Your recent repair? 2013 - 2020

[REWahoo]

I use dryer sheets liberally to keep rodents away from my hobby car while it is stored over the winter. I put them in the exhaust, engine compartment, trunk and inside under the seats. The interior is more for cosmetic purposes. Some people claim they are effective....I never had a problem.

Tried that in our RV and learned the mice in this part of the world think dryer sheets make for great nesting material...

 

[bizlady]

Tried that in our RV and learned the mice in this part of the world think dryer sheets make for great nesting material...

We use moth balls, and they seem to work well to keep mice at bay.

 

[jazz4cash]

Tried that in our RV and learned the mice in this part of the world think dryer sheets make for great nesting material...

I thought about that too, so I'm not surprised.

I use moth balls, crystals and flakes for several things around the house. Used in moderation, I think they are a good deodorant, but the lingering scent makes DW sick so maybe I'll try them except for the car interior.

 

[travelover]

I use dryer sheets liberally to keep rodents away .........

We use moth balls, and they seem to work well to keep mice at bay.

I put moth balls and dryer sheets in my camper only to find nests made of dryer sheets on top of the moth balls.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

That dryer-sheet nesting reminds me of a tip an old car buff (that is, a fan of old cars, although he's also up in years) gave me: the scent of Irish Spring soap repels mice. So I distributed a couple bars in a car I was storing and returned to find that the mice had gnawed on them. Maybe the resulting bellyache is supposed to drive them off, but I think it's more likely a failed experiment.

On another note, I've placed trays of D-Con pellets in the garage and later found pellets stashed under the hood and (ugh) under the rear seat. I've had better luck with the spools of rodenticide that gets placed inside feeding stations so mice have to eat from them in situ.

A neighbor had a problem where a mouse gnawed on wiring in his Prius cabin and knocked out the instrument panel. He said a mechanic suggested he turn the AC on before shutting the car down so that the external vents remain closed. That won't protect wiring under the hood but hopefully it'll keep them out from under the rear seat.

 

[braumeister]

Cedar works on moths so it might be worth a try on rodents as well.

Many years ago I bought some small blocks of cedar wood from LL Bean (about 1x2x3 inches).

I spread them liberally around closets and drawers of clothing and give them a very light sanding once a year to "refresh" their effect.

Haven't had any moth damage in the time I've used them -- close to 30 years now.

 

[meierlde]

Cedar works on moths so it might be worth a try on rodents as well.

Many years ago I bought some small blocks of cedar wood from LL Bean (about 1x2x3 inches).

I spread them liberally around closets and drawers of clothing and give them a very light sanding once a year to "refresh" their effect.

Haven't had any moth damage in the time I've used them -- close to 30 years now.

Older houses had cedar lined closets as well as cedar chests or at least a drawer in a chest that was cedar.

 

[splitwdw]

That dryer-sheet nesting reminds me of a tip an old car buff (that is, a fan of old cars, although he's also up in years) gave me: the scent of Irish Spring soap repels mice. So I distributed a couple bars in a car I was storing and returned to find that the mice had gnawed on them. Maybe the resulting bellyache is supposed to drive them off, but I think it's more likely a failed experiment.

A friend was having a problem with deer eating her expensive landscaping. She heard "somewhere" that hanging bars of Irish Spring soap from trees and bushes would repel the deer. I told her this wouldn't work but she hung all the bars of soap anyway. We went to a seminar regarding keeping deer from eating your landscaping and one of the things on the handout, "No, hanging bars of soap from your trees and shrubs won't keep the deer from eating them." She wondered if they meant "all" soap.
I also have a neighbor that had little whistles installed on their car. They think it keeps deer from hitting the car.
Funny the things we try/believe.

 

[jazz4cash]

A friend was having a problem with deer eating her expensive landscaping. She heard "somewhere" that hanging bars of Irish Spring soap from trees and bushes would repel the deer. I told her this wouldn't work but she hung all the bars of soap anyway. We went to a seminar regarding keeping deer from eating your landscaping and one of the things on the handout, "No, hanging bars of soap from your trees and shrubs won't keep the deer from eating them." She wondered if they meant "all" soap.
I also have a neighbor that had little whistles installed on their car. They think it keeps deer from hitting the car.
Funny the things we try/believe.

I actually received a pair of deer whistles from my insurance company. I never installed them but I see them quite often. Plus, the only time I ever hit a deer, I did not have a whistle installed on my car.

The thing about deer is everything works at first but nothing works long term. Once the deer get used to the smell and/or get hungry enough they'll get bold and eat everything. Deer and moles will make you try anything just in case it might work.

 

[MRG]

Shotgun works well on rodents.

 

[Donzo]

My hot tub GFI kept on tripping when the heater tried to kick on. The heater was shot. Went to utube, did some learning and ordered the appropriate heater (full, not just the element). Took less than an hour to take out the old unit (corroded and caked) and installed new unit. Tub heats up much faster now!
Got the heater tube for $90 - I'm sure I saved at at least $150 by doing this myself...gotta love it

 

[John Galt III]

Get this (or equiv):

Amazon.com: Bluetooth OBDII OBD2 Diagnostic Scanner Scan Tool Check Engine Light Car Code Reader: Automotive

and a FREE app for smartphone/tablet/laptop (with bluetooth edit - I see they also make wifi & usb versions) and for $15 you will have far more capability that the $50+ code readers. This reads all sorts of things from the ODBII, can monitor while you drive, and reset codes as well.

-ERD50

Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[ls99]

Another redneck experiment by ls99

I modified one of my mancave's stoves to be more efficient and radiate a lot more heat. The stove is a military tent heater. I added a thirty gallon drum with some piping inside to extend the radiated surface area and added some convector fins to the top for greater ability to remove heat from combusted gases.

It is pure ugly, but it is the most beautiful thing when it is running and keeping the inside toasty.

 

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

Ed, I'm not a violent person unless you mess with my cars. We use to have a rodent problem with the little buggers getting in the engine compartment of our older stored vehicles. As soon as Fall rolls around I start setting the killing traps. At first my husband didn't want to kill them. I had to laugh, he bought those have-a-heart traps for mice. He'd catch them, take them outside, release them and catch the same ones the next day. He finally agreed they were the same ones after I put a little blue hair spray on one of the little buggers and he caught it the following day. Maybe it's time for you to set the killing traps!

I have to park outside. I can't kill every rodent in the world; I just want to keep them out of my engine compartment.

Trying various noxious potions now but will be buying a little flashing light that has good reviews.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[John Galt III]

Did you open the gas cap, and re-close it, or just check that it was tight? I think that sometimes a pressure build up from temperature change can trigger it as well, or re-seating the cap may help seal it. Just tightening may not do the trick. But it can take some time to clear. I wouldn't rush to do anything with that valve until I've fully eliminated the gas cap.

The light on DW's Honda CRV came on the other day after a big temperature swing, and she had filled up days before. I loosened it (and heard a 'woosh' I think), and re-seated it, and the warning went away two days later. We've never had this warning before, car is ~ 5 years old.

-ERD50

The "leave it alone and don't make it worse" tactic worked. The light went out today ! 120 miles after it came on, and about 4 days? I was about to change gas caps.

I did bork about with the canister vent valve just to see what lay in store for me were I to go down that path, but only broke one push-pin connector on its cover, which it can do without, I think.

It's at 3/4 full. Maybe that has something to do with the light going out.

So it still has the same original cap, but maybe I have it on better, somehow.

Thanks for your suggestion to go with the cap first, ERD50.

 

[aja8888]

Modern OBDII systems have "Readiness Monitors" on certain fault codes. You can have a code "erased" with a code reader and if the problem comes back, the fault was not corrected. If you actually fix a fault (Oxygen sensor replacement, MAP sensor, MAF sensor, etc), a readiness monitor still has to be timed out, in other words, the pre-programmed cycle for the code executed.

In the case of the gas cap seal, if a fault code for that is thrown (no seal after a predetermined time period), and you replace the cap with one that has a good seal, the readiness cycle has to clear, and that may be driving for a preset number of miles with vacuum held by the cap and vapor recovery system in the vehicle.

 

[samclem]

Another redneck experiment by ls99

Wow, a real coincidence. I have a radiant tent heater (H-45 model) that I run on diesel fuel. I want to convert it to provide hot air. I use it to heat a small aircraft hangar, and it just takes a long time to make things comfortable in there with radiant heat. I'm thinking of putting a cabinet around the top portion with a fan to blow air in, over a bunch of fins, and then out into the room. I want to keep the cabinet at positive pressure (as you know, these tent heaters have lots of gaps where the top section attaches and the observation/lighting port closes, I'd like to avoid drawing those combustion gasses out into the room).

Your setup looks nice. I don't see any piping or a regulator, are you burning solid fuel? The stoves are very sturdy and simple, I like that. I paid $100 for mine: brand new, 45K BTU, and nothing to go wrong with it if I keep the flue clean.

 

[ls99]

Interesting coincidence samclem.

I have two versions of the stove the H-45 like yours and IIRC M1941 which I modified. It is the solid fuel version. I burn mostly pine and stinkwood. The stove runs hot, can go up to 850 F on the stovetop and 350 to 450 F at the top of the barrel. The stack runs around 260 F on the pipe surface and 180 F past the top elbow out through the wall. Can do toast in 20 seconds
Pretty damn efficient. That is with three pieces of about 4" diameter sticks about a foot long, burned vertically in the chamber. About an hour between reloads. If I want to keep sauna like temperatures.

Eventually I will try the same thing on the H-45. The first test will be outdoors when I get around toit.

I have gone through several iterations prior to the current version. BTW the H-45 can be run on solid fuel, just yank the burner cage and put firebrick in the bottom and periphery for a hot burn. IN my current setup no damper is used and the door at the bottom is only cracked open about a 1/4" once fire is up and going good.

I stopped using the H-45, betwen hauling diesel and the attendant eau de diesel scent I got annoyed. I have virtually unlimited wood available at my camp, currently just using all the junk wood I cut down. Get particular pleasure out of having heat from stinkwood. BTW the setup, once up to temperature is virtually smokeless.

 

[samclem]

Interesting coincidence samclem.

Yeah, and we both had Honda Hawks. Maybe twin brothers separated at birth ?

These little heaters are pretty neat--Uncle Sam paid over $1000 for them in today's dollars when they were new. A radiant heater is a fantastic thing in a drafty tent. The H-45 can technically burn gasoline in an emergency, but I'd have to be very cold before I'd try that. If I locate a source of wood I might give that a go later. For now, diesel is cheap enough and a little more convenient (no ashes).

I'm not sure how I'm going to rig up this airflow/plenum/cabinet. I'm sure it will end up looking terrible, but it will be fun. Flammable liquids, 1000 deg F metal--what could go wrong?

Be careful out there.

 

[splitwdw]

Fixed the head on my neighbor's Kitchenaid stand mixer. He's been using a plastic head hammer to whack the hinge pin back in place. The pin was working it's way out as he was using the mixer. Easy one, tightened the screw that holds the hinge pin in place.

 

[ls99]

Yeah, and we both had Honda Hawks. Maybe twin brothers separated at birth ?
......

I'm not sure how I'm going to rig up this airflow/plenum/cabinet. I'm sure it will end up looking terrible, but it will be fun. Flammable liquids, 1000 deg F metal--what could go wrong?

Be careful out there.

Hehe, great minds think alike

Need pics when you rig it up.

 

[kneehigh]

Fixed my neighbor's laptop (a widow). She was having network and printer issues. Also helped her move her bed. When I got done, she said "I'll pay you the next time I get my check." I told her that was nice of her, but I wouldn't have it.

 

[twolfy]

Changed out deflector chute ring gear on Toro snowthrower. Not bad at all just removing various covers to get at it. While it was apart, changed the spark plug and lubed everything else that needed it. Got parts online from Jack's small engine repair as I have done for years. Ready once again for the next snowfall. First one was 11".


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[aja8888]

Oil and filter change, fuel filter change, etc on the 2014 Passat. Also reset the dash service reminder.

 

[papadad111]

Your recent repair?

Boys and I repainted their 21 year old Subaru from grandma, as DS2 didn't think it was cool. Sand paper. Primer. A bit of bondo and two dozen cans of satin white spray paint from Walmart ...we will Tint the Windows a bit ... and it's done.... .