys...
 

Maro2Bear

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Those "letric throws are nice Lyn, bet you love it already! Yes guys, its cool to be comfy! You are smart to conserve $$ now for the winter heating costs.....no one knows what's coming but it likely won't be getting cheaper.


Very different day today....this is nice...no pain, no migraine, no meds....dang, I could get used to this stuff real fast!
LOL..I laugh instead of whine, cause it keeps my head level.

Speaking of laughing.....
You guys know Kerry and I are playing in her sandbox of a yard together....she got top soil delivered yesterday and I have in my possession more grass seed than anyone really should be allowed to have according to Homeland Security. That sets the scene; Kerry calls me yesterday on her way home from school to tell me that she would order more top soil from the place because she had to stop at the store to buy....you guessed it, grass seed for a teacher demonstration! It took me 3 full minutes to stop laughing......$$$ worth of seed not 15 feet away......the irony was just so rich in the moment!

Enjoy the day guys...


Perfect time to get the lawn grass seed on the ground. Looks like come this Friday our day time & night time temps are optimal for germination. But….not today. Going to be another 🌞 hot one 🌞 for the books.
 

Maro2Bear

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A bit of a late hello but just popped in to see what you've been up to today.
I've not done anything special.
I've bought myself a heated throw so I don't have to have too much heating on this winter. It only costs pence to run per hour - a lot cheaper than running the gas or electricity for hours. It's really cosy too so I should be nice and snuggly when I'm watching tv.
Lola has a warm hide and I have a small radiator to run with his lamps and che etc so should be able to keep his room warm enough for when he's out and about in the day - having to think ahead this year with the sky high price increases.
If we have a big freeze (anything's possible now!) then I can always burn the furniture - it all needs replacing anyway.😁
Hope you're all having a good day but time for me to hit the hay now so Nos Da!!


Lyn…. All of the UK might soon just not pay their electric/gas bill! Time for a revolt!

Shocking increases really - 💥💥 The energy price cap increased by 12% in October 2021, 54% in April 2022 and is due to increase by 80% in October 2022 (gas by 91%, electricity by 70%). The April increase was equivalent to £700 more across a year for 'typical' levels of dual fuel consumption paid by direct debit.
 

Lyn W

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Lyn…. All of the UK might soon just not pay their electric/gas bill! Time for a revolt!

Shocking increases really - 💥💥 The energy price cap increased by 12% in October 2021, 54% in April 2022 and is due to increase by 80% in October 2022 (gas by 91%, electricity by 70%). The April increase was equivalent to £700 more across a year for 'typical' levels of dual fuel consumption paid by direct debit.
It is appalling what's happening - I don't know how some families will manage. There will have to big changes in how people live. There is some help available from the government but they still refuse to claim windfall tax from the energy giants more who are still making billions of pounds of profit. Our new PM wants to start North sea oil drilling again and even allow fracking - all damaging and a disaster for the environment. :( Renewable energy seems to be taking a back seat in her plans - she is not a popular replacement for Boris and has already upset some of our allies - including France and the US - roll on the next elections!
 

Jan A

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Bless you guys in the UK....it's been quite a jolt to many emotionally and ALL of your lives have been impacted over the past few days. To me, she was the only Queen in my life and I will miss the little stories that would pop up here occasionally.


Isn't that the norm? LOL

It's a blah day here....not the weather, it seems fine...crisp and cool this morning....I'm blah....feel like I played a double-header yesterday...no, not baseball, football a h h me ball every play! I feel like I've been in a car accident..............this is one of those sucky mornings. LOL
Everything below the ears, hurts. Ahhhhh, I keep telling myself that these are just the reminders of all those "good times".....lol, I crack myself up sometimes..............that's why I "get" Tammy so well<LMAO>

I'm going to dig up some water and motrin....hate taking stuff but sometimes I give in when I know I have important stuff to do later....boss would prob like it if I play my A game here, right?

have a good one guys....
Every little & big thing you did to your body during your "formative" yrs eventually comes back as a pain somewhere. And then there's the things you did when you should have known better. Hindsight is absolutely 100%.
 

jeff kushner

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Yeah Jan, I learned that lovely bit of info a couple years ago but I'm VERY thankful I didn't know it when I was young. I wouldn't have had half then fun I've had.....so in my mind, it's a fair trade...I just whine about it.

Since we're all friends....I figure whining is ok as long as you're still getting it done...when it becomes an excuse for not doing whatever...I can't stand that attitude.

My brothers and sisters from other Mothers in the UK are getting hammered....my heart goes out. It's kind of like marrying a stripper and finally figuring out it was a mistake a few years later. I hope that time comes quick for you guys! Mark is on point, and must be well read into the issues...kudos.

Kerry has a 2500sf garage roof that faces the sun......wonder what the watts per SF is these days. Might be my next project if the math looks good but that will take a few months to get up to speed on the tech/installs/issues. Well/septic means neither of us gets water or sewer bills or pay those added taxes with those cute little "fuel surcharges"--add renewable(FREE) power....seems like a pretty "unregulated", untaxed existence to me. I can be good with that.

The creek in the back yard doesn't flow enough to turn much of a wheel but it does offer geo-thermal options. The trees prevent wind energy being an option but that sun....that will be an option if they do stupid things with the costs here.
 

Cathie G

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Every little & big thing you did to your body during your "formative" yrs eventually comes back as a pain somewhere. And then there's the things you did when you should have known better. Hindsight is absolutely 100%.
Amen..but there's also those dang growing pains that never go away even when you finally kinda grew up. 😜 Might as well have a blast while you can 🤗
 

Lyn W

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Good morning/afternoon all,
It's a warm day here but some rain's on the way later as it passes across the country - hope it gives us a good drench even if it is a quick one.
Hope you're all having a good day.
 

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