Lepke Buchalter

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since Nov 09, 2018
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Recent posts by Lepke Buchalter

I suppose it can be done. Grizzly bears are not black bears. They are much more aggressive. determined, and have a good sense of smell. And then you have wolves. Wolves travel in packs and can overpower many dogs. Most pets are appetizers to wolves. Some people run heavy wire electric fences around their pastures. Wires about 6" apart and every other wire is hot. So the bear can't miss touching the hot and ground. And if you haven't used an electric fence, you need to keep the wire free from grass, shrubs and tree branches. Some bears can sense when the fence is off. Bears have also learned a shot means fresh meat, hunting is best done with 2 people. One to stand guard while you prepare your kill.
I had dairy, beef and horses. If I was gonna run sheep in Alaska, I'd have dogs and a strong electric fence.
2 years ago
Alaska is mostly timbered. Creeks and rivers have stones. Depending on where in Alaska, they aren't many roads. most are logging roads. Cement, mortar, hardware, and other items are at least 2x more expensive depending on weight. Most items come to Alaska by barge. Ordering custom doors or windows could take a month longer than the lower 48.  Many people have sawmills and can cut your timber or sell you lumber. You'll need your own truck big enough to haul your lumber in most remote areas. Many make log houses. If you decide on a log house, study it first.
Not much sun in the winter and really low in the sky when there are no clouds. If there are clouds, dark days. Lots of sun in the summer. But the soil has to warm before planting. There are farms. If you have livestock you need to have a way to keep the bears from making a meal of them, your garbage and you. There are wolves. Coyotes on steroids.
2 years ago
I've made several rotary converters and had a couple saw mills.
For a converter you need a 3 phase motor that has a larger amp draw than the motor you want to run. The existing 2 legs of 110v are wired to 2 of the 3 legs of 3 phase. and the sawmill motor is wired to all 3 legs of the converter. To start, wrap a chord around the shaft and start it like a lawn mower. There is a kit that will wire in and start the sawmill motor when power is applied. Probably on ebay. Also a good place to buy a used 3 phase motor.
If it was me, I'd buy a gas or diesel engine. Saw blades take a lot of power, and weak motors will make ragged cuts. You need to keep your blades sharp, too. Another way is to use a tractor's PTO.
2 years ago
Stinging nettle root and leaf are used to treat enlarged prostate, common in men over 50.
4 years ago
Sometimes it works better to run both a hot and ground line. If the ground is too dry they may not be grounded every time they touch the hot wire. If the hot wire is next to field fencing, also ground the field fence.
4 years ago
UV light of the proper size for flow will kill bacteria. It's legal in sanitizing water used in dairies. I use to dairy and raise horses and cattle.
Reverse Osmosis uses pressure to push water molecules thru a membrane. Things bigger than a water molecule won't go thru and are flushed away. But it's not like filtering water. Only about 1/4 to 1/3 of the water goes thru, the rest is used to flush and carry away the rejected contaminates. You also use filters before the membrane. Lots of info on line. I'm retired and live on a big boat. I use RO to make fresh water from salt or unknown fresh into safe fresh.  Membranes are rated at 77°F. Colder water, less output. Many RO systems on eBay. I built my own, 40 gph from salt water, much more from fresh.
If you live in a rural area that didn't have mining, no feedlots, etc., spring water and small creek water may be drinkable with filtering and sanitizing with a UV light or some added sanitizer, but get it tested. Rural meaning not many people nearby, no cities over the hill, no interstate hwy putting pollutants in the air, water is either coming out of the ground where it's collected or a flowing stream you can trace to it's source. I used spring water on the dairy.
5 years ago
I have a hydronic system with a oil fired boiler. I bought a pellet stove and I added 6 passes of 3/4" pipe in the firebox and tied it into the boiler with a circulation pump. With some changes to the pellet stove controls, when the boiler calls for the oil burner, instead  the pellet stove goes to a higher setting and the circulation pump runs faster. I have a pressure relief valve on the stove and boiler. Pellet stove runs 24/7 in cold weather and goes between minimum setting (40lbs in 30 hours) to a higher setting depending on the weather. I use 2 percentage timers to control the auger feed and kept all the safety features. The oil burner only comes on in extremely cold weather or when the pellet stove is offline.
5 years ago
I had cows and horses...
For bears, I found alternating wires of hot and ground about 6" apart, closer together near the ground. And no field fencing. I use heavy aluminum wire. It lasts longer and carries a better current. The wire needs to be as tight as possible. The galvanized steel wire most hobby farms use will start to rust in a couple years and soon fail to carry current. In the dry season, the ground doesn't always make a great ground and I've seen animals walk thru the wire without a shock on fences that use the dirt as a ground. Also you have to keep grass, trees and other debris off the hot wire or lose the ability to shock.
Use multiple ground rods as other described.
5 years ago
Former commercial dairyman...
I guess about 3 gallons/day fresh tapering to about 1 with pasture only minus what the calf takes. If allowed to nurse, the calf can easily do a gallon a day at a month old. You can increase the milk with grain and alfalfa. But once the production goes down, it's very difficult to bring it back before the next calving. Cows need to be bred and calf once a year to stay in milk. They are dry (not milked) for 2 months before the next calf. A cow can live on a 1/2 acre of excellent pasture. That's growing pasture and not stepped on, laid on, churned to mud or covered with cow pies.
Cows that nursed a long time continue to want milk and will often nurse as an adult whenever a cow with milk is present. They get down on their knees to nurse from any willing cow. It's better to wean the calf early and get it on solid feed asap. Calves on milk only are more prone to sickness. And vaccinate.
Pigs are the usual use for excess milk. Pigs eat anything, even meat.
As a dairyman, my calves were weaned by 30 days and much more healthy for it.
5 years ago
Cows need to be bred and calf yearly to stay in milk. Milking stops 60 days before calving to rebuild the cows resources. Cows are a herd animal and do better with company, even another specie. Milking has to be done daily, usually 12 hours apart. Missed milkings, poor food, injury reduces milk. Hand milking is tough on the hands and leads to swollen, arthritic hands. Think about a home milking machine, it's at least twice as fast.
Former commercial dairyman
5 years ago