Think before you aerate!

So as a result of owning a dog we have a bit of a race track around the house and the grass isn't growing very well because of compacted soil.

From my reading the solution was to aerate the lawn and then water and fertilize. I was smart enough to mark our sprinkler heads but for some reason never thought about Baylen's Invisible Pet Fence.

Aerating was easy and reasonably cheap so I completed it before we left for Chicago.

When we got back from our Memorial trip to Chicago the pet fence was indicating a break and surprisingly enough I was smart enough to add 1 and 1 and come up with the correct answer that I broke the wire with the aerator.

I have done this before while edging the driveway so I know mostly what I am doing but that time I knew where the break was once I thought it through. This time it wasn't nearly as easy so I went to the old fall back of Googling it.

I came up with three solutions...
- Hire a professional
- Buy a device from PetSafe for $50
- Buy an RF Choke from RadioShack for $1.39

This last solution I found mixed commentary on regarding its success but it was worth a try.

The only parts I needed was the RF Choke and a battery operated AM radio. Basically, you attach the RF Choke to the positive and negative terminals on the pet fence control unit leaving the pet wires connected. This completes the circuit as far as the pet fence is concerned so electricity is now running through the wire. Then you turn your AM radio down to the lowest empty station, in my case it was 600. You can then wave the radio above where the wire is in the ground and hear the static pulse when you're above the wire where electricity is flowing. It helps to keep the radio as close to the ground as possible.

So, I followed the wire around until I lost the signal. At this point I dug up the sod and found the wire break. I actually found 5 wire breaks within about a 25 foot section. I repaired those breaks and everything is now ship shape again.

It's a good feeling to fix something yourself and a much better feeling when you don't have to spend much money doing it.

I'm chocking this one up as a lesson learned and the moral of the story is always think twice before you start your projects!

Christian

Memorial Weekend 2008

We spent a wonderfully relaxing Memorial weekend with our friends Mark and Christine down in Chicago. The weather was hot compared to MN and we enjoyed spending as much time outside as possible. Christine and Heather planted flower pots and Mark and I toured the local motorcycle shops and played tennis and basketball.

Unfortunately while we were away two tornadoes hit the Twin Cities but fortunately they missed our house, one touched down only about 5 miles away!


Here is a picture of the four of us with "Mr. Weber" at the Weber Grill.
Mark and I at an Irish pub(Ballydoyle) having Guiness and listening to Raggea Funk from the Cold Water Mystic, http://www.middlegroundmedia.com/coldwatermystic/ for those of you who are interested.
Heather and Christine at Ballydoyle listening to live music.

Thanks to Mark and Christine for inviting us down to spend time with our best friends!

Best of Balyen

Here is a sampling of the best photos we have taken of Baylen our French Brittany Spaniel. The last picture shows his Sire (Ram) and his Dam (Tabia).

Oppel Bloggers

Well, we have finally started a blog, you can't call us early adopters! Check back soon since it's still under construction!

Christian