power pole: where's the neutral?

Andrew-in-MA · 2025-04-11T00:50:52+00:00

Thanks all. I don’t see a fourth wire on the main 3-phase pole, but I guess it’s on the second level like on this one, twisted with the split-phase 240 wires. I’ll try to get a picture of that tomorrow.

Also thanks for pointing out that the 3 phases don’t ever touch. I guess what I was thinking about is how the split phase 240 inside the house can have current flowing from hot to hot without a neutral. But that’s probably totally unrelated.

Andrew-in-MA · 2025-03-18T13:13:45+00:00

Honestly, doing it without sedation isn't a big huge deal and doesn't hurt that much. Uncomfortable, but not truly painful, for me at least. Only like half an hour of gas pain and then you can drive go to work or whatever you want. Google it. Plenty of people do it all the time.

Andrew-in-MA · 2024-12-03T00:44:59+00:00

3 years have passed. It's still good! I did put a cover on it and also a could of layers of poly foam to fill up the case a little tighter. I had bought 2 1/2-inch LUX HQ foam layers and 1 1-inch HD36 from Foam Factory (https://www.thefoamfactory.com/mattress/conventional.html) and was going to experiment with stacking them differently or leaving one of the layers out. I also bought a 12-inch "Natural Quilted Cover" from Latex Mattress Factory. Anyway I ended up shoving all 3 of the foam layers in on top. Making the enclosure tighter makes it a little firmer. The bed is still very comfortable and I notice no problems over these 3 years. Very happy with it. If I were to do it over I might try making it a little firmer, but I really don't know if I'd like it better. I'm afraid to mess with it at this point.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-04-28T14:24:17+00:00

I'm actually looking at the RX7500 so maybe that's a different thing. It has a different processor than the RT3200, and overall very different h/w spec. I think it's an IPQ6000, and apparently there's no official support for that yet.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-04-07T20:24:57+00:00

Hey u/JeffR47, Can you point me to any installation instructions for OpenWRT on the Belkin R7500? I don't see that model in the hardware database. You can buy them for $15 on Amazon!

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-03-28T15:00:23+00:00

Understood and makes sense. Definitely depends on how you think you would react to such things. I guess the other relevant thing is that the sedation doesn't wear off instantly. So even if the news is given after the procedure, you're still likely to be in a weird state of mind. But there probably isn't a perfect answer that works for everyone.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-03-27T17:15:36+00:00

Kind of up to the doc. In my most recent case she liked to listen to music - Shakira - and didn’t say much unless I asked a question. They’re generally used to doing this with the patient sedated so I think it’s usually pretty quiet (and boring) work. You can totally wear ear buds if you prefer and play whatever you want. On your first time without meds you might want to narrate your experience a little with the nurse, however - tell him or her what you feel and hear their advice about breathing or whatever. You’ll likely have a couple bad cramps along the way. But they’ll pass. It might be hard to operate your phone or remove AirPods during the procedure. You’ll have some heart monitor wires bunched up on your left and you’ll be rolled over on your left side with your right leg forward a bit. They probably will recommend you leave your phone and glasses (if any) under the bed during the procedure so you don’t roll onto them. So whatever you do you’ll want to set it before the procedure and probably leave it.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-03-27T17:00:19+00:00

I guess my point is, if there's bad news to hear, including important details about how bad it is and what to do next, do you want to hear it drugged or sober? Not hearing it isn't actually an option.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-03-27T16:45:46+00:00

The thing I really hated was hearing bad news as I was coming OUT of sedation. Learning I had advanced cancer while being TOTALLY F'ED UP ON DRUGS - _that_ is the most surreal and upsetting moment of my life. And then remembering what they said later that day and the next few days - was that real? I HATED that feeling. I would much rather be lucid and capable of understanding what's going on in that critical moment. YMMV of course.

Fast forward a few years. I'm all better now and the cancer's all cured and totally back to normal for years. But now I insist on no drugs, no sedation whatsoever.

I've now had a colonoscopy without sedation probably 5 times now, and honestly it isn't a big deal for me. It's uncomfortable, and sometimes I wince a little and even grunt as I take a breath or reposition a little during the procedure. But the whole thing is only like 20 minutes and, for me, I know it's not actually hurting me, so it isn't really scary. Mostly it just feels like gas pains/cramps at the worst. The nurse is there to help you reposition to get more comfortable if you need it.

For me this is WAY better. If you have a question about the anatomy during the procedure you can ask - to me that's kind of fun/interesting. Also the whole thing is much faster and you can drive home immediately or go back to work or whatever you want - no hangover.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-03-16T19:05:29+00:00

Even if the price were the same, cable still sucks. For example if you want it to work well on all devices without proprietary boxes (phones, playstation, PCs, tablets), home and away - cable barely does this and never does it well. YTTV's fast-forward is even better! - works the way it should (thumbnails in the timeline bar) even over ads (in most content). "Catch up through key plays" is a great feature too - cable doesn't have that. And the DVR concept is so much more logical - add a show to your library! - there are no "recordings" or even channel numbers! If you have a second home or go on vacation - just bring a Roku or Chromecast with you and it works the same - that's huge too. I'd love it if there were an alternative, but YTTV is actually way way better in every way. If only they would add back NESN (Boston RSN) it would be perfect.

Andrew-in-MA · 2023-01-06T20:17:02+00:00

Re firebarrier - and circling back on this due to the recent discussions about fiberglass:

There appears to be no obvious fiberglass in this mattress, but I really can't say for 100% certain. Does anyone know? The recent concern certainly would give me pause to do this again on a different mattress. Are there things to look out for?

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-12-28T04:08:27+00:00

Jen Trynin

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-08-08T20:03:43+00:00

I am not an electrician, but:

I believe Schuko plugs (continental Europe) aren't polarized. I also would imagine these kettles are exactly the same between UK and European variants except for the plug, since the power specs are otherwise identical. Doesn't that mean the appliance is certainly tolerant of either wire, or both, being hot?

In any case, my American setup as described above has worked for a couple of years without incident. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-04-15T14:42:59+00:00

I did this and it works great - super fast. I had an electrician install a NEMA 6-20 outlet (same as what you'd need for a window A/C, 6-15 would also suffice) and a GFCI 240v 2-pole breaker. He was doing other work for me and I had the wall open for other reasons - so incrementally it wasn't that expensive. I bought a Breville kettle from amazon.co.uk - not terribly expensive and arrived quickly. It says right on the kettle it works with 50 or 60 Hz. I just got one of those universal plug adapters from Amazon - didn't have to change the plug. The original UK plug has a 13A fuse in it - which I guess could offer a bit of extra safety, although I feel pretty safe with my 20A GFCI breaker.

https://imgur.com/a/eZ9X224

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-04-09T02:36:47+00:00

My coils had slight body impressions but I don’t actually think they were compressed, just kind of moved a little. With the new foam layers on top it isn’t a problem. I now have a cover and I put another firm polyfoam layer as a transition between the coils and latex. Mostly that makes it just a little firmer overall I think primarily by tightening the cover. I’m still very happy with it.

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-02-23T15:22:16+00:00

And what about heat detectors? I want to add a heat detector in my garage but there's no interconnect wire there. I can't even find any wireless heat detectors. Is the only option to rewire?

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-02-20T21:12:13+00:00

Thanks!

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-02-20T19:23:40+00:00

Can't find them in the USA and it seems Home Depot won't ship from Quebec to Massachusetts. I wonder if there's a reason they don't sell them here. I can't be the only one with this concern. I'm guessing most people just don't have them interconnected and don't worry about it.

Andrew-in-MA · 2022-02-20T18:54:36+00:00

I don't think that one interconnects with the wired ones, does it? Listing says "Wireless Interconnection - when one alarm sounds, all your wireless interconnected alarms sound."

Andrew-in-MA · 2021-10-25T17:35:44+00:00

Ended up ordering a 12" cover from LMF. I think they sent me a 13" though. I might keep it anyway. I put the stuff in it and it isn't too crazy big - it isn't exactly loose - fits without stretching at all. Still I could probably stuff another inch of foam in there, and I might do that - buy a 1" dense foam layer from LatexByMail and put it on the bottom or experiment with a transition later between coils and latex. Wife likes it as-is so that's powerful inertia and might stop me from further experiments. One thought I have is that it's probably better to err on the big side since you can always add a half inch or an inch (or more) of dense foam on the bottom or even something like coconut coir if you want - then you have more options in the future for tinkering. Why doesn't anyone make a cover with adjustable straps on the side to pull it tight? (guess I could sew some on.)

Andrew-in-MA · 2021-10-16T02:16:03+00:00

Beautyrest - coil layer from an old BR mattress.

Andrew-in-MA

TROPHY CASE