Neat household MacGyver tricks you've learned

[PewPewPew]

If you have a newer car that has the tire pressure management system, you can successfully remove the silicone or epoxy potting from them and solder on some new batteries. I use a dremel with a small dulled burr to remove the epoxy. It doesn't matter if you scuff up the old battery, since you're throwing it away. Read the old numbers off of the battery to re-order. You'll can buy the ones that have the tabs pre spot welded on, or you can scuff up the new battery with emery cloth in order for the solder to stick to it and re use the tabs that are still attached to the board. Thinned out silicone with mineral spirits is pour-able and self leveling for when you want to seal it back in. Here's a video on how to thin it out.

 

[PewPewPew]

If you want to find a leak in your cars hvac system after it has no refrigerant in it, get a low side R-134 quick connector and use epoxy to mate it up with an air line quick connector. The threads are very similar and the epoxy is just like pipe dope to fill in any gaps between the threads. Hook it up to shop air and add pressure to your hvac system and check for leaks with soapy water. O rings can leak, but occasionally you'll find the leak from the high side shraeder valve, the compressor, or the evap or condensor coils. When you're done, you're going to want to pull vacuum for a couple hours then replace your filter/dryer, but you're going to want to do that anyways after your system has been exposed to the environment and moisture from air. Here's a link to the quick coupler. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYR8GH4K/?tag=cpf0b6-20

 

[TPA]

Eh...the candle and flowerpot thing isn't going to do much in an average room.

A tealight candle puts out about 80 BTUs/hr. Your standard space heater puts out 5,000 BTUs/hr. Space heater is 1500 watts, so your tealight candle puts out a whopping...24 watts of heat. You're probably better off eating a can of beans to heat the room.

 

[bykfixer]

Eh...the candle and flowerpot thing isn't going to do much in an average room.

A tealight candle puts out about 80 BTUs/hr. Your standard space heater puts out 5,000 BTUs/hr. Space heater is 1500 watts, so your tealight candle puts out a whopping...24 watts of heat. You're probably better off eating a can of beans to heat the room.

It's not about basking in the warm glow at 78 degrees in a 500sf room. It's a space heater, as in small space as in you are in a cave or small space hovering NEAR the heat source with no other source of heat.

 

[PhotonWrangler]

I was rummaging around the basement the other day when I stumbled across a single photographic negative of an individual. This was an old 3"x4" negative from an antique box camera. It was slightly torn and scratched and was probably around 50-60 years old. It might be a photo of a relative or family friend, so I wanted to see who it was. But I didn't have a photo scanner and I wasn't going to take this old, tattered negative to a photo shop for processing for fear of further damage to it. So how do I convert this negative to a photo?

I decided to use an iphone as a light table for the negative. I launched a whiteboard app on the phone to produce a solid white screen; this made for a perfect light table. Then I placed the negative on the phone's screen and took a picture of it with another phone. Then I imported that picture into a paint program, reversed the polarity of the image and voila - I had a usable photograph of a man standing in front of a building. I then printed it on a sheet of 8x10 glossy paper.

Now this man's face is staring at me, waiting for me to unlock his identity.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

@PhotonWrangler, Show us the picture - or it didn't happen. 😁

 

[IMA SOL MAN]

I was rummaging around the basement the other day when I stumbled across a single photographic negative of an individual. This was an old 3"x4" negative from an antique box camera. It was slightly torn and scratched and was probably around 50-60 years old. It might be a photo of a relative or family friend, so I wanted to see who it was. But I didn't have a photo scanner and I wasn't going to take this old, tattered negative to a photo shop for processing for fear of further damage to it. So how do I convert this negative to a photo?

I decided to use an iphone as a light table for the negative. I launched a whiteboard app on the phone to produce a solid white screen; this made for a perfect light table. Then I placed the negative on the phone's screen and took a picture of it with another phone. Then I imported that picture into a paint program, reversed the polarity of the image and voila - I had a usable photograph of a man standing in front of a building. I then printed it on a sheet of 8x10 glossy paper.

Now this man's face is staring at me, waiting for me to unlock his identity.

I believe you. I believe you, but my Tommy gun don't!

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

@IMA SOL MAN, It's A Joke. 😎

 

[PhotonWrangler]

@PhotonWrangler, Show us the picture - or it didn't happen. 😁

You can see the moire' pattern from the iPhone's screen at the bottom of the picture.

Is this man wearing a uniform of some sort or is it just a jacket? I'm guessing this photo was taken in the early 1950s.

 

[Monocrom]

Doubt it's a uniform. But perhaps he's wearing one underneath the jacket, which itself might have been military issue? A real possibility.

 

[hsa]

You did a great job of bringing that back. Is that an insignia on the wrists?

 

[PhotonWrangler]

You did a great job of bringing that back. Is that an insignia on the wrists?

Thank you. That's an interesting question. I might have a go at removing the scratches and then zooming in on those details. As it stands there are so many dings & dents in the negative that I'm not sure.

 

[Poppy]

My first impression is that it is military perhaps WWII The hat with the ear flaps made me think of a flyer.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

@PhotonWrangler, I marvel at your ability to recreate/restore the photo!

The picture (clothing and housing) reminds me of those taken of my dad during basic training back in the early 50s.

 

[IMA SOL MAN]

Yeah, I agree with Korean War era US Army clothing. The hat looks like maybe a cold weather cap to be worn under a helmet. Building makes me think barracks, but I'm not an expert. Just a guess.

 

[IMA SOL MAN]

@IMA SOL MAN, It's A Joke. 😎

Yes. I was referencing the gangster movie in Home Alone 2.

 

[PhotonWrangler]

Yeah, I agree with Korean War era US Army clothing. The hat looks like maybe a cold weather cap to be worn under a helmet. Building makes me think barracks, but I'm not an expert. Just a guess.

Thanks. I'm thinking a barracks in the background also. While I can't make out any insignias on the wrists, I think I see some sort of logo on the front of the hat.

 

[Poppy]

Yeah, I agree with Korean War era US Army clothing. The hat looks like maybe a cold weather cap to be worn under a helmet. Building makes me think barracks, but I'm not an expert. Just a guess.

Oh yeah, I'd definitely agree with Korean war time frame. Those ear flaps would be necessary during that war.

 

[PhotonWrangler]

Oh yeah, I'd definitely agree with Korean war time frame. Those ear flaps would be necessary during that war.

This fits with the rough time frame of the photo as far as I can determine. Too bad that analog film cameras didn't have geo-tagging technology back then.

 

[Poppy]

This fits with the rough time frame of the photo as far as I can determine. Too bad that analog film cameras didn't have geo-tagging technology back then.

This post put a smile on my face...
geo tagging hehehe