Glenn's Underground Cabin Update

glenn kangiser · October 21, 2011, 11:16:41 AM

Quote from: ben2go on October 21, 2011, 10:23:50 AM
Agreed."THEY" say it's for child safety in the home,but how many times do you hear of toddlers falling trough,or over, the rails in public spaces.Around here it's happening quite frequently.

I have seen a few undisciplined toddlers I would like to push through a rail.... maybe that is why they have legislated it to be not possible... to protect us from ourselves....

ben2go · October 21, 2011, 11:22:43 AM

Quote from: glenn kangiser on October 21, 2011, 11:16:41 AM
I have seen a few undisciplined toddlers I would like to push through a rail.... maybe that is why they have legislated it to be not possible... to protect us from ourselves....

October 21, 2011, 11:31:27 AM

Interesting history, Ben. I didn't know about the Kellers. I thought it started with Melroe. Thx.

glenn kangiser · October 21, 2011, 11:38:55 PM

Took my cousin and family to Yosemite again today after meeting my buddy, Al for a trip to Tod's Louisiana Style BBQ. Al is our official BBQ scout and when he makes a find we have to go check it out.

Since this was near the South entrance to Yosemite we took them to the Big Trees then into Wawona and the park from the South entrance. We live on the Central entrance so don't go South often.

We made a stop at the Wawona Pioneer Village where they have collected some of the pioneer houses and buildings together for everyone to see.

Entry into the area is via this old covered bridge. Before we went to the Bridge we met a family from LA, originally India, who needed direction to the cool things to see so we clued them in on the cool stuff and told them of the Underground complex. Maybe they will drop in.

Look at the timbers - some original..... nice....

We stopped by Glacier point and shot a few scenery pix... here is one of Half Dome.

Next stop on this trip was Bridalveil Falls. I posted a typical one before I think. Here is one from higher up the side where it is too wet to climb earlier in the year.

Smell the flowers in the mist near the base of the falls. Without the hike up the hill I would not have found them as the ones in the open have long since passed away. The shade and mist here made these flowers remain longer for us to enjoy.

...a bit higher up the talus slope we get a look at the pool at the base of the falls.

....and waiting at the bottom of the slope, who should we find there but Sassy who watched as I made the ill advised moves of scrambling up the slippery rocks to show off and take uncommon pictures..... (per unsafe to scramble on rocks sign) ...boy would I have felt stupid if I fell for going against the safe suggested practices......

On the way down the hill we stopped for a minute to get one last photo of El Capitan in the setting sun on the way out.

...a pretty decent day.

John Raabe · October 22, 2011, 09:10:58 AM

Great photos Glenn! Thanks for sharing such a fine trip.

October 22, 2011, 10:17:04 AM

Thanks, John. Its nice to live near such a photogenic place. Makes it easy to get a few good shots once in a while.

rick91351 · October 22, 2011, 01:25:07 PM

That picture of Half Dome is a real keeper! However if you refuse to stay on the marked trails, we might have a real problem with you if we ever go to Yellowstone together. Let see there is the splattering from the Paint Pots and scalding in the Morning Glory Pool. A couple of those a year usually. And then there is the ever popular plunge to death into the Yellowstone Canyon near the Falls always with the Nikon in hand clear to the bottom. The only way I will turn loose of my Nikon is when they pry it from my stone cold fingers.

Sassy · October 22, 2011, 04:03:59 PM

There were some here that fell over the waterfalls, also fell from Half Dome... Glenn wanted to practice his "scrambling."

glenn kangiser · October 22, 2011, 05:32:24 PM

I try not to color inside the lines all of the time, Rick..... who knows - I might make something special...

I took a wider shot of the Yosemite area but got my shadow in it.... eeeeek... oh well... here it is.

Here is a view of the Mist Trail and Vernal Falls where we take most of our student guests on hikes as viewed from Glacier Point. Not a great time for lighting... just as it was when we were there.

I try to be reasonably careful using my own sense of danger... like I read cows do...... rather than the generic protect us from ourselves signs so prevalent......

An example... Bryan in a tree......

....and

me in a tree.....

I mean... How safe is that?

See how my sense of danger protected me.... yea...

October 24, 2011, 07:06:38 AM

So what you're saying is that if there was a rock balanced on the edge of a cliff that stuck out over the abyss "someone" might end up standing on the rock hanging over the cliff for the photo opp?

Not that anyone I know would have ever done anything like that!

Or gone up a tree with no fall protection...

Or gone up to clean gutters on a sketchy ladder...

Or walked on joists 30ft off the ground...

Sigh,

Makes me hope for daughters.

glenn kangiser · October 24, 2011, 07:13:48 AM

I assume that if the rock is still hanging over the abyss, that today would not be the day that it chose to fall over (even with a bit of extra weight)? .....

glenn kangiser · October 24, 2011, 07:23:37 AM

... By the way.... the rock was the one I was standing on at Bridalveil Falls and it was only about 30 feet to the ground... and it wasn't that slippery....but I was safe... I got down on all fours climbing down because my boots were cowboy boots that day and did not have lugs on the bottom.

It wasn't a photo op as Sassy was too far down in the canyon below to get my picture.

I just climbed up there to take her picture and wave. Here it is at wide angle.

She is in the clearing at the left center. I think the rock in the foreground is the one I am standing on. It was big. [ouch]

rick91351 · October 24, 2011, 12:15:13 PM

Glenn there is another half dome in the back ground on your wide angle shot do you happen to know it name?

glenn kangiser · October 25, 2011, 12:44:42 AM

Looks like Liberty Cap it think, Rick...

I had to look it up on a lot of maps before I found one that looked like it had the right place named.

Here is the map - the small dome is just to the left of Nevada Falls.

http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/yosemite_resources/images/illustration_217.jpg

I needed to know that anyway...

October 25, 2011, 12:46:51 AM

Yosemite Map resources.

http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/maps/#y1972

Sassy · October 26, 2011, 01:00:13 PM

Glenn's out of town working again so my son brought my granddaughters up for a few days - forgot to get a picture of him w/the girls but took their picture this morning w/all their pets... he stayed over Monday night - was great to be able to spend time w/him, too

Sassy · October 27, 2011, 01:24:28 AM

I posted this elsewhere but since it was at the Underground cabin, figured I'd post it here since we have family & friends who follow this thread. Thought it was pretty cool.

glenn kangiser · October 27, 2011, 01:28:47 AM

Nice ... and is it tearing the wings off and chomping the legs of a butterfly?

Sassy · October 27, 2011, 01:35:44 AM

What does it look like?

glenn kangiser · October 27, 2011, 01:40:44 AM

Yum.....

October 28, 2011, 04:02:16 PM

It seems that our batteries have been dropping a bit more at night than I think they should so since I finally got home for a day I thought I would look into it.

We have reasonably new interstate batteries - a couple years I think so I thought I would test and equalize them. Started on the first set and got reasonably good readings. I equalize with a DC CC welder and monitor voltage then drop it as the batteries start to come up to capacity.

I hooked up to the second set, put the meter on it and was getting high readings - 66 or so volts across the batteries. Checking one battery from the positive brought the expected 6.5 or so volts - across the second the expected 13 or so volts - across the third in the series the voltage jumped to about 49 volts. This indicates an open cell apparently. Since the circuit does not complete through the battery to pull the open circuit voltage of the welder down then the voltage goes high indicating the open cell problem. Voltage across the battery was 4.5 or so volts indicating the one cell was not contributing.

Hydrometer wise - SP of other cells were full charge -say about 1260 while this bad cell was no charge- 1100 or less.

Note that I have separated the battery bank to be equalized from the other batteries paralleled with them to control the flow of current so that it can only go through the batteries I want it to. Paralleled with another set the equalization voltage would go through the easiest path. Which batteries got the equalization could not be controlled if all were together.

ben2go · October 28, 2011, 05:49:42 PM

Gonna ditch the bad batt or replace them in a pair?I'm anal about stuff like that so I would probably replace the whole bank.

glenn kangiser · October 28, 2011, 06:37:44 PM

It shouldn't have gone bad yet but their warranty is apparently up. It is only a couple years old so a new one will work OK with it.

They are about $250 each so 4 would be a thousand plus tax. We are thinking 5 for a replacement and 4 new ones to replace some of our 7 year old ones possibly.

When one cell in a series goes bad the entire string in that series is non-functional.

ben2go · October 28, 2011, 08:42:17 PM

The system is only as strong as the weakest battery.

glenn kangiser · October 28, 2011, 08:56:55 PM

That about sums it up, Ben.

I went back up and hooked the welder back up - rechecked everything - made sure there was no voltage loss between the buss bar and the lead terminal - same outcome - reading high voltage across that battery only - so - I guess Monday we go to the battery store. It seems Interstate does not like to give much of a warranty on their batteries so I get to eat the whole thing - I found some limits of 90 days and up to one year on other things on their site. Guess I go back to the other manufacturer with my money.

I have had some of Seibert's since 2004. I think theirs are made by General Battery.

Note that a reading of voltage between the lead and terminal would indicate a bad connection - a change in voltage from terminal or the lead - even though the same point indicates cleaning is needed. Heat generated can be read with a non-contact thermometer. I saw PGE electric company checking a transformer with one the other day.