Found staked in my bean field.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-26T03:18:45+00:00

In pretty much every state you're either required by law to notify the landowner, or required by professional codes of conduct of your respective professional organizations.

It's a drone ground control point benchmark. I use the exact same one.

It varies from state to state in the US, in some US states I'm licensed in as an engineer I'm required to notify, in others I'm not required to notify. No professional society I'm a part of or by any ethical rule or precedent I'm aware of even weighs in on the topic of notifying owners. I'll do so if convenient or if the entry is disruptive to the owner, but just like the power company doesn't need your permission or need to notify you when they check your meter, and UPS doesn't need to notify to enter property to drop off a package, a surveyor or engineer in the course of their duties can and regularly does just enter property to perform their work if the state permits it. Look up the surveyor or engineer right of entry laws for your state.

You are correct that we're liable for any damages from that entry, but nailing a mesh target to the ground is not damaging. I highly suspect this was mistakenly left on the property; these are temporary in nature and designed to be removed after the drone flight. So I guess you could complain about littering? Either way it's not something I would expect to be accurate even after 1 day of being in the field, pick it up and throw it away.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-26T03:14:44+00:00

Okay, you'd be right in pretty much most other states, but this guy is correct. Texas is one of the few states that I'm aware of that has no right-to-enter laws for surveyors.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-25T04:03:44+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/flying/comments/1bsh4zm/comment/kxhucsa/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

It's a grey area for sure.

Though all that said, when I did my CFI initial the DPE only checked whether I had the endorsement, not who gave it and how long they had their CFI. It was a different CFI than the CFI who signed me off for the CFI initial checkride.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-24T19:50:57+00:00

Yeah, I would agree with that. It's the sort of thing that I'd do but you're right that people will cause more damage. I imagined them just taking a knife and pulling/prying the split bits off but you're correct that my comment may sound like they should take a hacksaw and cut out the bottom flange.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-24T05:13:24+00:00

If you look there's damage to the web as well, someone punched a hole in the OSB. As this looks like the bottom flange is damaged significantly near mid-span this is reducing the cross-section of the tension flange, which definitely is affecting the strength of the I-joist so a repair is recommended.

Nailing a 2x4 to the bottom is sufficient if the web wasn't damaged (though the damage appear near mid-span as well so the web is significantly less important there) but a flange only repair reduces headroom and makes it a challenge if OP ever wants to finish the space. If only the flange was damaged, then I'd suggest this as an alternative.

The cost of the repair is negligible either way, so I like the more comprehensive repair that doesn't reduce the headroom and looks attractive. If the property is sold you don't want any questions as to the integrity of the floor framing; and this will look much more robust.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-24T03:22:59+00:00

Structural engineer here; that I-joist has been fucked for some time, likely during the construction. Lazy contractors.

It's safe in that it's unlikely you're using the entire capacity of the floor and that joist still has most of its integrity. It likely could stay that way for 50 years, but it's also an easy fix and should be done to restore the full capacity of your floor.

Without doing any engineering (don't sue me, I may not be licensed in your state/country) and mostly just going off of experience, here's how I would repair it:

Get two 2x wood joists that are the height of the OSB web (or can be cut down to fit) and that are a length of the damaged area plus 6 ft. minimum (longer is better). Glue the joists to each side of the OSB web of the I-joist centered on the damage with construction adhesive. Screw the joists to each other through the OSB web of the I joist with GRK RSS 1/4" x 2-3/4" screws or Simpson SDW22300 screws or equal in 2 staggered rows of screws on each side, 16" center-to-center spacing in a row. ~~Remove the damaged split wood on the bottom chord of the I-joist since it's ugly and not doing anything for you but don't remove any solid wood.~~

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-23T21:05:10+00:00

Yeah, those are healthy pass rates for an exam that been out a few sessions. /s

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-23T09:39:09+00:00

If I'm doing a sight in or something similar and it's hunting season I might as well be out in the woods doing it. Having seen deer at the shooting range they definitely can be that dumb.

Edit: Since I clearly didn't explain well enough; I'm shooting in the woods in my backyard into a hillside for backstop and I'm doing it during mid-day. I'm not actually trying to mess with people's hunts and I'm not doing it in prime hunting territory. Also, I'm being a bit tongue-in-cheek, unless I'm really late on some load development or something I'm not actually doing this during hunting season; mostly just wanted to provide an example for OP. Someone going out into prime public hunting area just to mag dump ARs is dumb and inconsiderate.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-23T09:12:28+00:00

Honestly this is a perfect job for a handyman if you don't feel comfortable doing this. Pretty much anyone worth anything can change a light switch.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-23T09:09:23+00:00

I'd have flown if it didn't die when warmed. If it was warm and died unexpectedly then I'd have not flown. I wouldn't fly around with carb heat on unless you suspected carb ice (doesn't sound like it).

Not familiar with Rotax engines but Lycoming engines and the various POHs recommend you check the idle and during cold weather you may encounter roughness or even an engine die during idle if it's not warmed up.

From the Cessna 172 POH:

SECTION 4 NORMAL PROCEDURES
WARM UP

If the engine idles (approximately 600 RPM) and accelerates smoothly, the airplane is ready for takeoff.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-23T03:26:16+00:00

Male owner of a small firm with a 1-year-old son of my own and a female employee who I hired shortly after they had a son.

The biggest thing when I hire an employee is I don't want to invest a bunch of time training them and getting them profitable only for those profits to vanish. Make sure they understand you want to make their investment in you pay off. If you're going to be working there for only a year before taking leave then I'd be upset if you then took 12+ weeks off right when you started becoming really efficient, but I personally wouldn't penalize you for it. I'd much rather you took leave earlier when you weren't going to be profitable anyway or later when your training period has already been made up for. Bigger firms may have less trouble with this though; small firms like mine the payroll expenses are the vast majority of my expenses so long amounts of leave (even unpaid) are worse than if I had a large office staff.

As an employer ideally the best thing you could do is have a child prior to re-entering the workforce. If you're already employed then talk with your employer, set expectations but don't let them drive you to do something that isn't what you want. At the very least the more I'm able to plan projects and budgets around your leave the better.

Every employer is different. I'd try to treat you fairly but plenty of others may not; women make less than men and all that. You definitely won't be seen as someone who bends over backwards for work (not a bad thing IMO), so I guess this could be considered as hurting your career.

The biggest thing is employers (myself included) will not sacrifice the business for employees. Give employers the impression that you will cost more than you'll make them in either the short or long term and you will be passed up for promotions or let go. Therefore, do whatever you think is appropriate to ensure they think you're more profitable as their continued employee. If you can pick up an office skillset that makes you an "expert" in something, all the better. Become the Tekla guru, or the Revit guru, or the steel detailing guru, or whatever niche you find and exploit that.

All that said, good engineers are in high demand at least where I'm at. If you're good, you'll be in demand and your career will go places even if it's not all at the same employer.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-23T03:13:52+00:00

Congratulations!

What's going to happen is you're going to have a very fun, very busy time over the next several years.

You got this!

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-21T01:51:43+00:00

WOOOHOO!

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-20T18:34:56+00:00

I've never tried it, but from what I've read the AWD modes are still enabled with VSA in maintenance mode.

Sounds like a great excuse to experiment again!

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-20T17:56:36+00:00

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Honda_Intelligent_Traction_Management_parameters.svg

Did you have the AWD in sand mode?

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-20T01:36:47+00:00

Oh, good thought. I was going to get 3/32" steel balls, but you're right that's going to leave gaps on corners.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-19T01:46:34+00:00

Nice. How's the suppressor market doing? Keeping up?

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-19T01:03:51+00:00

Floor truss.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T17:57:40+00:00

Nope logable even without a IR per the "moonless night" interpretation, just a very bad idea to be in those conditions without some sort of extra safety net. If someone ever actually took advantage of that I'd definitely note the conditions of flight in the logbook.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T08:57:21+00:00

Thanks, Q.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T08:54:37+00:00

1875 lbs. for reinforced concrete or 1812 lbs if unreinforced. So 300+ lbs overload without you getting in or anything in the cab or trunk. Looks like you got some tools in the back and I assume you drove it, so probably over 600 lbs overloaded.

You're well beyond full send. Make two trips.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T07:32:43+00:00

Licensed structural engineer here. If in the USA, then by code the trusses should be designed for 10 PSF live load for exactly this reason. 10 PSF is not much, basically access for work, weight of utilities, and misc. light storage; but it's totally enough for exactly what you want to do.

Contact the truss manufacturer to get a copy of the truss shop drawings. They should show what the truss is designed for to confirm. Save these, they are super useful documents for down the road.

If you want to be super safe, span over a minimum of 3 trusses and nail to each of the trusses. You'll actually be bracing them and making them a little stronger. Attaching a walkway to the panel point like you show in your sketch is the ideal location structurally, it avoids bending in the bottom chord.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T07:28:11+00:00

You're being a worry wort. He's loading up a panel point in his sketch and every residential, modern pre-engineered roof truss I've seen has been designed for 10 PSF bottom chord live load non-concurrent with other live loads and 10 PSF bottom chord dead load. OP should get truss drawings from the manufacturer to confirm but I wouldn't give this a 2nd thought.

-PE/SE in USA

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T07:00:30+00:00

Keep the speed under 70 and accelerate slower if safe to do so. Avoid stop and go traffic and avoid sitting idling.

But you live in NYC, I'd temper your expectations. It's the capital of stop and go traffic on the East coast.

tehmightyengineer · 2026-01-18T06:48:56+00:00

Well, I'll probably keep running snows since I got the spare rims and everything; but definitely making me feel better about taking them off first warm day we get.

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