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| Author |
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| 25 new of 848 responses total. |
rcurl
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response 740 of 848:
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Nov 8 02:27 UTC 2001 |
It's hardness, not iron, for us. Our plumbing is copper. Ann Arbor water
is softened, but not enough to prevent deposits in hat water lines.
I meant, Scott, where were the screens? At the faucet, or at the
washer valve at the end of the hose? I have clean screens at the
faucet, but still have low flow.
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scott
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response 741 of 848:
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Nov 8 13:23 UTC 2001 |
The screens on my washing machine are located inside the water inlet
connectors on the machine itself. To get to them I had to disconnect the
hoses from the back of the machine.
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rcurl
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response 742 of 848:
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Nov 8 19:05 UTC 2001 |
Thanks! (So, now another filthy job if I can figure out how to get
behind the washer....)
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scott
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response 743 of 848:
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Dec 2 03:19 UTC 2001 |
Just finished gluing down vinyl tiles in the bedroom. For the insulating
layer this time (on top of concrete) I used a tongue-and-groove 3/4" OSB
designed for subfloor applications. Like the other times I didn't actually
attach it to the concrete, instead leaving free to expand if needed. Also,
the tongue-and-groove is only on the long edges, so I had to figure out a way
to attach the short edges as well. I finally figured out I could set the
circular hand saw to slightly less than 3/4" deep and then cut a very short
groove across a seam (hold the blade guard open and basically just set the
saw down, cutting a groove where the blade touchs). I then squirted wood glue
into the slots and then pushed in pieces of very thin plywood. Next day I
just had to sand the tops off.
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keesan
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response 744 of 848:
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Dec 3 01:39 UTC 2001 |
How cold did your floor used to get and is this a perceptible improvement?
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scott
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response 745 of 848:
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Dec 3 02:05 UTC 2001 |
It'll be a perceptible improvement. It will also look nicer.
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scott
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response 746 of 848:
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Dec 6 16:17 UTC 2001 |
Funny thing about the floor tile adhesive: It's water based modern stuff,
but (unlike the stuff I used a couple years ago) it's also colored black and
even smells a bit like tar. Retro marketing, maybe? I can't see any
advantages over the other kind which dried almost clear and was strong enough
to cause me a lot of trouble when removing the tiles I'd patched with 5 years
ago.
Anyway, the project is done and looks great. It was fairly easy to clean the
glue off the older base molding (which I'd put on when I moved in) so I was
able to save some $50 on new stuff. Usually this time of year I start putting
down area rugs to warm things up, but I think I'll hold off in the bedroom
so I can see how the temperature goes and also so I can show the new floor
pattern off.
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danr
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response 747 of 848:
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Dec 30 16:55 UTC 2001 |
A couple of months ago, I bought an electric chain saw and started
pruning the trees in the backyard. Unfortunately, I only got about a
third of it finished. Even so, I think things will be a lot brighter in
the backyard next year. Also, I'm planning on getting rid of all the
grass in the upper part of the backyard and replacing it with ground
cover.
Anyone know where I can rent a big chipper/shredder?
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gull
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response 748 of 848:
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Dec 31 15:50 UTC 2001 |
I added an amplifier and subwoofer to my car's stereo system last
weekend. I wasn't looking to create a "boomer car", I just wanted to
get about the same bass response in my car that I get from my home
stereo system. I bought an 8" Pyramid subwoofer in a tube enclosure,
and a Pioneer 80W+80W bridgable amplifier with a built-in low pass
filter. (Massive overkill, power-wise, but they don't sell anything
smaller.)
Installation went pretty smoothly. The toughest part was deciding
where to mount the amp. The first location I picked I had to abandon
after a peek under the car revealed I'd be drilling into an area
occupied by two fuel lines, two brake lines, and the main wiring
harness. I didn't feel *quite* that lucky.
Electrically things were simple. I'd already run a relay-switched 10
gauge power wire and a 10 gauge ground wire direct from the battery for
my amateur radio transceiver, so I tapped into that to power the amp.
Ran the wires under the carpet and center console, adding a lighted
switch next to the emergency brake lever so I could turn off the amp
when listening to talk radio and the like. I tapped into the rear
speaker wires behind the trim panels and connected those to the speaker-
level inputs of the amp. I'm running the amp bridged, since the
subwoofer has a single voice coil.
It made a nice improvement in the sound. I have the amplifier's level
control adjusted so the bass isn't overpowering, it just reinforces the
other speakers on the low end.
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scott
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response 749 of 848:
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Jan 30 14:34 UTC 2002 |
Cleaned an astonishing amount of lint from the drain trap on the sink which
the clothes washer drains into.
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rcurl
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response 750 of 848:
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Feb 19 02:59 UTC 2002 |
I built a switch box to put lamps in series or parallel for a photographic
copy stand (a convenience for setting things up at low light level and
then switching to high light level).
Topological puzzle: how many different circuits are possible with two
lamps and a DPDT switch for switching the two lamps from being in parallel
to being in series? Don't count additional circuits made by reflecting the
switch circuit across a plane or a point.
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scott
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response 751 of 848:
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Feb 19 03:18 UTC 2002 |
I made a couple of shelves to fit on a music keyboard stand, so that I could
use it as a portable desk. I'd actually meant to prototype using some OSB
left over from the floor project and then make the final shelves out of
something nice, but the OSB looked sort of cool as a desktop. So I put on
a zillion coats of gloss polyeurethane, and it looks really cool now.
I also replaced the kitchen vent fan. The existing one was completely missing
the motor and fan blade... damn previous owner! But Gross Electric was able
to order a good replacement, and it took me about an hour to fit it into the
same hole. Now I can broil stuff without setting off the smoke alarm! :)
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davel
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response 752 of 848:
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Feb 23 21:17 UTC 2002 |
Replaced a garbage disposal. I'm inept enough that this is a pretty major
job. The trap in the drain line proved to be thoroughly corroded - my first
attempt to loosen one of the nuts caused it to break open, & the entire bottom
of it fell out. The new one is now in, & it works, & AFAICS it does not leak.
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rcurl
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response 753 of 848:
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Feb 23 21:32 UTC 2002 |
You are really showing promise... 8^}
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rcurl
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response 754 of 848:
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Feb 23 21:42 UTC 2002 |
I installed doorbells at the local Red Cross chapter. These used a Motion
Alert system designed for doors. The sensor detects the shift in the
apparent earth's magnetic field when a door to which it is mounted is
opened, and sends a radio signal to a receiver-annunciator. The receiver
gives a different sound for each sensor to which it has been linked.
To use this device as a doorbell I built activators. One is a permanent
magnet on a lever, which when moved shifts the magnetic field experienced
by the sensor. The other activator uses a doorbell pushbutton, battery,
and an electromagnet, which shifts the field when the button is pushed.
The setups have two advantages: no interior wiring is required, and the
receiver can be moved around the building (or multiple receivers used with
the same sensors).
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scott
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response 755 of 848:
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Feb 27 18:34 UTC 2002 |
Decided I wanted to change the desktop size for the music keyboard stand desk
mentioned previously. So I dug out the rest of the OSB pieces and cut out
the new sizes. While I was at it I also cut a couple pieces to fit on a wire
rack cart I have and also a piece to make a top for a pair of file cabinets.
With the bigger desktop I had to figure out a way to attach the top, rather
than trust that nobody (specifically no cat) would put too much weight on a
corner and tip it over. I ended up with a thread insert (wood threads on
outside, machine threads on inside) and a bolt-with-big-plastic-knob
arrangement. The insert is drilled into the underside by part of the keyboard
stand, and the knob manages to hook over that part and act as a clamp.
Stadium Hardware has a nice selection of big plastic knobs with and without
bolts.
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gull
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response 756 of 848:
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Mar 3 18:04 UTC 2002 |
Put a new tube in the 1936 Philco 610 console radio I've been working
on off-and-on for my grandparents. This brought it to life! (The
audio stages were working before, but there was no reception due to a
dead tube in the IF amp.) It sounds great, and is surprisingly
sensitive -- the normal loop antenna is in the case, which is back at
my grandparents' house, but I connected a couple clip leads as a short
antenna and could get a few local AM stations and about a dozen
shortwave stations.
You don't know how good AM radio can sound until you listen to it on a
vintage set. They don't put much effort into AM tuners these days.
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keesan
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response 757 of 848:
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Mar 3 18:10 UTC 2002 |
What do your grandparents like to listen to on AM?
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gull
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response 758 of 848:
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Mar 3 18:30 UTC 2002 |
Dunno, to be honest, but they were really excited by the idea of seeing
that old set working again.
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scott
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response 759 of 848:
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Apr 8 18:32 UTC 2002 |
Put in a drain for the downspout by the driveway. Before, water would come
out of the downspout and run down the driveway, usually washing some gravel
with it. I got about 30 feet of 5-6" corrugated plastic tubing and matching
little sump-with-grill, all for about $22 (Lowe's on Carpenter/Platt). Bulk
of the work is with a shovel, of course. I dug a trench about 8-9 inches wide
and 12-18 inches deep, mostly using one of those narrow "transplanting"
shovels. The grill part goes under the downspout, and the tubing runs off
to the middle of the lawn where it will come out amdist a pile of small rocks
and gravel.
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gull
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response 760 of 848:
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Apr 20 22:51 UTC 2002 |
I recently put a Yakima roof rack on my car. I'm very pleased with the
rack, but it will only fit with the car's radio antenna fully collapsed.
Driving around with no radio reception isn't an acceptable solution for me,
so I came up with a way to mount an antenna on the rack:
http://condor.dnsalias.net/~gull/auto/rack/index.html#antenna
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gelinas
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response 761 of 848:
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Apr 21 22:59 UTC 2002 |
How do you switch from the built-in antenna to the add-on? Or do you just
leave the rack on all the time now?
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gull
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response 762 of 848:
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Apr 22 14:51 UTC 2002 |
The built-in antenna is still there, it's just telescoped into the roof.
When I take the rack off, I just need to take the alligator clip off
the antenna and pull it out to full length. Obviously people with cars
like Ford Focuses that have non-telescoping, roof-mounted antennas will
have a bit more head-scratching to do.
The only inconvenient bit is that I'll need to unscrew the add-on
antenna from its clamp when I remove the rack, because the front rack
bar would be awkward to store with something sticking out from it at a
right angle. That's the work of a few seconds with a wrench, though.
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rcurl
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response 763 of 848:
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Jun 8 20:39 UTC 2002 |
Replaced the rear window wiper motor on a 1986 Subaru GL wagon. The fun
was finding the part. The local dealer would do it for $300. I surfed a
bit and found parttrackers.com. They send out your part request (with your
wishes for new or used parts), and in come offers. I got 5 and they
ranged in cost from $389 +s/h to $40 s/h included with 6-month warranty. I
went with the $40. It is an easy replacement.
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n8nxf
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response 764 of 848:
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Jun 10 02:14 UTC 2002 |
Cool! I just requested a clock for my Toyota.
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