Negligence
Bronze Member
Not tractor-related but farming-related, so close enough.
About a month of welding, wiring, and other work and money went up in flames around 2:30am on Friday. My wife and I woke up to what sounded like a tree falling -- the signature cracking sound -- so I got up and took a look outside to see our four-horse trailer in flames, as high as the machine shed roof beside it.
I ran out and grabbed the hose to keep it from spreading to the machine shed (I didn't know if it had until I got there), and I just did my best to keep it cool on the one side until the fire department arrived. It took them about a half hour to fully extinguish the trailer.
I had been welding on the trailer that night around 6pm. When I was done I flushed the surrounding area good with water and I checked again later around 730 to make sure nothing was happening. There was lots of dry wood on the trailer so I was just being cautious. Evidently I missed something.
The trailer is toast and I lost about $2000 worth of tools: mig welder, air compressor, drills, etc.. The trailer also had all new bushings, electric brakes, drums, rims, and tires. Aside from two tires that burnt through, I am hoping the rest is salvageable; enough to convert this into a farm trailer as long as the frame metal is still good.
I don't know what I've learned from this -- I think I did everything I could have, but lady luck was not on my side that night.
Wife took this while I was behind it trying to keep it from spreading. Notice how close it was to the shed. I was standing it between and it was very, very hot -- I think the only thing that kept me standing there was adrenaline and fear.
Thankfully it didn't spread at all. The side of the shed with the hydro meter is cooked (conduit is burnt and the glass shell over the meter is malformed). Although we lost a lot, we did get very lucky it wasn't worse.
About a month of welding, wiring, and other work and money went up in flames around 2:30am on Friday. My wife and I woke up to what sounded like a tree falling -- the signature cracking sound -- so I got up and took a look outside to see our four-horse trailer in flames, as high as the machine shed roof beside it.
I ran out and grabbed the hose to keep it from spreading to the machine shed (I didn't know if it had until I got there), and I just did my best to keep it cool on the one side until the fire department arrived. It took them about a half hour to fully extinguish the trailer.
I had been welding on the trailer that night around 6pm. When I was done I flushed the surrounding area good with water and I checked again later around 730 to make sure nothing was happening. There was lots of dry wood on the trailer so I was just being cautious. Evidently I missed something.
The trailer is toast and I lost about $2000 worth of tools: mig welder, air compressor, drills, etc.. The trailer also had all new bushings, electric brakes, drums, rims, and tires. Aside from two tires that burnt through, I am hoping the rest is salvageable; enough to convert this into a farm trailer as long as the frame metal is still good.
I don't know what I've learned from this -- I think I did everything I could have, but lady luck was not on my side that night.
Wife took this while I was behind it trying to keep it from spreading. Notice how close it was to the shed. I was standing it between and it was very, very hot -- I think the only thing that kept me standing there was adrenaline and fear.
Thankfully it didn't spread at all. The side of the shed with the hydro meter is cooked (conduit is burnt and the glass shell over the meter is malformed). Although we lost a lot, we did get very lucky it wasn't worse.
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