In the video below, I demonstrate driving a modern 2 wheel drive, front wheel drive vehicle on some hilly unplowed snowy roads. I also will show why in some circumstances traction control can limit your ability to climb or get unstuck. There are certain situations where turning traction control off can actually help.
Continue reading How to Drive in Snow on Hilly Roads
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Restoring a Kubota B20 Tractor – Part 4
I repeated the compression test because I didn’t record the numbers before. In order to perform a compression test (using the injector holes), you will need to remove:
- Air Filter Housing
- Metal Injector Lines
- Fuel Overflow / Bleed Line
- Metal OverFlow / Bleed Line Rail
- Injector Nozzles (make sure to remove the copper gasket from the bore for each one as well)
At this point you can test the compression of each cylinder. While cranking the engine, be sure to pull and hold the engine shutoff rod, so the injection pump is not squirting diesel fuel.You can optionally disconnect the glow plugs power wire to conserve battery as well.
The values I read for each cylinder was from back of engine to front (dry):
80 PSI – 160 PSI – 160 PSI
Since the #1 cylinder was especially low, I squirted some oil in the cylinder and repeated (wet).The value rose to 150 psi, which is a good indication the issue is with the piston rings, and not a valve issue.
The service manual spec for allowable range on compression is 337-448 psi, so all three cylinders are well below spec.
At this point I pulled the head to check for any signs of damage to either the head, valves, or the pistons.
To remove the engine head on this tractor, you will need to (starting with parts already removed for compression test above):
- Drain Oil & Coolant
- Remove Air Filter Bracket & Fuel Filter Mounting Bolts
- Remove Firewall Mounting Bracket Bolts to Head
- Remove Exhaust Manifold (optional)
- Disconnect Fuel Supply Hose to Injection Pump
- Remove Air Intake Manifold
- Remove Glow Plugs
- Remove Top Radiator Hose
- Remove Top Mounting Bolt on Alternator (and swing alternator out of way)
- Move Fan Belt OfF Pulley
- Remove Valve Cover
- Remove Valve Rocker Arm Assembly
- Remove Push Rods (inspect to make sure they are all straight)
- Remove Head Bolts
- Lift Head Assembly from Engine
The engine is quite crusty with carbon deposits, but I don’t seen any signs of head, piston, or valve damage yet. I will post a follow up again once I have pulled the valves apart and cleaned everything up for a more thorough inspection.
Click here for Part 5 on the Kubota B20 rebuild.
How to Control a Slide on Icy Surfaces
This video of a pile up in Montreal has been making the rounds in social media. It shows multiple vehicles, including two buses, a police car, and even a plow truck piling up on a very slippery roadway. It also perfectly illustrates both what works, and what not to do. The majority of the vehicles, including the plow truck, did not know what to do. Do you?
How To Build a Large Solar Generator – Part 4 – Wiring
This is the fourth part in our series on how to build your own large solar generator. In this part we will be completing the wiring for the generator, including the solar charge controller, AC inverter, LED work lights, and USB outlets.
Continue reading How To Build a Large Solar Generator – Part 4 – Wiring
Restoring a Kubota B20 Tractor – Part 3
Getting back into this project. We have moved since I started this project and now have a garage bay I can use to continue working on the tractor. I was never able to get it to fully fired up. It would sputter and almost catch but never quite start. I finally did a compression check and was seeing low compression on all three cylinders, with one very low. I am guessing there was some engine damage due to overheating issues it was having back when it was running last.
Since it is going to need a rebuild of some sort, we loaded it up on my trailer and brought it back to my house where I can work on it in the garage.
Once back at my house, I needed to figure out a way to raise the bucket and hold it there so it wouldnt guoge the concrete. Many of the hoses are leaking, so I needed an external way to hold it up. I used a floor jack to lift the bucket off the ground, and a scrap board placed into the linkage to prevent the hydraulic cylinder from collapsing back down worked very well!
Safely in the garage so I can start the engine tear down.
She has definitely seen some wear, and sitting outside has taken a toll too. These pics will hopefully serve as some good “before” pics once I get it back up and running and cleaned up!
Click here for Part 4 on the Kubota B20 rebuild.
How To Build a Large Solar Generator – Part 3 – Component Mounting
This is the third part in our project series How To Build a Solar Generator. In this part, we will be mounting all of the components into our case, as well as some of the preliminary wiring.
Continue reading How To Build a Large Solar Generator – Part 3 – Component Mounting
Teardown, Overhaul, & Re-Assembly of Yazoo Mower Transmission
I snapped an axle shaft in my Yazoo Mower (YR-76) that required disassembling the entire transmission in order to get the broken shaft out. While it was out, I cleaned each part, and replaced worn bearings and oil seals. Here is the process I took.
Continue reading Teardown, Overhaul, & Re-Assembly of Yazoo Mower Transmission
The Amazing Yazoo Mower
Yazoo Mowers are becoming increasingly rare, but they have an almost cult following of fans and owners. They are very unique in their design, allowing them to have a zero-degree turning radius way before the modern hydraulic zero-turn mower was invented, and they have a gear shift lever that allows quick transitions from forward to reverse.
Does turning the thermostat down at night really save energy?
An age old argument against turning the thermostat down overnight or while you are away is that it just causes your furnace or AC to have to work harder to catch back up, and therefore negates any savings. But is this true?
Continue reading Does turning the thermostat down at night really save energy?
Installing Heat Control Solar Window Film
We recently moved into a new house, which has quite a few windows. We also have had a very warm June and early July. As a result our house has been pretty warm and uncomfortable lately. Especially since I prefer to use the AC as little as possible… usually meaning none!
I am a big fan of upgrades that will reduce our energy footprint, and especially ones that have a lasting effect of several years or more. I began researching window films that I could install myself, and eventually decided to give the Gila Heat Control Residential Window Film a try. It is available on Amazon, in several sized and varieties. I opted for the 36″ x 100′ foot roll in the Platinum color. The manufacture claims an impressive reduction in cooling costs of up to 50%. They also state it rejects up to 99% of UV, and 67% of glare. I also found that the vast majority of customer reviews were very pleased with it, some stating that it has held up well even after 10+ years of use.