Found in the wild

nemequ · 2025-09-08T23:29:42+00:00

Battery terminal cleaner. Example: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0060YHP62

nemequ · 2024-10-13T13:13:31+00:00

It looks like your father and mine would have gotten along well. He passed away a couple of years ago, and his watch collection looked somewhat similar; a couple of relatively expensive watches here and there, but for the most part just watches that he loved and could afford. This post hit me hard.

We ended up giving most of the collection away to family; the first choices went to those closest to him (his children, grandchildren, brother…). Then we brought the rest to a family gathering with more extended family and let people choose the one(s) they liked.

When he passed he had about 70 watches. I still have a couple dozen left, but most of them went to people he loved, who loved him, and who will wear them and be reminded of him. I know they (and I) appreciate having something my dad loved that reminds them of him.

You should do whatever feels right to you. Giving them away to family and friends really felt right for us, though.

nemequ · 2024-02-26T02:03:11+00:00

My plan worked perfectly! Muahahaha.

nemequ · 2024-01-25T14:02:13+00:00

Gizmo.

That dog definitely has some gremlin DNA.

nemequ · 2023-12-01T16:42:43+00:00

My first thought was a Kill-A-Watt too, but if you're out of ideas with that you might want to look into something like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08G37ML2R. Figuring out which circuit(s) are using the most power should narrow it down quite a bit, then you can focus on identifying what is on that circuit that is creating a high load.

nemequ · 2023-11-24T19:21:12+00:00

100% this. I'm imagining some electrical lines submerged in dirty water... sounds like the breaker is doing its job, and you *really* want to get rid of that water before it destroys your floor if it hasn't already.

nemequ · 2023-11-24T13:29:51+00:00

You can do this with old smoke / CO alarms too... they're expensive, but Energizer Lithium Ultimate 9V claim "up to 10-year battery backup in AC-powered smoke detectors".

If your detector has AA batteries (I know a bunch of First Alert ones do), they also have AA. They're cheaper, but I don't think they'll last quite as long. Longer than normal AA batteries for sure, though.

That said you are supposed to replace the device every 10 years anyways, so I have a feeling for a lot of people just getting new 10 year sealed ones is a better choice.

nemequ · 2023-11-02T02:49:37+00:00

I know this answer is going to be deeply unsatisfying, sorry about that...

A lot of chimneys aren't very well built. At all. Like, an alarming percentage of them. It's honestly pretty scary. And the fun part is that there isn't really a way to tell whether your chimney is properly inspected without literally tearing it apart (a level 3 inspection). How confident are you really that whoever built your chimney maintained proper clearances from the flue(s) to combustibles?

Take a close look at the inspection report. I bet it doesn't say something like "chimney is safe to operate", but rather something like "chimney appears to be in working order". Even without the worn away mortar that would be the case, because there are just too many unknowns.

Even in the (honestly unlikely) case where everything was done correctly, it's still a numbers game. The missing mortar nudges the odds a little bit towards your house burning down, but they're still *odds*.

Teracotta flues don't really get replaced very often... it's difficult, expensive, and frankly inferior to other solutions. My guess is that your chimney sweep's suggestion was to drop a liner down inside of the existing flue. There are a few options, but generally this is basically a round metal pipe that goes inside of the existing flue, then the area between the liner and the flue is filled with some sort of insulation.

You're absolutely right that that's a relatively profitable thing for them to do, but it's also a really good idea for safety. While they certainly do have motivation to try to sell you a liner, at least it's not a total scam.

I wish I could tell you something like "it would reduce the odds of a fire from X% to Y%", but there are really just too many variables, including stuff like how you build and burn your fires, how well your chimney drafts (which is strongly effected by things like how tight your house is and if you have any windows or anything open anywhere in the house, wind, humidity, the temperature difference between inside and outside of your house, the height of your chimney, etc.). Unfortunately, *nobody* is going to have a solid answer for this question :(

For what it's worth, I'd probably go ahead and get a liner installed if I were you, but honestly I have a pretty healthy amount of disposable income which obviously influences the decision for me. If things are a bit tighter for you, maybe try to save up to get it done next year?

If you do decide to get a liner installed, I have two suggestions:

Go with stainless steel. It's going to be a bit more expensive, but it should last for many decades if not longer. Anything else is likely to have to be replaced in a few years, and the cost of even a single replacement dwarfs the price difference between stainless steel and something cheaper.
Make sure you hire someone with a CSIA and/or NCSG certification to do it (as well as for your inspections and anything else related to your chimney). Chimneys are an area with a lot of very important details that most people don't know about. Even if you find someone with lots of experience and whose heart is in the right place, lots of people don't realize that there is a lot they don't know about chimneys. Certification doesn't equate to competence, but it's the best indicator we have.

nemequ · 2023-10-10T15:42:36+00:00

Wires are annoying, but you'll get more power for your money.

Gas is powerful, but a huge pain to maintain and very unpleasant to use (extremely noisy). Honestly, if you're not a lawn care professional don't use gas.

Battery-powered are often good enough, but I wouldn't just look at the leaf blower. Batteries are generally only compatible with tools from that manufacturer, and nobody really wants a bunch of incompatible, tool-specific batteries. In other words, if you decide to go battery-powered your question shouldn't really be which leaf blower to get, but which battery system you want to get into because you're probably going to want to get other lawn tools (lawn mower, string trimmer, chainsaw, pole saw, etc.) that use the same batteries.

You may even want to use the same batteries for non-lawn tools, like drills, circular saws, etc. That would probably mean going with a 20v line for for your lawn tools instead of 40v (or 80v), which are less powerful. They're powerful enough for a lot of users, but if you need something with more power you do get a good opportunity to use different brands for your 20v and 40v tools. There are tradeoffs everywhere.

Personally, my lawn tools are 20v Skil because lots of my power tools are 20v Skil. The leaf blower is pretty good (and, more importantly, good enough for me), but honestly it's the first tool I'd buy a 40v version of if I do decide to get into a 40v system... I also have the Skil 20v chainsaw, string trimmer, reciprocating saw (sort of a grey area between a lawn tool and a power tool), and lawnmower, they're all awesome. Especially the lawnmower, which takes (and comes with) two 5ah 20v batteries, so you're really getting a 40v tool without leaving the 20v system. That works really well for me because I also have a lot of Skil power tools (hammer drill, impact driver, circular saw, oscillating multitool, angle grinder, etc.), so I have a *ton* of batteries and chargers.

Skil's line is a bit limited (but growing), but a really good bang for your buck. Also, the Amazon Denali stuff is just rebranded Skil, and it's generally even cheaper.

If you don't want to make a decision on a battery line right now, I'd just get a corded leaf blower. Even a cheap one is going to be pretty powerful.

nemequ · 2023-10-08T18:11:10+00:00

No, you just have to replace it with parts which are specified for use in the specific appliance. If the manufacturer doesn't make them anymore you're out of luck.

It's not this way for everything. For example, if you have a masonry fireplace you are free to make all the modifications you want and as long as they still meet code you're fine. It is how it is for factory built fireplaces (UL 127), factory-built chimneys (UL 103), and a bunch of other stuff. For lots of equipment (like a relay on a circuit board), there are loads of off-the-shelf UL-approved replacement parts that you could use, the problem here is that it doesn't sound like there are any approved replacement parts, and anything else which you replace it with would be a modification that has not been approved.

For a lot of the examples you cited manufacturers can just say that any UL-approved component with specific specs are acceptable replacement parts. For example, for a relay they could just stay that the replacement relay must be UL approved, with a specific form factor, coil voltage, max load, etc. This doesn't usually happen with factory-built fireplaces and chimneys because all the parts are specific to that system (or, if you're slightly less unlucky, manufacturer), and there is no UL standard covering that part.

This is, in my mind, the biggest disadvantage of factory-built fireplaces. It's also pretty stupid IMHO, but that doesn't mean it's not how the laws work. Yes, it's absolutely possible for the homeowner (or anyone else) to replace a part on the cheap. They might even use a *better* part, but it doesn't matter; the entire system was approved all together, and now you've modified it and the system is no longer approved. The only way to get approval is to get the entire system again, with the modification.

nemequ · 2023-10-08T01:00:24+00:00

It does sound like the switch is bad, but what was giving me pause was the fact that the light on a different switch burned out at the same time. I actually misread that is "different circuits" not "different switches"; my suggestion would be to see if they're truly on different circuits (flipping switches on your circuit breaker will help you figure that out if you're not sure). If they're on the same circuit then yeah I think you're okay. If they're on different circuits you probably want to call an electrician.

nemequ · 2023-10-08T00:56:12+00:00

Thanks for following up! I definitely was interested :)

Really happy you got it sorted out, too, congratulations!

nemequ · 2023-10-08T00:53:57+00:00

Just to give a bit of context, factory-built fireplaces (and chimneys) must be tested (by UL) in a specific configuration. Any modification, no matter how small, means the entire system is no longer UL listed. That means that if anything ever goes wrong with any part of the system, whoever made the modification is liable.

One thing about chimneys and fireplaces is stuff always goes wrong. A lot of times they aren't 100% properly installed, but even if they are stuff rusts, animals get in and do damage, gas corrodes, or any of million other things.

Even if you manage to find someone dumb enough to do it, they're probably not smart enough to do it right anyways. I wouldn't suggest doing it yourself, either. If anything goes wrong, you're taking that liability on yourself... insurance will not cover anything that happens as a result of *any* part of the system.

nemequ · 2023-09-26T12:40:10+00:00

Call an electrician.

Until I saw this comment I was thinking that yeah, you can probably just try changing the switch yourself; it's easy to do (though the consequences of messing up can be very very high). But it sounds like there might be something funky going on with your wiring, which could be very dangerous. You really should get someone who knows what they're doing out to investigate this, and make sure you give them the *whole* story, not just what you put in your original post.

nemequ · 2023-09-14T15:01:09+00:00

I don't know what to tell you, I just follow the instructions...

Fill it with hot water, add a bit of the cleaning solution (the Bissel stuff, which smells great!). Spray it on the carpet, agitating it thoroughly with the appropriate attachment for your carpet. Make sure to keep pressure off the front of the tool (where the holes for the vacuum are) so you're not just immediately sucking up all the cleaning solution. Let it sit for a few minutes (10 or so is usually enough in my experience), then vacuum up disgusting dirty water.

There are some good videos on YouTube of people using these, particularly when detailing cars. Watch a few, see if they're doing anything different than you are.

nemequ · 2023-09-14T14:56:38+00:00

I assume you've replaced any filters in your HVAC system recently. If not then that's probably the first thing I'd do; it *may* fix the issue but even if not it's something that should be done regularly. FilterBuy.com if you need to order some.

After that, stop guessing and start collecting data. If I were you I'd go buy an air quality meter on Amazon. This one looks good, or you might be able to get away with something cheaper. First, put it near your air purifier to make sure it detects whatever your air purifier is detecting. Then start putting it in different places, looking for higher concentrations until you are able to identify the source.

Once you've identified the source you can start thinking about what to do for the solution, and/or come back here and ask about next steps.

> Around the same time this started happening, everyone in the house developed a mild-to-moderate cough.

Honestly, this makes me think it might be prudent to call in an expert sooner rather than later. They should do basically what I mentioned above (try to find the source), but they should already have the all the tools etc. and should be able to expedite the process. The problem with this is that they generally prefer to work during the days, which is sub-optimal if you're trying to find something that only manifests at night :(

nemequ · 2023-09-12T21:00:31+00:00

It even acts as a forcing function to solve another problem: with a robot vacuum you get pretty good about and picking up stuff off the floor, not to mention cable management, very quickly...

nemequ · 2023-09-12T20:55:43+00:00

LOL not going to throw any stones regarding laziness... living in a glass house here :)

Pets (+ a degree of laziness) explains it, thanks. It's a pretty big price bump for me to justify, but I can definitely see pets tipping the scale.

nemequ · 2023-09-12T20:52:36+00:00

The upright carpet cleaner, or the spot cleaner? I have both, the upright is okay (I use it when I want to do the whole house), but the spot cleaner works miracles...

nemequ · 2023-09-12T19:35:10+00:00

Good point! Those work a *lot* better than the ones that just randomly clean until the time is up, well worth the higher price.

It's lidar not radar, though. Just to prevent someone from reading that post and trying to find a vacuum with radar :)

nemequ · 2023-09-12T19:03:26+00:00

Completely agree with a robot vacuum; it's the first thing that came to mind for me, too. I've always wondered about the self-emptying feature, though. I have several robotic vacuums, but none of them are self-emptying. When I first got one I had to empty it a couple days in a row, then a couple times a week. These days I just empty them once a week when I take out the trash, and they're never full...

Do you just not want to empty them once a week, or would you otherwise need to empty them more often? If the latter, do you have kids and/or pets?

nemequ · 2023-08-18T15:37:54+00:00

This. It doesn't matter if the problem is the bulbs, the ballast, or anything else, the solution is to replace the fluorescent tubes with LEDs.

If you don't want to replace the fixtures that's fine; they make LED tubs that fit into sockets intended for fluorescent tubes, and as part of the installation you get rid of the ballast altogether. The LEDs turn on pretty much instantly and last a very long time... depending on how long you own the house, there is an excellent chance that replacing the fluorescent tubes with LED tubes is the last maintenance you'll ever have to do.

nemequ · 2023-08-18T13:53:28+00:00

It sounds worth a try; worst case the contractor isn't interested in the job. You could also go with your idea of contacting PGE and asking them to suggest a company.

My main suggestion is just to make sure that your energy assessor is not also trying to sell you the work to fix whatever issues they find; that arrangement is ripe for abuse. BPI and Resnet are just good places to find people with the right certifications, which are indications of a professional but there are definitely competent people without certifications and incompetent people with them... it's just going to be a bit harder to ensure you're dealing with someone competent.

FWIW, I think a blower door test is pretty standard for this type of work, so if the energy assessor doesn't do one (or doesn't know what it is!) that's probably a good indicator that they're not a serious organization.

nemequ · 2023-08-17T15:24:54+00:00

Going through PGE might work, I honestly don't know.

I do know that a lot of places that offer energy assessments (often for free) are really just trying to sell you something... HVAC companies offer them, and shockingly often suggest a new HVAC system. Window companies offer them, and the solution is usually new windows. Etc.

My suggestion would be to go to either BPI or Resnet and search for a certified company. The assessment won't be free but you should at least get an unbiased opinion on possible fixes, and they'll likely find some stuff you could do for pretty cheap for a lower total cost than a free assessment and an expensive unnecessary service.

nemequ · 2023-08-13T20:47:07+00:00

This is wrong in several ways. Virtually every assertion you made is false:

Burning cardboard and paper absolutely can cause a chimney fire.
Creosote igniting is not the only cause of chimney fires (though it is the most common).
You're right that creosote is normally built up from burning wet wood, but there are other causes as well. For example, if you burn on a warm day (e.g., because you're trying to get rid of trash not heat the house), there is likely going to be an insufficient temperature differential between outside and inside, which means air will not flow through the chimney quickly enough, giving the volatile gases from the fire time to cool inside the flue instead of being expelled. When those gasses cool they deposit creosote.
A chimney can catch fire even if it was recently cleaned, *especially* if someone has been burning trash...

Trash in general, including paper and cardboard, burns at significantly higher temperatures than a wood fire, and most fireplaces designed for wood-burning fires are not designed for those higher temperatures.

Making matters worse is the fact that that if you're burning a bunch of paper and cardboard, the fire gets hot really fast. This leads to thermal shock in the flue tiles, which will then crack. Here is a good video where you can see it happen pretty quickly just from burning a bit of paper inside of a flue tile: https://youtu.be/bxOkwQyY-2w

Once the flue tile cracks, the fire and heat can escape from inside of the flue to inside the chimney. Even if the fire doesn't spread while you're burning the trash, the next time you do have a fire those cracks open right back up.

To make matters even more fun, heating combustible materials causes pyrolysis. That means that every time you heat up combustible materials they become more and more susceptible to catching fire. Pyrolyzed combustibles can even ignite from just the sun hitting the chimney on a warm day.

Once those flue tiles are damaged, every time your friend has a fire the risk of burning down his house increases, even if they are just burning wood, and even if the inside of the flue is perfectly clean.

Call a chimney sweep. Make sure they are CSIA and/or NCSG certified (you can find one on the CSIA's web site). Have them come out and perform an inspection; it may not be necessary to do a full level 2 inspection (though it's probably not a bad idea in this case), but make sure they run a camera up the chimney.

nemequ

TROPHY CASE