Could have been very bad

[maple flats]

The ground around my sugarhouse is about 8-14" of top soil and duff, under that it's just sand. As a consequence i get blow downs from time to time, uprooting trees.
I noticed yesterday when I got to the sugarhouse to pack more syrup for retail, that a very large sugar maple was leaning towards one corner of the sugarhouse and the attached elevated platform where my head tank sets. I spent the day moving most things in the way, including my vacuum pump and several smaller things. I then had to winch a log out of a roadway, because a beech tree had been blown over, not uprooted but busted off at about 6' off the ground. I had to remove it in 2 pieces, because my forestry winch on the tractor couldn't pull it all in one pull, both too long and too much resistance, I didn't even limb it yet. That tree was live and it still broke off. Then this morning I had my brother help, my tractor won't lift my sap tanks, the tractor only lifts about 1000 lbs and both tanks weigh more than that. My brother has a big JCB and it had no problem lifting either tank. Both tanks are now out of the way. There was also a 14" DBH hemlock leaning towards my shop. In the way was also my sawmill, that got moved, I still need to move my splitter which is also in the way. After that, I'll cut the maple down this afternoon but just leave it for the time being, tomorrow I'll cut the hemlock down. On the hemlock I'll need to limb it and buck it into sawmill lingth logs and winch them out of the way, the maple can just set there until later in the spring.
While next year I'll be burning oil in the evaporator, I still burn wood to heat my home anytime it below about 30F, when it warmer if I need heat I grit my teeth and turn the furnace on.
Had I not noticed the 2 leaners (I already had 3 trees blow down near the sugarhouse with all of the wind we've had, but they all fell away from the sugarhuse, they just took down 2 lteral lines.) Had trhe big maple come down it likely would have caused major damage, would have crushed 2 dairy tanks, a 300 gal and a 200 gal, plus would have likely hit the north west corner of the sugarhouse, wiping out the elevated platform, my 100 gal SS head tank, and inside the sugarhouse at that corner is my tankless water heater, my solar inverter (was $4000 back in 2009, not they are about $3400), my 48V battery bank, a micro wave and my 2x6 finisher. In the process, breaking a bunch of electrical circuits it could have also set the sugarhouse on fire.
Hopefully I'm successful bringing that maple down in the only safe spot, which is about 5 degrees off where it's leaning towards. I may take down a mainline that goes over the side driveway where those 2 tanks were carried out of the way. I'll report later today on how it went.
The maple is about 30-32" DBH, unfortunately I sold my saw with a 34" bar, I prefer being able to cur straight thru rather than half from each side (it's easier to get a good notch and to form the hinge by one plunge cut, rather than trying to meet in the middle perfectly alligned, then I cut from the hinge out the back for no risk of a barbor chair) but I'll be using a chainsaw with a 24" bar.

[maple flats]

Update, I won't be cutting that big maple down until tomorrow morning. I'll let you know then how it goes.

[maple flats]

This is getting worse, I had another delay. The issue started last July, when I got sick for 6 weeks, then 5 weeks later it repeated another 6 weeks. Then about Dec 20, I came down with Covid for the first time. My wife volunteers at a food bank and we suspect someone she was giving food out to brought her a present, of Covid, I came down with it 5 days after she did. Mine last until Feb 12, my wife's hung on until Feb 20. Likely because we are both 78.
Anyways, this is what I suspect caused an issue with my tractor. Being sick all that time, I wasn't using my tractor much and while I normally always keep the fuel in the tractor at 3/4 to full, especially during colder weather, this time the tractor fuel tank was at 1/4 full. I suspect it suffered condensation, and the fuel tank on the tractor has no drain on the bottom of the tank to drain water. As such, I used double dose of Power Service, which helps reduce the water by carrying it thru to burn with the fuel I've also changed fuel filters 3x in the last 4 weeks, the 3rd time being today. I bought 3 filters today , at $25 each from the dealer. I then looked up the number online and found more in Ebay, at $9.00 ea, free shipping. The dealer was originally selling the OEM filter but they recently changed the price from $22 ea. up to $95 each. He then found a replacement that he is selling at $25 each. After buying 3 I later got to thinking. I then, with the new number (and the new matches the original filter perfectly) I googled it online, that's when I found it at $9.00. Amazon had it at $16 each but it required a subscription, which could be cancelled at any time, but $9.00 was better so I ordered those. 2 or 3 other vendors had them for $7.39 and another at $7.99 and one at $8.49, but they all were charging shipping unless I ordered $75 worth, and 2 gave free shipping at $100.
I changed the filter after buying 3 today at the dealer, but so far I only got the tractor to start and run a minute or two, then stall. In the morning I'll need to go thru a sequence of bleading the pump, the filter housing, the and then the injectors. That has always worked in the past. The last time I changed the fuel filter about 2 weeks ago, I only had to bleed the fuel filter bowl. This time it needs more.
Anyways, that took enough time that I didn't get all of the bleeding done and thus I didn't get the last few things I need to move to safe ground before I can cut the leaning maple down. It's about 30-32" DBH, I'm guessing, I didn't actually measure it yet.
If I'm remembering every thing, I need to move a wooden structure where my releaser sets, a head tank and 3 SS barrels. That tank and the barrels are up on a raised platform attached to the sugarhouse, that releaster structure is on the ground and it sets just about 3' from the leaning maple, and in harms way. The other things are being moved just in case my tree felling proves to not be as accurate as it usually is. I have a space of about 25' width between the sugarhouse and more trees I'd rather not knock down, mostly more maples.

[Brian]

Get some 911 red bottle fuel treatment, this works great. not the white bottle of 911. Parts stores have it and I belive tractor supply has it. Good Luck!!

[maple flats]

I've used both, since the tank only holds gal, I used about 1 pt of the Red bottle 911, then I used about the same of the white bottle power service. While the red bottle will remedy any gelling it specifically says it does not remove water, and water is the problem. Thus I used the white bottle which claims to help remove water. It would be far easier if the tank had a bottom drain, but it doesn't. I asked the dealer about that, he said there is no drain. Thus I can either remove the whole tank and drain it which the location it's in woul be a 10-12 hr job, or I can keep the tank full, use extra power service (white bottle) and keep changing fuel filters. I've chosen the filter option. I do still have about half a qt in the red bottle, but chose not to use it because it specifically says it does not remove water.

[maple flats]

I stand corrected, I just looked up the 911 red bottle, it does claim to remove water, I'll add the rest of that and try again. I might also get more if needed.
Since my farm tank is steel, I might also need to add more power service to what's left in the tank, I'd need to dip stick the tank for a guess on how much is in the tank, but I think there is about 100 gal. When filled it had 225 gal and I used a half gal of thr white bottle labeled as being for 250 gal, but that was about 18 months ago, condensation may have also caused a compounding of the issue with the tractor.
Had I not lost about 13-14 weeks last year due to sickness with 3 different issues I'd have used the tank down and refilled it last year. I do have a 64 oz bottle of the Power Service white bottle, I will try up to a pint more in the tractor and add the rest to the farm tank. Then I'll need to pump from the hand pump back into the tank to help blend it. Another option is to add the half gal and order a 100 gal delivery, they pump it in so fast it would mix it well. I'd guess they pump in at 25-30 GPM.

[TapTapTap]

I believe that power service has a treatment product just for correcting moisture problems.

[maple flats]

Bad guess, the base of the tree is oval, it measures 29" wide but only 25" front to back the way it needs to fall. That's fine, a wider hings is good. While I waqnted to get it down yesterday, it didn't happen, I worked on my tractor issue for too long, with minimal improvement, then I tried to get the tractor in position to remove the wooden releaser structure, other trees made it impossible to get in position, so it moved the tractor to about 75' away, pulled the logging winch cabl;e out and tipped the structure over. after the tree is down and I buck the butt log to about 17' long and winch it out of the way, my grandson can help me stand it back up. While it did keep running long enough to run the winch it frequently keeps stalling. I added another hald qt of Red 911 to the tank, we now have 3 days of rain, then on Tuesday, I'll try to drop the tree, I only have 1 more item to move (a 3x6 warehouse platform cart), I ended up moving everything else by hand and hand truck yesterday.

[ebliese]

You may consider Hotshots Secret which is better than the Power Service (white one), according to Project Farm. He's a guy who tests all sorts of tools and such on youtube. Here's the video for the diesel additives: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9XC4AJ20RE

I have had good success with HEET on a gas engine. They do make a version of HEET for diesel (red bottle).

Whatever you do, hope you are able to get your tractor running. Water in the fuel is no fun, that's for sure.