Rain
The rain that was predicted for Monday and Tuesday slid from 1.2" to less than a quarter inch.
Looking forward to Wednesday
The ads for the politicians are getting crazy. I wanted to watch something on Youtube and a "mom" was trashing one of the candidates. She was holding a 1-year-old baby and she was shaking the baby for emphasis as she danced around and recited her opinions.
Shaking. A. Baby. I betcha the baby was not her own. The "mom" didn't look very comfortable or natural holding the child.
Safe-words
If you are an unmarried girl and dating a red-neck, the way to win his heart is to tell him that your "safe-word" is Stack-On or maybe Canon.
I helped somebody install a 14-gun, Stack-On safe yesterday. Yes, I know they are not the most secure safe and don't have much of a fire rating. Never-the-less, that is what the friend could afford. It is a case of "Something" being much, much better than "Nothing".
Shade trees
Southern Belle and Handsome Hombre made an offer on the house they looked at the other day.
Now they go through the wringer on inspections, counter-counter-offers, property insurance.
The house is a full two-stories in addition to a walk-out basement and is of a vintage where it cannot be easily upgraded with central air-conditioning. In other words, the roof on the south side of the house is an honest 25'-to-30' above grade.
It is also completely exposed to the sun (i.e. no shade-trees) and has virtually no windows on the east side which minimizes the use of the prevailing west-wind to get air flow through the building.
SB asked me about fast growing shade trees. There are a lot of fast growing trees. Some of them are evergreens so you don't get the benefit of passive solar heating in the winter so the trees on the list all drop their leaves in the fall. Some trees are short-lived and/or easily damaged by ice and wind storms.
The "short-list" with the native Sycamore and Tuliptree being 1-and-2 at this point. The only downside of Dawn Redwood is the shape of the tree. The house needs a tree that isn't pyramidal because the roof is so high
Fastest
A billboard of solar panels would provide shade.
ReplyDeletesam
Whiny butt grammar nazi here - ‘wringer’ ‘sted ‘ringer’.
ReplyDeleteGot no issues with the Stack-On if that’s all you can afford. You can harden them with a length of chain and an add’tl lock. Put a bolt thru the back to hold the chain before you mount the safe to the wall. (you are lag screwing it to the wall, yes?)
Thanks for the grammar correction. Poor grammar detracts from the message and you guys have enough to deal with in "real" life.
DeleteLengths of 2-by-6s were deck-screwed directly into multiple studs with 3-1/2" screws. Then six, 3-1/2" lag screws were used to screw through both 2-by-6 and the studs behind them.
Any safe that weighs less than 2000 pounds can only slow down a determined thief. But most thieves don't want to work all that hard.
My problem (phobia?) with a visible safe is hostage-taking. I wonder if there are any crime stats on that?
DeleteOne advantage of being "handy" is that you can really restrict the number of people who come into your house.
DeleteMy paternal grandmother lived on Lansing's east-side for 40 years before a non-family member entered her house. If something broke, my dad fixed or replaced it.
Your biggest risk will be the people your kid(s) bring home or the images of the inside of the house that they post on-line or send to friends.
In my 30 years of planting mostly oaks and nut trees... Bur oak has consistently been the fastest-growing of any of the trees I've planted, this side of a black walnut. My wife HATES them (probably just projecting her thoughts for me to the trees...lol) because of the copious crops of golfball(or larger)-sized acorns they drop every year. Sure, they're not much on fall leaf color, but they're pretty good the other 48 weeks out of the year(largest leaves of the North American oaks, thick corky bark on twigs/limbs, quintessential 'spooky old tree' winter silhouette, and have the potential to live 500 yrs or more.
ReplyDeleteAcorns from Kentucky grow at least 50% faster than bur oak grown from local seeds. The Kentucky trees get three flushes of growth per summer compared to local seed-source trees getting two flushes.
DeleteMy pal ERJ knows, but I'm close to 500 miles south of him, so my recommendations may hold limited applicability. One could do worse than either tulip-poplar(L.tulipifera) or sycamore (P.occidentalis) for a 'yard tree'. Some selections of sycamore, with stark white bark, are real standouts during the winter season. Both species will grow quite rapidly, and, in my experience, are not prone to wind-throw or massive branch drop, though many 'middle class folks who are proud of their lawns' would classify them as 'trashy', as they drop an occasional small limb throughout the year, and their leaves, when they drop, are fairly sizeable, though poplar leaves seem to be less persistent in the environment than than those of sycamore.
ReplyDeleteWish I had known about sycamore trees 30 years, I may have planted one or two. NH is covered in trees, so we don’t plant any. But I like the looks of the sycamore from the on-line search I did.
DeleteSouthern NH
If HH puts up a lattice on the south side, vines could work. They have their issues, but are less likely to damage the house foundation. Boston Ivy would be my first choice, but there are other varieties that would work as well.
ReplyDeleteThat is a spiffy idea.
DeleteIf memory serves, the electrical service is on the south side of the house and that can be a major complication for shade trees.
And another complication is that the drive and parking is on the west side and the drain-field is on the east.
Huge number of options for vines from Clematis to Hops, grapes, roses....sounds like another blog post.
Thanks for the suggestion!
Please don't grow Clematis and yes it beautiful and smells wonderful and it can be grown into a tree by very talented landscaper. Planted one at back of home. It did not stay there and 3 years later it was on my fence and in my front yard. Fought with it for 7 years.
DeleteAre you too far south for Siberian larch? It grows pretty fast in the far north, ought to grow like a weed there if it can handle the warm winters.
ReplyDeleteI think we would be OK with European, Siberian or Japanese larch. There are hybrid larch that are fast growing and Larix decidua x L kaempferi is commercially available.
Deletefred in texas, window ac units. Yes they look 'poor' but they are effective. All new construction in Texas has central AC. Thats great when everything in our society is working as designed.... I use window units for: price point is very affordable. ease of installation, ease of repair, lack of regulatory oversight and flexibility of application. And if you've got a 'poor' appearance, the tax man might night glom everything you own.
ReplyDeleteAs far as shade, short bushy trees or tall hedges on the east and north sides. Thats where you draw your air in and vent from anywhere high in the building. Basement/cellar windows are great for cross ventilation if the basement IS NOT wet, moldy and musty.
Spent some time thinking about house ventilation. An attic fan with louvers in the attic stair access and cracked windows in the lower level of the house can work wonders keeping the house cool. Chimney effect really works.
ReplyDelete