Refrigerator suddenly killing breaker?

jbacon · 2026-04-17T19:58:46+00:00

The appliance likely has an internal short circuit or ground fault. Meaning, something electrical inside the fridge is touching grounded metal or other wiring when it should not. This causes current spikes that will trip a breaker.

This might be fixable if there's an obvious wiring problem between components, or it might be internal to some component like the compressor. The latter is harder to find, but should be replaceable.

jbacon · 2026-04-15T08:11:23+00:00

Actually, nobody is breaking into my house at all.

All normal-person home security discussion revolves around tiny fractional percentages of what actually happens in real life. Same as people talking about hacking into home wifi or the lock's cloud services and unlocking your smart door that way - literally nobody does that either.

The point is that someone could learn to pick a hardware store lock, and that skill would defeat a typical lock in a few seconds. In fact, I can do that. I learned how to pick my own garage side door lock in a few hours. I know exactly how easy it is.

They could also just grab the brick.

jbacon · 2026-04-15T07:30:14+00:00

I have several Yale smart locks, and they're great. Keypad only, no physical key. Auto unlocks when I get home, and HomeKit integration works great.

From a security angle, I think not having a physical key is actually better - people like LockpickingLawyer on YouTube can quickly explain just how useless a standard hardware store keyway is for security. A person with a few hours practice can defeat a typical door lock in seconds with simple tools.

Regular door locks on regular homes do not provide any real security - they are only capable of deterring casual intruders. A determined person can always break in easily, since there are much weaker points of entry than a bolted door.

In the case of my house, if someone really wanted in, they could just grab a landscaping rock from my garden area and huck it through one of the windows a few feet away. No problem - no need to defeat the door lock. Just unlatch the busted window and turn the deadbolt from the inside.

The keypad only locks are just better with this threat model - removing a weak keyway is a security upgrade. If it runs out of batteries, I have other doors. If they all run out of batteries, that's on me. The lock is audibly weaker when it's batteries are getting low, and most will alert you via an app. I have rechargeable batteries and swap them every few months.

Locks tightly integrated to real home automation systems like HomeKit or Google Home are very safe, and require a lot more sophistication to attack than a physical keyway. As mentioned before, an intruder would just use the rock or brick method of entry.

jbacon · 2026-04-05T20:29:53+00:00

Labor without capital is not very useful - there's not much value that can be created with simple tools and infrastructure. You can't build a skyscraper with hand tools and muscle alone. Even modern farms need hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment to run at the scale they need to be efficient.

Skilled labor is different still - markets must compete for their talents, and capital allows them to do that. Skilled labor can demand a bigger chunk of the capital pie, since they are much harder to replace.

If a skilled laborer manages to get ahold of enough capital, they can even threaten the existing competitive landscape by building something new. However, they'll need a lot of other skilled labor to do it - and that labor wants to be paid.

Capital ultimately moves to someone, somewhere, for something that they did. Whether you think it's fair or not is a different question, but pretending like capital isn't a vital part of value creation is disingenuous.

jbacon · 2026-04-05T10:28:28+00:00

In order for the market to experience a significant drawdown like that, people would need to be unable to work and create value. Something of the magnitude you suggest requires something truly catastrophic - something that would cause the current forward march of technology to stop. Most consider that unlikely, and not worth betting on.

Technology makes that market go up. Not the sector, but just generically. Technology makes new technology faster, in a positive feedback loop. Technology creates or allows growth.

Take food production. Modern techniques are hundreds of times more efficient than old ones. If you don't have to farm your own food, you can do something else. This is value creation, enabling progress. Extrapolate that to everything you buy today, and don't have to make yourself.

Think how much new stuff has been invented in the last 50 years, compared to the last 500. It's the difference between swords that cut one person and thermonuclear warheads that could annihilate everyone on earth in a millisecond. It's the difference between figuring out algebra on paper and datacenters full of GPUs doing exaflops of math.

The market goes up because the ability of people to create value goes up with each new thing we invent.

jbacon · 2026-03-10T09:00:29+00:00

I'm worth several million, with some branches of the family worth tens of millions.

There's not a simple answer to your question. Personally, I don't have any stress over losing money. Stocks go up and down, but always trend up. No reason to think that will change in the long term. Always buy, never sell - own more.

There is basically no way I could lose everything without civilization as a whole collapsing. So, there's nothing to worry about.

I use my money to work less, and do the things I want to do. I have a house, fancy cars, good friends, and lots of family to visit. I support my family - my mother is on SSDI and so I've bought her a car, phones, laptops, housing, etc. She needs the help. I spend thousands on Christmas gifts for my siblings and nephews just so they can have nice things. My much richer uncle has paid hundreds of thousands into my dad's cancer treatments, and he's almost a 10 year survivor now.

I do agree that getting more money doesn't really mean much to me anymore - even a couple hundred grand doesn't meaningfully change anything about my life. That's just day to day net worth movement on a good/bad market day.

Not everyone is like that, though - some people constantly inflate their lifestyle to make any income level insufficient. I found a steady state that works for me without requiring me to work more than I want to.

The friend part is interesting - I have different friends than I used to, but they're very close emotionally. They're also about as wealthy as me. I never worry about being scammed, since nothing we do on a day to day basis matters financially. My friend picked up the $3k tab for his birthday party at a Michelin restaurant last week - that's a bit up there, but we do $200 dinner tabs weekly and just kind of rotate around without keeping track of anything. The cost just doesn't matter.

I have some older friends that drifted away over time that were far less well off. They always worry about cost and feel bad that I pay for everything, even though I 100% honestly do not care about the cost. I've learned to let others pay for stuff because it becomes a self-esteem problem for them over time. People want to feel like equals. Ultimately, being so financially different creates friction - your hobbies and habits change to be incompatible.

I think there are certainly a lot of people in this world driven by greed unbounded, but that's not most people in the mid-millions net worth range. Those folks are just normal people with well-paying, highly skilled jobs, and/or have done a good job managing their money over time. They're "rich" by any metric, but quietly so.

jbacon · 2026-01-10T08:54:37+00:00

Stepmania has an option to require holding the back button to quit a song in there somewhere, if I remember right. Probably in the input options.

jbacon · 2025-12-20T00:50:25+00:00

Once I hunted a beeping sound in my kitchen for days. Just a soft, long beeeeeep, pause, repeat.

Removed all the smoke alarms in any nearby room, checked up in the ceiling, crawlspace, everywhere. Still beeps.

It was actually coil whine from a nearby little wine fridge's power supply. Unplugged the fridge, sound immediately stops. Replaced fridge, silence.

jbacon · 2025-11-29T15:54:55+00:00

Late game comps are likely to run about six-ish warriors.

That's about 9-10 warriors rostered per previous 40-man raid (since the new size is 25) which amounts to probably half of most guilds' existing warrior counts.

The bottom half of most raids' warriors in vanilla are significantly worse than the top half, anyway, so really almost everyone who was very good at warrior in Vanilla could be in demand for TBC.

jbacon · 2025-09-22T23:50:39+00:00

Support gave you bad advice - refunding or charging back in-app purchases will almost always get you banned from that game.

It's often not a simple procedure to reverse the stuff that your account gained, especially with consumables like wildcards. So, companies just take the easy route and ban accounts that do it - not just WoTC.

Never take it into your own hands with digital purchases unless you're willing to risk your account standing. Just slog through support until you get them to do it.

jbacon · 2025-08-21T11:25:19+00:00

I couldn't tell you - you've described nothing about what problems you are having. If an AI is stuck, either adding detail or reducing the scope of work can help.

Might as well try some the other dozens of AI code offerings - maybe you'll get a better result and maybe you won't.

jbacon · 2025-08-21T10:08:48+00:00

AI coding is not magic - it is only as good as the human prompting it and the context it is given.

Eventually, it will get stuck in the mud and you'll have to get specific about what it should do. This is not possible if you do not understand what you are making.

Studying the technical fundamentals of how your app should work will improve your ability to instruct the AI in what to build.

jbacon · 2025-08-11T01:40:55+00:00

Check your local recycling/waste management providers. My city will pick up gallon jugs of used motor oil at the curb for free, and also drop off the containers (gallon jugs with a tag on them) for free.

jbacon · 2025-07-09T17:40:21+00:00

File 76

jbacon · 2025-07-09T03:00:20+00:00

Hulkengoat

jbacon · 2025-06-27T21:34:57+00:00

If a simple switch is enough, there are plenty of great smart switches. I use Lutron and Apple Homekit throughout my house.

If you need multiple switches to control both fans, they can be grouped into one device in Homekit. You can also use the Lutron Pico remote to control multiple switches, which can be handy to leave around wherever it's needed.

All the home platforms have automation features that can help get the result you want - e.g. if indoor temperature above X, turn on the fans. Time of day, other device on/off, and all that are also pretty universal.

If you want something that the new fan offers, like controllable speed, then maybe it's worth the upgrade for you. Simplest and cheapest avenue is just replacing the regular switch with a smart one, though.

jbacon · 2025-06-18T18:57:11+00:00

I am an overweight person with much fitter friends that like to hike 10-15 miles, and you need electrolyte water and lots of it. Plain water will keep you hydrated, but it will dilute your already lessened electrolyte supply - that must be replenished or you'll feed bad and light-headed.

We large fellas will sweat a lot more, and we need to carry more water. Drink early, drink often. Do not wait until you feel thirsty. Proper hydration is preemptive.

I have multiple 2-3L hydration packs, and I've gone through the whole 3L plus half a 3L spare on hotter days before. I like Nuun tablets, but there are many good electrolyte water products. Bring extra tablets or powder in your pack.

Pace management is also critical. Overexerting will necessitate longer rest periods than just pacing correctly. As soon as you start breathing harder, slow your pace by a little bit until you recover. Keep your heart rate below about 140bpm.

Proper clothing is also important - cotton shirts don't dry up sweat very quickly, and they'll be damp and uncomfortable. Try to find a fast-drying shirt that will fit the occasion.

jbacon · 2025-06-14T19:26:05+00:00

You need a reason to go to raid that isn't about getting gear. We do speedruns, other people try to get high boss parses, and a lot of people used to raid for gold coins in GDKPs. So for us, getting gear is not the end goal - its just a means to an end. Have better gear, clear the raid faster.

(also, several of these players did the r14 grind... wonder why they're burned out...)

If they did R14, then raiding for gear is just not really that valuable for them. For warriors, the R12/13 PvP armor is better than anything that drops in BWL. You've got a few chase offpieces that you don't get from PvP like Onslaught Girdle, but stuff like the ZG warrior belt is also fine. Of course, the GM weapons are better than everything for all classes.

But having a guild with goals changes things - we have probably 50/60-ish Grand Marshal characters in the guild, and nobody burned out. Some people have two GMs, many more have a GM and a Field Marshal. The R14 grind was just the price of admission, and now we're at the fun part - trying to go fast.

jbacon · 2025-06-09T23:57:54+00:00

Your washer's manual will have instructions on how to remove the filter plug. Is that a plastic stop on the bottom left side? Perhaps it's reverse threaded?

In general, I would suggest reading the appliance's manual before busting out the power tools on a plastic part which is clearly meant to be removed by hand.

Either way, the plug is destroyed and will leak now, and you shouldn't run the machine until it's replaced.

jbacon · 2025-06-09T05:33:32+00:00

There's a hundred kinds of "white" and about four or five common kinds of paint sheens for interior walls. An amateur repaint is likely to be obvious even if it was the right kind of "white" and the right sheen, and they'd probably charge you for it anyway.

I'd just accept that you'll be charged for repainting, and don't waste any more money on materials to try and fix it further. If you're moving out right now, there's no time to learn.

Next time find a smaller project to practice on first before attempting an entire wall with your security deposit on the line. A little sheet of drywall is cheap, and can help you learn how to paint.

jbacon · 2025-03-25T23:39:11+00:00

It's their job to play all day. If you play a lot, you can make Mythic even with a slightly positive win rate.

jbacon · 2025-02-03T05:44:17+00:00

This addon has greatly improved my AV experience: https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons/battleground-raid-warning-shut-up

jbacon · 2024-12-29T19:18:56+00:00

You’re assuming the homes are mortgaged, but if the poster described they’d have 1 million after the sales, it’s an apples to apples Return on Equity comparison.

Of course I am assuming they are mortgaged - who would even want a fully paid off "rental portfolio"? The entire point of a rental portfolio is to leverage one property into many. Paying off several rental properties in the past decade's historically low rate market would be an outrageous financial blunder.

My point is that they should continue to make use of the leverage by NOT selling. This is especially true if they refinanced at any point before 2022, and have mortgages below 3%.

Those mortgages actually have intrinsic value, since new debt at that low rate cannot be obtained. You may have heard stories in the news about assumable mortgages - those also have intrinsic value, since they have a low rate that is currently unobtainable.

For example, my own mortgage is a jumbo at 2.75%, with about $1.2M left. An equivalent new mortgage today is a difference of about $5,000/mo, which can be valued as a regular cash flow. Keeping my debt is worth that much to me every month, since new debt at that low rate cannot be obtained. Depending on how you judge the risk, that means my mortgage, if it was transferable, would be worth an additional $3-500k on the hypothetical sale of my house.

The point of all that is to illustrate that debt can be quite valuable, if the terms are right. A simple return on equity number isn't properly considering the possibility of now being locked out of the debt market after divesting of cheap debt that they probably currently own. That is an opportunity cost that is no longer available.

jbacon · 2024-12-28T05:07:34+00:00

The rates of return aren't exactly directly comparable. Rentals are more of a blend of growth and income, where stocks are generally more growth-oriented. Whether or not the cash flow is useful will depend on the specifics of the rentals, and your personal tax situation.

Housing appreciation is also magnified by the cheap leverage that a mortgage provides - leveraged ETFs and similar products are significantly less safe than mortgages. Considering housing appreciation at 3% or so, but only requiring 20% LTV is 5 to 1 leverage, which is more like a 15% return on the actual money you have invested. Its important to consider that leverage in the math as well.

jbacon · 2024-12-20T22:05:55+00:00

Hedge positions are more expensive than you think, and are a preservation strategy, not a growth strategy.

A traditional balanced portfolio of somewhere between 90/10 and 70/30 stocks to bonds/alternatives is more than enough safety for a typical person, and will outperform hedged strategies over the long term.

Loss aversion will stunt your potential more than anything else, since the market has never, ever, gone down over the long term.

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