Portable dishwasher makes short work of your least favorite chore

Nobody likes washing dishes, but they keep piling up. The new Capsule Solo portable dishwasher from Loch Electronics is designed to make short work of that chore even while camping.Continue ReadingCategory: Around The Home, LifestyleTags: Dishwasher, D… Continue reading Portable dishwasher makes short work of your least favorite chore

Silencer for leaf blowers picked up by Black & Decker

There are few power tools that raise a neighbor’s hackles quite like the leaf blower. Sure, others can be loud, but there’s just something about their particular ear-splitting drone that cuts in like a dentist’s drill. Perhaps it’s people’s frustrating… Continue reading Silencer for leaf blowers picked up by Black & Decker

LG’s moody new fridge lights up in custom colors and plays music

Besides keeping your food cold, there’s not much more we need from a fridge, but that doesn’t stop manufacturers from cramming new features in there in the endless pursuit of “innovation.” The latest example from LG is the MoodUP, a fridge that sports … Continue reading LG’s moody new fridge lights up in custom colors and plays music

How Do You Etch Something You Can’t Move?

We probably don’t need to tell this to the average Hackaday reader, but we’re living in a largely disposable society. Far too many things are built as cheaply as possible, either because manufacturers know you won’t keep it for long, or because they don’t want you to. Of course, the choice if yours if you wish to you accept this lifestyle or not.

Like many of us, [Erik] does not. When the painted markings on his stove become so worn that he couldn’t see them clearly, he wasn’t about to hop off to the appliance store to buy a new …read more

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The Mystery of the Clacking Clanking Scraping Sound

Hackers tend to face household problems a little differently than ordinary folk. Where the average person sees a painful repair bill or a replacement appliance, the hacker sees a difficult troubleshooting job and the opportunity to save some cash. [trochilidae] was woken one day by the dreaded Clacking Clanking Scraping Sound, or CCSS, and knew that something had to be done.

[trochilidae] reports that usually, the CCSS is due to the child of the house destroying his lodgings, but in this case, the source was laundry based. The Miele tumble dryer was acting up, and in need of some attention. …read more

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Dissecting the Elusive Wax Motor

We’d wager most readers aren’t intimately acquainted with wax motors. In fact, a good deal of you have probably never heard of them, let alone used one in a project. Which isn’t exactly surprising, as they’re very niche and rarely used outside of HVAC systems and some appliances. But they’re fascinating devices, and once you’ve seen how they work, you might just figure out an application for one.

[AvE] recently did a complete teardown on a typical wax motor, going as far as cutting the thing in half to show the inner workings. Now we’ve seen some readers commenting that …read more

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Mechanisms: The Reed Switch

Just about everywhere you go, there’s a reed switch nearby that’s quietly going about its work. Reed switches are so ubiquitous that you’re probably never more than a few feet away from one at any given time, especially at home or in the car. You might have them on your doors and windows as part of a burglar alarm system. They keep your washing machine from running when the lid is open, and they put your laptop to sleep when you close the lid. They know if the car has enough brake fluid and whether or not your seat belt …read more

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