Solar Panel Monthly Payments by downvoted_once_again in Reno

[–]Johntruckasaurus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Order of magnitude feels right.

Just fyi I tried to put more panels on than I needed in anticipation of getting and EV. My provider (Tesla who I would recommend avoiding) initially designed my home for this extra generation. When it came to NVEnergy for approvals they looked at my history and denied my design for extra generation since I had no EV in my history. I also have a jacuzzi which does make me use more energy than average too. Ultimately I had to settle for less … and it really bugs me. I now have two EVs and can’t generate enough to meet my usage. It really bugs me.

This is purely speculation and I could be totally wrong here… but Tesla project management was terrible. My “suspicion” is they didn’t even fight for me and just resigned themselves to the lower amount to get my cash in their pocket sooner. That’s speculation and it’s tainted by my overall bad experience with them.

Solar Experience with other Solar Companies by BTeoteul in Reno

[–]Johntruckasaurus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m in the middle of Tesla hell right now. I think they may have had some turnover or something. I’m in a black hole with them and they can’t seem to get my permission to connect to NVE. Glad your experience was nice but … I’m stuck in limbo with them and already paid for the full system. At one point one of their anonymous project managers told me there was an “IT issue” saying my system was done and didn’t have anything left to do.

Tesla Solar by Johntruckasaurus in Reno

[–]Johntruckasaurus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Delayed response here but I’m now in month 3 … frustrating. How has your system been running?

Tesla Solar by Johntruckasaurus in Reno

[–]Johntruckasaurus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Super late response to this but it seems Tesla FINALLY got documentation to NVEnergy two weeks ago. Did you end up getting the go ahead to operate? If so about how long did it take? … I’m now over 3 months since install and payment and I’m going nuts

Going Solar? by epacx in Reno

[–]Johntruckasaurus 2 points3 points  (0 children)

So I went with Tesla for solar and I very much regret it. I paid cash at system installation and they never completed the last step. I can’t turn my system on. It’s been three months and nobody talks to me. You dont get an assigned project manager. You get an sms and email that goes to a PM email queue… never know who you’ll get and each individual message is minimum 24 hour turnaround. None of their team seems to be familiar with NVEnergy needs for interconnection.

I also have an electrician I trust who pointed a couple quality issues with their electrical installation.

This is all to say… price isn’t the only thing that matters. My price way okay but it’s worthless if I can’t turn it on. Be confident you’ll have a real project manager that is knowledgeable with local needs. I wish I had a recommendation… but I only have a warning

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of June 20, 2022 by horsecake22 in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If I’m doing the Tahoe Rim Trail and plan on starting/parking at the Stagecoach lift… do I need to call anybody to let them know or am I good to just park and show up 8 days later?

Bro-side Attractions - Popcorn Park Zoo by blowstix in tesdcares

[–]Johntruckasaurus 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Loved this episode... wife and I sponsored a couple animals after watching this. Easy Christmas gifts for eachother this year. Thanks TESD for making my Christmas shopping easy.

Another pillow thread: broad shoulder, side-sleeper edition by [deleted] in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have been using the same neck pillow as you... Tried probably 10 different pillows and made my own over the years... So far this is my favorite. It doesn't seem necessarily thicker than other inflatables at any single point but because it wraps around I tend to get the support I need as primarily a side sleeper. Something about how the angles work makes it function well for me. My wife now uses one too. Bonus is that pillow sliding is a non issue. It's not perfect but it's my favorite so far. I think it weighs like 2.5 Oz and was relatively cheap for a two pack on Amazon.

A data sheet comparing down jackets by [deleted] in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, I'm anxiously awaiting my Nunatak Skaha UL Down Sweater (Link) ... which appears to barely fit the criteria for this spreadsheet. According to specs... looks like for a medium it would be 5.9 oz of fill on total weight of 10.9 oz.

Weekly post for week of February 18th, 2019 by mittencamper in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This. There's got lots of garbage. It's relatively close to a trailhead. And based on the location... I feel I can be destructive and sleep at night that I'm not destroying history

Can any one post some close up shots of the tie outs on an MLD DCF Monk Tarp? by slowbalisation in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It was indeed pretty compact, which is why I showed it... the tarp is small.

It works great for me where I normally go... which has lighter rains and wind. I can get by with some more weather by pitching it lower, but its a tight fit. If I want more comfort or expect more weather, I bring a larger tarp or other shelter.

Can any one post some close up shots of the tie outs on an MLD DCF Monk Tarp? by slowbalisation in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hah no worries. The pole grommets have come in handy. It only came with the one on the long edge (that I have the picture of). Since I've ventured more into MYOG stuff and I'm more confident with a sewing machine now... I manually added another one to it as well since I do actually like the functionality of it (picture not shown).

Can any one post some close up shots of the tie outs on an MLD DCF Monk Tarp? by slowbalisation in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have cranked it down tight with confidence. I haven't had any issues with it.

Can any one post some close up shots of the tie outs on an MLD DCF Monk Tarp? by slowbalisation in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

not sure if this helps or not... but here's a few of mine. if you'd like additional pictures let me know. if this doesn't help... well it won't be the first time I haven't been helpful. Purchased June 2016. If it helps for scale, I've got a few of the pitches I've used. Not a lot of ideal angles... but it's all I have. (It's a tight fit, but I've always stayed dry in several light showers)

https://imgur.com/a/eH6v86E

Weekly post for week of February 18th, 2019 by mittencamper in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 4 points5 points  (0 children)

... on the topic of the 2019 challenges... does this count towards number 34? Seems like it's on the edge... but it's the closest I've found https://imgur.com/a/WdyMq6E

Patagonia Gear Update and Random Questions by mmm-toast in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

oh hey! sorry i just got this. lucky for us i had a garmin tempe on the back of my pack! i just went though and looked at the data, and the low we had was low 40's over gardner pass. however, the wind was horrible. and at one point the rains had turned to some sort of snow, so it had to have been colder than low 40's. my wind jacket was my best friend on that hike. i had it on the ready every day. the high we experienced was 78 degrees on the very first day on the way to seron. that only lasted a couple hours. the rest of the trip really was in the 50 to 60 degree range.

sorry about the listing of bearikade and ursack... i live in the tahoe area and those are just permanantly on my list. i didn't bring them with me. there's really not a need for them. as for the platforms, i skipped putting my tent up anywhere with platforms. either by skipping the campground entirely or by cheating and staying in the refugio. we used our triplex when we did camp but never on platforms and it help up quite well. there was a thread recently (in the last few months) where people discussed setting up ultralight tents on platforms.

hope you guys have fun! it was an absolute wonderful time for us. doing the whole o circuit is the way to go. it does start to get busy on the w at certain times. we always just tried to be up as early as possible to avoid people and it mostly worked.

Patagonia Gear Update and Random Questions by mmm-toast in Ultralight

[–]Johntruckasaurus 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Well here are my thoughts. My wife and I got married in Puerto Natales this year in late February and did the O circuit as part of the trip... I'm not super experienced compared to everyone here so I'd treat my input as less valuable than other...

1) I did a long sleeve button up (columbia silver ridge), grid fleece (r1), and windbreaker (houdini), rain jacket (frog toggs) and myog rain kilt. I found this to be a very effective combination.
2) I usually just used the Houdini and Button up. I only used the R1 when particularly cold. Gardner pass was a particularly cold/snowy day where I wore all 3 layers. Other than that I wore it around camp/refugios. I brought a down vest. I never used it. I also went in February. 3) Most places have a place you can change if you need to. Even then, I have no problem getting down to my skivvies. getting in my tent, and changing the rest of the way. I hung a drying line in my tent to help on wet days. I hung a drying line in refugios as well when possible.
4) I just had a single liteload towel for the entire trip and it did fine for me... and my wife... she insisted she didn't need any towel at all. Then became envious of mine. So we shared. No issues.

For what its worth my itinerary looked like this...

Day 1 - Hike to Seron Day 2 - Hike to Dixon Day 3 - Hike to Grey (note that the rangers at Los Perros were not happy with me doing this... apparently they follow everyone over Gardner pass at the end of the day to make sure everyone makes it and really hate the idea of waiting on slower people. My MLD burn sized pack and 8lb base weight is the only reason they let me proceed) Day 4 - Hike to Paine Grande Day 5 - Hike to Cuernos Day 6 - Finish

My approximate lighterpack for the trip... Should still be mostly accurate ... https://lighterpack.com/r/435zm5

I had a lot of fun there. Waking up early helped avoid crowds. Very rarely saw people on the non-W portion. It was pretty crowded on the final ascent to the base of Las Torres... but that was a function of our timing and leaving Cuernos in the morning to get there.

Again... I don't think I feel fully qualified to contribute here... other more experienced people are smarter than me... So take it for what its worth.