05x04 - Life or Death in Michigan

[bunniefuu]

Marty: the problems
on this homestead...

Are frankly alarming.

Danny:
I pump the water by hand.

My body is starting
to break down.

Erica: predators take
our chickens.

You're going into wintertime
looking pretty bleak.

No electricity...

How do you charge
an insulin pump?

By my cigarette lighter
in the truck.

Wow.

Power is about keeping you
alive, and you have this much.

This water situation
is my main concern.

This is designed
to bore underground.

If we fail, this homestead
is in real trouble.

It's a risk we have to take.

Matt: let's harness
the power of the sun.

So south this way.

Dead center on 30 degrees.

I'm thinking maybe
a little tree fort.

♪♪

Yeah!

Danny's father died pumping
water out of that old well.

That will never
happen again, ever.

--Captions by vitac --
www.vitac.com

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

♪♪

Marty: okay, guys.

I've never set foot
in this state in my life,

And I've got to say,
it's impressive.

Look at this thick,
fall-colored amazing place.

Autumnal?

Autumnal.
It's autumnal.

Narrator:
the raneys are heading

Into lower michigan's
huron national forest.

Over half the state
is covered in dense woodland,

And it's home
to a rich variety of a game

And a vast array of predators.

With over 62,000 inland lakes,
water is in plentiful supply,

But on a remote homestead,

Access to water
is just one off-grid challenge

Pushing a family
to breaking point.

It's a struggle.
We've got no food.

We do not have
electricity.

I pump the water by hand.

He's slowly k*lling himself.

Hello!

How you doing?
Marty raney.

Yes, sir.
Danny.

Misty:
danny, nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you guys.
I'm erica.

-Hi.
-Hey, erica. Pat.

How long have you guys
lived out here?

We've been down here


How's the 8 years
been going?

One step forward,
two step back.

♪♪

Danny's nickname is
martha macgyver

Because he's part martha stewart
and part macgyver.

These are the lamps
that danny makes.

We have no electricity,
but he makes lamps.

So what?

I've got a little
home designer in me.

He does have some.
So what?

Narrator: eight years ago, danny
and erica dague and their son

Zach were living
in central detroit.

Erica: life in the big city
was crazy.

We worked all the time.
We were never home.

Danny: well, I worked
for armored car company

Carrying around
a lot of money, filling atms.

Been shot at.

Moving up here,
we're happy to do it

Because it was getting us
out of the city.

Narrator: to escape, the family
moved completely off-grid.

Danny: as soon as we come
through the gate,

Me and erica
looked at each other

And was like,
"this is it."

Erica: we've always wanted
to live here.

That was our dream.
Ta-da!

Danny: you can smell
a difference in the air.

Your stress level goes down.

Erica:
it's so peaceful and quiet.

I can come out any door
of my house, sh**t my g*n,

And nobody
says a damn thing to me.

Narrator: the dagues plowed
their savings into a 20-acre

Plot with a cabin
and an old well.

They aimed for self-sufficiency

On a disability income
of $1,600 per month.

We do not have electricity,

And so we had
the property logged,

Put that money towards a propane
refrigerator, propane stove.

There's been times where we
didn't have the money for gas,

But it was
a little tougher

Than what we thought
we were getting into.

It was crazy to be moving out
here with no electricity,

Nothing that I was used to.

Narrator: but 3 years ago,
a near-death experience

Changed their lives forever.

Danny:
I was born with diabetes.

I had the pancreas transplant,

But it ripped away
from one of the main arteries.

Narrator: fitted with
an electric insulin pump,

Danny's body was weakened.

His long-term outlook
suffered, too.

I've got to do what I've got to
do today to survive for today.

Narrator: since his surgery,
danny solves off-grid problems

With short-term solutions.

Erica:
the lights in the bathroom,

The kitchen
and the utility room,

The shower,
they all run on d-cell battery.

Danny:
which are very costly.

But lack of power isn't the
dagues' biggest survival battle.

Danny: I pump the water by hand
into 16 5-gallon jugs.

It takes anywhere
from 125 to 130 pumps.

Erica: I would like to do more
to help danny with everything,

But I don't know how.

Narrator: two years ago,
zach left to become a mechanic,

And the water-pumping
became even tougher.

Now it's just up to dad
to do it all on his own.

For load number two.

I feel like he's slowly k*lling
himself, and I can't help him.

I'm going to walk out one day
and find him laying there.

I'm out of ideas, gadgets,
macgyver-ing.

We need the raneys' help to keep
on living our dream.

♪♪

Marty: what do you say
you give us a tour?

-All right. No problem.
-Yeah!

Narrator: marty, matt, and danny
had straight to the pump house.

Marty: man, it's an old-school
hand pump, pretty classic.

So how many gallons
do you get at one time?

Just under 100 gallons.

It takes me
about 2 hours.

-Really?
-Yeah.

I mean, that's hard.

How is it, dad?

It's work.

Oh -- it's not easy.

Hell, no.
That's heavy, too.

Feel that.
Yeah.

Eight pounds
a gallon-ish.

There's a lot of drag
on that.

The motor and everything
in there you see next to it

Is my homemade device
to pump water for me.

Really?

Worked for a day or 2
until the rod bent.

It was heartbreaking.

Okay, I've seen enough.

♪♪

Marty:
I like this guy, a macgyver.

The water is there
like clockwork.

He makes it all happen,
but it's hard work.

♪♪

Narrator:
across the homestead,

Erica shows misty
their livestock setup.

Misty:
you have laying hens?

Yeah, we have to buy chickens
almost every year

Because they get taken out
by predators.

Okay.

Right now, we get about
one to two eggs a day.

But what do you eat
for protein?

So right as of now,


Costs us
a ton of money.

You're going into wintertime
looking pretty bleak.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Misty: these are things that
you cannot sustain long-term.

They're not doing good at all.

♪♪

♪♪

Matt:
there's a lot of panels here.

Narrator: matt assesses the
dagues' dire power situation.

What are you
using them for?

At the present time,
nothing.

Had them set up.

Was it working?

No, a waste of money.
All right.

What I'd like to see
is the house.

No problem.

How do you get power?

Everything we own is
basically run on batteries.

They're just
throwaway batteries.

Hmm.
Wow.

It's three batteries
per light,

One in the bathroom
and one in the kitchen,

Oh, and one in the pantry.

I buy the d-cells in bulk,


Really?

Yeah, they last
roughly 7 to 8 months.

I mean,
that's 500 bucks a year.

That's a huge expense
and a huge waste.

Right.

One of the most important things
you mentioned

Is the insulin pump.

Yes, I absolutely
have to have it.

Yeah.

It's pretty much
keeping me alive.

So how do you charge
an insulin pump?

By my cigarette lighter
in the truck.

Oh, man, I can't believe,
you know --

Power is about
keeping you alive,

And you guys
have this much.

Right.

Matt: he has this machine
that's keeping him alive,

And sometimes
he's had to resort

To literally going out
to his truck,

Starting the engine,
and plug it in.

The only thing
I really care about

Is making sure that machine
stays full every day.

Narrator: the raneys have a week
to find danny and erica

Long-term homestead solutions.

Marty: the problems on this
homestead are frankly alarming.

Danny, you are
an innovative guy.

You've tried to fix problems,
but all of these things

Are short-term fixes, right?
Erica: yeah.

It was going through my head
the entire time.

Having a reliable source
of power on this homestead,

That's going to be
my number-one goal,

And right now
I'm kind of thinking solar.

Right.

There's also a food crisis.

You've got
a few laying hens,

And you're heading
into wintertime,

So that has to be addressed
probably through livestock.

What do you guys think
about that?

-I'm for it.
-Great.

This water situation
is my main concern.

Maybe together we can
collectively figure out

How we're going to get water
from that pump house

To that house.

It's a long ways.

Narrator: to deliver a long-term
power source,

Matt will upcycle
the old panels

And build a mobile solar array
capable of tracking the sun.

Misty must identify
the best sustainable protein

And protect it
from predators,

And marty must figure out
a non-manual way

To draw water from the well
and get it to the dagues' cabin.

Now, you know working
on the 80-year-old well

Is easier said than done.

The margin for something
going wrong is huge.

Coming up, matt and zach
construct a solar array.

Sweet, man.

Here, that one goes
in the middle.

I think now is the time to
harness the power of the sun.

Narrator: in the forests
of lower michigan,

A desperate couple are scraping
together an off-grid existence.

I've got to do what I've got
to do to survive for today.

Narrator: the dagues get by
on short-term fixes.

All their meat is store-bought,

And all their power
is from batteries,

Including the charge
for danny's insulin pump.

Matt: power is about
keeping you alive,

And you guys
have this much.

♪♪

All right, guys.

If marty succeeds
with this long-term water fix,

A pipe will come up
through the cabin crawl space.

Marty:
we have some challenges.

There are some issues, too.
I mean --

What are you getting at?

The --

Tell me.
I'm sorry.

Danny: just take a breath.
Take a breath.

Come on.

His dad died pumping water
in our well pump,

And he had a heart attack
because of it.

Here?
Yes.

He died in this --
how am I just hearing that now?

I found him out.

He found him out
in the second cabin.

I found him out
in the second cabin

Surrounded by his little
water bottles that...

-He was pumping.
-...he pumped.

I didn't know that, honey.
Honey, I didn't know that.

I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.

Don't be sorry.

This is what
this water means to us.

[ Sighs ]

Marty:
danny's father passed away

Strenuously hand-pumping water
out of that old hand pump.

There's the motivator
to help these people.

That will never
happen again, ever.

Hello, looking for steve?

Narrator:
the water situation is so severe

Marty calls
a well-drilling expert.

If you can't do it,
I'm in big trouble.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: with just 6 days
to complete the builds,

Danny's son zach has come
to lend a hand.

Strapping lad here.

-He's my workhorse.
-Yeah.

Danny:
he didn't make it up here

Until almost 3:00
in the morning.

Wow.

Zach: I miss being up here
all the time.

Just wish I could be
a lot closer

And wish I could help out
a lot more.

I love being up here.

I love it every time
he comes up anyways,

But getting some work
out of him again

Like when he used to live here,
that's even better.

Let's get to it.

It would make me feel
a lot better

Knowing that they've had power
to the house.

So here's
what I'm thinking.

You guys
built this thing?

Yeah, I was 7 or 8.

Matt: all right.
So here's what I was thinking.

I want to make a solar array
on this trailer.

Mm-hmm.

That way,
it's totally portable.

We can move the trailer
into the sun

To get the most charge
out of these panels.

All right.
Yeah.

I love it.
It's a great idea.

We'll literally just make,
like, rows of solar panels.

All right.

Just wondering if we just
remove the sides

To try and build
another flat section up top.

So turn this whole thing
into a flatbed?

Basically, yeah.
All right.

I'm right there with you.

Narrator: matt and zach
will convert an old trailer

Into a mobile solar array.

Using danny's old panels,
it will absorb maximum energy

From the sun


We're going to take
the sides off.

I'm glad this trailer is going
to get some use.

It'll be nice to get power
to the house finally.

Narrator: before they mount
the panels onto the trailer,

Matt and zach must build
a perfectly square frame.

Hold this
right on the corner.



It should match.


It's perfect.

As long as the two
measurements match,

We know this
is perfectly square.

Okay, man, so we need to set up
the angle pointing 30 degrees

Where the sun is at,
and how do you do that?

You slap a torpedo level right
on the lip of this speed square.

I put my pivot point here
on the edge of this plane.

That's level, and then from this
pivot point to this part,

Dead center
on 30 degrees.

Zach is definitely a little bit
more brainiac

When it comes
to the technical stuff,

So he's a good guy
to work with.

This thing is cool.

It's good.
It's starting to come together.

It looks great.

♪♪

Narrator: on the other side
of the homestead,

Misty must figure out
a long-term protein source.

Misty: I think turkeys
would be awesome,

More bang for your buck.

They're easy to take care of
and something

That you can
take full charge of.

Erica: yeah.

You should be next to this
stream for a water source.

Okay.

Okay, you have a lot
of predators here.

I'm thinking
of mini little tree forts.

Let's get them
off the ground.

Let's lock them up
at night

Tight in a little box
and keep them safe.

All right. I'm just
super excited about this.

Narrator: misty will build
two turkey tree houses.

Raising the coops will protect
the fowl

From woodland predators,

And wire netting
will stop birds of prey,

And by setting the enclosure
over a creek,

The turkeys
will hydrate themselves

With an unlimited
supply of water.

Okay, you excited?

I am.

I think learning more
about building,

Framing in things would be
something I could work on

And do to help danny.

Great.

Misty: erica wants to do more
on the homestead,

And I think the learning
experience for her

Is going to be exciting.

Awesome!

Re-ignite that fire
for the homestead.

Whoo-hoo!

Amazing.

♪♪

Marty: okay, team.

Narrator: the next morning,
marty kicks off

His water project by demolishing
the old pump house.

I'm definitely looking forward
to that pump house going down.

It's been a pain in my butt
for 8 years now.

[ Horn honks ]

Marty:
what's it look like?

It looks like
a well-drilling truck.

Narrator: marty has called in
a local expert

To give the homestead
a long-term water fix.

I can't believe
you came,

and you brought
some reinforcements!

Yes, sir!
The whole family is here!

Danny: when I saw that truck,
I thought,

"Yeah, we're going
to get this."

Narrator: coming up...

Matt: sweet.

...the solar array rises...

So this right now is
the path of the sun.

Wow.

...and misty uses
the old well rods

For an ingenious hack.

Misty:
just make a little prison so
the animals aren't getting in.

Narrator: deep in the woodland
of lower michigan,

A desperate couple
lack long-term solutions.

We need the raneys' help to keep
on living our dream.

Misty's turkey tree houses will
shelter sustainable protein.

Let's get them off the ground
and keep them safe.

Erica: all right.

Matt and the dagues' son
zach

Are building
a mobile solar array.

Now is the time to harness
the power of the sun.

And marty has just pulled out
all the stops

For a long-term water fix.

Marty:
the whole family is here!

Let's look at the scene
of the crime.

Now local expert, steve,
assesses the 80-year-old well.

Wow, I see why you want
to get rid of that.

So, I mean,
you've seen these before?

Yes.

When I was a boy
working with my father,

We encountered them a lot,
nowadays, a lot little.

Okay,
so where do we start?

How would you get water
to the house?

What I'm going to do is,
we're going to attempt

Putting a jet-pump
system in.

A jet pump?

A jet pump is
a motorized system.

A suction pipe feeds
through the shaft,

And at its top,
the jet pump creates a vacuum,

Pulling water to the surface,

But first the old pump
and rods must be removed.

-You ready?
-Let's hit it.

Take it easy now.

Just keep going.

Hand pump off, the old rods
are hoisted out.

Marty: hoist.

Whoa!

Now the new suction pipes
must be fed down the shaft.

The pipes are almost


Triple the diameter
of the old rods.

I'm worried about something
going horribly wrong

Where I'm not
going to have water.

Marty: it's going in the hole.

Yeah, money!

[ Metal clanks ]

What was that?

Something in there?

I believe that the well has got
a bend in it.

♪♪

Narrator:
the shaft was most likely bent
when it was first hammered

Into the ground, hitting rocks
on its downward path.

Why don't we try
pushing down?

Okay.

Forcing the wider suction rods

Through the bend risks
cracking the shaft,

Leaving the well useless,
but there's no other option.

Danny: it's a big risk.

If it broke, I don't even
know my reaction.

[ Engine starts ]

Ready?

[ Beeping ]

Marty:
don't try this at home.

Here we go.

♪♪

Steve: keep going.

Here we go.

Whoa!

There you go.

Pipe is going.

Yeah!

Yeah, it's going.

♪♪

The last one, so should be
in the water right now.

I'm sure we are.

It's all going as per planned,
famous last words.

♪♪

Narrator:
across the homestead, the two
turkey tree houses are built.

I need you to pull tight.

Next job --
keeping predators out.

Boom.

Okay,
obviously we have a gap.

An animal can get in


I have an old section
that I cut with the grinder

From the pump rod,

And see if it'll work
if we weave

In and out of the fence
along the bottom.

Genius, genius idea.

Misty's plan to upcycle
the old well rods

Gives the homestead
$300 of fence framing

At no extra cost.

Fingers crossed.

There.
So it's pretty rigid.

Feel it?
Oh, yeah.

Not a lot of animals
will be getting in.

Not a lot of animals
are getting out.

Misty has another hack for
her treasure trove of well rods.

Just make
a little prison.

It couldn't have been
more perfect.

Erica: there's so much I'm
learning, measuring, cutting.

I'm pretty comfortable
with stuff now.

I'm good.

[ Laughs ]

♪♪

Narrator: over at
the solar array, matt and zach

Finish converting
the old cart.

Matt:
that all looks good.

Zach: I think it looks amazing,
and free power,

They can use it
whenever they need it.

Sweet.
Right on, man.

High-five.
Boom.

Danny: it looks awesome.

This whole array is


It's going to be
more than perfect

For what we want to
use it for.

So south, this way.

Narrator:
matt must now figure out

How to harness maximum power
from the sun.

Okay.

We live in a day and age
where everyone

Has a computer
in their pocket.

This is a $10 app.

I'm pretty sure you can find
a free one,

So this right now
is the path of the sun.

We're not getting a lot, so we
could actually move the trailer

As far as we can
this way.

Okay.

Here's where your peak hours
are going to be for wintertime.

In the summertime,
check this out.

Follow me this way.

You're going to like this.

That's almost 12 hours.
Danny: oh, yeah.

That's literally moving
this thing, say, 15 yards.

I mean, that's excellent.

Matt: we've got the solar array
completed.

It looks awesome.

It's not totally done.

We're a little ways off from
charging the insulin machine

And some batteries.

We have to make sure this is
going to work every time.

Narrator: coming up, the highway
to well goes under.

This is designed
to bore underground.

Stop.

There's a big rock right there.

-That's not good.
-Sounds like it's a earthquake.

Narrator: in remote michigan,

The raneys have vowed
to give the dagues

A sustainable off-grid future.

It's all going as per planned,
famous last words.

Narrator: misty's turkey
tree houses will store

And protect
plentiful protein.

Misty: not a lot of animals
are getting in.

Not a lot of animals
are getting out.

Matt's solar build promises
cost-free power.

Sweet.

But marty is yet to deliver
the homestead

A long-term water supply.

We should be in the water
right now.

I'm sure we are.

Now the crew is ready to fit
and test the jet-powered pump.

You've got to get
straight.

Danny:
I'm still nervous.

I definitely and for-surely
want it to work.

Okay, this is the moment
of truth.

Here we go.

♪♪

[ Pump whirring ]

That's not good.

[ Water gurgling ]

Oh, my god!

Yeah!

Oh, my god!

Whoo!

Oh, my goodness!

Oh!

No more pumping!

Unbelievable!

♪♪

This is
going to save him.

It changes our lives.

Yeah, without a doubt.

Thank you!

A lot of joy coming out
that I don't have to pump

That no more,
a lot of relief.

It's quite amazing.

Marty:
it's one thing to actually see
that well producing water,

But it's not the cure-all.

We still have to get that water
over to the house.

We're not out of the woods,
not by a long shot.

♪♪

Narrator: the next morning,
marty's new project is perfect

For danny
to learn new skills.

It gets cold here
in michigan.

Right.
We've got to figure out

How to keep this
whole system from freezing.

We've got to build
a structure around this.

The pump house must withstand
michigan winters

That can reach negative-40.

Marty: danny is going to do
the majority of the work.

That dude is going to learn
carpenter skills

That will allow him not only
to build a pump house

But to build
into the future.

Okay, how are you
at driving nails?

I'd rather leave
the pounding to you.

Hold on.
I don't like that.

I suck
at hammering a nail.

Can you believe that?

I didn't --
no, that's going to stop today.

So I work alone a lot.

Not going to have somebody
down here holding that board,

But I've got three arms.

This arm is going to do this,
and these other two arms

Are going to nail
that together, right?

Danny: yep.
Take over, please.

I haven't smashed a finger or
a thumb, so we're doing good.

It doesn't look too bad.

It looks good.

I'm getting the hang of it.

Been through a lot.
Oh, yeah.

And finally ended up out here
in the woods in michigan.

Has it all been worth it?

Every second.

Deep in the woods, no power,
no running water until now,

And doing what I've got
to do to survive.

It's perfect for us.

♪♪

Narrator: across the homestead,
it's the moment of truth

For matt's
new long-term power source.

We need to get this solar array
hooked up to some batteries

So that his insulin machine

And all the batteries they need
are easily charged.

Boom.

All right, I want to see
this pump charging.

Is it going to charge?

♪♪

And that's charging
from the sun, and it's working!

That's awesome, right?
That's awesome, man.

That's great.

I could say I'm charged
about it.

Matt:
we brought this homestead a
reliable source of electricity,

Not just for lights,
but for an insulin pump

That literally keeps
danny alive.

Narrator: for years, the dagues
spent almost $500 a year

On d-cell batteries,

Relying on their truck's
cigarette lighter

To charge
danny's insulin pump.

Now, matt and zach have built
a mobile solar array

Tethered to two batteries
generating enough power

For the homestead
all year round,

All for a cost of just $800.

I'm really stoked that
you came out and helped.

Thanks for everything.

You're a good son.
Thank you.

-Thanks.
-You're welcome.

-Appreciate it.
-Bye-bye.

-I love you.
-I'll see you.

-All right.
-Thanks, zach.

-Take care.
-Thanks, buddy.

See you, man.

I feel a lot better knowing
that that is up here

To save my parents money
and save my dad's life.

Narrator: the next morning,
the homestead may have power

And running water,

But marty's grand plan
isn't done.

We still have to get that water


That problem hasn't been solved.

To stop the water freezing
in michigan's subzero winters,

The pipe between the pump and
the cabin must run underground.

Okay, I've got another
little surprise for you.

This piece of equipment
right here is going to get water

From that brand-new pump
to that homestead house.

It's designed to bore
underground directionally

And go where it needs
to go with pipe.

Narrator:
using a technique called
horizontal directional drilling,

The pipe must be laid below the
frost line, 4 feet underground,

And travel 220 feet to
the crawl space under the cabin.

Marty: watch out!

Danny: every foot they reach,

My adrenaline keeps
coming up and up.

♪♪

♪♪

Resembles a earthquake.

Can you hear this?
It's amazing.

Yep.
Hitting rocks?

Yes,
and that's not good.

♪♪

What's the worst-case scenario?

If we can't get through it,
then we pull back.

Off.

Get stuck?

Stop.

♪♪

Just when we all thought it was
going well, here comes reality.

Narrator: six days ago,
the raneys arrived in michigan

To find a couple surviving
on short-term fixes.

The pumping of the water
is the biggest hardship.

Marty:
his body is wearing out.

Danny needs help.

Narrator: the homestead now has
reliable solar power.

And it's working
from the sun!

And new tree houses
are ready for turkeys.

Amazing.
We're almost there.

But marty's plan to connect
the well to the cabin

With an underground pipeline
is on the ropes.

Can you hear this?
We're hitting rocks?

Yes,
and that's not good.

Feel the --
there's a big rock right there.

Rock is the enemy.
-Yep.

The issue is,
we're a long ways away,

And I just heard
it hit a rock.

Narrator: there's no time
to try another route.

Go ahead and drill.
Yeah.

The drill has to make it.

Come on, buddy.

I hope they can get through it,

Or I'll have to go back
to hauling water.

Narrator: while marty monitors
the drill's progress...

Okay, let's get
some bedding in here.

...over at the coop, erica is
also ready for her new role

Producing meat for
the homestead table.

Turkeys are here.
I am so excited.

My heart is, like, going
to beat out of my chest.

Okay, so.
Hi, turkeys!

Whew!

She's strong.

Misty: this is probably
one of my favorite builds

That I've ever done.

I really do love it.

For over 8 years, the dagues'
meat was all store-bought.

Now for 1,500 bucks,
they have long-term protein,

A predator-proof turkey farm,

Saving them $200 a month
in eggs and meat,

Plus turkey eggs
are 50% larger

Than chicken eggs and contain
nearly twice the calories.

Misty: 25% of their food
they can forage for,

So I suggest letting the birds
out of the pen

While you're gardening, and that
will reduce that feed bill.

Erica: okay, yeah.

So now you're ready to do
more on the homestead.

It feels good!

I don't feel like it's all
on danny's shoulders now.

Yeah.

I am an official
turkey farmer as of now.

[ Laughs ]

♪♪

Marty: I don't hear it.

Yeah.
It must be in sand.

Different ground.

Narrator: over by the cabin,
the drill is through the rock.

Danny:
they're inching closer,

More excitement every inch
of the way.

This should be it!

Stop.

That is so amazing!

Well, let me check this thing
for gold.

It's pretty amazing.

It's huge for me.
It really is a huge relief.

We've launched this homestead
into the 21st century.

♪♪

Narrator: the next morning,
pump and cabin connected,

Marty inspects danny's
insulated pump house.

It's good.

I'm confident
it's not going to freeze.

Good job.

Danny: when I first started
hammering nails,

I didn't have that
much confidence at all.

I got a little faster
as time went on.

Neither thumb is damaged,

So I must have did all right.

Marty:
that dude has learned the basics

Not only to build a pump house
or pens and sheds,

But those simple
carpenter skills

Will allow him
to build a brand-new house.

Narrator:
seven days ago, danny was pushed
to his physical limits,

Hand-pumping and hauling


Now a brand-new jet-pump system
draws water from the well.

In just 90 minutes,

The dagues can have 165 gallons
of water in their loft,

A $6,000 long-term
life-saving fix.

All right, folks.
I can hear it!

It's running!

I have the source of the heat
that we're going to heat this

With in my pocket.

It's a light bulb!

That light bulb can heat
this thing all winter long.

And that's
pretty darn cool.

Powered by matt's solar array,
the light bulb is yet

Another long-term low-cost fix
for this homestead.

♪♪

You guys have installed a lot
of confidence back in us.

It's changed
our lives forever.

It is why we do it.

Come here, buddy.

-Say goodbye to zach.
-Oh, yeah! Say bye to zach!

I will.

Erica: I have so many ideas
I want to do

That I wasn't really comfortable
doing them before.

Now it's going to be
no problem whatsoever.

I'm going to do them.

Although I consider myself
a good macgyver-type guy

Where I can do a quick fix,

I've learned a lot
from the raneys, so long-term,

I could attempt anything.

[ Horn honks ]

Well, it's about 20 degrees.

The pump house,
it's so insulated

That it is 41 degrees inside.

I'm actually feeling like
$1 million

Not having to pump that water.

We've done turkey burger.

Danny has made turkey jerky,

And we're going to raise
a few extra

And see if we can sell them

And make a couple
extra bucks from them.

Danny:
the solar array works.

We took down about nine pines

Where the sun was shining
right through there.

I thank the raneys very much.

They've saved us money.

They saved us time.

Most importantly, I believe
they've saved my life.