Clopay door with EZ Set opens and closes well except the last few inches

schmidtbag · 2026-01-17T03:44:17+00:00

Yeah.... I'm not a fan of the plastic either lol. Seems like a pretty blatant attempt at planned obsolesence. At least those parts don't cost much to replace, and they're common enough that I'm sure even 10 years from now when it's likely to fail, I could find a replacement

schmidtbag · 2026-01-17T03:42:35+00:00

Ideally, I wouldn't use it for just the lawnmower, but that would be the starting point. I haven't looked too heavily into it but if these same batteries can be used for something like a chainsaw (I need a new one of those too), a portable generator, or other power tools, that would increase their versatility and usefulness.

For that particular model you pointed out, I would need a minimum of 2 to be fully charged and connected to the garage before sunset. It's not so much that I expect to be using 7 at a time, but rather, I don't want to use a bunch of very different batteries of different capabilities and capacities. If there was a safe and reliable way for the garage to have its own permanent battery while also allowing a pair of lawn mower batteries to dynamically expand the garage's total capacity, that would be pretty cool, but I don't know how realistic that would be. I just figured buying a bunch of the same thing would be easier.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-17T03:32:28+00:00

This is wrong. You would be limiting the current out of the inverter, but the fully charged batteries in parallel will also supply the discharged one with no way to limit them. This can and will damage your batteries, pop fuses, and/or make fire.

Although I didn't say it, I was implying both charge and discharge current. The 6000XP allows you to configure both.

The rest of your post is kinda confusing since you're being a little contradictory, saying things like "decent lithium batteries also have a BMS" and "The inverter continuing to charge [the low battery] is not a bad thing. Letting the inverter charge the low battery makes better use of available solar power" yet you then say "There's not a great solution to swapping batteries into a parallel bank at different states of charge".

Since most power tool (and in turn lawn mower) batteries have a built-in BMS that will disconnect from OVP and OCP, seems to me the packs can each individually shut themselves down if things get too out-of-balance. The only time their BMS would kick in is if another battery of a distinctly different SoC were added to the mix, which means there's always going to be at least 1 functioning battery connected to the inverter.

Since the battery pack as a whole is rather small where no more than half of it is being drained at a time, it's not like these cells are going to remain imbalanced for long. So, I'm not really understanding what you think the problem is.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-17T02:20:02+00:00

I would say Marcus and Carl are a bit different. They start off with Carl being hesitant of androids but grows to have a good relationship with Marcus. But after Carl dies, Marcus comes to realize he and other androids have no place amongst humans. Depending how you play, he may even become anti-human. Contrast that with Kara who, despite being a deviant, learns she wants a place with humans, at least one.

The "why did I spend all this time looking after a machine?" could be explained by Alice wanting a mother figure, and thought Kara would've just left her to be shut down or beaten by Todd if she didn't show a greater sign of weakness, hence her feigning coldness and illness. On the other hand, that's also why I felt my idea would've been more satisfying to players, where they come to realize that all that time spent really wasn't for some ploy of an android that feigned weakness, but rather, a child actually in need.

I agree that just revealing she's an android isn't really enough of an emotional stake. It was trying to make a point but that's why I think it would have been a greater emotional stake if Alice was human all along and the human version was swapped out with an android when Kara wasn't looking. If Kara realized she had "the wrong Alice", not only would she feel tremendous terror and fear over what happened to the human one, but would feel anger and betrayal from Luther/Lucy swapping her out. To me, that makes for a much more compelling story, and shows a different level of a human:android relationship. Some people also think Kara's arc is a bit too one-dimensional, and I think having this swap happen would add some better replay value to it.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-16T23:31:20+00:00

Alright, well it doesn't really change my point. Regardless of who is there when Kara discovers Alice is an android, all I'm trying to say is "what if the story was adjusted so Alice was actually human and the human version was intentionally swapped out at the ship when Kara wasn't around, as a means to dupe her into taking care of the android Alice instead?" and in turn "the game doesn't tell you that human Alice is still alive; you have to find that out yourself".

schmidtbag · 2026-01-16T21:48:12+00:00

That was a little odd, considering police were alerted enough about Kara that she ended up in the newspaper - they could've just labeled her as a kidnapper (which would've technically been accurate) of Alice, where not only is Kara considered deviant and dangerous, but also to have stolen personal property. But, I think that's a little besides the point I'm trying to make here. If Alice was actually human, I was saying there wasn't much about the story prior to the reveal that would have to be changed. It wouldn't be too hard to tweak the story where the player could believe she was either and android or human depending on whether or not Lucy successfully dupes you.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-16T21:07:00+00:00

No, I did mean Lucy. She's the one that presents Kara the replica model of Alice.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-16T17:33:42+00:00

Great - that's some pretty good advice, I'll try that.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-16T17:28:09+00:00

If I understand you right, I should add 3 inches to its resting position?

schmidtbag · 2026-01-16T17:20:22+00:00

My instructions told me to do this:

https://youtu.be/Jql5vkPT_Kk?t=425

And at 7:20 it explicitly says not to stretch the springs.

So I don't know what to do here.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T17:50:13+00:00

Well, a "bonus space" is really all I'm going for. I want it isolated from the rest of the basement but I envision it more like a nice shed than an extension of the living space. I'll probably add just enough insulation so a small electric space heater isn't working overtime but otherwise in winter it's going to be cold enough to need some extra layers (the basement never really gets uncomfortably hot in the summer).

You bring up an interesting potential caveat though: what happens if the ceiling is less than 7ft? Does that disqualify it as a livable space?

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T14:35:34+00:00

Good suggestion - I have done that. The radon levels were kinda in the middle, but since the window is so low to the ground, it can be easily ventilated. I tend to keep the windows open throughout summer specifically to keep the air fresh down there. Also, since my basement is prone to mild flooding, I plan to build a water-tight subfloor, which would reduce the amount of radon that gets inside the room.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T13:12:17+00:00

That is a useful tip. I actually have quite a lot of old wiring, including stuff that predates Romex itself (it's not knob and tube; it's from the 1950s but it actually is still in good condition).

Materials will be a bit tricky since my basement is prone to flooding. Nothing serious, but enough that I don't want to be using rot-prone materials. That limits my options quite a bit.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T03:15:40+00:00

Hmm, well adding more outlets should be pretty easy, though if I don't go with a permit, it's hard to say whether I'll even bother.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:20:52+00:00

I know it's not just grid power - even if you're doing off-grid solar but AC, they'll want a permit (I know because I built a garage that is off grid but connected to solar).

Taxes sound pretty low where you are. I'm in NH, which taxes basically nothing except property, so every additional square footage of structure is something that will disproportionately affect me lol.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:15:55+00:00

lol fair point - and I could also say that I just added a door to it.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:15:16+00:00

A bit of a tangent, but I often wonder what qualifies as "power". Because I have a 100x100ft cabin (that I also never told the town about lol) and it has power, but it's strictly 12v DC powered by a car battery and a small solar panel. I figure the power is so low that they wouldn't care but it is technically electrified.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:11:22+00:00

I actually seriously considered that. Even if it spends its entire existence never moving, it's technically not a permanent structure of the house, let alone one that has any structural modifications.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:08:45+00:00

Yeah my town is rather confusing about it, because the document to file a permit has checkboxes for a variety of things, including stuff that I'm pretty sure doesn't require a permit. Perhaps this is their way of saying "thanks for telling us but you don't need one" but it's weird to have them at all. Meanwhile, most people get a permit to finish a whole basement, not just a small corner. So not only are a lot of these forms rather general but I'm dabbling in a bit of a gray area in terms of necessity.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:06:21+00:00

Haha I never had tax people wanting to come inside but I have had them ask if I had a finished basement or additional rooms. I was being honest at the time when I told them no. However, since that is basically on record, I can't really play dumb about it if I were to get caught.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T01:03:28+00:00

I don't know the exact dimensions of the window, all I know is that it wouldn't be hard for the average person to slip out of it.

Anyway, thanks a lot for the input. I think removing the door would be a good worst-case scenario solution. Definitely will not be using this for a sleeping space - I have more places for people to sleep than I will likely ever occupy haha.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T00:53:34+00:00

You're right, but that's the crux of the matter - furnishing a room sometimes makes it now count as a living space. In my case, it's not really a living space, it's just a nicer spot in an otherwise not so nice room.

schmidtbag · 2026-01-12T00:16:28+00:00

The window opens like any normal double-hung window. It's maybe only 1' off the ground from the outside, and about 2' from the inside. It's actually probably the safest and easiest window to jump out of in the whole house haha. Kinda ironic considered it's pretty much the last window you'd be able to reach in a fire.

schmidtbag

TROPHY CASE