Tractor Time - the 200 hour service

Being able to afford a compact John Deere 1023E has been a godsend here on the manor. It's a sturdy little machine and perfect for the size of our property and our needs. It may not have all the whistles and bells of larger tractors, but our needs are basic: a bucket, a backhoe, a snowblower, and a set of recently added pallet forks. From cutting firewood, to digging out stumps, to clearing our long lane of snow, the John Deere 1023 has worked for us.

This weekend past, we finished the two-hundred-hour service on the tractor. It's taken us six years to put two-hundred hours of use on the tractor but we can't measure the amount of back-breaking labor it has saved us from. 

 A couple of weekends ago, we changed the coolant and the oil. Getting off the ground is difficult for him, so I crawled under the tractor and did it. This time, for the hydraulic fluid, he decided he needed to be the one under the tractor. 

I lowered the outriggers to raise the rear of the tractor, shoved blocks under the rear tires, and set John down. Setting it on blocks was safer on relying on the outriggers to hold. Once the job was finished, we had to get him off the ground and back into his power chair. That was the worst part of the job. Every move needed to be carefully orchestrated and executed or else we would have needed to call for help. He made it and we went on with our day. Even Deuce was happy to have the job done.

We try to always be self-sufficient, and frugal, here on the Manor. His many years of experience as an auto mechanic has served us well. His mobility is limited but not his brain. I know enough about engines and equipment to take direction well. It works for us. Will it continue to do so? One can only hope. 

It may be another six years before we need to perform the four-hundred-hour service on the tractor. As the year 2020 has taught us, a lot can change in a short time. I hope I'm still living on the manor when that time comes. 

The Lady of Holly Tree Manor