Does anyone keep logs?

[Los_Control]

I am talking something very simple & basic.

 

I started doing this as a remodel carpenter ... it was taught to me from my employer.

It really was worthwhile, everyday a few min to write down what you did that day. Not often was it referenced, but was invaluable when it was. One example, boss sends in a bill & client complains because they do not see anything being done. Then look at the notes and see the kitchen cabinets arrived 3 days late, took several hours to unload them, check them off the list, check for damaged boxes or materials, store them in a usable fashion so you had the first cabinets available & not buried. It spent time unloading a truck.

Then 6 months later when the client is complaining the project is $400k over budget, you have logs to go back and show.

For larger jobs we left the book in a designated place so homeowner come home from work & could read progress for the day.  End of job we put the book in the folder with the the rest of the jobs information .... few extra min but worthwhile to have it written down a year later.

 

So today while working in my garden, I decided I was going to make a log book for the garden ... Today I did this & that and planted x seeds. Write down when they sprouted, how well they did ... is summer time and getting too hot for planting seeds ... make a log of it and study it next year.

 

Then I asked myself, why do I not have a log book on each vehicle? Maybe my house? Just a cheap book, and easy to store.

Just curious here, does anyone keep logs on their vehicles?

[Plymouthy Adams]

got a ton of them out back for my fireplace.....

 

Seriously, every vehicle I have and about every project of any size I have for many years has had a journal of the progress.  I write in a journal everyday...it maybe a bit hard for someone to follow about as one day I may be working this and another, that....why it is recorded under the car/project.  Often I am amazed at the time lapse between the visit to some projects.  So yes every car I have consists of who what when and where it come from and majority of them have a detailed description of every panel and its condition and known needed repairs and such before it is filed away into the barn awaiting its turn.  Those in work have a list of what was done and on what day, how it was accomplished and notes to what car was the donor or what part number was used for this or that in the build.  My mind cannot remember all this...and the notes will bring you right back up to speed if you get away from the project for a short bit.  Many have a running cost sheet attached.

[kencombs]

Nope.  because I once had a job that required me to keep a log of all activity while on duty.  Never ever want to do that again.  It was required under penalty of firing if you missed recording something significant.  Of course, you didn't know what may be significant so way too much detail was written.

[Plymouthy Adams]

only thing at work in log form was the pass on sheet when we turned work over to the following shift.  I did not get much into this as no on else but myself worked the test station I ran....I would be talking to myself.....I do way too much of that as it is....

[Los_Control]

32 minutes ago, kencombs said:

Nope.  because I once had a job that required me to keep a log of all activity while on duty.  Never ever want to do that again. 

I get it ... I felt same way at first ...  then after 10 years I  kinda saw the advantage.

 

This log is for your advantage ... not your employer.

Can you remember date & miles when you last changed the oil, changed the serpentine belt, installed new water pump ... new heater hoses & vacuum lines on the wife car ? What about your daily driver and the work you have done to it? .... Lets throw in a project car and the work you have done to it ... Do you remember?, or would a cheap log be of some help?

 

 

 

[cheesy]

Yes and no. I keep a mileage/destination log for the company car only because it’s gets zero personal use. They didn’t believe me at first, the log saved everyone a legal fight. I keep a maintenance log for my Russian motorcycle because it’s Russian and, for the most part, 40’s technology. Anything else, nada. If the light that says it’s time to clean the water softener comes on, it means it’s time to change the furnace filter.

 

 I did keep a weekly log for finished and in work jobs when I ran our shop but management was more interested in when the floor got swept, so I quit doing it.

[plymouthcranbrook]

Yes in that I keep a book for each car(5) recording all maintenance and repairs, date and milage.

[Dodgeed]

Yes, I keep a log for each car, all the new and the "old" ones, and for major and sometimes, minor, work on the house, and the rentals. ?

[RNR1957NYer]

I don't keep a log, but I do keep a folder of receipts of everything spent for every vehicle we have, modern and vintage.  When I did the panel by panel repaint of the P12 I kept the receipt for every rattle can of primer and black lacquer I bought.  Have slips from Andy Bernbaum going back 40 years on the New Yorker.  Having all the oil change/service receipts on my '09 Challenger came in handy when the dealership asked for back up to honor the warranty for the  transmission rebuild at 175K miles and the valve train work at 200K (thank you, Chrysler/Cerberus Lifetime Powertrain Warranty!)

[Sniper]

I have a spread sheet, sort of.  It's mostly tracking parts, prices adn sources, as well as specifications, for my EFI swap.

[Dan Hiebert]

I do, for the old cars, not the new ones.  Both a spreadsheet in which I list what needs to be done, and a paper log (simple notebooks) that I keep with the service manuals.  I too, am sometimes surprised with how long ago I worked on some part of the car.  I record costs and sources of parts and materials, but I don't keep receipts.  Been dealing with logs my whole adult life, first job after high school was with a crop dusting company in south Texas, not necessarily a "had to", but a "beneficial to" deal.  Keeping track of fields worked, chemicals used, and aircraft maintenance made the job easier for me.  Then the Army ('nuff said), and 32 years in Border Patrol.  Keeping logs (records) in law enforcement is nothing but beneficial, especially as you move up the ranks and become responsible for more and more aspects of the mission.  I had thought I would divorce myself of that habit when I retired, but I still feel compelled to do it.

Edited June 19, 2021 by Dan Hiebert
typo

[Los_Control]

48 minutes ago, Dan Hiebert said:

I had thought I would divorce myself of that habit when I retired, but I still feel compelled to do it.

I feel same way .... when I stopped working I stopped keeping logs ... FREEDOM! 

 

As I get more active, adding the garden for example. Using logs again will be a great help.  I planted brocoli on June 6 & they sprouted 7 days later on the 13th. I have been keeping track of the temps ... last 2.5 weeks been 68-74 in the mornings and 99-103 in the afternoons. Just keeping a log will help for next year.

 

2 years ago I took apart the front end on my truck ....while I took a lot of photos for reference, I stored them on my shop computer without backing them up to my office computer, and lost those with a hard drive failure. I now wish I had a few hand written notes to look back on.

 

Just a tip for those that have not kept logs, you may find it inconvenient to take a few min and write things down .... down the road you will find something interesting and glad you took the time.

 

 

[Kilgore47]

I don't keep a log on the 47 P15 but I do keep a list of all the things I have fixed.  The list is getting long. At first I kept track of the cost of the parts. After awhile I realized that I really didn't want to know how much it cost so that part stopped. I'll leave the list in the glove box for the next owner. Don't plan on getting rid of it any time soon so the list will get longer and longer 

[kencombs]

Revisiting my earlier reply, 'Logs' to me implied more of a timed record of events, like a ships log,   required at specific times.   That is what I had to do as a computer/network  nerd.  What others seem to be describing is not what I visualized, but a random record of things  you do, made when needed.. 

 

That is what my phone, camera and  computer are mostly used for.  Pics with date stamps and added notes.  Like the parts used, mods made and prices.

[Plymouthy Adams]

that is why I refer to mine as a journal.....as defined by the dictionary; a daily record of news and events of a personal nature; a diary so to speak   it is excellent for when you have had to delay work and you want to refresh your memory of what has been done, where you left off, parts used/needed.   If one has many projects...he could greatly benefit from these recorded events to keep a project on track.  If you simply have but one item/event going on, odds are this would not be needed.  But, I will say this....go back and read a journal of a project completed a bit back...you will amaze yourself at what it took to accomplish the end results.  Further, if a later repair rears its head, you have your record of parts, donor and methods used accounted for.