Fair enough. I have no idea how long it takes for a capacitor to lose charge, and I suppose people who have no experience at all should not mess with electronics. It just pisses me off that they put a part designed to fail to protect the rest of the system on the inside. If they spent another .50, they could have made it user-servicable from the outside, but then they wouldn't get you to buy new equipment every time a power surge takes a .50 fuse out.
The best thing is that the rings are under 2 each - about the cheapest thing you can get at the hardware store in / sq in.
I’ve done everything on the linked list except 7 and 9 (from lack of need.) It is really easy to replace any inside part of the toilet, as well as the intake hose. Two things not mentioned yet are replacing frayed electrical cords and rehanging closet doors. It isn’t hard to replace window latches (did one last weekend) or screens, or to patch screen doors.
But no one has mentioned tools. It’s vital to have a good set, and to collect a nice set of screws and bolts. Whenever I have any leftovers from installing a window shade or something (another thing everyone should know how to do) I save them. Saved my ass (or a trip to the store) many a time.
That depends on the size and quality of the capacitor. The part of a TV which will hold high voltage for quite a while is the CRT.
I in no way condone doing this with TV’s or anything else, but I saw an Appliance repairman quick discharge a capacitor on a refrigerator by taking a pair of needle nose pliers (with good insulated handle) and grounding out across the capacitor pins.
Given that a big enough capacitor with enough charge could probably weld the pliers to itself, I’d want to know more about a capacitor’s potential before trying it.
Because there’s another side to that argument, of equal value - my time is also valuable, and in the same sort of way. In other words, how much is my free time worth, as opposed to the money that I earn working? Because I don’t get a whole lot of free time, and I have to really think about whether I want to spend my time, versus my money, to fix those pipes. I could have my money and spend my weekend on the pipes, or I could pay my money so I can go to the golf course that weekend.
A common and accurate assessment that misses a critical point:
If you enjoy working on things and enjoy the satisfaction of fixing something yourself, then the time is worth it. Think sweat equity.
It’s not just the time or the money, or even the satisfaction, it’s the knowledge that a clogged pipe isn’t the end of the world, it’s the lack of fear when you have to go out in the dark and find someone to help.
If you know what it takes to replace your radiator, and the auto repair dude tells you it’ll cost twice as much, plus your pittman arm’s worn out, and your muffler bearings are out of round, you can tell him to get stuffed and take the car to someone else. Knowledge is power, fear is often used to sell you something.
I’ve read about repairmen (and heard from them) about using a screwdriver to do the same thing. But until I see one do it myself, and have them confirm that doing so will work on most size caps, I wouldn’t trust it myself.
Simple repair to a computer that suffered a small power surge during an electrical storm:
You don’t need to take it to the repair shop and be charged $150 for a new PSU.
You don’t need to spend an hour unplugging everything and faffing about trying to open the tower and check the PSU before plugging everything back in again.
Look at the back, see where the power cord attaches? Good. See the little I O switch above it? Good. flick the switch to O, then back to I. Now the computer will power up as normal.
Third :smack: time :smack: lucky :smack: :smack: :smack:
I’m a brand new home owner (the home’s not new, the owner is) as of January, and since then I’ve replaced the regular-type electrical switches with Decora switches, and replaced one of my door handles.
We’re going to also replace the elec. plugins with the matching Decora one, when I have a weekend where I’m not running around. We also bought new interior doors to replace the old slab doors, and pretty door handles to replace the old knobs. I’m going to learn to drill the knob holes and stuff on the doors (should we do that before or after painting?)
we also bought a new kitchen faucet – the kind where the tap itself pulls out to become the spray nozzle – which I’m going to have to learn to install, when I build up the nerve.
S^G
Agree with the comments upthread re changing the car oil and filter etc. I can do it, but I park on the street, so it’s awkward, I’d get filthy, and I’m taking my car in to get serviced anyway, so I might as well get them to do it.
I could change a flat in the dark.
I can bake a cake (amazing how many people can’t without a packet mix).
I’m routinely called upon to install friends’ new hi-fi and video/DVD components. Why this is difficult for these otherwise intelligent people, I have no idea.
I can tie proper (maritime) knots.
I can’t iron clothes for shit though. I mean I can do it, but it’s half an hour per shirt.
Ditto. Nor do I want to.
Oh, definitely - I’ve been planning for months and months for building my own kitchen cabinets. But that’s because it’s something that’s interesting to me that I’d enjoy. Everybody has to work their own time/money equation - I fix my own toilets, but I had Larry dig the trench to lay new sewer pipe. I may be building my own cabinets, but it’s possible I may also hire some strapping men to put them up. I have shingled roofs - it isn’t hard but I won’t be doing it again. That’s why I work for a living, so I don’t have to do that stuff if I don’t want to.
I also make my own pie crusts, bake bread when I feel like it, and make gourmet chocolate truffles when the mood strikes me. Because I enjoy it, not to save money.
I’d say that most homeowners with small children should know how to remove or pick their household locks (or at least keep really good track of keys). When our two-year old gets into a snit, he’ll often run into his room and lock the door. Unfortunately, his hands and wrists aren’t strong enough yet to twist the knob to unlock the door and open it yet, so he gets stuck. (It’s a push lock and pops open when the knob is twisted far enough.)
I also think that homeowners should be able to:
- Unclog a disposal if they have one.
- Change a water filter if they have one.
- Manually open their garage doors.
- Be able to use a powerwasher.
- Be able to install and uninstall a faucet.
- Know how to use your cables to give your car or someone else’s a jump.
Most of the above have come in handy for me or my husband at one point or another.
As for major remodeling, I know I can do it, but I’d much rather have someone else do it for me. I enjoy the actual work of it, but I can’t plan it for shit. It’s worth it to me to have someone else do it since they’ve done it a hundred times before, know exactly what they need for each step and can do it in less than half the time I can. That said, there’s no way I’m paying for someone else to do something as simple as remove wallpaper or paint or replace a bathroom vanity.
I truly enjoy repairing things around the house. Strangely though, my wife keeps forgetting to tell me about the things that she knows of that need repairing. OK, OK there have been a few stumbles along the way, I mean, who knew cats were that flammable, and that thing with the furnace has gotten blown way out of proportion. You know how firemen like to exaggerate. And a lot of people have made miscalulations with propane/bowling balls and lighters, right?
Actually, I am looking forward to this weekend. I’ve got a number of projects all lined out and the neighbors are going out of town so no worries about those pesky law suits (I’m looking forward to telling my side of that explosion).
I’d strongly recommend this lock be disabled - consider the possibility of a fire.
Good point. One of the earliest things I remember is accidentally locking myself in the bathroom and the kid across the street climbing in the window to let me out. Would have really sucked waiting for him if I’d set the place on fire with the gas stove in there.
I can give you a reason-the previous owners a) could, b) weren’t very ambitious, and c) very paranoid. Consequently when I moved in to this house every exterior door had at least one unique lock-the front door had three. I received the ritual butter tub full of keys. Apparently each owner contributed his/her legacy to the house by changing one lock or adding a lock. The first thing I did was strip out every lock in the house and replace them with decent quality locks keyed to one key (not quite as secure-I should have left the garage separate but that is more trouble than it is worth to me). Cost me $150 in hardware and I had a shopping bag of excess locks when I was done. Not a problem except for the one “high security” lock that had special screws that can only be tightened, not loosened. Had to file a notch in those. So some places and some people make it worthwhile to be able to change a lock.