Dang leaves and
BobJudy
Member Posts: 6,628 ✭✭✭✭
pine needles season. Some of you may remember from my posting about having some trees removed, that I still have a bunch left. Yesterday, we had a lot of wind and while watching the pine needles and the leaves blowing around, I figured I better get ready to get them picked up. Got out the cyclone rake and changed the oil, gassed it up and it started on the second pull. Then I noticed the tube frame that holds the collection bag was sagging and found it had broken where a hole was drilled for a brace. Traced the frame down and found another spot where it attached to the trailer was about to let go as well. Almost 20 years of use can produce stress fractures in thin walled aluminum I guess. I found some thick walled PVC that fit really snug in the conduit and patched the breaks from the inside. O.k. that turned a 20 min Job into an hour and a half.
Next, I got out my trusty 15 year old leaf blower, gassed it up, pushed the priming bulb, gave the cord a pull and it ran for 10 seconds and quit. After monkeying around with for a while I found a split in the fuel line on the side that wasn't visible where it attached to the carb. Too short to cut off the bad end, pretty much welded where it goes into the tank with some kind of epoxy so I can't remove and replace. Screw it, it's 15 years old, so off to the store I go and buy a 40v blower that Judy liked because it is light and she can use it to blow off the deck year around. While there I was still thinking about fixing the old one and bought a tube of PermaGasket silicone and when I got home used it to seal the split in the line and a bit around the nipple on the carb that the line attached to. Let it cure overnight and an hour ago put a little gas in it and it started on the first pull and ran great.
So, what should have been a total of 25 mins work for the 2 things took 24 hours, a trip to the store, $150 for a blower that Judy won't let me return and $5 for the silicone. I wonder how much the next "simple" chore will cost me?😡 Bob
Comments
Been there, done that. What make blower you get?
Murphy's law always applies…..
Greenworks, because it uses the same battery as my pole saw. Actually puts out more air, 120mph and 500cfm, than my 15 year old Ryobi does. If I remember from back when I bought it, it was one of the more powerful hand held blowers at 100mph and 300cfm. Now it is outclassed by a battery powered one, but will run all day on gas instead of 20 minutes per battery charge with the new one. Bob
Feel your frustration
I've been there and got the T-shirt, LOL
And odds are will not the last time
never fails a simple job, then hours of repair or pars chasing to get it done .. ohh it's just so great when it happens
Nice. See there, you came out ahead?
Wellll… yeah, Judy can now help because she doesn't have to lug around the heavier gas blower! 😁 Bob
Stress fractures in aluminum due to fatigue are unpredictable and common because it has no endurance limit.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
The good thing about Michiganders, they adapt well. Take it as it comes.
@BobJudy I bought my Cyclone Rake used & don't know how old it is. Last year the engine ran but it stopped picking up. The impeller was worn down to a nub. You can't buy just the impeller without the housing & frame, etc. So I replaced all and now it really SUCKS.
My impeller is a bit worn but haven't seen much of a slow down in its abilities yet. That surprises me because of the thousands and thousands of pine cones that have gone through it! The boss, Judy, convinced me to buy the Cyclone rake way back when and I have been thankful we got that sucker ever since. Every once in a while she comes up with a really good idea. 😁 Bob
I opted for a manual pull behind "Sweeper" for fall cleanup around my place. It does OK as long as the leaves and pine needles are DRY. After a rain, it takes a day or two of warmth and sunshine to get back to it.
Living in the woods out in the boonies, I can get away with minimal removal. Last year when my lawn tractor bit the dust, I just let things go and did nothing. All the downed debris just seemed to dissipate mostly on its own and then got mowed (on the new tractor) into fine mulch that the lawn seemed to like this season.
I saw a video yesterday….a guy laid a tarp on the ground….folded it in half so it would be a large triangle….then tied the grommet holes together, leaving it open on one of the small ends. He affixed the open end to his riding mower's leaf basket so it dragged behind him while riding and the tarp "bag" blew up like a long balloon. It filled with mulched leaves and such making it where he could do his entire yard instead of having to constantly dump the leaves.
Things always take longer than they do !! 😂
I was against getting a battery trimmer/blower since we had a nice commercial 4 stroke one. But, even though it ALWAYS starts by the 3rd pull, she still wanted it. Now that we've had the electric one for a full season, I'll say they actually coexist quite well. We have 10 acres and I don't run the trimmer every time, but when I do, it takes about 4 hours. This way, she can run hers for about an hour until the batteries die which is about when she is done too. We also get a lot of leaves and acorns this time of year and I'll admit it is nice to just grab the electric for a quick sweep of the sidewalk rather than going to the shop for the gas powered one, checking the oil, topping off the gas, starting, and letting it warm up.
I've heard that in some areas the gas powered ones have been outlawed due to the loud noise they make. I believe they now have "mufflers" that can installed on these.
24 hours and 6 trips to Home Depot for a 20 minute repair? Yeah, that sounds about right.
I never rake up leaves. Been known to blow them back to neighbor. Most often just mow right over them and let them mulch into yard with the grass clippings.