Category Archives: home

The Aluminum Wiring Fiasco

Posted on May 7, 2018 by Fernando Gomes

Someone who decides to build a house faces a daunting task. It’s hard enough to act as the general contractor for someone else, but when you decide to build your own house, as my parents did in the early 1970s, it’s even tougher. There are a million decisions to make in an information-poor and rapidly changing environment, and one wrong step can literally cast in stone something you’ll have to live with forever. Add in the shoestring budget that my folks had to work with, and it’s a wonder they were able to succeed as well as they did.

It …read more

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Posted in history, home, mains electricity, mains wiring, Original Art, wiring | Leave a comment

A Home Network, Security System, And A Hidden Room Behind A Bookcase

Posted on May 6, 2018 by Fernando Gomes

Ok, now this is something special. This is a home network and security system that would make just about anyone stop, and with jaw hanging agape, stare, impressed at the “several months of effort” it took [timekillerjay] to install their dream setup. Just. Wow.

Want a brief rundown of the diverse skill set needed to pull this off? Networking, home security, home automation, woodworking, running two thousand feet(!) of cat 6a cable, a fair hand at drywall work for the dozens upon dozens of patches, painting, staining, and — while not a skill, but is definitely necessary — an amazingly …read more

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Posted in home, home hacks, magnetic lock, Network Hacks, Raspberry Pi, security, security hacks, ups, woodworking | Leave a comment

Ham Radio Trips Circuit Breakers

Posted on February 6, 2017 by Fernando Gomes

Arc-fault circuit breakers are a boon for household electrical safety. The garden-variety home electrical fire is usually started by the heat coming from a faulty wire arcing over. But as any radio enthusiast knows, sparks also give off broadband radio noise. Arc-fault circuit interrupters (AFCI) are special circuit breakers that listen for this noise in the power line and trip when they hear it. The problem is that they can be so sensitive that they cut out needlessly. Check out the amusing video below the break.

Our friend [Martin] moved into a new house, and discovered that he could flip …read more

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Posted in home, interference, wireless hacks | Leave a comment

LiftLocker Keeps Your Lift Safe from Attacking Garage Doors

Posted on February 2, 2017 by Fernando Gomes

Car lifts used to be a tool reserved for professional mechanics. Times are a-changing though. With the advent of reasonably priced four-post hydraulic lifts, more and more shade tree mechanics are joining the five-foot high club. Installing a lift in a home garage creates a few hazards, though. What happens when a family remotely opens the garage door while there is a car up on the lift? Garage door and lifted vehicle will meet – with expensive and/or dangerous results. [Joe Auman] saw this problem coming a mile away. He built the LiftLocker to make sure it never happens to …read more

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Posted in home, home hacks, lift, mechanic | Leave a comment

How Hot is Your Faucet? What Color is the Water?

Posted on November 6, 2016 by Fernando Gomes

How hot is the water coming out of your tap? Knowing that the water in their apartment gets “crazy hot,” redditor [AEvans28] opted to whip up a visual water temperature display to warn them off when things get a bit spicy.

This neat little device is sequestered away inside an Altoids mint tin — an oft-used, multi-purpose case for makers. Inside sits an ATtiny85 microcontroller  — re-calibrated using an Arduino UNO to a more household temperature scale ranging from dark blue to flashing red — with additional room for a switch, while the 10k ohm NTC thermristor and RGB LED …read more

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Posted in home, led, microcontroller, rgb, sink, Temerature, visual, water | Leave a comment