Accomplishments

Now that I have been here in Hawaii for a few weeks, I guess it is time to stop and see just what I have accomplished.

Perhaps the most important is that I have my solar panel system set up. Previously, I had purchased a 100 watt solar system, but I have yet to set it up. I got the boxes out from under the shed and proceeded to put it together. The instructions said to connect the battery (batteries not included) to the charge controller before connecting the solar panels. It did not explain why, and I did not want to risk it, so I put it all back into the boxes and put them under the deck. I have not purchased any batteries yet. Tomorrow I will be in Hilo, and I will pick up a battery then. So, after returning from Hilo, where I purchased a deep cycle marine battery for $87.00 plus a $12 core charge, I got everything out again. I remembered that the instructions also said something about covering the solar panels so they would not be producing electricity until everything was hooked up, so I covered each panel with a piece of cardboard.

I hooked up the battery to the charge controller with the cables provided. A very simple connection – red for positive, and black for negative, and two set screws on the controller labled positive and negative. This powered up the controller which registered 12.4 volts in the battery. So far, so good.

I connected the two panels to the provided cables with the snap together connectors – no chance for error here – and then connected the cables to the controller. Again, two set screws labled positive and negative. Then I uncovered the solar panels and immediately the controller registered that there was power flowing from the panels to the battery. There are also two set screws for DC output – I connected a pair of low voltage lights to these two set screws. There is an on/off switch for DC output on the controller. I turned the switch to the on position and the lights came on – Success – I now have 100 watts of solar power. Progress!

I have been using two inflatable solar lights for light at night. Hopefully, I will be able to do something better with these solar panels. Not that these lights have not worked great, it is just that each day I had to remember to put them out somewhere in the sun to recharge.

A few times I would forget and had no light at night.

Additionally, I purchased a mini fridge. When I am in Hawaii, I need to buy a bag of ice every other day to keep things like milk and eggs and butter cold. I am hopeful the solar system would be able to operate the fridge with an inverter. I have a 300 watt inverter to convert the power from DC to AC. The inverter hooks up to the battery – red lead to the positive terminal, black lead to the negative. The problem I have had so far is that the solar panels are not in full direct sunlight, and many of the days I have been here, it has been overcast and raining. Additionally, 100 watts just isn’t quite enough. I was able to use the fridge maybe three days. I think I need additional solar panels. As I keep reminding myself, one thing at a time.

Another significant accomplishment is that I have bought a car – a 2008 Ford Escape. I bought it from a used car dealership in Hilo. The car has lots of miles on it, did not cost an arm and a leg, and is transportation. I have felt that each time I come and rent a car, that is money that could be spent on buying instead of renting, which to me is like throwing money away. However . . . owning a car brings other issues. The first issue is what to do with it when I am not here. Once the house is done, I will be able to lock it up under the house, but until then, . . . So, why not wait? Well, I will need a car when I build the house, so do I rent a car every time I come over? I figure that I have spent close to $2K on rental cars so far.

Also, cars need maintenance. This one needs tires. I am sitting outside a local tire dealer waiting for them to install two new tires. I could have rented a car for a week for the cost of the tires, but . . . Then there is always the liability of a rental car being damaged. Even if I buy the extra insurance which just increases the cost, any damage creates a major hassle. Finally, I bought it on 1-21-21. That seems like a good omen. Time will tell.

As part of the car ownership problem solving, I

have been working on lengthening the driveway. Currently it is only about 20 feet into the jungle which makes it about 10 feet into the property as the property line is 10 feet past the tree line at the edge of the road. I have much clearing along the road still to do. I think that if I could park the car far enough into the property, it will be safe to leave it here. I have cut out the vegetation – the easy part of this job – and have been working on removing a hump of boulders about 2 feet tall all interlocked together blocking the driveway. In order to remove the hump, I have been using a small sledge hammer and a 2 foot prybar. This is a lot of work. I have been loosening and digging out rocks that are 2 to 3 feet in diameter. A backhoe could accomplish in an hour, what I have spent over 4 hours doing. But I do not have a backhoe. But I have successfully removed the hump. Now I need some smaller stones and / or cinders.

The last time I was here, my next door neighbor had commented on some of my trees along the property line that were growing towards his house. He suggested that we could work together to cut out the ones he was concerned about. Most all the trees are hanging down and overgrown, and I would like to trim them all – especially the ones hanging over his property. I also need to thin them all out just to attempt to gain some sort of control over this jungle. Also, it might improve my view of the ocean.

So, without any other directions, I have started cutting in the area just above the shed. Cutting down anything that was extending over the fence line, or that might in the next year or so. I have been cutting it not just at the fence line, but all the way back to the trunk. Over the course of two days, I have thinned out a great deal of these trees, and created quite a pile of limbs on the ground. It’s time for the chipper. Have I mentioned that I really don’t like mechanical things?

Sunday afternoon I took the chipper apart to clear whatever was clogging the blade. Actually, it is quite simple. It just requires figuring out what to do, and then doing it. Kind of like anything else in life. I took apart a few bolts and the chipper came apart to expose the blades and the branch clogged in the blade. I dislodged this and put the chipper back together. Monday morning around 8 AM I started up the chipper, and ran branches through it for about 30 minutes – and it clogged again! Have I mentioned that I really don’t like mechanical things? So I took it apart again. This time was easier, as I knew what to do, and had broken the bolts free the last time. I cleaned out the clog and checked to make sure the blade would spin. Then I put it back together. I pulled on the started rope to start the 8 hp motor and the rope broke!

Have I mentioned that I really do not like mechanical things?

I removed the rope pulley and retrieved both pieces of the rope. Now I know the length of rope to buy when I am in Hilo. I have also removed both rubber tires from the rear axle, as they have both gone flat. I should probably fix these as well. Have I mentioned that I really don’t like mechanical things?

Back to what I have accomplished so far on this trip.

Previously, I had put roofing over three of the triangles that make up the shed roof. I ran out of materials to finish the last side. Yesterday, I put the last part of the roofing on this triangle – so the roof is now finished.

I have been installing 1/2″ and 3/8″ thick boards on the floor of the shed as the flooring. These boards I have removed from old pallets. Some of them appear to be oak. I have been installing them on a 45 degree angle for a little bit of a design. I am a little over 3/4 finished and I need more boards. I have a few more pallets that I can disassemble.

I have also been building concrete pillars for a porch on all the sides of the shed.

It will wrap all the way around the shed and have varying widths – 3 foot, 4 foot, 5 foot, and 6 foot. I am working on the 4 foot and 5 foot sides. I plan on using the 2 x 4 supports that I have removed from the pallets as the floor boards.

I may have to replace these with 2 x 6 material. This will be more expensive, as the 2 x 4’s are free.

The solar panels don’t seem to be able to keep up. I have quit trying to use the mini fridge because I keep getting an error message on the controller that the output is too large. I have added a second battery, but this does not seem to have helped. I think that I need to change the location so that they are more in the direct sunlight, or add more panels. The last few days have been stormy and overcast, so that might be part of the problem. Back to buying ice.