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Old 06-15-2017, 12:40 PM   #21
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Originally Posted by Newventurer View Post
Regarding your nest thermostat - be aware that there are settings, presumably to allow the unit to sense you in the home, that activate a microphone in the unit, which of course opens you up to unauthorized snooping by hackers. You may want it to function as designed but just be aware.
I've mentioned in passing to a couple of folks that I would not be interested in voice activated systems (cable co. wanted me to use the one on their remote to set up my TV recently - I said "no!") They look at me as if I'm from another century (which is, of course true.) That's when I recite to them my tag line. Of course, I get more blank stares.

I often wonder how many "criminals", "cheaters", accident "participants", etc. were surprised to find just how much info could be retrieved about them from new technology such as cell phones, car computers, Google trucks, etc. I've heard that there have been folks sent ads based on what they talked about in front of their voice activated TVs (though can't confirm that without a search - heard something recently along these lines.)

So when all else fails, see my tag line, but of course, YMMV.
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Old 06-15-2017, 12:43 PM   #22
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I wouldn't be concerned about the Nest listening in on me. But I would be concerned if the electric company had access to remotely control my thermostat.
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Old 06-15-2017, 12:50 PM   #23
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brakes are a pretty straight forward fix unless you have bad lines or calipers. anyone can do it with a little help from you tube.
Ummmm. I have yet to master drum brake shoe replacement. Read the manual, talked to parts store guys, and still I could not get the dang springs to go back on right. I even bought the stupid tong tool that is supposed to make it easy. I had to give up before I bent something permanently. I got the car driveable, sort of, drove it to my mechanic and had him do it. Awful experience. I do all sorts of other work on my car. Front (disc) pads are easy to replace. Even replaced a few calipers and rotors, but I stay away from those drums and shoes. Argghhh!!
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Old 06-15-2017, 01:25 PM   #24
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Originally Posted by Newventurer View Post
Regarding your nest thermostat - be aware that there are settings, presumably to allow the unit to sense you in the home, that activate a microphone in the unit, which of course opens you up to unauthorized snooping by hackers. You may want it to function as designed but just be aware.
As far as I know the at home sense is a motion sensor, please provide a link showing that there is a microphone in the thermostat.
Nest smoke detector, yes.
Nest camera, yes
Thermostat no microphone as far as any spec sheets I have seen.
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Old 06-15-2017, 01:27 PM   #25
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Ah, drum brakes...what a joy...NOT. Last ones I changed were on a 1970 Dodge Dart...what a PITA they were.

Speaking of car maintenance, my fabulous Infiniti G37 is right at 100K miles, so I thought it was a good time to get some maintenance knocked out. I priced the following at the stealership and through a mobile mechanic just for an idea:

Oil/Filter
Change/Flush Fluids in: Differential, Power Steering, Brakes.
Replace Spark Plugs
Clean Throttle Body
New Air Filters.

The estimate from the stealership: 1275
The estimate from mobile mechanic: 1080

Well, I thought about it and decided that if I could turn wrenches on AF planes for 6 years and my own plane for 5 years, I could knock this out. So, over the period of a day and a half (yes, I took my sweet time...but hey, I am retired, so I have ALL the time in the world!) I did all that work myself. Total cost: 258.97
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Old 06-15-2017, 01:30 PM   #26
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Originally Posted by Just_Steve View Post
As far as I know the at home sense is a motion sensor, please provide a link showing that there is a microphone in the thermostat.
Nest smoke detector, yes.
Nest camera, yes
Thermostat no microphone as far as any spec sheets I have seen.
Doh, my bad...I have the nest camera as well and that is the culprit. I apologize for the misinformation.

Apparently there is an interface though, through internet connection, that allows voice commands to the thermostat through a smartphone.
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Old 06-15-2017, 01:34 PM   #27
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That's great! Sounds like you earned almost $93/hour by doing your own brake repair.

Have you decided what to do with the money you saved?
I don't view this DIY "work" as earnings or savings. It's just not spent or paid to a mechanic.
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Old 06-15-2017, 01:39 PM   #28
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Originally Posted by ExFlyBoy5 View Post
Ah, drum brakes...what a joy...NOT. Last ones I changed were on a 1970 Dodge Dart...what a PITA they were.

Speaking of car maintenance, my fabulous Infiniti G37 is right at 100K miles, so I thought it was a good time to get some maintenance knocked out. I priced the following at the stealership and through a mobile mechanic just for an idea:

Oil/Filter
Change/Flush Fluids in: Differential, Power Steering, Brakes.
Replace Spark Plugs
Clean Throttle Body
New Air Filters.

The estimate from the stealership: 1275
The estimate from mobile mechanic: 1080

Well, I thought about it and decided that if I could turn wrenches on AF planes for 6 years and my own plane for 5 years, I could knock this out. So, over the period of a day and a half (yes, I took my sweet time...but hey, I am retired, so I have ALL the time in the world!) I did all that work myself. Total cost: 258.97
Always liked the G37's. Hard to find good RWD cars that are not European ($$)... 100K miles, just broken-in... I have a 2002 Tundra with 104K miles. Thinking doing timing belt & water pump soon. I usually wait for water pump to go bad, but it is a interference engine so if the belt breaks it will damage the valves ($$). Is your G37 a belt or chain drive? If belt you may want to check if the engine is a "interference" engine.
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Old 06-15-2017, 01:51 PM   #29
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I don't view this DIY "work" as earnings or savings. It's just not spent or paid to a mechanic.
I would call it a cost avoidance
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Old 06-15-2017, 04:09 PM   #30
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The avoidance of a cash outflow is as good as a cash inflow.
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Old 06-15-2017, 04:11 PM   #31
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Great job, face the fear and get the job done. You deserve a shot of that stuff 'Blue Collar Worker' just bought over on another post

http://www.early-retirement.org/foru...ml#post1894861
Actually, he'll need to do 3 more brake jobs before he will have earned that stuff. $2,500/($750-$100)= 3.84 ~ 4 brake jobs.
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Old 06-15-2017, 04:16 PM   #32
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<snip> I would be concerned if the electric company had access to remotely control my thermostat.
Actually, that's the deal. I got a Honeywell from the same utility 2 years ago in return for agreeing that they could cycle my A/C on and off in 15-minute intervals during peak periods. They'd let me know in advance, it would be a few times per season and I could opt out from a particular session. They estimated the temperature might go up 2 degrees. We never noticed any difference through 2 A/C seasons. This deal is similar except that they give me $25/year- not bad, since they cut down on how much power they have to buy when it's in high demand.

Both the Honeywell and this one are controllable from cell phone apps. I love that- I can turn the heat or A/C way down when I travel and bring it back to normal when I'm a few hours away.
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Old 06-15-2017, 04:45 PM   #33
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Good job.. Drum brakes can be tricky. Those springs and shoe pad adjustment can be a PITA... I get a lot of satisfaction doing my own car maintenance too, not to mention the big $ saved...





Disc brakes are pretty straight forward but I agree, drums, with all the small bits and pieces can be confusing. One trick I use is to take pictures on my cell phone of the brakes before dismantling that I can reference when putting them back together.


I remember when disc brakes were new to domestic cars and they charged extra for disc brake service. When I finally got a car with discs up front I couldn't wait for 4 wheel disc systems. So easy to service.
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Old 06-15-2017, 04:52 PM   #34
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Totally agree... I was surprise to see how much I could get new Rotors/Drums online. They were not original MFG parts, but they were good quality brand name OEM parts that it made more sense to buy new vs having rotors/drums turned at a machine shop... I take the old rotors/drums to recycle drop-off vs ending up in landfill...


I had a tough time finding a shop to turn my rotors since they usually just sell new ones. The shop I found only had one tech that could operate the old fashioned lathe so I had to wait a few days. I think it cost about the same as new but it's for my hobby car that I prefer to keep original. Some of the replacement parts are made to wear out (since no one turns them anymore anyway).
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Old 06-16-2017, 12:51 AM   #35
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Ah, drum brakes...what a joy...NOT. Last ones I changed were on a 1970 Dodge Dart...what a PITA they were.

Speaking of car maintenance, my fabulous Infiniti G37 is right at 100K miles, so I thought it was a good time to get some maintenance knocked out. I priced the following at the stealership and through a mobile mechanic just for an idea:

Oil/Filter
Change/Flush Fluids in: Differential, Power Steering, Brakes.
Replace Spark Plugs
Clean Throttle Body
New Air Filters.

The estimate from the stealership: 1275
The estimate from mobile mechanic: 1080

Well, I thought about it and decided that if I could turn wrenches on AF planes for 6 years and my own plane for 5 years, I could knock this out. So, over the period of a day and a half (yes, I took my sweet time...but hey, I am retired, so I have ALL the time in the world!) I did all that work myself. Total cost: 258.97
Well done!
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Old 06-16-2017, 06:07 AM   #36
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I had a tough time finding a shop to turn my rotors since they usually just sell new ones. The shop I found only had one tech that could operate the old fashioned lathe so I had to wait a few days. I think it cost about the same as new but it's for my hobby car that I prefer to keep original. Some of the replacement parts are made to wear out (since no one turns them anymore anyway).
Rotor turning here is $20/rotor which is about 1/2 the cost of the cheap rotors for my G37.
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Old 06-16-2017, 10:30 AM   #37
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AC Delco rotors for my Fiero are $20 + shipping at Rockauto.
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Old 06-17-2017, 08:19 AM   #38
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The avoidance of a cash outflow is as good as a cash inflow.


Better if you pay income taxes.[emoji3]
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Old 06-17-2017, 10:43 AM   #39
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We have saved a ton of money on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the past few years. I have helped hubby change out bearings on our Avalanche. The rear bearings required the removal of the rear axles. It's amazing what two brains and youtube can do. LOL

Hubby just replaced all the brake lines in the same vehicle. He managed to do that without my help. $100 in brake lines vs paying someone $1000+ to do it. Required lifting the truck off the frame! Chevy had used inferior brake lines for several yeaers that literally rusted away. They called it "normal" wear and tare. We had 2 Chevy trucks that this happened to. That is why I traded one of the trucks in on a Ford last year.
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Old 06-17-2017, 11:06 AM   #40
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Always liked the G37's. Hard to find good RWD cars that are not European ($$)... 100K miles, just broken-in... I have a 2002 Tundra with 104K miles. Thinking doing timing belt & water pump soon. I usually wait for water pump to go bad, but it is a interference engine so if the belt breaks it will damage the valves ($$). Is your G37 a belt or chain drive? If belt you may want to check if the engine is a "interference" engine.
Chain, FTW! And the car was actually built in Japan...which I think is a rarity these days.
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