Fluke 87V - any reason not to buy?
in [Design]
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From: Jim Thompson on 9 Dec 2009 12:02 On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:51:36 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote: >JosephKK wrote: >> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:36:50 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >> wrote: >> >>> krw wrote: >>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:10:22 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>> wrote: >>>> >>> [...] >>> >>>>> Get a wood stove. Seriously, best investment we ever made in this house. >>>>> Global "warming" has led us from 2-cord winters (where we got socked >>>>> with a $709 propane bill for one (!) month and got the wood stove) to >>>>> 4-cord winters. And I am not sure whether the purchase of 5 cords >>>>> wouldn't be advised for next winter. >>>> I think we're going to put the gas logs in the fireplace this year. >>>> >>>>> Can you imagine what propane heating would cost us this winter? >>>> Propane varies widely across the country. In VT it was about 3x what >>>> oil cost. Dunno here, yet. >>> >>> It's way more than gasoline out here in CA even though it has less BTU. >>> So we thumbed our noses at the oil companies and went to wood heat. But >>> I wish we had a bigger stove, with all this cooling trend. Despite what >>> experts say I now think that bigger is better. >> >> I would certainly pay attention to how efficient it was over its >> heating power working range. > > >Well, that's just it. At the 20% to 50% level it's supposedly around >78%. But California seems to get colder every year. So, more and more we >find ourselves running it close to full bore and that's where the >efficiency drops off. Still a clean burn, no smoke, but lots more heat >escapes through the chimney. Modern wood stoves can operate quite well >at the lower burn settings but not when you run them with primary plus >secondary air fully open. Probably because they don't have much of a >baffle system like older stoves do. Then they start eating wood as if it >was popcorn. At this rate I am not sure our 4 cords will last through >winter :-( > >This morning it happened for the first time that we needed wood stove + >pellet stove + central heat to get the house warm. Here in the office it >was 58F at 7:00am even though wood and pellet stoves ran all night. Damn! I come unglued at 68�F... but then our humidity is ZERO :-( ...Jim Thompson -- | James E.Thompson, CTO | mens | | Analog Innovations, Inc. | et | | Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus | | Phoenix, Arizona 85048 Skype: Contacts Only | | | Voice:(480)460-2350 Fax: Available upon request | Brass Rat | | E-mail Icon at http://www.analog-innovations.com | 1962 | Help save the environment! Please dispose of socialism properly!
From: Joerg on 9 Dec 2009 12:54 Jim Thompson wrote: > On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:51:36 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> > wrote: > >> JosephKK wrote: >>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:36:50 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> krw wrote: >>>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:10:22 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>>> wrote: >>>>> >>>> [...] >>>> >>>>>> Get a wood stove. Seriously, best investment we ever made in this house. >>>>>> Global "warming" has led us from 2-cord winters (where we got socked >>>>>> with a $709 propane bill for one (!) month and got the wood stove) to >>>>>> 4-cord winters. And I am not sure whether the purchase of 5 cords >>>>>> wouldn't be advised for next winter. >>>>> I think we're going to put the gas logs in the fireplace this year. >>>>> >>>>>> Can you imagine what propane heating would cost us this winter? >>>>> Propane varies widely across the country. In VT it was about 3x what >>>>> oil cost. Dunno here, yet. >>>> It's way more than gasoline out here in CA even though it has less BTU. >>>> So we thumbed our noses at the oil companies and went to wood heat. But >>>> I wish we had a bigger stove, with all this cooling trend. Despite what >>>> experts say I now think that bigger is better. >>> I would certainly pay attention to how efficient it was over its >>> heating power working range. >> >> Well, that's just it. At the 20% to 50% level it's supposedly around >> 78%. But California seems to get colder every year. So, more and more we >> find ourselves running it close to full bore and that's where the >> efficiency drops off. Still a clean burn, no smoke, but lots more heat >> escapes through the chimney. Modern wood stoves can operate quite well >> at the lower burn settings but not when you run them with primary plus >> secondary air fully open. Probably because they don't have much of a >> baffle system like older stoves do. Then they start eating wood as if it >> was popcorn. At this rate I am not sure our 4 cords will last through >> winter :-( >> >> This morning it happened for the first time that we needed wood stove + >> pellet stove + central heat to get the house warm. Here in the office it >> was 58F at 7:00am even though wood and pellet stoves ran all night. > > Damn! I come unglued at 68�F... but then our humidity is ZERO :-( > How do you recognize an Arizonan? When he says "But it's a dry heat ..." In an hour I am starting my 2nd attempt to whack the ice cover on the steep driveway because I need to get to a client tomorrow, after being more or less stuck here in the house since Sunday. Wish me luck. This morning I heard a neighbor somewhere trying the same, then started up the car, put in gear, release brake ... ka-crunchah ... ka-chrunch ... phsssseeeee ... *CRUNCH* ... sounded like it's sitting in a frozen snow bank now. -- Regards, Joerg http://www.analogconsultants.com/ "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam. Use another domain or send PM.
From: Jim Thompson on 9 Dec 2009 13:06 On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 09:54:58 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote: >Jim Thompson wrote: >> On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:51:36 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >> wrote: >> >>> JosephKK wrote: >>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:36:50 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>>> krw wrote: >>>>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:10:22 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>>>> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>> [...] >>>>> >>>>>>> Get a wood stove. Seriously, best investment we ever made in this house. >>>>>>> Global "warming" has led us from 2-cord winters (where we got socked >>>>>>> with a $709 propane bill for one (!) month and got the wood stove) to >>>>>>> 4-cord winters. And I am not sure whether the purchase of 5 cords >>>>>>> wouldn't be advised for next winter. >>>>>> I think we're going to put the gas logs in the fireplace this year. >>>>>> >>>>>>> Can you imagine what propane heating would cost us this winter? >>>>>> Propane varies widely across the country. In VT it was about 3x what >>>>>> oil cost. Dunno here, yet. >>>>> It's way more than gasoline out here in CA even though it has less BTU. >>>>> So we thumbed our noses at the oil companies and went to wood heat. But >>>>> I wish we had a bigger stove, with all this cooling trend. Despite what >>>>> experts say I now think that bigger is better. >>>> I would certainly pay attention to how efficient it was over its >>>> heating power working range. >>> >>> Well, that's just it. At the 20% to 50% level it's supposedly around >>> 78%. But California seems to get colder every year. So, more and more we >>> find ourselves running it close to full bore and that's where the >>> efficiency drops off. Still a clean burn, no smoke, but lots more heat >>> escapes through the chimney. Modern wood stoves can operate quite well >>> at the lower burn settings but not when you run them with primary plus >>> secondary air fully open. Probably because they don't have much of a >>> baffle system like older stoves do. Then they start eating wood as if it >>> was popcorn. At this rate I am not sure our 4 cords will last through >>> winter :-( >>> >>> This morning it happened for the first time that we needed wood stove + >>> pellet stove + central heat to get the house warm. Here in the office it >>> was 58F at 7:00am even though wood and pellet stoves ran all night. >> >> Damn! I come unglued at 68�F... but then our humidity is ZERO :-( >> > >How do you recognize an Arizonan? When he says "But it's a dry heat ..." Saves us from feeling terrible in the heat, but makes cold _really_ cold :-( I ought to add a humidifier to this house, but they're a pain to maintain. > >In an hour I am starting my 2nd attempt to whack the ice cover on the >steep driveway because I need to get to a client tomorrow, after being >more or less stuck here in the house since Sunday. Wish me luck. This >morning I heard a neighbor somewhere trying the same, then started up >the car, put in gear, release brake ... ka-crunchah ... ka-chrunch ... >phsssseeeee ... *CRUNCH* ... sounded like it's sitting in a frozen snow >bank now. You don't have any ice salt? ...Jim Thompson -- | James E.Thompson, CTO | mens | | Analog Innovations, Inc. | et | | Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus | | Phoenix, Arizona 85048 Skype: Contacts Only | | | Voice:(480)460-2350 Fax: Available upon request | Brass Rat | | E-mail Icon at http://www.analog-innovations.com | 1962 | Help save the environment! Please dispose of socialism properly!
From: Joerg on 9 Dec 2009 14:05 Jim Thompson wrote: > On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 09:54:58 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> > wrote: > >> Jim Thompson wrote: >>> On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:51:36 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> JosephKK wrote: >>>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:36:50 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>>> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> krw wrote: >>>>>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:10:22 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>>>>> wrote: >>>>>>> >>>>>> [...] >>>>>> >>>>>>>> Get a wood stove. Seriously, best investment we ever made in this house. >>>>>>>> Global "warming" has led us from 2-cord winters (where we got socked >>>>>>>> with a $709 propane bill for one (!) month and got the wood stove) to >>>>>>>> 4-cord winters. And I am not sure whether the purchase of 5 cords >>>>>>>> wouldn't be advised for next winter. >>>>>>> I think we're going to put the gas logs in the fireplace this year. >>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Can you imagine what propane heating would cost us this winter? >>>>>>> Propane varies widely across the country. In VT it was about 3x what >>>>>>> oil cost. Dunno here, yet. >>>>>> It's way more than gasoline out here in CA even though it has less BTU. >>>>>> So we thumbed our noses at the oil companies and went to wood heat. But >>>>>> I wish we had a bigger stove, with all this cooling trend. Despite what >>>>>> experts say I now think that bigger is better. >>>>> I would certainly pay attention to how efficient it was over its >>>>> heating power working range. >>>> Well, that's just it. At the 20% to 50% level it's supposedly around >>>> 78%. But California seems to get colder every year. So, more and more we >>>> find ourselves running it close to full bore and that's where the >>>> efficiency drops off. Still a clean burn, no smoke, but lots more heat >>>> escapes through the chimney. Modern wood stoves can operate quite well >>>> at the lower burn settings but not when you run them with primary plus >>>> secondary air fully open. Probably because they don't have much of a >>>> baffle system like older stoves do. Then they start eating wood as if it >>>> was popcorn. At this rate I am not sure our 4 cords will last through >>>> winter :-( >>>> >>>> This morning it happened for the first time that we needed wood stove + >>>> pellet stove + central heat to get the house warm. Here in the office it >>>> was 58F at 7:00am even though wood and pellet stoves ran all night. >>> Damn! I come unglued at 68�F... but then our humidity is ZERO :-( >>> >> How do you recognize an Arizonan? When he says "But it's a dry heat ..." > > Saves us from feeling terrible in the heat, but makes cold _really_ > cold :-( > > I ought to add a humidifier to this house, but they're a pain to > maintain. > >> In an hour I am starting my 2nd attempt to whack the ice cover on the >> steep driveway because I need to get to a client tomorrow, after being >> more or less stuck here in the house since Sunday. Wish me luck. This >> morning I heard a neighbor somewhere trying the same, then started up >> the car, put in gear, release brake ... ka-crunchah ... ka-chrunch ... >> phsssseeeee ... *CRUNCH* ... sounded like it's sitting in a frozen snow >> bank now. > > You don't have any ice salt? > Yeah, I don't like to do it because it's bad for the environment but I just pelted the driveway with salt. Hopefully does the trick and gives us a window. That window closes in minutes when the sun goes past that driveway and the melting runoff re-freezes to black ice in minutes. Happened yesterday. I was nearly at the bottom and wanted to go back up for a break, and almost couldn't. -- Regards, Joerg http://www.analogconsultants.com/ "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam. Use another domain or send PM.
From: JosephKK on 10 Dec 2009 01:35
On Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:51:36 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote: >JosephKK wrote: >> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:36:50 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >> wrote: >> >>> krw wrote: >>>> On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:10:22 -0800, Joerg <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> >>>> wrote: >>>> >>> [...] >>> >>>>> Get a wood stove. Seriously, best investment we ever made in this house. >>>>> Global "warming" has led us from 2-cord winters (where we got socked >>>>> with a $709 propane bill for one (!) month and got the wood stove) to >>>>> 4-cord winters. And I am not sure whether the purchase of 5 cords >>>>> wouldn't be advised for next winter. >>>> I think we're going to put the gas logs in the fireplace this year. >>>> >>>>> Can you imagine what propane heating would cost us this winter? >>>> Propane varies widely across the country. In VT it was about 3x what >>>> oil cost. Dunno here, yet. >>> >>> It's way more than gasoline out here in CA even though it has less BTU. >>> So we thumbed our noses at the oil companies and went to wood heat. But >>> I wish we had a bigger stove, with all this cooling trend. Despite what >>> experts say I now think that bigger is better. >> >> I would certainly pay attention to how efficient it was over its >> heating power working range. > > >Well, that's just it. At the 20% to 50% level it's supposedly around >78%. But California seems to get colder every year. So, more and more we >find ourselves running it close to full bore and that's where the >efficiency drops off. Still a clean burn, no smoke, but lots more heat >escapes through the chimney. Modern wood stoves can operate quite well >at the lower burn settings but not when you run them with primary plus >secondary air fully open. Probably because they don't have much of a >baffle system like older stoves do. Then they start eating wood as if it >was popcorn. At this rate I am not sure our 4 cords will last through >winter :-( > >This morning it happened for the first time that we needed wood stove + >pellet stove + central heat to get the house warm. Here in the office it >was 58F at 7:00am even though wood and pellet stoves ran all night. I see that you understood me well. 58F is too crispy for me to get up without an emergency. I suggest at least two more cords. And more pellets. ISTR your place was decently insulated, but the cold snap has just been extreme. |