The reason I did it myself is - I couldn’t find any HVAC guys who would just evacuate and pressure-test the system, after I did the installation. Everyone wants to sell an entire system with installation, which makes a $2K expense into a $5K one.
I’ve been thinking of advertising evacuation and pressure test for mini-splits as a service for DIYer’s. I think I could charge $250, and do a better job than the pros do, because I have heard that a lot of them don’t bother with a triple-evacuation, since it takes time, and “time is money.” I would have no problem spending 3-4 hours to do it right.
Could be a good move, but do make sure you don’t run afoul of local licensing regulations.
I wish I could have found someone here in Toronto that offered such a service. I’m pretty sure the reason my mini-split AC unit died was that the siding installers who re-did my house last October cracked one of the copper pipes on the outside wall entry point. Unfortunately, I can’t prove this and don’t have an appetite to chase them.
I got a quote for a repair (from the company that ended up installing the heat pump) of from $1200 to $1800 CAD, and the outside unit is mounted on the roof of a one story addition at the back of the house, making access more difficult than your ground mounted situation. So now I have an only 6 year old mini-split system that can probably be fixed and used by someone else, but as you say, most HVAC outfits aren’t interested in that kind of work.
I built a low retaining wall and pad for the new heat pump so it was a tiny bit DIY.
It’s temping to get an EPA license, so that I could buy refrigerant and refill systems. I’m not sure I want to go to that much effort this late in my career, although it might be fun (for some small values of the word “fun”).
Nicely done!
Built two pairs of speakers for my shop and garage. And I went a little over the top with walnut veneers that I cut from a crazy gorgeous slab of walnut I have been hording for the last 8 years or so.
I know nothing about making speakers, found a set of plans MTG Flex-8 (MTG Designs - Flex-8) which are really well put together.
In progress
A finished one on a Tier 1 speaker stand 
Beautiful work.
How did you cut the walnut?
Thanks, I cut them on my Rikon 18" bandsaw, which I picked up at Lee Valley this past winter. They had a 30% off sale and my decades long dream of owning a big bandsaw came true.
I was a bit of a chicken and cut the veneers thick to be cautious, but it worked so well that next time I can slice them thinner, get more out of the stock and less sanding required.
Keep that blade taut!
Now I’m confused. A bandsaw can’t cut a hole into something. Is there a cut into the holes that you’ve just disguised somehow?
Always good advice
I used a bandsaw to cut veneers out of a slab of walnut. The holes were cut using a router.
Those look very nice - quadrophenia rules! Depending on how loud you run these, you may want to put some sand in your Tier 1 speaker stands for stability.
Did you build the cross-over circuit boards or was this a kit?
The Tier 1 stands are full of stain for the fence… which I am not seemingly getting to yet. I have some ideas that I need to sketch out for wall mounts out of steel. First I need to make a small welding table… my to do list is epic, and that’s a joy of hobbies, right?
I built the crossovers but the plans I linked to above were very detailed, I did spring for PCBs from the plan maker to help keep it all neat, the yellow base for the crossovers I printed out of PLA.
What blade are you using?
The 3/4" Wood Slicer
There are likely better resaw blades out there but this one performed really well. The only thing that was an issue was the fence, I was able to tilt it slightly if applying the pressure I wanted to against the top of the fence. I think it has to do with the how the blade drift adjustment works. I will make a dedicated veneer fence next time, I have a couple of ideas mulling around in my head. One extreme option is a CNC-like based fence that can be moved by the rough veneer + kerf after each cut to save on having to reflatten in the planer, saving time and precious wood.
Are you resawing so the veneer is the off-cut? I was taught years ago to keep the veneer between the fence and the piece. That way you don’t have to readjust the fence and it’s safer. The claim is that you always see it done the other way because the people selling resaw blades are trying to show off how thin their veneers are.
I am resawing with the veneer between the saw and fence, but as imperfections creep in, you need to resurface the face that runs against the fence. Moving the fence for each cut definitely increases chance of error. Which is why I would like to make a CNC style adjustment, press the button and the fence accurately moves by the set distance.
I don’t veneer very often, so this is really low on the to-do list 
Ditto. I’ve only veneered a few times in the nearly 20 years I’ve owned my MiniMax.
Nice stealth brag! That is my dream bandsaw, well, dream new bandsaw, my dream saw is the Oliver 217D
http://www.vintagemachinery.org/photoindex/detail.aspx?id=8205