DIY

Buy replacement furnace filters in bulk to save money 3
As I’ve taught myself a number of DIY home maintenance tasks over the years, I’ve noticed a trend: things tend to break at the worst possible time. When did my water heater’s TPR valve fail and start to spray water in the basement? At 10PM… when it was too late for […]

Home Maintenance Parts You Should Have In Your House Right ...

This entry was posted in DIY Reference and tagged anode DIY filter fuse parts pieces replacement parts thermocouple valve water heater on by (updated 3759 days ago)
No pressure from hot water expansion tank 147
I’ve been on a plumbing DIY kick lately, and after recently replacing a hot water recirculating pump that had been installed incorrectly (upside-down!) by a professional plumber, I’ve been reminded that it’s never a bad idea to periodically test things inside your own house — even if they were installed […]

Testing and Replacing a Hot Water Expansion Tank

This entry was posted in DIY and tagged Amtrol DIY hot water expansion tank plumbing Therm X Trol thermal expansion water hammer water heater Watts on by (updated 3781 days ago)
This post is primarily a how-to for my own benefit, since I own a total of five APC S20 BLK battery backup units running a variety of things at the house from AV gear to a rack of servers. That means there’s a chance I’ll need to replace the battery […]

How To: Swap RB63 UPS Batteries in an APC S20 ...

This entry was posted in DIY Home Theater & Automation Reference Technology and tagged APC batteries RB63 replace UPS batteries S20 BLK UPS on by (updated 3744 days ago)
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It’s 10PM. I get a text from our son (whose bedroom is in the basement) saying that he just got out of the shower and the water was barely warm, and now he’s hearing a “hissing” sound coming from the utility room across the hall from his bedroom… where the […]

How To: Repair a Leaking Hot Water Tank Temperature Pressure ...

This entry was posted in DIY and tagged fix leaking TPR valve hot water heater hot water tank hot water tank leak plumbing pressure relief valve Repair repair hot water tank temperature pressure relief valve tpr valve Watts on by (updated 3579 days ago)
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Water was pooling under our “backup” fridge in my garage, and so I figured something must broken with its refrigeration. However, when I pulled the fridge away from the wall to check things out, I discovered that the source of the water wasn’t the fridge… it was the shower faucet […]

Rave: Turns out Moen’s Customer Service is Just as Good ...

This entry was posted in DIY Rants and Raves and tagged 1225 customer service Kohler leak Moen plumbing replacement on by (updated 3579 days ago)
I hate throwing away old computer equipment. Whenever I buy a new system, the older ones tend to find other roles in my digital life. Maybe not on my desktop any more, but maybe in the playroom, or in a closet, or on my floor, or some other location where […]

Upgrade your Dell Dimension 4600 AGP Graphics Adapter and RAM

This entry was posted in DIY Technology Windows and tagged 3d graphics AGP Dell Dimension 4600 graphics card RAM Upgrade on by (updated 3818 days ago)
Lots of corrosion in a VTS Housing 24
If you have a Sea Doo with VTS (Variable Trim System), then you’re sitting on a ticking time bomb. Even a casual web search will fill your screen with horror stories of VTS gone bad. To make matters worse, there’s more than one reason that causes malfunction with the system. […]

Sea Doo VTS Not Working? Fix or Replace the VTS ...

This entry was posted in DIY Sea Doo and tagged Sea Doo variable trim system VTS VTS boot VTS broken VTS motor VTS repair VTS replace VTS won't work water on by (updated 3475 days ago)
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This post is as much for me as it is for anyone who might stumble across it in a web search. I’m using this list as an annual “shopping list” for part that I’ll need to winterize both of my 2006 Sea Doo RXPs. Reference Documents The starting point for […]

HowTo: Parts for Sea Doo 4-TEC Winterizing, Oil Change, and ...

This entry was posted in DIY Sea Doo and tagged 4-tec annual service compression flush fogging oil change parts RXP RXT Sea Doo spark plug winterization winterize on by (updated 3458 days ago)
Completed base pieces 3
Sick of trying to prop up cardboard targets against rocks when shooting outside? Don’t want to spend crazy $$$ for those fancy metal target stands? Want your target holders to be lightweight and transportable in the trunk of your car? Do you like the smell of PVC cement? Got $16? […]

DIY: Home Made PVC Target Holders

This entry was posted in DIY Guns and tagged cardboard target diy target holder gun range gun target home made target holder paper target PVC target holder on by (updated 3897 days ago)
DIY catch can installed in RXP with zip ties 7
If you install an aftermarket air intake in your Seadoo, it’s best to also install a catch can at the same time. What exactly does a catch can… catch? It’s designed to catch oil, gas, and other sludgy fluid that might otherwise end up inside your supercharger and your engine. […]

HowTo: Seadoo Catch Can / Oil Breather System

This entry was posted in DIY Reference Sea Doo and tagged air intake catch can DIY diy catch can fizzle catch can home made catch can riva catch can Sea Doo on by (updated 3884 days ago)
Cracked Sea Doo RXP front hood hoses 1
The majority of my Sea Doo posts are mechanical, but this one is purely cosmetic. I’ve got a couple of 2006 Sea Doo RXP boats, which I bought new, and I’ve loved them since they day they came home from the dealer. They’re fast, fun, and their looks have held […]

How To: Replace Cracked Plastic Front Hood Vent Hoses on ...

This entry was posted in DIY Reference Sea Doo and tagged 291001646 plastic hose replace rubber hose RXP Sea Doo vent hose on by (updated 3884 days ago)
Old style Sea Doo solenoid next to the upgraded version 32
It’s 90-something degrees outside. You walk out to the dock, straddle your 2006 Sea Doo RXP, attach the key, and press the start button. But instead of “vroooom” you get “tick tick tick tick.” Chances are high that you’ve got a starter solenoid problem. You may be able to press […]

HowTo: Sea Doo Ticking Noise when you Press the Start ...

This entry was posted in DIY Reference Sea Doo and tagged 278000077 278000513 278001376 278001802 278002347 295500900 4-tec bad solenoid how to replace solenoid replace starter solenoid RXP Sea Doo solenoid starter tick tick tick ticking on by (updated 3165 days ago)
Sea Doo RXP Spark Plugs Removed 28
I had one of my 2006 Sea Doo RXPs out on the lake last weekend, when I noticed it was running kind of rough. The engine didn’t sound right, and it felt low on power. Every now and then, I’d get a burst of full power, but then lose it […]

HowTo: Sea Doo Running Rough? Change the Spark Plugs First

This entry was posted in DIY Reference Sea Doo and tagged DCPR8E dielectric engine running rough losing power replace replace spark plugs RXP Sea Doo spark plug on by (updated 3205 days ago)
APC RBC24 10
In my 2012 post “Dead UPS Batteries? There’s a Cheaper Way!” I addressed the fact that most people overpay for replacement batteries for their UPS, especially if you purchase APC-branded RBC (Replacement Battery Cartridge) kits. The purpose of this post is to serve as a cross reference as to which generic batteries […]

APC Generic Replacement Battery Cross Reference Lookup

This entry was posted in DIY Reference Technology and tagged APC batteries cross reference generic lookup RBC RBC2 RBC6 replacement UPS battery on by (updated 3791 days ago)
Cisco/Linksys E4200 overclocked to 532 MHz 42
UPDATE: Newer versions of the DD-WRT firmware now include a web-based option for selecting your overclock speed, if it’s supported on your device. You can still follow these steps to overclock (and I recommend you continue reading so you understand what you’re doing), but now you can access overlocking on the Administration/Management tab. […]

How To: Overclock a Cisco/Linksys E4200 Router running DD-WRT

This entry was posted in DIY Linux Reference Technology and tagged 532 MHz clock speed DD-WRT E4200 Linksys overclock overclocking on by (updated 3326 days ago)
Winland Electronics WaterBug Sensor 22
I’ve already written plenty of posts about my experiences with the Ecobee Smart Thermostat. To say I’m a fan would be putting it mildly. But today, I became an even bigger fan after extending the functionality of my Ecobee Smart Thermostat by connecting a water sensor to it. My basement […]

DIY: Connecting a WaterBug Water Sensor to an Ecobee Smart ...

This entry was posted in DIY Home Theater & Automation Product Reviews Technology and tagged alarm dry contact ecobee how to product review review smart thermostat water sensor WaterBug WB-200 Winland Electronics on by (updated 4116 days ago)
WiFi connection on iPhone 4 680
UPDATED Dec 21, 2016. This post is a reference post for those looking to squeeze maximum speed out of their Cisco Linksys E4200 v1 wireless router running DD-WRT. The DD-WRT build I currently recommend for this router is K2.6 30880 (by BrainSlayer). IMPORTANT: My testing shows that DD-WRT K2.6 builds are much faster on the […]

My Cisco Linksys E4200 DD-WRT Settings for Max Speed

This entry was posted in DIY iPhone Linux Reference Technology and tagged 22000M big BrainSlayer configuration DD-WRT ddwrt E4200 fiber Fractal Heartbleed Kong Linksys mega nas OpenSSL OpenVPN optimize settings speed std TCP Congestion Control Transmit Power usb WiFi WiFi speed wireless wireless speed on by (updated 2675 days ago)