This weekend I finally put the laminate floor in.
As I usually do, I screwed up at least one critical detail, but other than that, it looks beautiful. I love it! It's clean, it looks great, it's fun (and safe, now) to walk around barefoot on it.
I'll post pictures, most likely on the Vandweller's list.
The only thing I messed up, is that I forgot the proper dimension of the last row of floorboards. I measured 6 1/2", but then by the time I got the ruler out and started drawing cut lines on the boards, I remembered it as 5 1/2". So there's an inch-wide gap between the end of the floorboards and the moulding, on one side of the floor. No big deal, I'll live.
I also helped two friends move on two different days this weekend. It was interesting to fit an entire apartment worth of stuff into my van, in addition to my stuff. I had to be careful not to scratch the new floor. It already has one scratch; no idea where that came from.
It was a week of manual labor. I moved THREE people's stuff in and out of the van over the course of three days: first my own stuff got removed and replaced so I could do the floor, and loading and unloading all the possessions of two friends too. I didn't do it alone, obviously, but that's a lot of moving.
I slept on a futon whilst I had all my van stuff removed and was in the middle of the floor project. I like futons! I've shopped around a bit and I'm going to replace my homemade hack bed with a real futon. A twin-sized three-fold futon should fit nicely, and would use the mattress I already own. Plus, it'd give me a nice La-Z-Boy style couch when folded up.
I'm feeling hopeful about this whole adventure.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
The batteries like being overcharged!
I've noticed that the numbers on my solar controller don't always tell the whole story.
My Lifeline AGM batteries really like being overcharged, hard-core, in bright sun. Even though they say 14.1 volts when fully charged in a dull fog, they aren't as fully charged as when they get to 14.1 volts in the blazing bright sunshine, and are subjected to that for many hours.
So, for example. It was really foggy a few weeks ago. It took me several days of sunshine and very little battery usage to get my batteries up to full charge. But, even then, they'd deplete very quickly! Sure, they'd charge up quickly too, but then they'd deplete quickly. I'd start the night out with 12.9 volts, and after a few hours of computing and Internet, I was down to 12.5 volts!
But then it got hot and sunny for a while. I deliberately parked my van in baking-hot sunshine, day after day. The controller was whining up a storm, and my batteries sat at 14.1 volts for days. Well after all that, I'd start those nights at 12.9 volts alright, but after being up nearly all night on the computer, with the hard drive going and a second Linksys file server going, it'd still be up at 12.7 volts by the time I called it quits!
This morning, the controller was pulling over 12 amps out of the solar panels, charging up those batteries. They got plenty thirsty!
So these AGM batteries have a very long tail on their charging. They get up to full charge quickly, even at low amps, but they really like to be charged up hard, with lots of amps, in order to hold their charge longer. The volts at charging, or after charging, don't tell the whole story. HOW the batteries got to full charge has a lot to do with how slowly they'll discharge.
My Lifeline AGM batteries really like being overcharged, hard-core, in bright sun. Even though they say 14.1 volts when fully charged in a dull fog, they aren't as fully charged as when they get to 14.1 volts in the blazing bright sunshine, and are subjected to that for many hours.
So, for example. It was really foggy a few weeks ago. It took me several days of sunshine and very little battery usage to get my batteries up to full charge. But, even then, they'd deplete very quickly! Sure, they'd charge up quickly too, but then they'd deplete quickly. I'd start the night out with 12.9 volts, and after a few hours of computing and Internet, I was down to 12.5 volts!
But then it got hot and sunny for a while. I deliberately parked my van in baking-hot sunshine, day after day. The controller was whining up a storm, and my batteries sat at 14.1 volts for days. Well after all that, I'd start those nights at 12.9 volts alright, but after being up nearly all night on the computer, with the hard drive going and a second Linksys file server going, it'd still be up at 12.7 volts by the time I called it quits!
This morning, the controller was pulling over 12 amps out of the solar panels, charging up those batteries. They got plenty thirsty!
So these AGM batteries have a very long tail on their charging. They get up to full charge quickly, even at low amps, but they really like to be charged up hard, with lots of amps, in order to hold their charge longer. The volts at charging, or after charging, don't tell the whole story. HOW the batteries got to full charge has a lot to do with how slowly they'll discharge.
It was the fuel
I figured out what was causing that awful hard starting problem and all those clogged fuel filters I had to change: I was getting crappy, low-quality fuel.
At the bottom of my biodiesel barrel, was a thick layer of sludge and grime. Unprocessed fatty solids, apparently. Disgusting. The guy who makes my fuel wasn't too surprised. Apparently that was in the fuel he was selling me all along, until he very recenly upgraded his equipment to use a better process.
Now that I'm getting better fuel, the hard starting problem seems to be dissipating. And the "WATER IN FUEL" light even goes off sometimes.
At the bottom of my biodiesel barrel, was a thick layer of sludge and grime. Unprocessed fatty solids, apparently. Disgusting. The guy who makes my fuel wasn't too surprised. Apparently that was in the fuel he was selling me all along, until he very recenly upgraded his equipment to use a better process.
Now that I'm getting better fuel, the hard starting problem seems to be dissipating. And the "WATER IN FUEL" light even goes off sometimes.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Dealing with solar in the fog
I think the party is over with the solar. Winter is here now, and it's foggy all day long. The sun is out until 9pm, theoretically, but you can't see it. I'm pulling 6 amps at noon, maximum. And for some reason my batteries seem to run out of charge a lot faster. Maybe I deep-cycled them a few weekends ago, and they've lost capacity as a result. I'd say that maybe it's taking longer to charge them, but I'm not seeing that. I can get them up to 14.1v easily still, by conserving electricity. But they seem to end up down in the 12.6 range VERY quickly now. Maybe I'm just using electricity more extravagantly? But I don't see how that could be possible.
Anyway, here's what I'm doing to help conserve:
I turn off the wireless router when I'm not going to be using it. It's silly to leave it on, even though it only draws 200 milliamps or so, just to keep it associated with a network.
I kill the inverter too. Also silly to leave it on, drawing I don't know what, but the manual says less than an amp, and the power supply on my monitor, and I don't know how much that draws either.
Those steps seem to help now that it's foggy. The laptop draws about 400 milliamps overnight when in sleep mode. I have to leave it in sleep mode because I haven't figured out how to get it to hibernate in Linux yet. But if I could do that then it'd draw zero amps when asleep, and that'd probably help keep the batteries fresh in the morning.
Anyway, here's what I'm doing to help conserve:
I turn off the wireless router when I'm not going to be using it. It's silly to leave it on, even though it only draws 200 milliamps or so, just to keep it associated with a network.
I kill the inverter too. Also silly to leave it on, drawing I don't know what, but the manual says less than an amp, and the power supply on my monitor, and I don't know how much that draws either.
Those steps seem to help now that it's foggy. The laptop draws about 400 milliamps overnight when in sleep mode. I have to leave it in sleep mode because I haven't figured out how to get it to hibernate in Linux yet. But if I could do that then it'd draw zero amps when asleep, and that'd probably help keep the batteries fresh in the morning.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Standards of cleanliness
I've never been a neat and clean kind of person, but I'm realizing now how high my standards of cleanliness had gotten-- and how much they've lowered since vandwelling.
For many years I've been a shower-once-a-week kind of guy-- yeah, sloppy I know-- but now I get dirtier. I'm still on the once-a-week program.
It took me only a couple days to get used to peeing in a Nalgene bottle and emptying/cleaning it.
Never been much of a floor/walls cleaner, but I'd gotten used to those being relatively clean. Not anymore-- my floors are loaded with dust, dirt, hair (I'm in my 40's-- the stuff is falling out) and bits of food and stuff. And it bothered me for a while but no more.
But I've always been scrupulous about keeping food and food preparation areas clean. But I've gotten over that. When I started vandwelling in Feburary, I tried to scrub every utensil, bowl, and food storage container. Not anymore. I wipe or rinse forks or bowls and put 'em away. I clean my pots and pans with bread, and then give them a rinse with a spray bottle and a once-over with a sponge and soap, then off they go until tomorrow. I started out rinsing and cleaning my cooler out every few days; I just cleaned it yesterday for the first time in several months.
What's starting to bother me now is the smell. I still don't have my vent in, and the van is getting stuffy. Smells kinda funky in here now. I suppose the vent/fan will help, as will a clear plastic skylight that lets UV rays in (UV is a disinfectant), and then I'll sweep the whole thing out in order to put in the floor. Once the new floor is in, I'll have to sweep it once in a while too.
For many years I've been a shower-once-a-week kind of guy-- yeah, sloppy I know-- but now I get dirtier. I'm still on the once-a-week program.
It took me only a couple days to get used to peeing in a Nalgene bottle and emptying/cleaning it.
Never been much of a floor/walls cleaner, but I'd gotten used to those being relatively clean. Not anymore-- my floors are loaded with dust, dirt, hair (I'm in my 40's-- the stuff is falling out) and bits of food and stuff. And it bothered me for a while but no more.
But I've always been scrupulous about keeping food and food preparation areas clean. But I've gotten over that. When I started vandwelling in Feburary, I tried to scrub every utensil, bowl, and food storage container. Not anymore. I wipe or rinse forks or bowls and put 'em away. I clean my pots and pans with bread, and then give them a rinse with a spray bottle and a once-over with a sponge and soap, then off they go until tomorrow. I started out rinsing and cleaning my cooler out every few days; I just cleaned it yesterday for the first time in several months.
What's starting to bother me now is the smell. I still don't have my vent in, and the van is getting stuffy. Smells kinda funky in here now. I suppose the vent/fan will help, as will a clear plastic skylight that lets UV rays in (UV is a disinfectant), and then I'll sweep the whole thing out in order to put in the floor. Once the new floor is in, I'll have to sweep it once in a while too.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Found the limit
I've found the limit of what my solar power setup can handle, and did my first deep-cycle of the batteries.
I was very much an Interet hermit this weekend, and spent three solid days curled up inside the van, on the computer almost the whole time. I didn't leave the van except to go to the bathroom and buy some food. But I was also parked in a relatively shady spot, with the sun obscured by a tall building most of the morning and by trees all day except for a few hours in the afternoon. And winter has arrived in San Francisco: our cold season is now, when it's foggy and windy all day every day. So not much sun.
With the computer running all day and night, and not enough sun to really fully charge the batteries in the day time, the batteries got down to 12.1 volts for the first time ever. The yellow warning light came on to the charge controller.
Today I'm in full sun, trying to recover from this error. The solar panels are pulling 11 amps, and the battery is STILL not charged at 11AM, and the yellow warning light is still on.
I'm going to get off of the computer now and let the batteries charge up all afternoon, in the hope that by late afternoon they'll be back up to their customary happy 14.1 volts, and the charge controller will be buzzing like an angry bee, which is what it does when the batteries are full up and there's tons of sunlight streaming onto the panels.
I hope it will, anyway. It'll be an interesting experiment.
Sorry, batteries. Didn't mean to pound on you so hard.
UPDATE: Well after a full day of 11 amps, the batteries STILL did not fully charge! I shut everything down, and now after a foggy morning at about 6 amps, and an afternoon that's starting to clear and a few hours of 11 amps, I'm finally seeing 13.8V and the controller is finally starting to buzz and whine as it does when the batteries are nearing full charge. Still no 14.1 volts yet, though, and that's full charge. I hope to get there within a few hours.
UPDATE 2: It took THREE days. It is May 29, and, after sitting it in full 11-amp sun, and not using anything electrical all morning long, by early afternoon the thing was FINALLY up to 14.1 volts. Very happy that it got there. Tonight when the sun went down the batteries were at 13.1 volts, which is the normal "start point" for the evening for me. Usually after many hours of nighttime computer use, by the time I go to sleep the batts are at 12.7 volts.
I was very much an Interet hermit this weekend, and spent three solid days curled up inside the van, on the computer almost the whole time. I didn't leave the van except to go to the bathroom and buy some food. But I was also parked in a relatively shady spot, with the sun obscured by a tall building most of the morning and by trees all day except for a few hours in the afternoon. And winter has arrived in San Francisco: our cold season is now, when it's foggy and windy all day every day. So not much sun.
With the computer running all day and night, and not enough sun to really fully charge the batteries in the day time, the batteries got down to 12.1 volts for the first time ever. The yellow warning light came on to the charge controller.
Today I'm in full sun, trying to recover from this error. The solar panels are pulling 11 amps, and the battery is STILL not charged at 11AM, and the yellow warning light is still on.
I'm going to get off of the computer now and let the batteries charge up all afternoon, in the hope that by late afternoon they'll be back up to their customary happy 14.1 volts, and the charge controller will be buzzing like an angry bee, which is what it does when the batteries are full up and there's tons of sunlight streaming onto the panels.
I hope it will, anyway. It'll be an interesting experiment.
Sorry, batteries. Didn't mean to pound on you so hard.
UPDATE: Well after a full day of 11 amps, the batteries STILL did not fully charge! I shut everything down, and now after a foggy morning at about 6 amps, and an afternoon that's starting to clear and a few hours of 11 amps, I'm finally seeing 13.8V and the controller is finally starting to buzz and whine as it does when the batteries are nearing full charge. Still no 14.1 volts yet, though, and that's full charge. I hope to get there within a few hours.
UPDATE 2: It took THREE days. It is May 29, and, after sitting it in full 11-amp sun, and not using anything electrical all morning long, by early afternoon the thing was FINALLY up to 14.1 volts. Very happy that it got there. Tonight when the sun went down the batteries were at 13.1 volts, which is the normal "start point" for the evening for me. Usually after many hours of nighttime computer use, by the time I go to sleep the batts are at 12.7 volts.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Peace Go With Ya Brother
It's raining. In May! This does not often happen.
I'm up late, reading the news, about the price of gas escalating, and the collapse of the housing market, and a possibly fatal crisis of the fiat money system, and the skyrocketing prices of food, and a dramatic raise in the price of biodiesel I'm paying, and just worrying about very hard times ahead. Not just how I will survive, but how everyone will. I'm reading a story about a Russian researcher who's uncovered evidence that suggests that nearly 7 million people starved to death in the USA between 1931 and 1932, using the same methodology that Russians recently used to uncover the starvation of the Ukranians (some history which the Communists suppressed) during the same period. I'm slowly processing the realization that this country will soon go through a convulsion that will make the Great Depression look like happy days.
I had parked in a place that felt sketchy to me. Too close to all-night activity. I was worried that I'd snore and then someone would call the cops (how can you be "stealthy" if you snore??!). I was going to stay up and then sleep in, so that my snoring would be covered by daytime activity.
It's getting close to 4AM, the Time That Bad Things Happen To Me In My Van.
I'm just about to go to bed. And then, at 3:45AM, I feel it... the van is moving from side to side! WTF? It wasn't windy. Wait, I know what that is... someone is climbing in to my van! I slam on the wall really hard. It doesn't stop anything... still more van shaking. Then the door to the box opens! Someone is not only in my cab, but trying to get in here to where I'm sitting! HEY!!! I yell, as loud as I can. I grab a big, thick flashlight (good for seeing-- or bludgeoning someone into unconsciousness). Someone in a dark coat closes the sliding door, climbs out, leaves the van, and closes the driver's side door. I hear him walking away. It's still raining. Who would be so brazen as to break in to a vehicle, and then just WALK away?
I spend a few minutes collecting myself. I resist the urge to go chase him down. After the raw, animal territorial fight instinct has dissipated, I realize that my van doesn't start so well, and I could be a sitting duck there turning the crank trying to start it. Hmm. I wait a few more minutes, thinking, and looking through my surveillance portals. I see a figure lumbering away, but slowly and with no apparent destination. WTF again?
So I take my flashlight, and climb into the driver's seat, and the thing starts right up. Whew.
The figure who apparently tried to break into my van, is shuffling along, a block away. I decide to leave the neighborhood, but feel compelled to go towards this guy instead of flee from him. Now that I've calmed down, I'm more curious, and no longer angry or afraid anymore.
The guy looks over his shoulder at me. He crosses and uncrosses the street. Then I figure it out. He has nowhere to go! He's not a car thief; he's homeless. It's raining. He was looking for a dry place to sleep. How did he get in though? Did I leave the door unlocked? That would have been very stupid of me, but possible. It was wet, and raining. Maybe the guy thought this was an abandoned van he could curl up in or a few hours to stay dry? And my whole feeling towards this guy changed. I felt a tremendous sympathy for him. I'm not that different from him. I kept hearing in my head the Gil-Scott Heron song "Peace Go With You Brother" (this link might work still: http://o-dub.com/sounds/soulsides/peacegowith.mp3 ), one of his lesser-known songs, and one I've been thinking about a lot lately.
I find a new place to park, a few blocks away, in a different direction from the one he was wandering in. I step out and look at the outside of the vehicle. No signs of break in; the lock appears not to have been tampered with. I guess I left it unlocked; how very stupid. I'd better be a lot more cautious about that.
The cab smells awful, vaguely of human feces. I feel itchy all over. Yep, that was it. Homeless guy, trying to stay dry. Suddenly I feel very lucky, very privileged, very rich, in my van. And very guilty for having been so vicious and territorial towards someone in such a hard situation.
I hope he makes it through the night OK. I definitely didn't want him in my van at 4AM, but I really regret not having found some other way to have helped him.
Peace go with ya, brother.
I'm up late, reading the news, about the price of gas escalating, and the collapse of the housing market, and a possibly fatal crisis of the fiat money system, and the skyrocketing prices of food, and a dramatic raise in the price of biodiesel I'm paying, and just worrying about very hard times ahead. Not just how I will survive, but how everyone will. I'm reading a story about a Russian researcher who's uncovered evidence that suggests that nearly 7 million people starved to death in the USA between 1931 and 1932, using the same methodology that Russians recently used to uncover the starvation of the Ukranians (some history which the Communists suppressed) during the same period. I'm slowly processing the realization that this country will soon go through a convulsion that will make the Great Depression look like happy days.
I had parked in a place that felt sketchy to me. Too close to all-night activity. I was worried that I'd snore and then someone would call the cops (how can you be "stealthy" if you snore??!). I was going to stay up and then sleep in, so that my snoring would be covered by daytime activity.
It's getting close to 4AM, the Time That Bad Things Happen To Me In My Van.
I'm just about to go to bed. And then, at 3:45AM, I feel it... the van is moving from side to side! WTF? It wasn't windy. Wait, I know what that is... someone is climbing in to my van! I slam on the wall really hard. It doesn't stop anything... still more van shaking. Then the door to the box opens! Someone is not only in my cab, but trying to get in here to where I'm sitting! HEY!!! I yell, as loud as I can. I grab a big, thick flashlight (good for seeing-- or bludgeoning someone into unconsciousness). Someone in a dark coat closes the sliding door, climbs out, leaves the van, and closes the driver's side door. I hear him walking away. It's still raining. Who would be so brazen as to break in to a vehicle, and then just WALK away?
I spend a few minutes collecting myself. I resist the urge to go chase him down. After the raw, animal territorial fight instinct has dissipated, I realize that my van doesn't start so well, and I could be a sitting duck there turning the crank trying to start it. Hmm. I wait a few more minutes, thinking, and looking through my surveillance portals. I see a figure lumbering away, but slowly and with no apparent destination. WTF again?
So I take my flashlight, and climb into the driver's seat, and the thing starts right up. Whew.
The figure who apparently tried to break into my van, is shuffling along, a block away. I decide to leave the neighborhood, but feel compelled to go towards this guy instead of flee from him. Now that I've calmed down, I'm more curious, and no longer angry or afraid anymore.
The guy looks over his shoulder at me. He crosses and uncrosses the street. Then I figure it out. He has nowhere to go! He's not a car thief; he's homeless. It's raining. He was looking for a dry place to sleep. How did he get in though? Did I leave the door unlocked? That would have been very stupid of me, but possible. It was wet, and raining. Maybe the guy thought this was an abandoned van he could curl up in or a few hours to stay dry? And my whole feeling towards this guy changed. I felt a tremendous sympathy for him. I'm not that different from him. I kept hearing in my head the Gil-Scott Heron song "Peace Go With You Brother" (this link might work still: http://o-dub.com/sounds/soulsides/peacegowith.mp3 ), one of his lesser-known songs, and one I've been thinking about a lot lately.
I find a new place to park, a few blocks away, in a different direction from the one he was wandering in. I step out and look at the outside of the vehicle. No signs of break in; the lock appears not to have been tampered with. I guess I left it unlocked; how very stupid. I'd better be a lot more cautious about that.
The cab smells awful, vaguely of human feces. I feel itchy all over. Yep, that was it. Homeless guy, trying to stay dry. Suddenly I feel very lucky, very privileged, very rich, in my van. And very guilty for having been so vicious and territorial towards someone in such a hard situation.
I hope he makes it through the night OK. I definitely didn't want him in my van at 4AM, but I really regret not having found some other way to have helped him.
Peace go with ya, brother.
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