Monthly Archives: June 2010

Blueberry Picking At Belltown Hill Orchards In South Glastonbury, CT

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I am going to tell you something that I forget quite often. There is a beautiful place on this planet not too far from where we live. It’s the “farmy” area of South Glastonbury, CT. This thought escapes me every so often, but one drive through on a sunny Summer day reminds me in the most interesting ways.

Now, I already told you about our Cherry Picking adventure at Belltown in one of my previous posts. We did that last week or the week before. We went on the perfect day…much like today’s visit for blueberries. The cherry trees and the blueberry bushes are in two different locations, about a half mile from one another. Today I learned that there are a huge number of blueberry bushes. Each area of bushes ripens at different times, so this year’s visit for blueberries was across the field from last year’s.

We rode on a trailer pulled by a tractor. I tried to get away with walking back to the area, but the girl who worked there didn’t let us. Good thing too, because it was a heck of a lot further than I thought. Plus, I like riding on a trailer. It’s part of the charm.

I forgot to bring the camera for the actual picking of the berries. I had to take a few photos with my Droid. I am sure you will be able to tell the difference.

Blueberries Hanging From Blueberry Bush

Blueberries Hanging From Blueberry Bush

Looking Up Dirt Road To Blueberry Fields At Belltown Hill Orchards - #1

Looking Up Dirt Road To Blueberry Fields At Belltown Hill Orchards - #1

Looking Up Dirt Road To Blueberry Fields At Belltown Hill Orchards - #2

Looking Up Dirt Road To Blueberry Fields At Belltown Hill Orchards - #2

Blueberry Fields Covered With Nets

Blueberry Fields Covered With Nets

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Stihl MS 250 Chainsaw Engine Bogging Down

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This started happening towards the end of last Summer. My Stihl MS 250 chainsaw engine would bog down at the strangest times. I can’t say there was one time in particular, but I guess mostly when I put the saw under a load. When I started cutting with it, it would bog down and then I would stop and rev the engine. I would get it going again and the same thing would happen. Since it was the end of the season, I put the saw in the garage and hoped it would heal itself by Spring.

Well, it’s next Summer now and I had to use the chainsaw the other day. Guess what? It had the same problem. My sharp senses told me what the problem was. For some reason, I knew I had to clean and re-gap the spark plug.

When I took the spark plug out of the engine, I took a glance at the gap. The side electrode and the center electrode seemed to be pretty close together. Since I had absolutely no idea what the gap is supposed to be for a Stihl MS250 chainsaw, I looked it up. I found out that the spark plug gap is supposed to be .020 or 0.5mm metric for the Stihl MS 250 Chainsaw. Yep, I was right. When I measured the gap with my spark plug gapper, it was too small.

Now, .020 gap is pretty tight. It’s actually the smallest size on my gapper. Good thing too. I re-gapped the spark plug and gave it a quick cleaning. Then, I reinstalled it in the chainsaw. I started it up and problem solved. I love it when a plan comes together. Now, the saw is nice and strong when I cut through wood.

Stihl MS250 Chainsaw

Stihl MS250 Chainsaw

Stihl MS 250 Logo

Stihl MS 250 Logo

PS – I wanted to write a quick note about trying to diagnose small engines. For some reason, people seem to love jumping into the fuel system. I am not sure why this is, when the easiest thing to check is the spark plug. Take out the plug, clean it, re-gap it and see how that works. Don’t take out the carburetor and rebuild it if you don’t need to. Most of the time, this is unnecessary.

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Boiler Not Starting

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This was pretty weird. After all day of getting nice hot water from our boiler, it just stopped working. No more hot water. And this, of course, had to happen as soon as my better half was getting into the shower. I don’t look forward to those kinds of moments.

So, what did I do about this boiler situation? Well, I went down into the basement and I pushed the reset button. It sounded like it wanted to start, but then it shut off. I pushed the button again. Nothing. Then, I called my father who told me to open up the little door to see if oil was being sprayed into the combustion chamber. I did that and I was witness to a fine mist of smelly oil (after pushing the reset button one more time). Come to find out, you aren’t supposed to push the reset button more than once. Oil can collect in the boiler and become dangerous or smoke once it’s started again.

My father told me that the problem was most likely something with the igniter or the nozzle. Since he lives about eight states away, he said I should call the oil company. Besides, I do have a service contract that I am paying for.

I called the oil company the next morning. They sent out a nice guy who took a bunch of stuff apart. He cleaned off what looked like two rods. I think they were the igniters. He also replaced what I believe was the nozzle. You know, the piece that sprays the oil. Carbon had built up on the nozzle. He also re-gapped the igniter rods.

After he put everything back together, he started up the boiler and wham…good to go.

I asked the service technician if the boiler still needed a cleaning after this repair and he said yes. I scheduled this for next week.

I hope this post can help anyone who is having a problem with their boiler not starting.

Carlin and Honeywell Boiler Parts

Carlin and Honeywell Boiler Parts

Beckett Boiler Part

Beckett Boiler Part

Thermo Dynamics Boiler

Thermo Dynamics Boiler

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Huge Black Beetle – Central Connecticut

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Okay, this is pretty exciting. Not for me, but for beetle lovers.

I was outside this afternoon walking around on the grass. I looked down and there was this huge black beetle trying to make it’s way through the grass. I have no idea what it was doing there, but it didn’t look like it belonged. I decided to ignore it and move on.

As I made my way down the hill I was on, I happened to see another large black beetle, but this one wasn’t as big as the last. It was the same type of beetle, just a little smaller. I got all sorts of excited and ran inside to get a container to catch both beetles in.

I got a container and ran back outside. I found both beetles and put them in the container. The smaller one immediately jumped on the back of the larger one and got into a compromising position. I am assuming it was a male, if that exists.

I ran inside to show my better half the beetles. She was disgusted, so I went back outside and let them go. The smaller one flew away and the larger one stayed put so I could get some nice pictures.

If you know what type of beetle this is, please leave a comment. I have seen these things since I was a kid and never knew their proper name.

Huge Black Beetle Found in Connecticut

Huge Black Beetle Found in Connecticut

Huge Black Beetle Found in Central Connecticut

Huge Black Beetle Found in Central Connecticut

Large Black Beetle Found in Connecticut

Large Black Beetle Found in Connecticut

Large Black Beetle Found in Central Connecticut

Large Black Beetle Found in Central Connecticut

Big Black Beetle - Side View

Big Black Beetle - Side View

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Days Of The New – Enemy

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I wrote a post a while back on another blog about Days Of The New and their song called, “Enemy.” This is by far one of my favorite songs. When I wrote the post, whoever posted the video didn’t allow embedding. Well, just as luck has it, they now do. I thought it would be good to follow up my initial post with a new one. This time, I am going to include the video.


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The Calling – Wherever You Will Go

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A long time ago, I stumbled across a MySpace page that had this song playing. For some reason, I just sat there staring at the computer screen until it was over. I’m not sure why I did that. Perhaps I was in a weird mood or perhaps it was the song. Who knows.

Anyway, the song is called, “Wherever You Will Go” by The Calling. It’s another song by a guy with a big voice. For the first song from a guy with a big voice, make sure to read the post right above this one.


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Purple, White and Yellow Iris

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I have had these photos hanging around for a while. I took them a few weeks ago, but never got a chance to post them.

As you may already know, the Iris is one of my favorite flowers. It spreads like crazy and it’s also nice and beefy. Every year, the bunches of these flowers get larger and larger. All I do is split them where I think they need to be split and randomly plant them in various gardens. They haven’t let me down yet.

I am posting some photos of yellow Iris and some white and purple Iris. We also have a different type of Iris that is all purple and a bit more delicate looking than the others. I am not sure of the official names of these flowers.

Purple and Yellow Iris Up Close

Purple and Yellow Iris Up Close

Purple and White Iris - Up Close Showing Pistil

Purple and White Iris - Up Close Showing Pistil

Purple and White Iris

Purple and White Iris

Purple, Yellow and White Iris

Purple, Yellow and White Iris

Light Purple - More Delicate Iris

Light Purple - More Delicate Iris

Heavy Dark Purple Iris

Heavy Dark Purple Iris

Group of White and Purple Iris on Edge of Driveway

Group of White and Purple Iris on Edge of Driveway

Yellow Iris

Yellow Iris

Yellow Iris Up Close Showing Pistil

Yellow Iris Up Close Showing Pistil

Group of Yellow Iris in Garden

Group of Yellow Iris in Garden


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Transplanting Rhododendrons

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Earlier this Spring, I got a little nervous. I was nervous because the seven Rhododendron shrubs I had planted next to the driveway last year weren’t looking too good. I kept telling myself that I should be patient and that things would look up, but then I was reminded of the lonely Rhododendron that didn’t make it. That one was here when we arrived and has been slowly going downhill.

I knew the soil was terrible where I planted these Rhododendrons. There was also too much shade. I think they could have survived the shade if there was great soil, but with a one two punch, these things needed to get moved.

I have what I call a little “tree farm” at the end of the driveway. It’s a pretty large area that has had leaves and wood chips composting for years. The soil there is just amazing and when I want to rehabilitate something, I dig it up and move it over there for a while. In this case, I moved about four Rhododendron shrubs to the tree farm and three to another area where wood chips have been breaking down for over a year. Both areas have great soil.

I did this about a month ago and I would like to report that all the Rhododendrons have good looking new growth. I am convinced that if I had left them were they were, I would have seen the same brown leaves and dwindling growth as the one that was planted in the same spot years ago.

Here is a photo of one of the shrubs right after I transplanted it.

Transplanted Rhododendron

Transplanted Rhododendron


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Treating The Deck With Thompson’s WaterSeal Water Proofer Plus

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Big thunderstorms right now. Big thunderstorms. I couldn’t think of a better time to take pictures of water beading up on the freshly sealed porch. Leave it to me…the crazy guy who gets all wet just for a few photos. Hey man, if you want the good stuff, sometimes you gotta get wet.

I started this project a few days ago. We had one ugly gray, weathered out porch. The previous owners of the house stained it two different colors. My plan was to simply pressure wash off some of the mildew and then stain over everything with a solid stain. I actually bought three gallons of Behr Redwood color stain from Home Depot.

Things changed after I got the pressure washer up on the porch. I started cleaning and what do you know…all that ugly just started falling off. After a few hours, I was left with this beautiful, brand new looking deck. Hmmm…yep, you got it. Back to Home Depot with the stain. I wasn’t going to cover up that nice looking wood grain. No way. I have sealed decks with Thompson’s WaterSeal Plus before and I really love the way it looks. I picked up a nice five gallon can of Thompson’s Water Sealer for less than I spent on the stain. Not a bad deal.

There are a few perks to using clear water proofer. First, it’s easy to get off your hands. Just wash them. Second, if you get some on the grass or side of the house, no big deal. At least you didn’t just paint something redwood color. Third, I think it just looks the best out of everything. You can’t beat that wood grain. Also, it really works great to repel water and block the UV rays. You have to get the “Plus” stuff with the UV ray blocker. I used the regular Thompson’s vs. this stuff and it doesn’t even compare.

I think it took about four hours to do the whole deck. I’m not exactly done, but I don’t have much left. To do the railings, I used a three inch hand brush and to do the floor, I used a six inch brush attached to something like a broomstick. I used to use a sprayer, but I didn’t feel like making that much of a mess this time around.

What did I get in return for all that work? Here, take a look:

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Picking Cherries At Belltown Orchards In South Glastonbury, CT

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Every Summer, we really like to get out there and go fruit picking. Whether it be blueberries, strawberries, raspberries or cherries, it always ends up being a really cool day. I think the reason I like picking so much is because it’s never the same twice. Since each type of fruit requires its own space, the fields are located in very different areas. Driving around trying to find each area is a fun little exploration.

This was the first picking adventure of the Summer. We picked cherries at a field owned by Belltown Orchards in South Glastonbury. I had never picked cherries before, so when I saw these sweet red things hanging from the branches, I was psyched. You can see the pictures below.

One really cool thing that surprised me was the view of Hartford, CT from the hilltop. First of all, I didn’t know we were on a hilltop and second of all, I didn’t know there was a view of Hartford anywhere. Pretty neat.

Here are the photos of the day. Next up…blueberries.

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