And the moral of that tale is check your tire pressure, I suppose…

I had to go to D&L’s this afternoon to unload yet another ton of wood pellets, the third of the season so far. Tobie and I got in the Jeep and I was literally reaching for the start button when the phone rang.

Texts aren’t uncommon; phone calls almost always mean some immediate issue/emergency so I fumbled for the phone, tried to remember how to answer it, and learned that Neighbor L wanted to make sure that I brought my portable tire inflator. Which is always in the Jeep, so no extra effort needed.


Now, last time I helped unload and stack their wood pellets I noticed that I was having a very hard time hauling the little metal wagon back and forth. I attributed this to getting old and decrepit, it never occurred to me to wonder about the state of the wagon. But L had recently used the same wagon to pull a bunch of (very light) garbage bags to the barrels at the far side of the driveway and she had the same observation. Apparently being smarter than me, this caused her to wonder about the air pressure in the wagon’s tires – all of which were just barely inflated enough to avoid appearing actively flat when unloaded. So we spent a very few minutes filling all four tires from an indicated 0 psi, and the wagon suddenly rolled a great deal more easily. Technology: Is there no problem it can’t solve?

Speaking of heaters…


I have a hard time understanding why D&L are going through so many wood pellets this winter because so far it has been ridiculously mild. Seriously, all through December I think we had one 3-day stretch where the afternoons only went into the forties. Some nights wander vaguely into the high teens. It hasn’t snowed since early November. I have lit my woodstove exactly twice, briefly, so far all season.

I gaze fearfully about and emphasize loudly that I AM NOT COMPLAINING ABOUT THIS.

It will certainly change for the colder at some point. Probably with a great dramatic flourish. But the forecast so far only predicts more of the same. It’s kind of eerie.

About Joel

You shouldn't ask these questions of a paranoid recluse, you know.
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15 Responses to And the moral of that tale is check your tire pressure, I suppose…

  1. Tree Mike; eff bee eye code name, Foghorn Leghorn says:

    Physics, not just a good idea, it’s the LAW! After that little witticism, I must confess to being semi dense/retarded. Somehow, I manage to make it work.
    I need a portable inflator like yours. It’s devilishly difficult trying to haul around a 220v industrial air compressor. Maybe that retarded thing has something to do with it.

  2. Malatrope says:

    Does their house have any insulation at all? Level of insulation makes a HUGE difference.

  3. “- I have a hard time understanding why D&L are going through so many wood pellets this winter because so far it has been ridiculously mild. -”
    Blood thinners, which I am betting they are on given their health problems, make you feel cold…. colder than your regular bipedal carbon life form not on blood thinners..

  4. Joel says:

    It’s devilishly difficult trying to haul around a 220v industrial air compressor.

    At the risk of deploying a cliche, that’s what she said. They have an enormous compressor for such things and nothing more portable.

    Does their house have any insulation at all?

    It’s an earthbag/strawbale extravaganza. It basically has all the insulation. Which is why they’re afraid to ever let it get cold inside, it would be impossible to heat back up.

    Blood thinners, which I am betting they are on given their health problems, make you feel cold….

    That might be the answer right there. Neighbor D is on serious blood thinners, being rather repeatedly prone to strokes.

  5. Mike says:

    “I gaze fearfully about and emphasize loudly that I AM NOT COMPLAINING ABOUT THIS.”

    It’s always a good idea never to annoy the weather Gods. 👍🏼

  6. Malatrope says:

    So they have excellent insulation in the walls, but surely the roof/attic/ceiling doesn’t use those? Our attic area had about 12″ of blown in stuff. When we replaced the roof, we brought it up to code, which made that about 3x thicker. We went from burning 4 cords of wood per winter to only 1-1/2. Huge difference.

  7. Joel says:

    Malatrope makes a good point, I don’t know what/how much insulation they have over the ceiling. But they’re not stupid and I know the house stays nice and cool in the summer sun despite a metal roof so I’m guessing that it’s a lot.

  8. boynsea says:

    Blood thinners. I never thought about that, probably explains why I’m freezing my butt off all the time.

  9. JC says:

    That’s a nice pump there Joel! I have one like it (Ryobi, ‘cuz thats what I run for cordless). I’m a bike guy, no car, and I’ve noticed that tire pressure is IMPORTANT! My road bike needs at least 85 psi or I’m working 40% harder.

  10. Michael Gilson says:

    I had an inner tube go bad in a wheelbarrow this summer. I replaced it with a pool noodle. Minus: It won’t support as much weight as a working pneumatic tire. Plus: What it will support is probably what I should limit myself to at my age. But thinking back I realized I never checked the valve core in the old inner tube. I may have done a lot of work when there was a much easier and simpler thing that could have solved the problem.

  11. Irving says:

    “It’s devilishly difficult trying to haul around a 220v industrial air compressor. “

    Which is why they invented….air hoses… to transport compressed air to someplace else without having to move the compressor.

    I’m curious, though – why, exactly do they have a large compressor? (I’m assuming “large” without knowing the tank size; years ago I had a 12-gallon roll-around Campbell-Hausfield compressor that required 240V); is there some regular or routine compressed air demand they have that justifies it? And, how do they run it, being on solar?

  12. jed says:

    > And, how do they run it, being on solar?

    Lots of panels, and a split-phase inverter.

  13. Joel says:

    Irving – They have plenty of air hose, since the compressor isn’t remotely portable. It has something like a 100-gallon tank and takes a million very loud minutes to come up to full pressure. Probably seemed like a good idea at the time, and in fact when they were in their (very!) big building phase maybe it was. Not so much when you just need to air up a few small tires.

  14. RCPete says:

    Yeah, the blood thinner might be the case. Been on mine for over a dozen years, and I’d rather it be too warm than too cold.

    I tried running my Craftsman “3hp” compressor (240V, 20A circuit) with a generator that claimed to have that power. OTOH, at 4000+ feet elevation, the genny specs are a wild guess. It would get to near cutoff then stall the generator.

    I ended up buying more air hose and using the shop power. 300′ worth of air hose was annoying, but the compressor did what it was supposed to do. I quickly learned not to disconnect the hose at the compressor when at pressure. Damned hose expanded, and it tried to go rodeo a time or two.

    When I really need compressed air and the 220V outlet is too far away, I bought a 110V compressor. It’s slow, but makes up for it by being really loud. Needed it for a bedroom project and the compressor stayed outside.

  15. Irving says:

    “a 100-gallon tank and takes a million very loud minutes to come up to full pressure.”
    I had a 35 gallon direct-drive, 120 volt 150 PSI single cylnder compressor exactly like that. I got a 6/10 HP California Air Tools portable unit for “everyday use” when Amazon put them on sale cheap about 8 years ago and sold the 150 PSI slow-fill monster. The little CAT inflates tires, runs air nailers, and in short bursts, will run air impact wrenches. And it’s QUIET.

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