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I'm no expert but I assume that over time, as the dogs and cats get their scent all over everything in the vicinity, the prey animals are gonna seek less lethal pastures. The hunters of the prey animals will stop sniffing around looking for them, and in the end your house full of top predators will have established their overhunted territory pretty firmly. I'll guess that by this time next year you won't be finding much in the way of small mammal tracks on the ground near your house. Still the occasional deer or whatever, perhaps a few squirrels and other arboreal critters, but that's about it. If you want to be up close and personal with the panoply of native creatures found in the American wilderness, I think you can't also let a pack of dogs and a handful of cats run around all over the place. In nature, so many top predators would establish much larger territories and live in much lower concentration. Leperflesh fucked around with this message at 19:00 on Jan 25, 2013 |
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Jan 25, 2013 18:58
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apatite fucked around with this message at 14:09 on Aug 21, 2015 |
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Jan 25, 2013 20:52
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Leperflesh posted:I'm no expert but I assume that over time, as the dogs and cats get their scent all over everything in the vicinity, the prey animals are gonna seek less lethal pastures. The hunters of the prey animals will stop sniffing around looking for them, and in the end your house full of top predators will have established their overhunted territory pretty firmly. I'll guess that by this time next year you won't be finding much in the way of small mammal tracks on the ground near your house. Still the occasional deer or whatever, perhaps a few squirrels and other arboreal critters, but that's about it. Fisher, fox and coyote are not the least afraid of cats. Dogs, maybe. Depends on the dog. A fisher outweighs a cat by at least a factor 2 or 3 and is just as agile (if not more). Red Fox really likes cats. I've personally dug up a fox-grave containing at least 20 cat skeletons. Coyotes are just massive assholes, and will easily kill a small dog if no humans are around to protect it.
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Jan 25, 2013 21:26
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Sir Cornelius posted:Fisher, fox and coyote are not the least afraid of cats. Dogs, maybe. Depends on the dog. A fisher outweighs a cat by at least a factor 2 or 3 and is just as agile (if not more). Red Fox really likes cats. I've personally dug up a fox-grave containing at least 20 cat skeletons. Coyotes are just massive assholes, and will easily kill a small dog if no humans are around to protect it. He posted pictures of the dogs. A coyote may give them a run for their money in a straight up fight, but I doubt they'd stick around to find out. I think most of the predators in the area are going to be staying clear for the most part now the animals are there.
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Jan 25, 2013 21:42
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Delta-Wye posted:He posted pictures of the dogs. A coyote may give them a run for their money in a straight up fight, but I doubt they'd stick around to find out. I think most of the predators in the area are going to be staying clear for the most part now the animals are there. You're probably right. Coyote and fox might retreat once they smell the dogs. Weasels like the fisher probably won't give a drat though. It's active when the dogs sleep and the cats are awake. Releasing cats in the wilderness is generally a bad idea. They have a tendency to really gently caress up wildlife, even if they seem domesticated and cute. That or they stay cute and soon dead. Build a voliere like this for the cats  That'll keep the cats free from predators and keep the birds and small rodents on your land alive.
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Jan 25, 2013 22:05
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This is sort of relevant, and I just read it, so I wanna post it here: How Much do Cats Actually Kill The takeaway is that Sir Cornelius is right.
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Jan 25, 2013 22:53
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neogeo0823 posted:This is sort of relevant, and I just read it, so I wanna post it here: I've grown up in an area much similar to the OPs. Different longitude and continent though. I'm also a hunter and have been so since I was about 10 y.o.. That makes 37 years hunting. Hunting is far from just killing animals. Most of the work is conserving the biodiversity on your turf. Planting trees and regulating, feeding in the winter and generally trying to keep balance. Releasing cats, however domesticated, is generally bio-pollution. I've owned both cats and dogs, and love both. I will however not hesitate shooting a cat, domesticated or not, that hunts on my turf. So far it's about 150-0 to me, and that's probably why there's still pheasants where I grew up. Trained dogs can, kind of, behave on their own. Cats can not. Sir Cornelius fucked around with this message at 01:16 on Jan 26, 2013 |
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Jan 26, 2013 00:49
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apatite posted:We posted about winter pelt warming carpets at the same time. Surely this is some type of awesome sign of things to come. Line your walls with the skins of your enemies!  Drink home made mead from their bleached skulls in the sun!  Oh and hey, to link in some blacksmithing content that you were talking about in the other thread: if you are going to use mineral coal, make a side blast forge instead of bottom blast. Way less complicated to operate and build. Bottom blast is great if you're going to use mostly charcoal.
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Jan 26, 2013 07:21
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apatite posted:The cats won't be stuck inside the trailer all the time(I'd prefer them in there as little as possible), but right now they don't want to go out at all anyway. It has barely been above 0*F at all for the past week and they are allllllll about sleeping underneath/beside the woodstove like a bunch of lazy fuckers.  We also rely on some electric heaters to supplement the woodstove. One day it got pretty warm and found it had somehow got to be set to 90 degrees. Probably because the cat was sitting on the controls.  The cats are not allowed outside. The one is a pretty good mouser, though. She's keeping it under control in the cabin, at least. No killing outside the cabin, cats!
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Jan 26, 2013 20:39
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woodstove eggs
apatite fucked around with this message at 18:40 on Feb 16, 2016 |
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Jan 28, 2013 17:31
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I went walking in the woods on Saturday and took some pictures. I have to say it looks pretty similar to apatite's property. Many rabbit and deer tracks in the snow. Frozen stream:  tree growing on top of a rock:  Some rocks:  ice flow: 
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Jan 29, 2013 14:34
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Progress is progress
apatite fucked around with this message at 14:11 on Aug 21, 2015 |
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Jan 29, 2013 16:06
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I'm curious as to how the tankless water heater works out. I researched them a few months ago and it sounded like it wouldn't really work in this cold a climate (the incoming water temperature being too low).
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Jan 29, 2013 17:11
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Actuary X posted:I'm curious as to how the tankless water heater works out. I researched them a few months ago and it sounded like it wouldn't really work in this cold a climate (the incoming water temperature being too low). The specs claim 100*+ max temperature increase, and that is if you decrease the flow to 1gpm from the fully rated 3gpm. At full 3gpm it claims to do 60-70* rise, which still seems like plenty. With a 1.5gpm shower head the water should still get plenty hot for showering. The other cool thing is the only electricity it needs is two "D" cell batteries. And it's not a crazy cheapo one meant for outdoor use, it is actually vented to the outdoors via ducting and won't kill us all in our sleep, 5year warranty, etc. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Marey-3GPM-...=item4d0903b7e4 Only time will tell! (estimated delivery is tomorrow)
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Jan 29, 2013 17:37
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apatite posted:The specs claim 100*+ max temperature increase, and that is if you decrease the flow to 1gpm from the fully rated 3gpm. At full 3gpm it claims to do 60-70* rise, which still seems like plenty. With a 1.5gpm shower head the water should still get plenty hot for showering. The other cool thing is the only electricity it needs is two "D" cell batteries. And it's not a crazy cheapo one meant for outdoor use, it is actually vented to the outdoors via ducting and won't kill us all in our sleep, 5year warranty, etc. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Marey-3GPM-...=item4d0903b7e4 D cells? Seriously? How the hell does 2 D cells deliver enough energy to power a shower for any real time? NM: I misread. Ya, the lack of electrocution is a good feature.
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Jan 30, 2013 02:18
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apatite posted:The specs claim 100*+ max temperature increase, and that is if you decrease the flow to 1gpm from the fully rated 3gpm. At full 3gpm it claims to do 60-70* rise, which still seems like plenty. With a 1.5gpm shower head the water should still get plenty hot for showering. The other cool thing is the only electricity it needs is two "D" cell batteries. And it's not a crazy cheapo one meant for outdoor use, it is actually vented to the outdoors via ducting and won't kill us all in our sleep, 5year warranty, etc. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Marey-3GPM-...=item4d0903b7e4 I did not look at propane, only electric, and they did not have enough rise. Hope that works out well for you.
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Jan 30, 2013 12:42
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Actuary X: Did it get real warm at your place yesterday? We hit 60*F and I put a coat of poly urethane on the addition floor. Here's pics of the same spot, three days in a row (1/29, 1/30, 1/31)    And a different spot, with pics just from 1/29 and 1/31   Random pics       
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Jan 31, 2013 19:49
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Ha! That last pic, don't you wish. Do you think you could do one of those Earthbag style homes up north were you are at or it's just to drat wet?
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Feb 1, 2013 03:33
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apatite posted:Actuary X: Did it get real warm at your place yesterday? We hit 60*F and I put a coat of poly urethane on the addition floor. We drove out yesterday to Lake Placid and the rivers were just crazy. Huge ice jams in spots, flooding near the road. It wasn't a great day for a drive, but it was very exciting because we bought a new chain saw! Can't wait to get out and rip up some trees. Wilmington, where we bought the saw, had no power - probably some trees down on the power lines. And the wind yesterday was kind of scary. When we left the cabin, it was above 50. By the time we got back around six, it was in the twenties. Today it seems back to normal - 18 degrees and snow flurries. I've been hearing stories from the local people about how the winters were 30 years ago, when Lake Champlain would freeze over. Climate change is pretty obvious here.
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Feb 1, 2013 12:48
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Actuary X posted:It was so warm I took off my long johns. Actuary X posted:We drove out yesterday to Lake Placid and the rivers were just crazy. Huge ice jams in spots, flooding near the road. It wasn't a great day for a drive, but it was very exciting because we bought a new chain saw! Can't wait to get out and rip up some trees. Wilmington, where we bought the saw, had no power - probably some trees down on the power lines. And the wind yesterday was kind of scary. When we left the cabin, it was above 50. By the time we got back around six, it was in the twenties. Sounds about the same as here then, back to frozen and 8F today. The wind sure was crazy yesterday but we didn't have any trees come down that I saw, maybe a few branches. Congrats on the new chainsaw! Ours was arguably the best investment yet. Certainly has paid itself off many times over already. TooLShack posted:Ha! That last pic, don't you wish. Do you think you could do one of those Earthbag style homes up north were you are at or it's just to drat wet? Haven't looked into the earthbag homes much, but if wet is a problem, it won't work here!  I'll check it out though for sure.
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Feb 1, 2013 15:46
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apatite posted:Congrats on the new chainsaw! Ours was arguably the best investment yet. Certainly has paid itself off many times over already. I still have the old saw, a Husqvarna 345, and I will keep it around for smaller stuff since it is lighter.
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Feb 2, 2013 21:51
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This thread makes me miss the 45 acres I used to have in Pennsylvania. I look forward to all of the woodsy photos yet to come!
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Feb 3, 2013 11:58
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This is an amazing project, I'd love to be in a country with enough wilderness left to be able to do something like this. Once you're settled in you should put up a few IR cameras with motion sensing to record the nocturnal visitors you get.
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Feb 4, 2013 04:24
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Man, this thread is awesome! I live in the outback in Australia and I always wish I could trade for a colder climate (I've only ever seen snow once in my life). I have about 100 acres that I am not doing anything with at the moment due to work location commitments and I can't telecommute. One day, one day  This thread is one of those ones I wish I stumbled across that is 100 pages deep and I don't leave wanting more! e: screwed up some grammer Humphreys fucked around with this message at 10:25 on Feb 4, 2013 |
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Feb 4, 2013 10:20
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Actuary X posted:The new saw is a Stihl MS290 and holy crap it is nice. Of course having a brand new chain on it is part of it, but I couldn't believe how nicely it was cutting today. I didn't think going from 3.0 to 3.8 hp would be such a huge difference, but it is. I have the same saw, I love it too. Do yourself a favor and learn how to sharpen the chain by hand, if you haven't already, so you can always have a like-new chain.
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Feb 4, 2013 15:53
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apatite fucked around with this message at 14:12 on Aug 21, 2015 |
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Feb 4, 2013 17:16
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Elston Gunn posted:I have the same saw, I love it too. Do yourself a favor and learn how to sharpen the chain by hand, if you haven't already, so you can always have a like-new chain. I have been sharpening chains myself. However, a friend who has a degree in forestry came over and helped me do some logging one day, and she kind of implied that I could use some lessons on how to sharpen it properly. I learned about it from reading about it, not from someone showing me, so no doubt I could do it better. apatite posted:Got my new PV panels on Friday Actuary X fucked around with this message at 15:51 on Feb 5, 2013 |
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Feb 5, 2013 15:48
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Actuary X posted:I have been sharpening chains myself. However, a friend who has a degree in forestry came over and helped me do some logging one day, and she kind of implied that I could use some lessons on how to sharpen it properly. I learned about it from reading about it, not from someone showing me, so no doubt I could do it better. I've cut _a lot_ of wood with this saw over the past 5years or so, and have sharpened chains right down to useless. It takes a while to get the hang of it. Sometimes in the beginning I'd get one side sharp but not the other, and the saw would cut in a curve. Make sure the raker height is filed properly or it won't work worth a drat either. The "file guides" seem to be junk, it is probably better to just get the hang of properly filing without it, but be careful because an improperly sharpened chain can cause kickback!! Ditto for the electric sharpeners or whatever. It's pretty rare that I sharpen the chain in the comfort of a shop where an electric sharpener could be used, more often than not it gets sharpened as needed in the woods, and is a good excuse for a break  Besides that, anyone I know that has one never uses it because it's a pain in the rear end.
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Feb 5, 2013 15:57
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Luckily I got to take a chainsaw operating class as part of my forestry degree and sharpening was covered pretty heavily. Here's a bonus video of my instructor demonstrating how to cut a sharpening vise out of a stump: http://youtu.be/CoNDVKdQX_A
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Feb 5, 2013 15:58
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Elston Gunn posted:Luckily I got to take a chainsaw operating class as part of my forestry degree and sharpening was covered pretty heavily. Here's a bonus video of my instructor demonstrating how to cut a sharpening vise out of a stump: http://youtu.be/CoNDVKdQX_A That's drat cool. You should teach us Forester stuff about things.... And this is also where we should both probably tell Actuary X to get some kevlar chainsaw chaps, a good pair of boots, some hearing protection and a helmet/mask* if he doesn't have them already  *I don't have one of these... Just a hardhat but want to get one of those cool ones with the mask/hearing protection built in
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Feb 5, 2013 16:17
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apatite posted:That's drat cool. You should teach us Forester stuff about things.... I've got a set of Labonville wrap-around chaps, a helmet with faceshield and muffs, and kevlar cloves. I won't run a saw without them on... its a simple as that. Once you get used to it, its like a seat belt. You just do it, no thinking required. I've seen plenty of chainsaw-induced leg cuts, and don't want to see that on myself. They may cut a nice kerf in wood, but they tear flesh to ribbons.
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Feb 5, 2013 19:16
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sharkytm posted:I've got a set of Labonville wrap-around chaps, a helmet with faceshield and muffs, and kevlar cloves. I won't run a saw without them on... its a simple as that. Once you get used to it, its like a seat belt. You just do it, no thinking required. I've seen plenty of chainsaw-induced leg cuts, and don't want to see that on myself. They may cut a nice kerf in wood, but they tear flesh to ribbons. For me it's the worst when limbing a big tree that's already on the ground. apatite fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Feb 16, 2016 |
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Feb 5, 2013 22:00
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There may or may not be some people living vicariously through your updates. Can you impose a rule on yourself that you won't post here without including some pictures? Those people would appreciate it!
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Feb 5, 2013 22:38
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Is the MS290 the Farm Boss? That's the one I had my eye on. What size bar will it comfortably run? I do zero cutting right now but I know it would be nice to have a good saw around.
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Feb 6, 2013 19:24
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dreesemonkey posted:Is the MS290 the Farm Boss? That's the one I had my eye on. What size bar will it comfortably run? I do zero cutting right now but I know it would be nice to have a good saw around. Yes. Stihl recommends a 16" to 20" bar.
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Feb 6, 2013 19:57
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Yes, it is the Farm Boss. I got a 16" and a 20" blade, but the salesman said you should really have over 4 hp for a 20" blade. (The one I got is 3.8 hp.) He said some people had trouble with a 20" blade, in that if you abuse it you could shorten the life of the saw. I assured him that I would not abuse the larger blade and he reluctantly sold it to me. So far I've only been using the 16" blade. I have a 16" and an 18" on the Husqvarna and I haven't had any problem with it. I'll probably only put on the 20" blade when I need it - it will make bucking some large trees easier at least. I cut down the tree in the below video more than a month ago and half of it still needs to be cut up. (There are half a dozen other trees down waiting to be cut up as well.) The saw in the video is a borrowed Stihl MS260. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY9G8uXlf7o&t=1s
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Feb 7, 2013 12:55
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iceslice posted:There may or may not be some people living vicariously through your updates. Can you impose a rule on yourself that you won't post here without including some pictures? Those people would appreciate it! For hours last night I wandered, up the tallest ridges, down into the swampiest depths. What I sought was not warmth nor shelter, nor man or beast. What I sought were romantic sunsets rebounded by beautiful gorges engulfed by trees shimmering with ice as clear as glass. Streams gurgling through a rocky pass, misting down upon the banks with glee. All this I sought, not from artistic need or want of solitude. Not for glory or for fame. Only, I found, for the approval of a person on the internet that calls themselves "iceslice". And it turns out the pictures are on the internal memory of my camera rather than SD card and we don't have a cable. Here's another post without pics... Actuary X posted:Yes, it is the Farm Boss. I got a 16" and a 20" blade, but the salesman said you should really have over 4 hp for a 20" blade. (The one I got is 3.8 hp.) He said some people had trouble with a 20" blade, in that if you abuse it you could shorten the life of the saw. I assured him that I would not abuse the larger blade and he reluctantly sold it to me. Hey that's a cool video! Yeah Dave, "it's a little scary" indeed but job well done nonetheless. Was there not even one usable log in that giant white pine? It sounds like the whole center was rotten up through and that really sucks. Sure was a nice big one.
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Feb 7, 2013 18:47
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apatite posted:And it turns out the pictures are on the internal memory of my camera rather than SD card and we don't have a cable. Check your camera's settings and menus. There may be a way to copy or move the pictures to the SD card. My old-rear end Panasonic can do that pretty easily.
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Feb 7, 2013 20:35
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neogeo0823 posted:Check your camera's settings and menus. There may be a way to copy or move the pictures to the SD card. My old-rear end Panasonic can do that pretty easily. Truly you are a pillar of the community and perhaps some type of genius, you should get checked for that. iceslice owes you a beer.          
apatite fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Feb 16, 2016 |
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Feb 7, 2013 21:00
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Your floor seems to literally be hot lava and your cats are likely cooked at this point. You might want to check that out. Also, I'm pretty jealous, that's beautiful.
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