Author Topic: What have you fettled today? (Read 2194201 times)

Feanor · « **Reply #15925 on:** 24 May, 2021, 04:12:50 pm »

Bloody tricky lamp replacement.

Downlighter in the shower is GU10, but in an IP rated fitting.
This has a gasket seal to get into it.
Then, the wire to the lampholder enters through a fairly tight grommet at the top.
As you pull the failed lamp downwards enough to disconnect it, you pull some wire down through the grommet.

After replacing the lamp, you cannot push this excess wire back up through the grommet!
And there's not enough room inside the fitting to accomodate a loop of slack.

The only way to re-assemble it is to remove the entire fitting from the ceiling, pulling it firmly out to bend the spring arms upwards so the whole shebang comes out. Then you can pull the slack up and out, as you re-fit the lamp into the fitting.

This results in a shower of debris from the ceiling void space, and minor damage to the plasterboard hole.
I won't manage this many times before the plasterboard becomes badly enough chewed up to require fixing.
Next time it fails, I'll replace the fitting with a less crap one.

rafletcher · « **Reply #15926 on:** 24 May, 2021, 04:28:25 pm »

I'd be interested in what the fiment is - I couldn't find an IP67 one where the bulb could be changed from below, not without having to remove mastic sealant anyway.

rogerzilla · « **Reply #15927 on:** 24 May, 2021, 04:36:22 pm »

I'm trying to update two TomTom devices. This is akin to kicking dead whales down a beach, because TomTom software is the shittest imaginable. I think their Dutch programmers write it after a long session on hallucinogenics. It hangs, crashes, pretends things aren't connected, fights Windows for control of the USB device and generally makes you want to throw your bollocks at the clock. They have the lowest Trustpilot rating I have ever seen as a company and I imagine are about to go bust now cars come with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

spesh · « **Reply #15928 on:** 24 May, 2021, 04:48:08 pm »

Quote from: rogerzilla on 24 May, 2021, 04:36:22 pm

I'm trying to update two TomTom devices. This is akin to kicking dead whales down a beach, because TomTom software is the shittest imaginable. I think their Dutch programmers write it after a long session on hallucinogenics. It hangs, crashes, pretends things aren't connected, fights Windows for control of the USB device and generally makes you want to throw your bollocks at the clock. They have the lowest Trustpilot rating I have ever seen as a company and I imagine are about to go bust now cars come with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Well, there's some mental cinema to ponder...

Feanor · « **Reply #15929 on:** 24 May, 2021, 04:57:25 pm »

Quote from: rafletcher on 24 May, 2021, 04:28:25 pm

I'd be interested in what the fiment is - I couldn't find an IP67 one where the bulb could be changed from below, not without having to remove mastic sealant anyway.

Sorry, I don't know.
I'm no longer on-site!

There were no visible manufacturers markings visible with the fitting in the ceiling.
There might be on the body of the thing once removed, but I didn't notice.

The visible external part is a circular glass window set into a chrome ring, about 75mm in diameter.
This is a bayonet mount up into the main recessed body of the fitting, and there's a gasket which seals between them as you engage the bayonet.
The bulb is clipped into the removable piece, and comes out with it as you open the fitting, thus pulling some wire through the grommet.

grams · « **Reply #15930 on:** 24 May, 2021, 06:35:40 pm »

Quote from: rafletcher on 24 May, 2021, 04:28:25 pm

I'd be interested in what the fiment is - I couldn't find an IP67 one where the bulb could be changed from below, not without having to remove mastic sealant anyway.

IP67? Are you taking it swimming?

rafletcher · « **Reply #15931 on:** 24 May, 2021, 07:29:52 pm »

Quote from: grams on 24 May, 2021, 06:35:40 pm

Quote from: rafletcher on 24 May, 2021, 04:28:25 pm
I'd be interested in what the fiment is - I couldn't find an IP67 one where the bulb could be changed from below, not without having to remove mastic sealant anyway.

IP67? Are you taking it swimming?

IP65 is probably more appropriate.

Feanor · « **Reply #15932 on:** 26 May, 2021, 11:17:42 am »

A replacement fan element in the oven.

The oven was intermittently tripping the RCD when it got much over 200C, so I've replaced the element as the most likely culprit.
( I had a new element to hand which I'd bought some time back for reasons... )

But the old element meggered OK at 500v when cold so dunno.
All the other things that it could be ( fan motors etc ) were clear too.

Time will tell.

ETA:
Bollocks. New element tripped out even faster than the old one!
The old one at least ran till it got hot before tripping out.

Further investigation, and I find the Earth wire to the element is chaffed through and rubbing against the L spade terminal.
The chafing is partial, and is to some extent insulated by solid grease.
Once things warm up, the grease melts and the fan vibration is enough to give an earth leakage fault.
So an easy fix: trim back the E wire, re-terminate, and position it so it doesn't chafe.
This was in fact the original fault.
Clean up all the eeky grease whilst I'm at it.

However, even after fixing this, it was still tripping out instantly the element came on.
Further Further investigation: The new element is faulty! <0.1MOhm from the terminals to mass at 500v!
So back to the original element which is >1000MOhm at 500v.

Now, all fixed.
Original element, repaired wiring.

Fuck Fuck Fuck.
It's tripping out again at temperature.

I'm going to have to haul the thing out again onto the bench, and run it up to temperature.
Then, once it trips, shut it off and isolate it, and do some more meggering at temperature.

I still suspect the element; the fact that the new element was fucked from the get-go is just a complicating factor.

rogerzilla · « **Reply #15933 on:** 26 May, 2021, 03:50:01 pm »

Fixed my old Joe Blow, because I hate the SKS Rennkompressor. New head and check valve. Turns out the check valve, which is like a sprung rubber nipple, should NOT be lubricated with silicone grease, or it sticks. I flushed it through with (do this outside and be careful not to freeze your skin) butane lighter fluid and fitted it dry. Now it all works like new.

Mrs Pingu · « **Reply #15934 on:** 26 May, 2021, 07:22:00 pm »

Did absolutely the *very* last bit of painting, which was the bit of door frame the joiner replaced on Monday cos it was rotten. I can't say he did a very tidy job but hopefully it will be someone else's irritant soon.
Nothing else happened today.
<twiddles thumbs>

Feanor · « **Reply #15935 on:** 27 May, 2021, 08:41:51 am »

Quote from: Mrs Pingu on 26 May, 2021, 07:22:00 pm

Did absolutely the *very* last bit of painting, which was the bit of door frame the joiner replaced on Monday cos it was rotten. I can't say he did a very tidy job but hopefully it will be someone else's irritant soon.
Nothing else happened today.
<twiddles thumbs>

On the flipside of that coin, have you seen anywhere that takes your fancy?

canny colin · « **Reply #15936 on:** 27 May, 2021, 07:58:41 pm »

Cut four old railway sleepers in half .Painted them with creosote & left the cut ends dunked in a pails of creosote .
Old Nancy across the lane reckons its the smell of here youth & will sleep with the windows open tonight .Nancy was Quite upset when I said the wood was for my daughter's place . I will have to do Nancy a pot pourri of old sleeper shavings & Creosote .

Kim · « **Reply #15937 on:** 27 May, 2021, 08:12:08 pm »

Replaced the ESP-03 module in a LYT8266 smart bulb that I bought ages ago and could never get to WiFi properly.

Off the back of my recent Tasmota adventures, I blew the dust off it and tried installing Tasmota rather than the Arduino thing I'd tried at the time. Flashing Tasmota was straightforward, but it couldn't connect to WiFi either. On a hunch based on a WeMos D1 that steadfastly refuses to talk to the BHPC's timing network but seems fine with everything else, I tracked down a source for the module, and did some fiddly soldering to replace it.

So yeah, new ESP, and it connects to Wifi just fine. Now running my own build of Tamota with the automation standards I've never heard of stripped out in favour of a more complete rule language, better MQTT support and - crucially - the PWM tweaked so it will go up to 20kHz. The LEDs are still deeply underwhelming, but it works, and is barakta-approved in terms of flicker if not CRI. I've stuck it at the top of the stairs to fill in the gloomy bit, where it can come on automagically in response to the stairs computer.

Meanwhile, as barakta was on campus today for the first time in $new_job, I took the opportunity to do as many solvent-related bicycle jobs as I could. I now have three non-squeaky-clean drivetrains.

Mrs Pingu · « **Reply #15938 on:** 27 May, 2021, 08:24:32 pm »

Quote from: Feanor on 27 May, 2021, 08:41:51 am

Quote from: Mrs Pingu on 26 May, 2021, 07:22:00 pm
Did absolutely the *very* last bit of painting, which was the bit of door frame the joiner replaced on Monday cos it was rotten. I can't say he did a very tidy job but hopefully it will be someone else's irritant soon.
Nothing else happened today.
<twiddles thumbs>

On the flipside of that coin, have you seen anywhere that takes your fancy?

Probably about 2 places a week at the moment. Not going to view anything til ours is on the market and I see if we get any viewings.
Speaking of which, I was expecting ours to be on ASPC by now but our property manager appears to have dropped off the face of the earth.

FifeingEejit · « **Reply #15939 on:** 27 May, 2021, 08:30:29 pm »

The garden, buckled.

Also had to move the belt on my turntable from 33 to 45 because London Grammar have joined Radiohead on the 45 RPM LP side of the record rack.

Sent from my BKL-L09 using Tapatalk

De Sisti · « **Reply #15940 on:** 27 May, 2021, 08:51:22 pm »

Ruined the threads on the bottom bracket (bb) shell of my titanium bike trying to fit a Shimano
UN55. Taking frame to shop on Saturday so that they can remove the (stuck) bb and sort out the
damaged threads.

robgul · « **Reply #15941 on:** 27 May, 2021, 09:06:18 pm »

Quote from: canny colin on 27 May, 2021, 07:58:41 pm

Cut four old railway sleepers in half .Painted them with creosote & left the cut ends dunked in a pails of creosote .
Old Nancy across the lane reckons its the smell of here youth & will sleep with the windows open tonight .Nancy was Quite upset when I said the wood was for my daughter's place . I will have to do Nancy a pot pourri of old sleeper shavings & Creosote .

CREOSOTE!!! - pure nectar, where can you buy it nowadays? I thought it had been banned?

canny colin · « **Reply #15942 on:** 27 May, 2021, 09:29:54 pm »

CREOSOTE!!! - pure nectar, where can you buy it nowadays? I thought it had been banned?

I have a stash of old creosote I keep at the yard for special jobs . You can buy Bartoline Creocote Off EBAY & with the addition of some old engine oil it is quite canny. But you are meant to be a "professional" to apply it and I am just a tradesman so I am a bit buggered .

neilrj · « **Reply #15943 on:** 27 May, 2021, 09:42:14 pm »

Quote from: robgul on 27 May, 2021, 09:06:18 pm

CREOSOTE!!! - pure nectar, where can you buy it nowadays? I thought it had been banned?

I got it from a country store in Upton on Severn a good few years ago, it's supposed to be pro only but no-one checked, I assume if you turn up in tatty clothes looking like a tradesperson that's enough ID enough (and my usual look).
It is in 25L barrels though and was about £30, still plenty left!

canny colin · « **Reply #15944 on:** 27 May, 2021, 10:28:50 pm »

Traditional Coal Tar Creosote is available from Creosotesales.com.uk

£ 40.00 for a 25 litre drum & £ 7.50 for postage ( up to 6 drums same postage )

light years ahead of that coloured water you can get from DIY ( destroy it yourself ) shops .

De Sisti · « **Reply #15945 on:** 28 May, 2021, 01:27:09 pm »

Quote from: De Sisti on 27 May, 2021, 08:51:22 pm

Ruined the threads on the bottom bracket (bb) shell of my titanium bike trying to fit a Shimano
UN55. Taking frame to shop on Saturday so that they can remove the (stuck) bb and sort out the
damaged threads.

As it happens, the threads weren't stripped. I just had to take my time and make sure the bottom
bracket was correctly aligned. Job done.

robgul · « **Reply #15946 on:** 28 May, 2021, 03:52:05 pm »

Quote from: De Sisti on 28 May, 2021, 01:27:09 pm

Quote from: De Sisti on 27 May, 2021, 08:51:22 pm
Ruined the threads on the bottom bracket (bb) shell of my titanium bike trying to fit a Shimano
UN55. Taking frame to shop on Saturday so that they can remove the (stuck) bb and sort out the
damaged threads.

As it happens, the threads weren't stripped. I just had to take my time and make sure the bottom
bracket was correctly aligned. Job done.

Tip - when installing a UN55 type BB fit the non-drive side cup in loosely to help with the alignment as you put the unit in from the drive side.

Kim · « **Reply #15947 on:** 28 May, 2021, 10:06:48 pm »

Repaired Jeremy:

(He'd suffered a bad case of battery leakage, so I removed his original innards and crammed a Wemos D1 Mini and some surplus blinkenlights from the BHPC LAZER DISPLAY BOARD up his arse. He seems to have enjoyed it, anyway.)

Mrs Pingu · « **Reply #15948 on:** 28 May, 2021, 10:43:03 pm »

What is Jeremy?

Kim · « **Reply #15949 on:** 28 May, 2021, 10:52:39 pm »

Quote from: Mrs Pingu on 28 May, 2021, 10:43:03 pm

What is Jeremy?

Jeremy is a Mood Beam. A brand name which has since had its own parallel story of being forgotten and then reinvented as a (completely unrelated) internet-of-shit product, which makes them hard to google for.

AIUI there was a whole family of these cute blobby critters, each with their own LED colour personalities. Think Furbys without the sinister. Or the sound. Jeremy was a gift from a friend who is known for calling things Jeremy, though he's fallen out of the habit since the rise of Messrs Clarkson, Hunt and indeed Corbyn.