Solar Powered Auto Fan

The good old Solar Powered Auto Fan sold by the people of "As Seen on TV".  I've eye-balled these for years and the stiffling sun and humidity this year finally pushed hard enough to get one. As describided on Amazon "Solar powered ventilation system Auto fan blows hot air out of parked car Maintains comfortable temperature level for your return Fresh air is drawn in as hot, stale air vents out Auto Cool even helps to eliminate pet and tobacco odors Solar powered, no need battery Fits any car window".

Kansas City Maker's Faire 3D Printers

The weekend was a blast at the Kansas City Maker's Faire (http://www.makerfairekc.com/). There were presentations and fun from many groups and as expected 3D printers were everywhere.  While 3D printing is nothing new, it is still a fledgling market for the DIY home crowd and there is a constant stream of new ideas.

 

Central Pneumatic Air Compressor

Every good workshop needs a good air compressor, mine suddenly upped and died after years of abuse and no matter my efforts it refused to work. Drain valve stuck open, replaced it, power switch stopped working, fixed it, coupler jammed, cleaned it, engine seal blew and leaked oil everywhere....I'm so tired.....time to trash it.  I won't bad mouth the old soldier, it was long in the tooth, mistreated, over-used, ridden hard and put up wet.  I got my money's worth out of the old compressor but it was dead beyond my willingness to invest time, money and effort to keep it alive.  Time to replace it with what will hopefully be as good of a workhorse if not better. After shopping features and cross indexing prices, I came up with the Central Pneumatic.

Kill A Watt Power Monitor

It's that time of year again, the time when electricity costs are higher than the mortgage.  It's hot outside and the air conditioner is running a good chunk of the day.  You can't very well turn off the air conditioner, but it's not your only item using electricity.  You can go around the house and turn off everything when not in use, put power switches on ~everything~ and...well...wear yourself plum out.  Some things are worth turning off, some not as much, some not at all, but how can you tell? Enter Kill-A-Watt.