Recent content by Dave_H

Going Gear
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    old flashbulbs!

    Here are a couple of really old GE E26-base flashbulbs, which are stuffed with magnesium wool, and likely oxygen in the bulb. My dad was into amateur photography a long time back. Apparently they can be fired by as little as 3v, and up to 120v. Dave
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    low-cost solar garden lights

    Below is the little DT solar spot. It does not provide a lot of light, but fine to light an otherwise dark small area. It can run all night with a good dose of sun during the day. Solidly built, not bad for $1.50. I usually cannot find these items online under DT Canada or US sites, but...
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    Binge worthy series

    I've watched season 2 and part of season 1, somewhat disappointed. The plots and acting are a bit shallow, and all cases wrap up in less than an hour, compared to other crime dramas with plots running over several episodes. Maybe in this case they thought this was too long and decided to go...
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    Latest alkaleak

    I needed to clean up a leak in a nice little self-setting clock which had been put out of sight (need to avoid this). It's not expensive, but older and a bit unique. Hydrogen peroxide 3% worked well on the contacts. Dave
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    UVC Sanitizer Box - mostly fake

    Good suggestion, checked and there is no covering over the tube. It is recessed so minimal risk of damage. Stamp border lights up, but also does at 365nm, so not proof positive of UV-C but pretty sure due to mercury tube. I have no objects/materials so far which uniquely light up at 254nm...
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    LED bulbs suck!

    Less than 2k hours on a Philips bulb...you should complain! Dave
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    Energy saving / cost saving ideas

    My costing was based on 2-1/2 sandwiches per tuna tin, YMMV. I save money on tuna by selecting "flake" versus "chunk". The latter sometimes commands a bit of premium, and the lowest-cost brand ($1.27 can regular) does not offer "chunk". It's usually (I imagine) going to end up flaked in...
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    Music to the Marrow (To What Are You Listening?)

    I am listening to a CD "Planetarium" with Sufjan Stevens and three others: Nico Mulhy, Bryce Dessner, and James McAlister (none of who I am familiar with). It has some neat stuff on it which defies description, perhaps "planetary" or "mystical" or ...? Dave
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    Music to the Marrow (To What Are You Listening?)

    I recently found "The Very Best of Cat Stevens" CD, a collection of old hits, brings back memories. Thrift stores have these here typically $2 or less, sometimes huge assortments. Dave
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    The 60's never looked so good! Canadian and US coins

    Interesting. I am not a coin collector but saved a bunch of pennies from normal circulation (before they stopped minting them here), and nickels. I sorted some to find some of the more unique or older ones, a small number going back to the 1940's. I was hoping to get one from each year back as...
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    Inside low-cost LED ac bulbs

    Dollar Tree A19/E26 LED bulbs up until not long ago (pre-COVID) were $1.25 each for 40/60/75/100W equivalent, in Canada. Same bulbs are a bit cheaper in U.S. Price started going up and reached $2 each. Since then, two-packs of E12 and E26 candelabra bulbs appeared; they are pretty good. Now...
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    Energy saving / cost saving ideas

    I priced making an ordinary tuna salad sandwich at home using low-cost store brands. This includes whole-wheat bread (but not the fancy whole-grain type which is about twice the price), and flaked tuna, with some chopped celery and a couple of dollops of salad dressing. Five sandwiches works...
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    UVC Sanitizer Box - mostly fake

    I just picked up another UV-C wand on clearance, Sun Catcher SW-9374 which uses a single Mercury tube about 4" long and 1/4" diameter. It claims 253.7nm which seems to be genuine. No visible light filter, not needed on this product. It runs on 4XAA which is better than a smaller one which uses...
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    UVC Sanitizer Box - mostly fake

    Yes that's it, sorry PW, meant to give product number which is BSUV999WH-GMD. It does seem to produce some UV-A which looks like 395/400nm. I've had the unit open, there is a small PCB with switching-type regulator presumably to drive the LED. Dave
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    LED bulbs suck!

    Not necessarily more robust. I have opened lots of low-cost A19 bulbs and small spots e.g BR30. With linear regulation the only difference is a slightly different chip which can monitor the dimmer duty cycle and adjust output current to match, probably costs a few cents more including some extra...
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