Here in North America, it’s spring and temperatures are warming up.  It’s the time of year where we know summertime is just around the corner.

My house has central AC, handled by a big heat pump. The unit is only about 4 years old, and is relatively efficient.

It’s great that with a heat pump you can buy one device and it can then provide you with warmth in the winter and cool air in the summer. But that also means it takes a beating, working hard essentially all year long.

I like it to be cold in my bedroom when I sleep. Like around 65 or 68F.

That means during the height of summer, I work my heat pump pretty hard. Ignoring the electricity costs, which can be pretty high during really cold or really hot months, I hate beating on this big expensive heat pump, knowing that it will cost a fortune to replace or repair once it wears out.

A few years ago, I started dabbling with solar power as a hobby.

I’m no expert, but I’ve learned lots of tricks and tips and secrets. I’m pretty frugal by nature, so one of the things I’ve learned is how to get the most solar bang for my buck.

The last couple of years, I’ve been air conditioning my house almost exclusively with solar. That makes it essentially free. And it takes a huge load/burden off my heat pump.

My Setup

I have 3 main parts to my setup. I will go into detail for each element separately a bit later. But at a high level…

Solar panels – these generate the free power I use to power my AC
Portable power station – this takes the power from the solar panels, converts it to AC to run my AC, and also stores it
Air conditioner – this keeps me cool!

Although there’s a certain amount of flexibility, you have to coordinate these 3 things in a way that ensures they work well together.

So I’ll guide you through my specifics, but understand that there are a million different ways to skin this cat, and no single way will be ideal for everybody.

Air Conditioner

I started this experiment out a couple of years ago with a el-cheapo used air conditioner I bought off Facebook Marketplace.

Since then, I have upgraded to a new unit I bought off Amazon.

You will be limited in size to more or less 5,000 BTU’s. The reason for this is a larger air conditioner will use more power, driving up the cost of the other equipment (the solar panels and the power station).

Generally, 5k BTU’s will cool about 150 square feet. But I use it to cool my bedroom, which is more like 300 square feet.

How well-insulated your space is, how hot your location gets, all these will factor into how effective this will be.

I run my little AC unit wide open pretty much all day/night, so this helps keep things frosty! And for the most part I’ll keep my bedroom, bathroom, and even closet door shut to maximize performance.

I’ve had good luck with this Midea unit. It’s reasonably efficient, with a CEER of 11.0. You can assume it will use about 450 watts. I will do a bit of math later on where this will be important.

Here’s the Midea MAW05M1BWT owner’s manual…

Solar Panels

I purchased 8 used solar panels off Facebook Marketplace. They are Trina 230 watt panels.

I wired 4 in series, creating two different groups that I then wired in parallel.

The total installed wattage of 8x 230 watt panels should be 1,840 watts. But of course they don’t output to their maximum all the time.

I have plenty of property, and zero interest in bolting/screwing anything to my roof. So my panels are ground mounted.

You can spend a lot or a little on mounts. In my case, I used some free pallets and pallet wood to create a base and adjustable kickstands. This is very basic, and free. I have had zero issues with wind or weather. There is a bit of inconvenience related to trimming and mowing since the panels are fairly close to the ground.

Portable Power Station

I use a Bluetti AC200L.

It has an extremely safe, quite durable lithium iron phosphate battery, with a 2,048 watt-hour capacity.

Its inverter can supply 2,400 watts continuous, or 3,600 watts intermittently which is more than enough for my AC unit.

And it can take up to 1,200 watts of solar power.

So let’s do a little math.

If my AC unit uses about 450 watts running wide open, and the Bluetti has a 2,048 watt-hour battery, that means the Bluetti could run my AC unit for 4.5 hours continuously (or 2,048 divided by 450).

In reality, after the sun goes down, the AC unit doesn’t have to work as hard to keep my bedroom at 68 degrees, so it tends to cycle on and off. Depending on time of year and temps, that reduces its power usage and means the battery stretches out to more like 6 or 7 hours.

But the Bluetti also has a pass through function that I can easily set/adjust with their app. This is really nice, as it allows me to set up my system to run off battery for as long as it can and then simply switch over to powering it from the all outlet (when or if that even becomes necessary).

Because the Bluetti unit can take 1200 watts of solar, and the AC unit is only using 450 watts, on a sunny day the system can both recharge the battery and run the AC at the same time.

The solar panel setup I mentioned above is able to more or less max out the Bluetti’s input capacity starting mid to early morning and keep it there until the evening as the sun starts setting.

I have used one of Bluetti’s AC200P units in the past. There was nothing wrong with it, but the AC200L is a giant step forward.

There are two big reasons I so strongly prefer the 200L.

The first is the upgraded solar capacity. The 200P has 700 watt solar capacity, while the 200L has 1200W. This is a huge improvement, and a big deal.

If my load is 450 watts (from the window AC unit), and the power station can only take in 700 watts from solar, that means at times it can only charge the battery with the 250 watt surplus. This can take a long time, and during periods when it’s cloudy might mean it’s not charging at all.

But with a 1200 watt input vs the 450 watt load, now it has a 750 watt surplus, which gives me a lot more extra capacity and peace of mind.

The other big thing is the integration of the 200L with Bluetti’s app, which unlocks a lot of different abilities. Not only can I remotely monitor and control it, but I can also use a “pass through” power option that allows me to maximize the savings of a solar/battery setup without risking interruption once battery power is exhausted.

I run the power cables from the solar panels to the Bluetti using a fairly simple setup with cable entry glands not unlike what you might find on a boat.

I use connectors on both the inside and the outside of the wall to make this very modular. Because I also use the setup in the wintertime to provide some extra (free) heat, I have one of these glands plumbed into my downstairs, and also one upstairs in my bedroom.

Free AC

Considering the capacity of this system, and the cost of electricity in this area running around $0.13 per KWh, it can offset around $2 or $3 per day from my power bill. Considering I spent around $1k or $1,500 for the system, that’s not a bad pay back. $1500 divided by $3 per day would be 500 days, or 1.3 years.

But it also saves wear and tear on my heat pump. And just as importantly, it allows me to get it nice and cool in my bedroom during the summer months for optimal/comfortable sleep without really abusing my central AC unit.

And in that way, it’s also “guilt-free”!

If you have a question about my setup or want to tell me about yours, please feel free to leave a comment below.

I was recently hired to do some brush and tree maintenance on a trail.

The trail is three miles long. It starts at a public parking lot here in my hometown, and winds its way up through some pretty rough country.

Much of the trail is not accessible by any type of motorized vehicle.

The city hired me to cut down some risky trees, saw up and clear some previously fallen trees, and clear away any brush that was closing in on the trail.

This took me several weeks. Although it was quite a bit of work, I found it really enjoyable.

This was the first time I’ve tackled a job like this. I learned so much!

A few lessons I’ll share with you…

1) You can never have too much water. Well, okay, if you took a zillion gallons and the weight was more than you could carry, of course that would be too much. My point here is doing all that hard work will make you sweat, and you are going to need to hydrate.

2) A saw that’s too big is not ideal for this type of job. Using more fuel than you need is a terrible idea if you have to backpack in all of your supplies. I used a small 16″ Husqvarna saw to keep things light and make fuel use manageable. I’ll have to remember to review the saw for you sometime.

3) Pack some toilet paper. I don’t want to get too personal here, but in some cases I was an hour or hour and a half walk from the truck. At even then, I would have to drive to a nearby gas station or store to find a bathroom. That’s not going to work, guys! I packed some TP, and when I had to go I did so behind a tree.

One piece of equipment that I found very hand for this type of work is a chainsaw backpack.

I guess they are a bit of a niche product, made popular by firefighters who have to carry their chainsaws for long distances.

If you have a big piece of property or a trail that is not accessible by vehicle or even UTV, this type of carrying solution is exactly what you need.

True North Chainsaw Backpack – Review

I purchased this knowing that carrying my chainsaw, fuel, water, and axe was going to be very difficult towards the back side of the trail (3 miles away from my truck).

Although it is a solid piece of equipment, the True North pack is not overly heavy. It weighs in at just 5.5 lbs.

The straps and pouches are made from nylon webbing and a type of extreme-duty synthetic material.

The pack has shoulder straps as well as a waist strap. They are double-padded thick, and the thing is fairly comfortable. I mean, you are strapping a bunch of heavy stuff to your back, so it’s not like taking a nap on your couch, but they have really thought the design through for both comfort and strength.

This thing is pretty much everything-proof. I sweated on it, drug it through heavy branches and briar patches, and tossed it in the back of my truck bed.

I guess one criticism is the heavy duty material is pretty rough, and tends to collect mud and debris. I actually used a garden hose and a soft bristled brush to clean my periodically.

They don’t list a weight capacity, but I figured my back would probably give out before this pack would!

It has 3 pouches – one for fuel, one for water, and one for miscellaneous. It also has an axe scabbard.

There is a leather reinforcement on top of one of the straps which protects the strap when you carry your saw or a big nasty piece of wood on your shoulder. I thought that was a pretty innovative feature.

It is basically one size fits all. All of the straps are adjustable. I’m a pretty bulky guy, and it fit me just fine. Maybe if you’re more than 300 lbs or less than 100 lbs it could give you some trouble, but outside of that it was just the right size.

I used True North’s chainsaw backpack for a solid two weeks.

I walked somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 miles with it fully loaded on my back.

I put it on and took it off dozens of times per day, and never once did I take it easy on it or give it a break.

I think True North developed this specifically for commercial firefighters who needed a dependable, fool proof way to backpack their saws over rough terrain… and it shows.

If you’re in the market for something like this, I don’t think you can go wrong with their product!

These days I stay pretty busy as a local handyman.

Rarely a day goes by that I’m not cutting something up with a chainsaw, but I tend to get my hands on a lot of different types of equipment, as you’ve probably noticed reading over my reviews here on the site.

Recently, I was hired by a local to pour a concrete walk and storage area for their trash cans.

I am definitely not a concrete expert, but I’ve done a few projects before. When you look at a project this small, it really doesn’t make sense to hire a concrete team. Anything less than a full truck load of cement makes them very cost inefficient. So that leaves do-it-yourselfers like me to mix concrete a bag at a time.

The local hardware place wanted $60 per day to rent out a cement mixer. I thought it would take me probably a day and a half, and when you look at transport time and cost, it was going to cost me right at $150 to rent one. It was apparently I could buy an inexpensive one for not much more than that, so I pulled the trigger!

Fenbeli 4.2 Cubic Foot Cement Mixer Features

You can find cement mixers as small as 1.6 cubic feet. Of course the smaller the machine, the less expensive it is. But you will ultimately be slowed down by how many batches of cement you have to mix up. Since what I was pouring was larger than just a few feet, I bought basically the biggest electric mixer I could find.

I’m not going to lie, assembly sucked!

The thing came in a box completely disassembled. I am pretty mechanically inclined, so it wasn’t that hard to figure out. There’s just a lot of parts and it takes a lot of time. That’s three hours of my life I will never get back.

I didn’t expect many features at this low price point. But Fenbeli baked a few into their mid-level cement mixer that I was happy about.

First, let’s acknowledge this is electric. The motor that spins the rotating drum is powered via standard 110/120 volt outlets. I have used gasoline powered mixers before, and I didn’t want one of those. You are constantly having to add fuel, rut out to a gas station, tinker with the carb, etc.

Having an electric one could be a drawback if your jobsite is far away from an outlet. In my case, I just ran a long extension cord around the corner of the house, and I was set.

Pro tip: You always want to position your cement mixer as close to, or actually IN the jobsite, as possible!

Also, it has 10″ solid rubber wheels. You guys know from my previous comments about wheelbarrows that I hate flat tires. They have a way of showing up when you are ill-equipped to fix them, and in a big hurry. Solid tires are much more expensive, but they are a good guarantee against flats, so this gets two thumbs up from me.

Lastly, they designed this with a good, wide base, so it’s stable. When you are tossing 80 lb bags of concrete in there, you don’t want something that sits like a house of cards in a hurricane.

Rotating the handle around to dump the barrel of contents into a wheelbarrow, or ideally inside the concrete forms themselves, is a simple matter. The wide base, solid tires, and flanged support leg make this quick and easy.

My Review

My initial impression was the Fenbeli unit was good quality. It is made of reasonably thick, high quality steel. The parts line up and go together well. It seems to be well-designed, carefully packaged, and they weren’t cutting corners or scrimping on the basics.

+ Solid and stable
+ Seems durable
+ Easy to use
+ Just the right size!

– Assembly sucks
– Hard to clean
– Not a lot of good storage options

I have made some notes above summarizing my thoughts about the mixer.

Regarding my criticisms, some of these aren’t exactly fair.

Clean-up for any cement mixer is painful. Even if you go old-school and mix in a wheelbarrow with a hoe, getting the leftovers cleaned out of your wheelbarrow always seems to take forever.

Maybe Fenbeli’s mixer is about the same as all of them. But it did seem like the powder coat orange paint they used was a little rougher than it needed to be, and I wondered if that encouraged the leftover concrete dregs to adhere to the surface that much more strongly.

Plus, like any other mixer of this type, once you are finished using it, storing it isn’t ideal. I wanted to keep mine out of the rain and weather, so it’s occupying a spot in my shop, where space always seems to be at a premium.

More Stuff You’ll Need

Let me save you some time and tell you all of the other stuff you’re going to need while you’re at it.

If you skip over some of this stuff, depending on what type of job you’re trying to do, it will mean you have to stop and head back to the hardware store for the stuff you forgot.

I hate unscheduled interruptions!

Bucket – You will want a 5 gallon bucket or two. Most big box hardware stores like Home Depot or Lowe’s sell these pretty cheap.
Extension cord – Hopefully you’ll be reasonably close to an electrical outlet. I keep a 100 foot outdoor cord handy, similar to this.
Gloves – You don’t want to go commando here. I like using chemical resistant gloves, preferably PVC coated. Mine are similar to these.
Finishing trowel – An 11″x4″ is pretty standard, like this one.
Float – There are a lot of different options for floats. Some people swear by magnesium floats.
Edger – I tend to use a small edger. But it doesn’t hurt to have several different sizes.
Bag/kit – The best way to keep all of these tools together is to throw them in your concrete kit back… or just buy one to start with!
Snips – If you are going to use wire mesh for reinforcement, you’ll need some side cutters. Link
Angle grinder – You will not be cutting rebar with snips! Easier to just throw an angle grinder with a cutoff wheel in the bag.
Shovels – Yes, you need shovels. All kinds of shovels. Pointy ones, flat ones, short ones, long ones!
Hammer – For the forms, you’ll use a hammer to attach the stakes to the form boards.

My twenty year old air compressor finally gave up the ghost.

I don’t use an air compressor constantly, but I need something better than the little pancake jobs that provide only a gentle breeze.

I needed to replace my old one with something beefy! I shopped for a while, focusing mainly on 80 gallon options.

What Kind of Air Compressor Do I Need?

Here’s the rundown on air compressor specs, and how to interpret them.

The “gallon” refers to the size of the tank. This is like a battery. The bigger the volume of the tank, the longer the compressor can run a tool before the motor kicks on.

The motors are typically rated for two things: horsepower and cfm.

The amount of horsepower it has is related to its maximum psi. Typically larger motors have more power, that means they can generate more air pressure and flow more air.

The air flow itself is measured in cubic feet per minute, or cfm.

You will want to pick an air compressor that is compatible with the type of tools you run.

Air Tool CFM Chart

Tool Description	CFM @ 90 PSI
Angle Grinder 7"	5-8
Brad nailer	0.4
Chisel or hammer	4-12
Cut-off tool	4-10
Drill	3-6
Dual action sander	11-13
Framing nailer	2.2
Grease gun	4
Hydraulic riveter	4
3/8" impact gun	2.5-3.5
1/2" impact gun	4-5
1" impact gun	10
Mini die grinder	4-6
Orbital sander	6-9
Paint gun	12 (@60 psi)

There are single and dual-stage compressors. You will find single stage are more entry-level, while two-stage compressors are more costly and higher performing.

Basically, the 2-stage compressors do more and do it more efficiently than single stage. But that comes at increased complexity and cost of components, meaning you have to pay more.

I wanted a 2-stage because a) I wanted something a little beefier, and b) I’m ‘Merican and we like big-honkin’ high-horsepower things!

What did I buy?

Ingersoll Rand 7.5 HP 80 Gallon Air Compressor – My Review

Ingersoll Rand is pretty well known in the air compressor world.

Air compressors are somewhat like engines in that they use pistons and cylinders to compress and move air around. A certain amount of precision is required.

I wanted a name brand rather than generic, and I wanted something made in the USA with a warranty that I could trust.

The 7.5 HP unit 2-stage, and is listed as their part number 2475N7.5. Its specs:
Country of Origin Made in USA
Air Delivery SCFM At 90 PSI 24 CFM 175 PSI
Airflow Volume 24 CFM Maximum Power and Flexibility: 100% continuous duty, 7.5 HP two-stage air compressor, 175 PSIg maximum operating pressure and an 80 gal. ASME receiver tank provide plenty of punch for the most demanding applications
Air Outlet Size 0.25 in.
Compressor Horsepower 7.5 HP
Compressor Maximum PSI 175 PSI
Compressor Tank Capacity 80 gal
Compressor Type Vertical
Compressor Voltage 230V
Drain System Manual
Drive Type 1 Phase – Electrical Vertical Tank Mounted 7.50 HP – Air Compressor Stationary Air Compressor, 80 gal.
Features The air compressor has a durable cast iron pump that is designed to provide 15,000 hours of trouble-free use.
Number Of Power Speeds Single
Number Of Wheels 0
Power Type Electric
Primary Color Brown
Primary Material Cast Iron
Product Height 76 in.
Product Length 48 in.
Product Weight 609 lb.
Product Width 40 in.
Pump Material Cast iron
Tank Fill Time 0 minutes
Tank Orientation Vertical
Warranty 1 Year
Manufacturer Part Number 2475N7.5

If you want to check out Ingersoll Rand’s brochure for this model, you can CLICK HERE. If you want to download a copy of their owner’s manual, you can CLICK HERE.

This thing is really heavy, 609 lbs! Rather than trying to get several people over here to help me load and unload, I decided to just have it delivered right to my doorstep.

Note that this thing is 230 volt, so if you don’t have 230V available in your garage, you may need to consider a different option.

It arrived in a big crate, and I made quick work of uncrating it and moving it into it’s final position with a dolly and some grunting and shoving.

It is fairly loud, which is to be expected for a unit of this size. Speaking of which, that’s the other drawback – it takes up a lot of floorspace.

It is roughly the same size as my previous compressor, so again this is not unexpected.

Wiring and plumbing were easy, and I got the oil and filter kit for the smoothest startup. It fills the tank pretty quickly with that giant, 2-stage motor. No leaks and no problem keeping up with my shop tools.

I have had the beast for about two months now. As I said in the beginning, I don’t need something for daily, continuous use, and I probably over-bought. They claim it is designed for a 15,000 hour lifetime. It is a really nice piece of equipment, and it gives me a piece of mind that I bought a high-quality American brand with a warranty.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever lugged a heavy, noisy, vibrating string trimmer all over God’s green earth and then had a backache that evening.

And… all hands go up!

Chainsaws can wear your back out too, of course, but what if there was special kind of chainsaw that rested it’s weight on the ground so that you didn’t have to wear yourself out carrying its load?

Wheeled string trimmers are pretty rare pieces of equipment. They usually only sit out on the salesfloor at rural dealers or maybe a Farm And Fleet. They are not popular at all in the suburbs, and that’s for a reason.

They are really made for cutting acreage. And even then, depending on your terrain and what you’re trying to cut, they may not be suitable.

But they are perfect for long fence lines, or long ditches.

After mulling it over for years, I finally bought a wheeled string trimmer last summer. What did I get, and what is my honest opinion of it? Read on…

Toro 22″ 58620 Specs

Briggs & Stratton 163 cc engine
4-cycle
22″ cutting path
14″ large wheels
Foldable, tool-less handle height/angle adjustment
Steel deck
2/5 year warranty
0.26 gallon fuel tank

If you are looking for it, I have uploaded the owner’s manual and you can find it ->> HERE

My Review

This 22″ trimmer from Toro came in a medium-sized, heavy box. It was right at 80 lbs, so speaking of back pain, keep that in mind if you are going to load one in your truck/SUV at the store, or if you are ordering one.

Assembly was pretty easy, and only took a few minutes. The handle height can be set to your liking. It is tool-less, but that’s less of a benefit for adjusting on the fly and more about dropping the handle down to take up less space in your shed or your garage.

Toro includes a little discharge guard that mounts to the side. This seems to help keep some of the debris off your legs and shoes.

They also include engine oil. Like your pushmower, this thing is 4-stroke. That means you don’t mix oil in the fuel (which is handy), but you do put oil in the crankcase. My point in mentioning this… don’t forget the oil! If you do, your engine won’t last very long.

The “string” is actually a thick cord. It snaps into place and is easily replaceable.

The healthy B&S engine starts right up with one pull of the cord. What black magic is this??

I wouldn’t call this thing quiet, but it is a big quieter than most gas powered push mowers.

I found that it had plenty of horsepower to cut through even the thickest and tallest weed patches. If you run it up against something that is just too thick for it to cut, the strings beat it up a little bit and just keep going. This thing is not prone to bogging down.

Yes, the 80 lb package weight surprised me, and made me a little apprehensive. After all, it was the weight of must handheld string trimmers that I was trying to avoid with this purchase.

But once you plop this thing on the ground on it’s giant 14″ wheels, it practically floats along, offering little in the way of resistance. Much easier on the back! In fact, about the only thing I felt like it was missing to be a true luxury is a beer holder and air conditioning (ha ha).

There were overgrown patches that were waist high, and this thing just rips right through them.

I did encounter some sections of blackberry brambles. Those vines are thick, and give it a bit more trouble. But it’s still way more powerful and effective than a handheld trimmer.

I found the strings to be quite durable. I cut along a fence line for probably 200 yards, and then I spent another hour cutting along a ditch that was probably 4′ wide by another 100 or 150 yards long.

I have noticed if you cut along a brick or concrete wall, that seems to be the hardest on the strings, and wears them out a little faster.

I didn’t time myself, but I am guessing there was maybe a 10% improvement in efficiency as compared to do it with my handheld trimmer. The 22″ diameter certainly helps, but then you offset that against slightly less maneuverability – pushing the thing on the ground rather than pivoting at your hip with a regular trimmer. And you also still have to take care not to bash into things, it’s not like I was in a race.

I have tried a Craftsman, and felt like it didn’t track straight. I have tried an off-brand, but it was hard to start. The Toro really impressed me, and I’m happy with the purchase.

I give the Toro 2 thumbs up!