The Solar Power Resilience Project at Roy Creek Ranch Over several years, we’ve built and expanded a multi-system solar installation at Roy Creek Ranch. In particular, a recent upgrade to the battery and inverter system significantly improved our resilience during … Continue reading →
Upgrading a Solar Power System It was time to upgrade the solar power system installed for the shop almost two years ago. I’ve been happy with original system, but it needed expansion as soon as funding permitted. I also wanted … Continue reading →
With summer on the way, and an end to our rainy season approaching, I am reminded of the dry summer last year and concerns about the water table here at the ranch. Fortunately, our water well performed during the last year’s drought, but a number of our neighbors had trouble with their wells. Some troubles were resolved by a visit from the well-service company and a replacement part of two, but at least one well’s water level was low — resulting in low or no water output.
Continue reading →It’s amazing how time flies. Although it has been about 13 years since I bought the John Deere X304 lawn tractor for the ranch, it seems like yesterday. I still think of it as “the new tractor.” So it’s always a surprise when something needs repair. I use this machine for all kinds of things, from mowing to towing, and recently it developed a screaming sound near the front.
Continue reading →I have been interested in gardening since I was a child and spent time with my great grandparents who were gardeners. The Square Foot Gardening method was developed in 1976 as a simple alternative to labor intensive and inefficient row gardening. Explore the possibilities . . .
Continue reading →The shop here at the ranch was built in 2000. I got lots of work done there, but by 2011, two things were clear: the wooden exterior doors were in dire need of replacement and it would be nice to have a covered outdoor space to keep sawdust out of the shop. I installed new pre-hung metal doors and with the help of a neighbor, added a 20-foot extension that year — complete with a metal roof. There just wasn’t a concrete slab.
Continue reading →I’ve been threatening to build a storage shed at the ranch for some time now. After going through everything in the shop and selling, discarding, or giving everything away I could, it was still too crowded to work effectively. I needed more space. A friend had recently mentioned a sale on small buildings at Costco — it was worth a look.
Continue reading →In the last post, I described the DC charge controller and battery wiring for the Shop Solar System. With solar panels and batteries connected, the inverter was functional. A quick test showed the expected 240 VAC at the inverter output, and it was time to connect it to the breaker panel in the shop.
Continue reading →In the last post, we mounted the solar panel array. Now it was time for the solar power system low-voltage wiring. The array is about 50 feet from my shop, where the batteries and inverter are located. I planned to use two strands of #6 UF direct-bury cable to conduct the predicted maximum of 36 amperes to the shop.
Continue reading →In a previous post, we selected a site, cleared trees and installed foundations. Now we were ready for framing. There were four 8-inch concrete piers defining the four corners of the array. The plan was to mount two 10-foot 4-by-4 … Continue reading →
