Well, I didn't take First, Second or Third, even though I got the Ace of Spades as the ID for my pan of ribs (each team had to draw a card, the card was torn in half and half the card was taped in an envelope to the bottom of their submission pan). I was certain it was a good omen.

I won't know how well I did for a couple of days - they will e-mail the contestants the full results once they get them all typed up & tabulated, etc.

Sure was a fun day... hot... kept sucking down iced tea like it was going out of style... only drank one beer... the ribs we submitted were beautiful, we were highly optimistic about winning... the air compressor and texture paint spray gun was a hit (it usually is)… but there's no way to tell what the Judges want

Came home, shucked off the clothes, set my feet onto some packs of blue ice and cooled off those tired doggies... crashed about half an hour later, slept for fifteen hours...

Life is good

 

Sounds like a great time. Hope you did well.

Still having problems with the Sienna here. Had the battery charged Wednesday, then connected it Thursday morning. Sienna started right up. Did not go anywhere, just let it idle for a bit to warm up engine. Next day at 8:30pm, I go out to start it up, and nothing but clicks. There is no way a fully charged battery should be dead in 36 hours. I turned the hoist switch off, so I know it can't be that, and because I did not drive it, I know the alternator has nothing to do with it. So, I am guessing the battery is bad and will not hold a charge. When I get my disability check, I will take it to Autozone, and have them check it. They have a cheaper battery that O'Reilly's. I am guessing O'Reilly's did not do a load test, just charged it up.

Jim

 

How old is the battery? What type of battery is it? Is the battery still within the warranty period?

 

I hope none of you guys were at The Garlic Festival. I'm still shocked.

https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/gil...hnk/index.html

 

Jim, It's possible you have a parasitic load that is discharging your battery. You need somebody with an ammeter to see (at least) how much is being drawn when everything is turned off.

My SO and I had discussed going to the Garlic Festival, but changed our minds when we saw how hot it was going to be. It's unlikely (although not impossible) that we would have been at the stage near closing time. We most certainly would have been listening to the music, but by that time of day, we would have been on the road heading home.

 

I have no idea how old the battery is, as I bought the Sienna used. It is a Sears Die-Hard battery. It accepted a charge from O'Reilly's but will not hold it. I will go down to Autozone and have them check it Friday when I get paid. I have no clue what could be causing the parasitic loss since the only addition since I bought it was the hoist. However, maybe the people at Autozone can test it.

Another shooting. I find it very disturbing that every time there is a shooting the politicians claim we have a gun violence problem in America and broken gun laws. We don't have a gun violence problem, we have a mental health problem. Of the 40,000 people killed every year by guns, 29,000 of them are suicides. Only 8,861 were killed by "gun violence. That is less than 0.001 percent of the population. The politicians need to start focusing on our mental health epidemic instead of their made up gun violence problem. My heart and prayers go out to the victim's families and friends, but I would be my next paycheck that they find out the shooter was mentally ill. Nobody in the right mind would do that. I wonder how many CCW carrying people were at that festival? Probably zero. Lord knows Kalifornia can't have any law abiding citizens carrying a weapon, they might take out the shooter before he makes headlines. Can't have that, it is not good for re-election.

Jim

 

Once upon a time, Sears Die-Hard were great batteries. I heard that they were made by Interstate. They still may be a very good battery. I know that Honda does not leave the factory with a Sears Die Hard battery. I have no idea how long you've owned the van. A lot of batteries come with warranties. Sometimes, there is a marking, date code, or installation date right on the top of the battery. Considering that batteries offer warranties of 24 months or 36 months, you are probably out of that battery's warranty period. We could all suggest good batteries. But you already know that Interstate and Optima are probably better batteries. You will buy whichever battery you can get the best deal on. Maybe you can get something inexpensive from Costco or Wal*Mart.

 

I bought the Toyota Sienna in October of last year with 150k on the odometer. I traded my Thunderbird in for it, which also had 150k on the odometer, but was 10 years older. I will have to check the date of the battery, but I seriously doubt it is still within warranty. Autozone has a battery $20 cheaper than O'Reilly's, $140 compared to $160, but Walmart beats them all, with a 5 year warranty, 750 CCA battery for $93.76. Only problem with that, is there is not one close. I can use the scooter to go to either of the parts stores. Walmart does not give discounts to veterans, but even with the discount neither of the batteries at the parts stores would be cheaper than the Walmart battery. So, I may just have Geico roadside assistance jump start the van, then drive to the nearest Walmart with a service center and get the battery there. I would like to make sure it is the battery before I get it though.

Jim

 

You can check it out yourself.

 

Thanks for the link.

Jim

 

Happy taco Tuesday all.

Jim

 

Sorry I’m late to the party , jim a volt meter will tell you if your Alternator is bad , set it on dcvolts 20, start your car, Holt pos to pos , neg to neg, if your volts drop it’s a alternator issue , test battery before alt test engine off , should see nothing lower than 13.5 v and new battery full charge 14v , for your alt nothing lower than 13.3 anytime . Check your glove box light , seat controls and cig lighter for draw .

 

You are funny Scott. Start your car and test battery. Car will not start. LOL Besides, I just got my multi-meter out, which I got in 2006, and never replaced the battery, so of course, it doesn't work. I doubt I have a screwdriver small enough to take off the back cover. I do have a second one, but it too has never had the battery replaced. So I bet it is dead too. Of course, I don't even know where that one is. I will look for it tomorrow. However, if I have to, I will have Geico roadside assistance jump start it on Friday, and then I will drive to a Walmart with a service center, and have them test/check it for free. They have the lowest price on a battery I have found.

Jim

 

Well in that response it was , test battery before you start , once running ,a volt meter will tell you if your Alternator is charging or drawing, but seeing your battery is dead , do you have a charger ? , maybe a little juice will get you to Wallyworld