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58 degrees and lite rain from OR.  Got the Maxx fan installed yesterday, and it took me a bit longer than the 15 minute videos I was watching HAHA. Pretty happy with the results though, and today my work is getting the rain test.  :) After lining up a garage to work in, the van did not fit in it at seven and a half feet tall. After the fan installation I am now about eight feet tall. Today's project is wiring up the fan to a solar powered house battery. I will not be able to really test the electrical until I get out of this rain, altho I expect it will charge up some even with the lower sunlight. Luci lites work even in the rain here.     ~crofter
 
Good morning... getting ready to leave this place to move up the road to finish reconfiguring my solar system. Found out two charge controllers can’t be put in parallel that I have, which by increasing voltage from 12v to 24v the one controller is enough for 8 of my panels. Guess I need to get a Tesla battery for the next 8 panels to run on the spare controller I have now and put a relay driver in between to a couple relays to switch from one battery bank to other as they charge/discharge. Next part is if I buy 4 more panels to make 16 this is going to be fun to find a spot to put them, back to welding and drawing board.
 
Weldman said:
 is going to be fun to find a spot to put them, back to welding and drawing board.
Acres of panels! You must have a skoolie.  Weather report from there?     ~crofter
 
Some of you are being very industrious! I wish I had the skills. Today is cool but not raining - another good day for moving bins across the street and into storage. When that's done I'll have to figure out how many more bins I'll need to make the rest of the mess go away. I'm very close to the end now. Things are not as organized as I wish they were... but it is better than 4 weeks ago.
 
crofter said:
Acres of panels! You must have a skoolie.  Weather report from there?     ~crofter
Actually this is mine that I’m working with Weldman Tried panels on the roof but wasn’t appeasing to drill holes in this beauty and I want to move them in the sun while I put the rig in the shade. So now I have two racks I welded at 126” long each, can hold 6 panels each at 19.5” a panel width plus .25” for spacing so they can breathe and flex. Those sit on the back/front porch going down the road. So with my new conundrum I have to reconfigure for 4 more panels, might put 8 panels a rack instead of 6 and angle it to fit. At this rate I can charge off full moon at night. Weather report ~ attempts of rain and raining in other areas and nippy in the 50’s.
 
travelaround said:
moving bins across the street and into storage. 
@TA 
I started with my 5X5 storage place after downsizing from a 10X10 storage that held "precious things."  When I was finally able to loosen my grip on all those precious things, I was finally able to move to the 5X5 (my goal) near my seasonal work. My philosophy on holding onto stuff, is that if I am holding onto it and not using it I am just being greedy.  There is someone out there who needs the precious stuff and my greed is keeping them from receiving the stuff. I get a good feeling when I am able to donate something or give it so someone. My current use of the 5X5 is keeping my seasonal stuff in it (I do seasonal work and keep my work stuff there in the off season). I maintain one (and only one) shelf for books. I keep the books on a shelf that I can see, as books can multiply if kept in boxes. At one time I had 27 boxes of books after downsizing - a moving library.  Long story short, it's a little painful to release your hold onto stuff, but you will feel so much lighter as things find new homes and new uses.     ~crofter
 
B and C said:
Wow, 10 feet long.  They must weigh a LOT.
[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]16.5 lbs per solar panel at 6 panels 99 lbs plus aluminum frame, not bad just pick up one end at a time if my girlfriend is busy other than that she helps. [/font]
crofter said:
@TA 
I started with my 5X5 storage place after downsizing from a 10X10 storage that held "precious things."  When I was finally able to loosen my grip on all those precious things, I was finally able to move to the 5X5 (my goal) near my seasonal work. My philosophy on holding onto stuff, is that if I am holding onto it and not using it I am just being greedy.  There is someone out there who needs the precious stuff and my greed is keeping them from receiving the stuff. I get a good feeling when I am able to donate something or give it so someone. My current use of the 5X5 is keeping my seasonal stuff in it (I do seasonal work and keep my work stuff there in the off season). I maintain one (and only one) shelf for books. I keep the books on a shelf that I can see, as books can multiply if kept in boxes. At one time I had 27 boxes of books after downsizing - a moving library.  Long story short, it's a little painful to release your hold onto stuff, but you will feel so much lighter as things find new homes and new uses.     ~crofter
Sounds like my girlfriend on books, she has two totes full of books, I only have a half.
 
Yes, I could give away more books! Chances are I'll never get around to reading most of them. I have a few I've read and want to review for my BookTube channel (on YouTube) . . . they will go with me on this adventure and I'll give them away when I'm done reviewing them. Probably I'll seek out the little libraries people are putting in their yards, and gift them there. Sounds like fun to me.

Anyhow, I like your philosophy of giving precious things away. I will do more of that when I return from my winter trip to Arizona and other southern areas. I expect to be here again next spring and will give the downsizing another go then.

Right now my focus is to get the rest of the things in this apartment out of it ... and clean it. Tomorrow morning is the walk-through, hopefully. I'm ready to move on.

Still no cargo trailer. I will stay in this area until that becomes available. At least, that is my current plan.
 
crofter said:
Good morning! 55 degrees in OR feels like winter. I am on the road finally --crofter
Good morning... seems to never get past 55 here hehe. Renogy having a sale and I’m drooling on getting 4 to 8 more panels. Since I have moved the rig out of the clouds it’s better on temperature and rain, I have dried out the past 2 days.
 
Good afternoon. Passing thru brothers or and 72 degrees and gusty at 17 mph...watching out for semis that are blowing me around.    -crofter
 
Almost 8pm and I'm finally here. Morning is a state of mind. It is cold here. I'm getting the van serviced next Wednesday. Still after two weeks, the seller isn't getting his copy of the title from DMV. I'll give it another week but time is getting tight and I'm not fond of the current temperatures, especially in the morning... in my uninsulated van. Why does winter have to come?
 
crofter said:
.watching out for semis that are blowing me around.    -crofter

Good eveningI'm taking a break from driving- wind advisory Hoover dam area with 31 mph gusts. 77 degrees makes it a nice evening for driving.   -crofter
 
travelaround said:
Almost 8pm and I'm finally here. Morning is a state of mind. It is cold here. I'm getting the van serviced next Wednesday. Still after two weeks, the seller isn't getting his copy of the title from DMV. I'll give it another week but time is getting tight and I'm not fond of the current temperatures, especially in the morning... in my uninsulated van. Why does winter have to come?
You will be out of there before much longer.  I will be stuck in it for much longer than I had hoped. But at least I have insulation in my trailer and access to electricity so that while I am finishing the interior I can be toasty while I work. In fact much warmer than inside the building where I sleep while doing the build.
 
@Crofter... hope you get through this wind storm alright ... sounds scary. I dread high winds ... I've been wondering how to get through to CA as most routes have notoriously high winds and I have high roof van and cargo trailer!

@Maki... so glad you're in a warm trailer. I just remade my bed and added another blanket and am now happy and warm under the covers. One great advantage to having to use a CPAP machine is that I can get under the covers and get fresh air pumped in to me through the hose. I'm loving that. Now... I want to get some sleep. I'm nearly to the end of reading Walden on Wheels.
 

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