Sword of Damocles

Xringer · 10-30-11, 10:50 AM

Is hanging over my tracker.. When those limbs come down, they will likely roll over into my panels! Murphy works with Old Man Winter..

Update:
It's been windy and the loose limbs have been swinging all around..
But, nothing has fallen yet..

RobertSmalls · 10-30-11, 11:45 AM

Yikes.

There are enough leaves still on the trees here to make everyone nervous about a repeat of this storm: Lake Storm "Aphid" - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia , which I just learned killed 19 people and cost half a billion dollars.

I think we'll both be fine this year, though. The seven day forecast is for warmer weather, and by then the trees will be ready to handle the snow.

Xringer · 10-30-11, 01:13 PM

Folks up the road (1/4 mile) in Burlington lost power last night at 10PM and it's still off..
And, it's not real warm their homes today.

philb · 11-03-11, 08:00 PM

If those were my panels in my neck of the woods, Murphy would have already made his mark!

'The folks up the road' will probably be thinking about alternative methods of heat and electricity by now. If they are like me, it will subside soon. I'd have to be reminded twice before doing something.

Sword of....made me think. Had to look it up.

Xringer · 11-03-11, 08:24 PM

My kid was without power for about 4 days. All the cold food was laying out on the back
deck when we drove over there yesterday to clean up some tree limbs.
Her power was back, but her house smelled of wood smoke..
Had it gone on one more day, I was going to haul my 5kw generator up there.

My dentist is in the same town, and I needed some quick dental work done.. No power=no dental work.
I ended up getting a $2286 root canal locally.. I can drink hot coffee again,without the OUCH!!
No limbs fell on the tracker yet.. I taped a section of angle iron over the gap
between the panels (on the east side), so if a limb slides down the side,
it won't slide between the panels and hang up..
I pointed the panels slightly westwards and disconnected the tracking motor..
We are getting some good weather, so maybe I'll try to lasso the bigger limbs down from up there..

MN Renovator · 11-04-11, 09:09 AM

Trees are evil! Try to save the world and the trees get angry.

Peak Oil: Solar Panels Destroyed by Tree - YouTube

Xringer · 11-05-11, 09:15 AM

Makes me cringe to see that...

Xringer · 11-05-11, 06:53 PM

I got a rope on the main limb yesterday and tied it into the trunk.
Today, I shot a rope over limb above the break and pulled up the chainsaw chain.
Took a while, but with my wife helping out, we got it sawed loose,
and then used the chain ropes to pull it away from the tracker.
It fell just where I wanted it! Missed the mount by a good 10 feet.

Exalta-STA · 05-15-12, 09:47 PM

Wow that was a close call...it's hard to imagine losing panels coz they do not come cheap

Xringer · 05-20-12, 09:03 AM

It's been many months, but there are still many broken limbs hanging in the tops of trees.
They will be coming down for years I guess.

One place over in Lexington had a very large broken limb about 30 feet up,
hanging over the edge of the street.
They had yellow tape under it, to mark the unsafe zone..
But the tape disappeared over the winter.. But that big limb is still hanging up there..

10-30-11, 10:50 AM	#1
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Sword of Damocles Is hanging over my tracker.. When those limbs come down, they will likely roll over into my panels! Murphy works with Old Man Winter.. Update: It's been windy and the loose limbs have been swinging all around.. But, nothing has fallen yet.. Last edited by Xringer; 11-03-11 at 08:26 PM.. Reason: Update:

11-03-11, 08:00 PM	#4
philb Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Oklahoma City Posts: 155 Thanks: 58 Thanked 17 Times in 14 Posts	If those were my panels in my neck of the woods, Murphy would have already made his mark! 'The folks up the road' will probably be thinking about alternative methods of heat and electricity by now. If they are like me, it will subside soon. I'd have to be reminded twice before doing something. Sword of....made me think. Had to look it up. Last edited by philb; 11-03-11 at 08:05 PM.. Reason: addition

11-05-11, 09:15 AM	#7
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Makes me cringe to see that... __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

11-05-11, 06:53 PM	#8
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Sword of Damocles has fallen!! I got a rope on the main limb yesterday and tied it into the trunk. Today, I shot a rope over limb above the break and pulled up the chainsaw chain. Took a while, but with my wife helping out, we got it sawed loose, and then used the chain ropes to pull it away from the tracker. It fell just where I wanted it! Missed the mount by a good 10 feet. __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

05-20-12, 09:03 AM	#10
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	It's been many months, but there are still many broken limbs hanging in the tops of trees. They will be coming down for years I guess. One place over in Lexington had a very large broken limb about 30 feet up, hanging over the edge of the street. They had yellow tape under it, to mark the unsafe zone.. But the tape disappeared over the winter.. But that big limb is still hanging up there.. __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

10-30-11, 11:45 AM	#2
RobertSmalls Journeyman EcoRenovator Join Date: May 2009 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 344 Thanks: 3 Thanked 17 Times in 15 Posts	Yikes. There are enough leaves still on the trees here to make everyone nervous about a repeat of this storm: Lake Storm "Aphid" - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia , which I just learned killed 19 people and cost half a billion dollars. I think we'll both be fine this year, though. The seven day forecast is for warmer weather, and by then the trees will be ready to handle the snow.

10-30-11, 01:13 PM	#3
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Folks up the road (1/4 mile) in Burlington lost power last night at 10PM and it's still off.. And, it's not real warm their homes today.

11-03-11, 08:24 PM	#5
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	My kid was without power for about 4 days. All the cold food was laying out on the back deck when we drove over there yesterday to clean up some tree limbs. Her power was back, but her house smelled of wood smoke.. Had it gone on one more day, I was going to haul my 5kw generator up there. My dentist is in the same town, and I needed some quick dental work done.. No power=no dental work. I ended up getting a $2286 root canal locally.. I can drink hot coffee again,without the OUCH!! No limbs fell on the tracker yet.. I taped a section of angle iron over the gap between the panels (on the east side), so if a limb slides down the side, it won't slide between the panels and hang up.. I pointed the panels slightly westwards and disconnected the tracking motor.. We are getting some good weather, so maybe I'll try to lasso the bigger limbs down from up there..

05-15-12, 09:47 PM	#9
Exalta-STA Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: May 2012 Location: Philippines Posts: 107 Thanks: 12 Thanked 4 Times in 4 Posts	Wow that was a close call...it's hard to imagine losing panels coz they do not come cheap