From Laundry to ifttt then text done

Our laundry machines are in the basement, when we remodeled our 1932 two story home, the staircases were sound insulated.  The cute chirping of our front loading machines doesn’t stand a chance of cutting through.  My wife mentioned that our machines have some sort of phone connection for servicing, why can’t they tell her when the cycle is complete.

That started the build.

(more…)

Continue ReadingFrom Laundry to ifttt then text done

The CNC Platform, see a SoftPro pen draw a SoftPro Logo

imageLately I’ve been building a homemade CNC platform intending to be a light mill / router / printer / laser cutter / fill in the blank. To start its setup to be a CNC Router, which has started to make some parts for itself to increase stiffness. I’ve made it to the first milestone, a running machine I can control that cuts aluminum to reasonable tolerances.

I put a short video on You Tube of it doing the fun task of sketching a SoftPro Logo using a SoftPro pen.

(more…)

Continue ReadingThe CNC Platform, see a SoftPro pen draw a SoftPro Logo

Vizio SV470XVT1A and Harris TS22 Butt Set, a Good start to the Year.

clip_image001[4]

The last 2 days have been technically a fantastic year.  It started with 2 Harris Butt Sets and ended with a fixed Vizio 47″ TV.  I had recently failed a cap replacement on an  Insteon device, so my electronics repair road was on a bad path.  It felt good to relive my roots.

 

The TV a Vizio SV470XVT1A was an interesting one, it intermittently displayed video, the back lights always worked.  Lots of documented voltages finally lead to a voltage regulator U10 on the daughter board, 0101-4072-0044 which showed a pin hanging at .4 mv when the set failed, and came up to 1.1 mv when it worked.  What a deal, the daughter board is near the cheapest one in the unit.  Amazon had a seller with a used one for $8.

(more…)

Continue ReadingVizio SV470XVT1A and Harris TS22 Butt Set, a Good start to the Year.

Closing and Title Home or Small Office Printer

Lately I’ve used a few of these Brother MFC-8910DW Printers in the home office and small branch office use.  Printing speed is 42 Page per minute, automatic duplex is available to save paper.  Scan to email, and fax round out the features that most of  my clients are looking for.

(more…)

Continue ReadingClosing and Title Home or Small Office Printer

Batteries AAA and AA

I’ve been into electronics for 40 years.  The cost of batteries has had me try many different brands, and types.  I use some rechargeable batteries, they are not always the best choice.  For the battery sizes of AAA and AA, I look for a cost per battery of about a quarter. It is important to purchase Alkaline batteries at a minimum, don’t get the cheaper, Heavy Duty batteries.  They leak more, don’t have the shelf life of an Alkaline, and product less power.

(more…)

Continue ReadingBatteries AAA and AA