Busy Busy
Summer is almost over! It sure feels like it. Heck it feels like October already! Where has the time gone?
I came up with a theory a while back. I noticed time was passing a lot quicker then it used to when I was younger. I theorized that, when we are younger, a year is a larger fraction of our total lives. Therefore compared to our total lives, the year seems long and drawn out. This might also be why 15 minutes sitting in the corner when I was bad as a little boy, seemed like 2 hours. However as we age, the years become less and less a percentage of our total lives, and therefore seem to fly by quicker, because in comparison to our total life experience, they are shorter. For me things have been busier than usual.
My previous post touched on a few subjects that have been keeping me busy. Mainly the Electrical wiring in my house. A few weeks back I was pulling out some old twisted pair telephone wire in my basement and happened to brush against a dangling piece of knob and tube. The insulation for which proceeded to turn to dust at the slightest touch! I knew I couldn't sleep well knowing that was active in my house. I disconnected the knob and tube circuits and noted the areas affected. Mostly the ceiling fans and ceiling based lights in the whole house. Well that wasn't too bad, as I could use floor lamps and such for the time being. I then began to rip into the walls and run Romex down from the switches to the basement to power the lights with a new circuit. That is when the fun began!
I found so many flaws and overloaded circuits down there above the ceiling tiles. I probably have about 100 runs of Romex / BX down there going every which way. It is so confusing that I still can't remember which wires go where. So it was time to consolidate and rewire things. I began to temporarily route circuits to other circuits, so I could disconnect them at the panel and run dedicated runs specifically for them. I also purchased more breakers. My panel is already quite loaded with breakers, however with the amount of circuits that split off into 5 to 8 other circuits, I imagine I will end up with maybe about 10 or so extra circuit breakers on my panel when its all said and done.
Funny thing is, I don't even use too much electricity, and I have no clue where all these circuits are going. It seems like a lot of it is redundant wiring. The main plan is to run 3/4 inch conduit from the panel to a few key locations around the basement, and put in a few deep 4 square junction boxes, and then route the original Romex or BX into those locations, freeing up some of the mystery as to what feeds what.
I will also likely run conduit and maybe a PVC pipe up to the 2nd floor along the chimney to bring power up there. This has been a long and slow going project, but I am making sure that I am careful and do it safely and properly. Interestingly enough, I installed a couple new commercial grade lights on my property in the last couple months as well.
On the garage I installed a High Pressure Sodium light, and on my front porch an Metal Halide light. They are both quite bright, and are set up as dusk to dawn lights. I figured they would put a huge dent in my electric bills, however no! The Metal Halide light maybe adds an extra $15 a month, and the High Pressure Sodium adds an extra $7 or so. So really you get a lot of light for less than a buck a day. I think the security they provide is worth that.
On top of all of that... My website (this page) has been getting hacked a lot. I am unsure if it is a targeted attack, or just random attacks. However the hack attempts seemed to corrupt the files on other websites that I host, however they did not actually hack those websites. Do not worry however, as I have fully wiped everything, and I am no longer utilizing wordpress, which I think will make things more secure.
Oh well... Last weekend I took a much needed break, and went up to Canada to visit my mom and step-father. We took the boat out and ran in a poker run on Lake Simcoe. I actually had the 2nd best hand at the end of it all, a Straight, 9 high which ended up paying for my fuel for the trip. All things said I had a great time, even if it was just for the day. I also found out a few things I didn't know about how I was adopted, and the process which led to it.