I’m just this guy, you know?

  • 13 Posts
  • 366 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
Cake day: June 12th, 2023
  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtoMemes@lemmy.ml•I'm both happy and scared!English
    2·
    17 days ago

    +1. Honestly, any of the three can be a recipe for disaster, especially when messing with DVW.

    Of all of them, gas is the one that can be explosive, although crossing electrical pairs is a big risk too. I bought my house from an electrician, and you probably would not be amazed at the number of 20A breakers on 14awg branches. There were at least 3 I’ve swapped back to 15A first time I cracked open my panel.

    To every man his domain, I say. Myself, I grok electric and plumbing. I hate messing with gas.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldOPtoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•Fuck it, we're doing eggs this weekend. Behold: Scotch eggs.English
    36·
    19 days ago

    In fact, yes.

    I forget exactly how, but basically roll out some uncased sausage into a thin sheet which you divide and use to wrap some peeled soft boiled eggs. Then the wrapped eggs undergo a traditional flour-egg-crumb dredge before a quick deep-fry in 365°F neutral oil to a desirable shade of brown.

    From the pic, I’ll wager I cut in some Parmesan cheese (green can) and corn meal into the dredge. Probably also some salt, pepper, and herbs.

    There are some good online recipes. I haven’t published one, myself, but I should.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtoMemes@lemmy.ml•I'm both happy and scared!English
    621·
    20 days ago

    Congratulations!

    I’ve had my place 20 years. Here’s a couple of tips:

    If you’re not already in a fixed rate loan, refi into one as soon as its feasible for you.

    The Home Depot 1-2-3 series books will save you thousands in basic troubleshooting and repairs. YouTube is really good for general handyman advice too. Caveat: learn your limits and don’t take on anything you don’t know ypu can see through. Several hours’ research is generally all you need.

    Be judicious about home warranties. They’ll spam you with FUD. Just hang out at a local trades bar and chat with the regulars. You’ll learn a lot.

    Electric and water generally* pretty are easy. Don’t mess with the gas lines.

    If you DO undertake your own repairs, don’t cut corners and leave it for the Next Guy. That Next Guys will inevitably be you.

    Nothing will be plumb, square or true. You learn to deal with it.

    If you like to use rich colors in your décor, learn about tinted primers, especially when dealing with red paints.

    Equity is Capital. Don’t touch it except for capital improvements to the structures & grounds, and even then be judicious. I’m talking new roof, new sump, kitchens & baths. Do not usenit to pay off consumer debt or college loans. No matter how tempting.

    Really, Don’t Touch The Capital.

    Live there for you. Its your house. Make it your personal retreat from the world, and set it up how you like it. Don’t worry about resale until it’s actually time to sell.

    Again, congratulations and good luck!

    –
    * for basic repairs, receptacle replacement, and the odd new branch. Know your limits.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtohomeassistant@lemmy.world•Recommendations for ThermostEnglish
    4·
    2 months ago

    I have an ecobee thermostat that I manage locally over WiFi using the HomeKit integration, but I’d stop short of recommending it to new users.

    1. Ecobee used to support developer access to their cloud API for controlling the thermostat and collecting efficiency data, but stopped issuing new API access tokens in the last couple of years. They have no plans currently to reopen developer access. If you have a token then the ecobee integration works fine, but if you don’t you’re stuck with HomeKit.
    2. The thermostat requires 24V from the furnace to run the display and wifi stack. They provide an adapter you can install if you have available free leads at bother ends of the thermostat control cable. I had to splice a new wire onto the 24V transformer in my furnace since it didn’t have a 24V common terminal on the control block. It wasn’t hard to do in the end, but it was a lot of research.
    3. Some advanced thermostat features require the app. I am not sure whether the app uses cloud or local control when on the same WiFi.
    4. Not all features are available through the HomeKit integration. I can change the thermostat mode among Auto/Heat/Cool/Off, manage the blower fan mode and manage the heat/cool set points.
    5. Data logging. The damned thing does log activity back home, and the data is only available in the app or on thr web portal.

    Other than that, Mrs Lincoln, how was the show? I haven’t been unhappy with the ecobee. The HomeKit integration works fine, and I get enough data from the native HA history to track and manage my energy demand. I shied away from Honeywell because my last Honeywell thermostat-- the one I used just before the thermostat I replaced with the ecobee-- tended to cycle my furnace too fast during cold snaps, and it would put the system into thermal protect mode. There was no way to widen the hysteresis (or modify the duty cycle) except by manually setting the temp high, run the house up to that temp, and then lower the setpoint and let the house take longer to cool.

    ETA: the ecobee a decent thermostat and I’m happy enough with it overall. It has “spousal approval” accreditation as well. I wish it checked more boxes for me*, but it was essentially free through a power utility program. Its a worthy upgrade for me, but YMMV.

    * namely, Z* protocol local control and continued cloud API access