Valley Community Garden

From laying out the beds through planting day,
Tasker Hill Rd, Madison
May 31, 2009

Insulate before you Insolate program PDF

Here is the program I did for Tin Mountain on January 31, 2009
It's a big file, originally Power Point but now as a PDF.

http://ruralhometech.com/purchase/InsulateInsolate09.pdf

I purchased this 20 HP compact tractor in December of 2007 intending to use it to complement my F350 Ford truck and Kubota L48 tractor for my road and driveway grading business. I'd planned to use it every now and then for smaller grading jobs, especially those in confined areas or those that needed only the amount of gravel added that I could haul with the F350. I custom fitted it with a 6.5' FrontRunner grader/rake as featured on the www.RuralHomeTech.com homepage.

Not only did the Mahindra perform to my expectations, it has nearly replaced the 48 horsepower Kubota for MOST of my driveway and road work, especially when paired-up with the heavy duty FrontRunner on my F350 (also shown on the RHT homepage)

The little tractor, though rated at only 20 hp, performs like it has the power of higher rated machines, perhaps because it has nearly the same engine displacement as a popular 26 hp rated tractor. There was some question as to whether or not it could power the Harper-Goosen 4000 cfm debris blower that I sought to add to my arsenal of road maintenance equipment.

Not only could it power the blower (that required 20 hp itself), but it took the blower noticeable time to catch up to engine speed (made obvious by a squealing drive belt) when the tractor clutch was eased out with the PTO in gear. The tractor not only powers the blower fine, but barely slows down even when grading uphill with the FrontRunner while the blower is operating!

The Harper-Goosen blower has greatly improved my ability to clear leaves and small branches from the edges of the road, and, with slight modification, also serves to clear leaves and debris from most road ditches, a function that was almost impossible any other way.

The snowblower shown in the video is a 6.5' ECONOR that normally mounts on my L48. I decided to try it on the Mahindra before removing the backhoe from the L48 early this winter. Not surprisingly, the little Manindra handled it well enough to keep the driveway edges blown back and the skating rink cleared until January. Note that the last segment shows rain soaked snow several inches deep that the tractor is handling quite adequately.

The Manhindra already has 400 hours on it (in just its first year) and I expect I'll probably double that this coming road and driveway maintenance season. It couples nicely with the FrontRunner and is extremely efficient with ts hydro tranny. It could use a third range (geared lower than the present lower range) for occasional extra power, but the road you see it grading in the video is one of Conway's most heavily traveled, and yet the tractor's performance is outstanding and very time efficient without being overworked.

For further explanation of the FrontRunner grader/rake system go to
www.ruralhometech.com

Alternative Energy & Energy Conservation Workshop

On Saturday, January 31, 2009, I presented an Alternative Energy & Energy Conservation Workshop at the Tin Mountain Nature Learning Center in Albany, NH. Although it has been many years since I've presented such a workshop, I've managed to maintain my enthusiasm for the subject by living in a passive solar house with solar hot water, wood backup heating and other energy saving features.
It is apparent that many local folks are either re-visiting this subject or have been converted by the recent high energy prices and concern for global warming because we had a capacity crowd with standing room only. Due to the overwhelming interest, Tin Mountain and I are planning follow-up sessions geared to addressing several areas of energy conservation & alternative energy in greater depth.