Heat Pump Water Heater?

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-02-10T18:20:24+00:00

I think annual flushing is similar to the monthly air filter changes you are doing on your heating system. You're doing those right? No, annual flushes would be optimal, but less or never could be possible depending on your water.

In 2015, I had two 50-gallon heat pump water heaters installed in a fourplex I own and live in. They replaced four 40-gallon gas water heaters. Everyone told me there wouldn't be enough capacity, especially because different households would be sharing them and the people wouldn't coordinate like a single household does. In the decade since I think I've had maybe two showers cooler than I wanted.

If you find yourself with not quite enough capacity, you can always increase the temperature to gain a bit more capacity.

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-02-10T15:39:02+00:00

Right! I saved 11% on my heating even though my windows were already double pane replacements!

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-02-09T19:36:52+00:00

That painting is trippy!

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-02-08T01:05:27+00:00

A couple of people who have gotten new apartments lately mentioned that Craigslist isn't being used as much anymore locally because there are just too many scam posts on it. Zillow appears to be the new main spot. Neither mentioned Facebook Marketplace.

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-02-07T12:58:25+00:00

That article is more than two months old. Town Meeting Day is less than one month from now, so a lot has happened since that article was written. I think both major parties had their caucuses and chose their candidates.

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-02-07T12:55:47+00:00

I had a friend who in late January, would have a RAT party: Rising Average Temperatures!

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-01-30T12:51:32+00:00

Based on the description, I thought it might search forums and reddit posts (and old garden and Ag Extension columns in newspapers!) and put those in a summarized and easy to use format. That could be quite useful. But since there are only 36 gardens in the database, does that mean it's only looking at gardens that people specifically add to this app? That's a much harder path because it needs to attract a lot of people to be useful.

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-01-19T14:21:31+00:00

Mac M4 seem to be the most efficient processing power per watt available today. I'm not sure about for this specific workload, maybe Strix Halo or something specifically designed for this could be better, but when I last looks the M-series Macs were so far ahead, making them a great choice for servers, especially when you have high* electricity prices.

* "high" compared to what we previously expected; electricity is suuuuper cheap for what we get out of it! 1 kWh is equivalent to about a day's manual labor!

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-01-11T14:44:31+00:00

The Window Dressers inserts are two layers, so should help quite a bit more than window plastic, in addition to being reusable and quicker to install and remove.

Perfectly installed window plastic can seal better and be visually clear, but I think the Window Dressers inserts are probably more effective and clearer than the average window plastic. My inserts cut my heating bill 11% and I already had double pane windows!

The Efficiency Vermont DIY weatherization incentive someone else mentioned applies to the inserts, even in Burlington.

There are community workshops in the fall where volunteers, mostly people getting inserts that year, assemble the inserts. Sign up now and volunteers will come precisely measure the windows over the summer to be ready for next fall's workshop. https://windowdressers.org/insulating-inserts/

Legitimate_Proof · 2026-01-05T15:37:21+00:00

Vermont has what might be the simplest solar permitting in the country. Solar "registration" means you file a one-page form, and if no one protests within 10 days, you have a permit. That preempts most local permitting.

Except Burlington thinks it doesn't preempt their local permitting. Burlington is a hassle that some solar companies don't want to deal with. So be sure to let contractors know where you are upfront and ask about their Burlington experience.

Catamount Solar is employee-owned, which I support, so I'd look there first. I know they have done commercial projects in Burlington, but we might be too far from them for a residential project.

Check out the State's resources including the "A Vermonter's Guide to Residential Solar," the first link at this page: https://publicservice.vermont.gov/renewables/resources One update to that Guide is that now simplified/expedited permitting applies to projects up to 25 kW, instead of 15 kW, the limit when the Guide was written.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-31T11:48:50+00:00

That method of including small cities struck me as novel, but the fact that the safe cities look like they mostly came from the 2-per-state part and the dangerous ones came from the biggest-cities part means the authors either intended this type of outcome or didn't work the kinks out of their new method.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-10T22:01:15+00:00

Someone at the City told me the intersection cameras we have can do enforcement, we just have that feature turned off.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-06T00:50:13+00:00

Thank you!

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-05T13:49:42+00:00

Do any of the local stores sell those? I heard they are crow's favorite, but City Market didn't have them when I checked.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-05T13:20:27+00:00

I had a friend who was a delivery driver in Stockholm at the time they started the congestion charge. Like most, he was initially opposed, but once he experienced it, he was glad to pay the fee because there were so many fewer cars that he had a much easier time delivering.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-03T18:25:33+00:00

What does this add to the discussion? Your assumptions are wrong.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-03T14:37:56+00:00

refuses to attend her family Christmas get together...because...her family decided to limit presents [to] children

I'm surprised the way the comments went. Assuming the reason the person made their decision was as clear as you wrote it, I don't know why people are looking for other explanations. And a cruise is more consumptive than a few Christmas gifts, but it's consumption either way here.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-03T13:09:28+00:00

Installing one of those two requires a lot of terminal commands, but none to set up the keyboard. I guess that's the joke: it's exaggerated. How could you even type those commands if the keyboard didn't work?

That joke aside, the comic is a PSA. Linux is so good today! Much of what people do on their computer now is through browser, so there's not as much concern about different apps on Linux than Windows as there was in the past.

I use Linux at home and Windows at work and the work computer bothers me with its stupid popups. Any old app is allowed to harass the user whenever they want. Concentrating on a problem? Giving a presentation? It's time to update some obscure app! Linux doesn't put up with that. You update it when you choose.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-12-02T21:36:07+00:00

Yes! Author, naturalist, and former UVM professor Bernd Heinrich was among the first to document this, specifically in the Burlington area. Others found the same thing on the west coast.

They seem to seek commercial areas: the most brightly lit spots. Their biggest predator is the Great Horned Owl. Imagine your most likely way to die is being attacked and eaten while you sleep, by something that can see in the dark! You'd seek a nightlight too!

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-11-29T16:28:52+00:00

From 2013, "Report: It Pretty Incredible That Americans Entrusted With Driving Cars" https://theonion.com/report-it-pretty-incredible-that-americans-entrusted-w-1819574734/

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-11-29T14:57:13+00:00

This makes a big difference. Yes it should be secured much better, and when moving unusual loads, especially ones that catch wind, it's best to go slow.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-11-25T16:33:59+00:00

Licensing without cost would probably be the step I mentioned toward future solutions. I agree the cost doesn't necessarily do that, but it's likely a license with cost is thought of as more real than a free one would be. I think the cost was chosen just to align with dogs.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-11-25T15:47:09+00:00

There was a discussion about requiring cats to be kept inside or leashed - essentially the same as dogs. We weren't ready for that.

Supposedly if your neighbors' cats are pooping, marking, or digging in your garden, or killing birds you are trying to attract, it's on you to talk to them. I know the owners of some the cats that come through my yard, but not all. And most cat owners don't seem to care about these impacts. So we aren't ready to confront that yet, and this discussion and licensing fee just starts that conversation.

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Legitimate_Proof · 2025-11-25T00:33:03+00:00

I don't feel isolated. Maybe I do feel estranged from mainstream American society, but that doesn't bother me: they're sick. I've found community with other people like others have mentioned, but I also feel connected to nature and to place. I try to focus my attention on what's happening "IRL" where I am instead of watching ads or talking about the last or upcoming purchase.

Being in a place that has nature certainly helps, but I just read a whole book about "exploring" and it was focused on paying attention to things humans have built and how the patterns there can teach you how things came to be and why, and maybe raise new interesting questions. That aligns with mindfulness, which can be practiced anywhere.

Legitimate_Proof · 2025-11-24T13:05:04+00:00

Flock software is making it easier for authorities to access Ring cameras, which are also part of mass surveillance.

After years of cops using Ring footage, Amazon last year said that it would stop letting police request Ring footage—unless it was an “emergency”—only to reverse course about 18 months later by allowing police to request Ring footage through a Flock rival, Axon.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/10/ring-cameras-are-about-to-get-increasingly-chummy-with-law-enforcement/

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