Cedarshed Ranchhouse 16X14 Shed [RH1614] in Home & Garden,Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living,Garden Structures & Shade | eBay
Source: Cedarshed Ranchhouse 16×14 Shed RH1614 | eBay
According to a reality TV show on Netflix called ‘Tiny House Hunters’, tiny homes are all the rage these days. I got about 15 minutes into the first episode, and just couldn’t take it anymore. I just had to share my thoughts. In this show, this New Jersey couple first looks at a few acres with some tool sheds euphemistically called tiny houses. Next, they look at a custom ‘model home’ of a whopping 400 sq ft, which is estimated to cost them in the $100k range. The hardwood floor alone was $20/ft2!
Now I know that reality TV shows are anything but real, but I am sure there are many people who are thinking just like this couple. That is, they believe a 500 ft2 shed will cost in the $100,000 range. Such ignorance is just too much to not comment on, and share some insights.
I am not making fun of this couple and if you are like-minded to them or know somebody who is, then this article … Read the rest
]]>When we look closely at the causes of lyme disease and Alzheimer’s, we find its origins in the food production system.
Source: Alzheimer’s and Lyme Disease: Caused by Disruptions in Food Chain
Alzheimer’s has reached epidemic proportions, now the third largest cause of death (not counting deaths by the healthcare industry). While medical researchers continue to search for a cause, this article cites two principal causes. The first one rest on some pretty solid evidence, and the second one is yet a theory, but one that might be worth considering.
The first cause is the one most easily preventable – excess sugar consumption. The cause of the obesity epidemic should be no surprise to health conscious individuals. It is not the consumption of excess fat as is commonly supposed, but excess consumption of carbs and sugars, primarily the latter. The surge of soft drink consumption (both diet and regular) along with supposedly healthier fruit juice has moved lock-step with the obesity explosion. Coincidence? I don’t think so.
Excess sugar consumption causes not only obesity, but also type 2 diabetes. Alzheimer’s has been called type 3 diabetes by some. Do you want to avoid Alzheimer’s? Ditch the sodas and fruit juice. … Read the rest
]]>As a result, I have often wanted/needed a way to verify that the server which is hosting my websites is up and running properly. While many fine graphical tools exist such as Munin for this purpose, I wanted a simple set of utilities that could return just the parameters I needed and how I needed them.
There are two different ways in which I want to get my metrics. The first is a command-line utility that I can run from my local computer to test the parameter needed. The second is a set of python functions that deliver the same metrics that I can then use to create a custom webpage.
This webpage (a future project) would run on a local server such as a , which could then display all my metrics on a tablet display in a convenient location. A quick glance could then show that everything was running smoothly or that problems … Read the rest
]]>Lignans are a type of plant compound known as polyphenols found in flaxseeds, sesame seeds, berries, and other foods.
Source: Lignans Play an Important Role in Optimal Health
This ground breaking article breaking article by Dr. Mercola, examines some of the many health benefits of eating freshly ground .
One of the more significant benefits is in preventing and even curing breast cancer. He cites one case where a woman’s tumor shrank significantly from consuming flax seeds.
One of the principal mechanisms by which it benefits is in estrogen regulation. Since many other types of cancers, including prostrate cancer is estrogen driven, both women and men can benefit from flax seeds.
Another benefit of flax seeds is estrogen regulation. They not only reduce excess estrogen, but can increase low estrogen levels as well. This is an important benefit to aging women. Since older men suffer from excess estrogen levels due to conversion from testosterone, I believe flax seeds would provide similar benefits for older men.
Because of the highly perishable nature of flax seeds once ground, it is important to keep and store only fresh whole flax seeds, and grind them just before consuming. To get sufficient benefits, studies have … Read the rest
]]>Source: Non-Slip Pervious Concrete Stepping Stone
The non-slip stone allows for much safer walking in gardens and walkways. Because after the pathway is water-logged by a lot of rain or hose watering, the pervious stone remains free of standing water. The stepping stone lends itself to creativity with the various colours of aggregate, (the author used and ). It also has a stone look that is much prettier than pure concrete.
The author of the Instructable gives a very detailed set of instructions, including how to mix the concrete and aggregate together, dry times, tools to use, and how to make personalized designs. Even a beginner should have no difficulty creating their own beautiful stones.
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This is so cool. I did not know powder coating could be done so easily at home. Powder coating is similar to paint, but is much harder and more durable, since it’s baked on.
Powder coating can only be done on metal objects and involves these simple steps:
You can mask any parts not to be coated with a high temperature tape such as <a href="http://www.amazon click now.com/gp/product/B00DVBLKZE?tag=provideyourown1-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00DVBLKZE” onclick=”__gaTracker(‘send’, ‘event’, ‘outbound-article’, ‘http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DVBLKZE/?tag=provideyourown1-20 ‘Kapton tape’);”>Kapton tape. Also to be noted is you should use a dedicated toaster oven that won’t be used for cooking food, and the baking should be done outside due to the fumes released.
You can buy an old Crafstman powder coating gun used on e-bay or a newer one here on Amazon.
Here is a video showing the entire process:
I want to try this sometime. Any ideas for applications?… Read the rest
]]>Having a place for everything is key to a productive workbench.We want to make stuff, not look for stuff! :-)While we could make the cabinet out of wood, as long as your the parts are not too heavy, foam core is strong enough, inexpensive, and quicker to make than a wooden cabinet. Plus, no one has ever gotten splinters from foam core! 🙂
Source: Instructables.com
What a great idea for storing small parts like electronics, screws, buttons, etc. I like the idea of using foam core and hot glue. There are a lot of storage needs that can be met with foam core or cardboard instead of wood. Also, hot glue works great for these materials as well as wood. I made a silverware drawer divider from Luan plywood and hot glue years ago, that is still going strong.
Please add your own ideas in the comments.
]]>I wrote previously about why you should switch to Linux for all your computing needs. I would like to amplify on that assertion. There has never been a better time to abandon Windows and switch to Linux. First I’ll address the disaster that Microsoft Windows has become, and then explore the Linux alternative.
Just like the Titanic, even though there is widespread denial, Windows is sinking into the abyss just as surely. Despite the grave metaphor, I am not saying Windows will completely go away (who knows for sure), but it will continue to shrink into irrelevance. Linux rules both the server/cloud world and dominates the mobile market as well via Android. As applications continue to move to the cloud and mobile, the raison d’être for Windows as the only platform that can run the applications a user needs is slipping away.
But irrelevance is not the only thing ailing Windows. No siree. The operating system is strangling itself. Years of legacy code combined with a closed development system has left Windows years, even decades behind its competitors, namely Linux. Even the mighty resources that Microsoft have at its disposal cannot hope to compete with the … Read the rest
]]>With the loss of updates for Windows XP and Microsoft’s floundering on Windows 8/10, many have started to consider alternatives. The MacOS is of course an option, but I believe Linux to be an even better one. Not only is Linux a good alternative to Windows, but for makers, hackers, tinkerers and homeschoolers especially, Linux is really the only operating system (OS) worth considering.
Without a doubt, Linux is the ultimate low-cost operating system. It is absolutely free. How many times have you had a computer where the OS needs to be reinstalled? With Windows systems so vulnerable to malware infections, it is a regular occurrence. When you do need to reinstall, do you still have the original disks? Can they still be read?
What about upgrades? If you get a new computer (without an OS), and you want to install your latest version, do you have the full version, or just an upgrade version? If it is just an upgrade version, do you have the original version disks? If not, Microsoft’s DRM will not allow the installation.
Have you ever thought about building your own computer, but are stymied by the prospect of having to shell out … Read the rest
]]>The Arduino platform is great for prototyping. Its easy-to-use shield architecture, readily identifiable pin numbering scheme, and beginner friendly IDE and software library has created a large and loyal following. In the life of many projects, however, there comes a time when the project is to be permanently deployed. When that time comes, leaving a precious Arduino in the field is often not the best option. Instead, a specialized board with either an ATmega chip or even an ATtiny chip is the best choice.
When cost or space is a factor an ATtiny chip is an attractive alternative to the ATmega for simpler projects. Thanks to the Arduino-Tiny project, an ATtiny can be used as a drop-in replacement for most Arduino projects. This initiative provides ATtiny chip configurations as upload board choices in the standard Arduino IDE. By following the instructions described in my previous article – Program an ATtiny Using an Arduino – your Arduino sketch can be uploaded as easily to an ATtiny board as it can be to an Arduino one.
More recently, the ATtiny has gained semi-official support given the variants posted by David Mellis on Github. Please note that this new firmware specification … Read the rest
]]>How many microwaves have you thrown out because they get flaky after a few months? The thrift stores are full of these rejects. How many times have you wondered who designed the user interface for these things? What planet were they from? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a microwave that isn’t flaky and has a sensible interface?
Nathan did exactly that. He took a broken microwave and put in his own smarts via a Raspberry PI. It has a beautiful control panel, accepts voice commands and provides voice synthesized feedback. It even scans a product bar code to fetch cooking instructions. It is so smart, that you don’t have to babysit the thing to stop it to stir. With the bar code powered instructions, it will stop at the right time, tell you to stir, and start up again to finish the cooking. He even did a tablet interface.
The key to a project like this is a microwave with an intact magnetron, which is the tube which does the cooking. As already mentioned, most of the time these tubes are fine. It is the sorry electronics that flake out. Take inspiration from this guy. You don’t have … Read the rest
]]>Of particular interest is the fact that the actual courses are free. It is only the degree that costs money. This is nevertheless good news. There are a number of positive things to note:
That last item also points to another positive trend – certification by exam. Currently, the primary value of a college degree has nothing to do with education. Its main value is the piece of paper that opens doors into the world … Read the rest
]]>The only problem with this product is it is far too expensive to be practical and only comes in large industrial quantities.
There is now good news. Rust-oleum has brought out a similar product called NeverWet. You can buy it at Home Depot for only $20 for 18 oz. It is still pricey, but practical for many things. Imagine boots that cannot get wet or even muddy. This product is definitely not your father’s Scotch-guard. I just hope there isn’t a patent war, putting this technology out of reach for us regular folks.
For more materials that have great uses for the maker, see Materials for the Maker/Provider.
If you use this product, please share the applications you find for it in the comments.… Read the rest
]]>Of course, homeschooling is not a panacea if it duplicates the public school model. Set your child free – let him or her direct their own learning. That is what children are designed to do, and it makes your job as a mom or dad that much easier.
Thanks to PCBHeaven for the link.… Read the rest
]]>We just finished making this year’s hay at our family farm.
Haymaking is an art….. It is exhausting….. It is glorious.
It is worthwhile to experience it at least once. You might even want to add it to your . For city folks, you may be wondering what is this big deal about hay? Hay is like the stuff we find in small bales in October right?
Like most things in life, there is a lot more to hay than first realized. When you are done reading this article, you will have incorporated some key knowledge of country living and keeping animals. It is hoped you will be able to vicariously enjoy the process to some extent as well.
Hay is dried grass or possibly other green plants. It is not straw. While straw is a dried plant, it is made from the stems of cereal grasses such as wheat or oats after the grain has been harvested. By harvest-time, the stems are turning brown and have almost zero nutritional value. Straw is good for bedding animals. It is worthless for food.
Grass on the other hand is excellent food for grazing animals. It is even appreciated … Read the rest
]]>Here at Provide Your Own, we are a big fan of LED lighting. Recent research has raised the alarm that LED lighting can cause retina damage. Is there any truth to this assertion? Can LEDs really be bad for your eyes, even causing blindness?
Fortunately for LED lovers, the answer is a resounding NO. When the facts are examined, if LEDs are bad for your eyes, then sunlight is at least ten times worse. Let’s first look at the basis for the assertion.
According to a sole news account:
The study found that LED radiation caused significant damage to human retinal pigment epithelial cells in vitro.
Translated,
We irradiated naked retinal cells with intense light from LEDs in a petri dish and they didn’t do so well.
Keep in mind that damage would be done with any high intensity light. Have you stared into the sun lately? How about staring into lasers or high intensity LED flashlights? Think you might have some retina damage?
This research has not been peer reviewed, but is simply an account given by Dr Celia Sánchez Ramos. This fact does not invalid the research, but shows that we have absolutely no … Read the rest
]]>Here at Provide Your Own, we love LED lighting. We also believe the best use of LED lighting is by making your own custom fixtures rather than going out to buy a manufactured light bulb.
An Italian company has the same idea. They have a product where you make your own LED desklamp from a pizza box. In the great spirit of open source, they even provide downloadable plans for cutting and folding your own.
Their version of the lamp uses only a 4″ LED strip for illumination. That comes out to about 60 lumens or the output of a 4 watt bulb. We recommend using at least a 12″ strip (cut into two 6″ pieces), which would provide about 180 lumens or 12 watts equivalent.
Here’s what you need to build your own:
For your convenience, we offer a complete kit (no soldering required) for only $24.95 (over 30% saving over buying the parts separately).
You don’t have to be limited to cardboard either. It is simple to repurpose an … Read the rest
]]>This additional capability is not provided by default. This article provides clear instruction on setting up your own Power Over Ethernet (PoE) network, including making custom adapters for injecting & extracting the power.… Read the rest
]]>My sister in-law has taken to washing her dishes by hand because her dishwasher no longer gets them clean. Millions of other Americans have had the same problem. Many have vainly replaced their dishwashers with new ones only to face the same problem. The problem is not your dishwasher. It is your dish-washing detergent. It has changed. It is not the same product it used to be. A vital ingredient is missing.
While you may have noticed the effects of this missing ingredient in your dishes, you may not be aware of the same problem with your clothes. That is because this vital ingredient was taken out of laundry detergents over twenty years ago. That is so long ago, that most of us just think clothes are supposed to be grungy after a few washings. I am old enough to remember clothes staying clean, but didn’t understand why they didn’t any more until recently.
The magical ingredient that is no longer present in commercial detergents is tri-sodium phosphate or TSP as it is commonly known. This natural ingredient is made from phosphate deposits primarily found in Florida.
In general, it acts as a detergent, but in the … Read the rest
]]>Circuit simulation is a great way to design and debug a circuit without spending all the time to prototype it. One problem in the past was the difficulty in setting up the simulation – picking models, etc.
A new simulator called PartSim changes all that. It is online, free, and drop-dead simple to use. It even links to Digikey parts and has some vendor parts available as well. It also has a nice schematic capture and even does diagramming.
Give it a try.… Read the rest
]]>Sometimes you have a sapling or other type of woody perennial coming up where it is not wanted. Getting rid of them presents a problem because if you cut them down, they will just grow back again.
I have a few areas on my place where I haven’t been able to mow for a few years, and I haven’t known what to do because of this very problem. Short of tethering goats on the spot all summer, I found another means to getting rid of these perennial weeds.
This video demonstrates the solution:
I have considered trying this technique for some time, but haven’t. In the video, Greg asserts that it never fails him, whether the tree is large or small.
While I am not a big fan of using herbicides, a judicious application as indicated in the process seems both environmentally sound and safe.
A quick word about Round-Up. This is the brand name of the original product made by Monsanto. The patent recently expired, so now you can get a generic version from another company. … Read the rest
]]>Conspiracies abound – there is no doubt about it. The media propaganda delights in lampooning anyone who believes that men would conspire together to further their interest (at least men in government; everyone else is fair game). While I am very skeptical of anything coming from either the mainstream media, the pharma industry or government agencies, I don’t throw everything out either. Two examples come to mind – free energy inventions (including 100+ mpg carburetors) and the Apollo moon landing.
In the case of free energy inventions, when they clearly violate the known laws of physics, they must be viewed very skeptically. It doesn’t matter who believes in them, what fantastic story is told about how the auto manufacturers strong-armed them out of business (or the oil companies), or how realistic it appears, it is very, very, very likely to be a hoax. Human gullibility knows no bounds, nor does human ingenuity to fool and exploit it.
Houdini spent years debunking séances. James Randi does the same with charlatans today. By all means keep an open mind, but when something sounds to good to be true, it probably is.
In the case of the moon landing, just because the government … Read the rest
]]>This fascinating video shows how lumber was harvested from giant redwood trees before the chainsaw.
Nowadays, some people get smug about how advanced we are. We might have some high-tech gadgets, but are we better for them, or worse? Looking at these fellows scaling a tree almost as fast as one can walk, and then to chop it down with an ax while suspended from its trunk is absolutely amazing.
Modern technology has not made us any better. In most cases, it simply removes the requirement of skill. Anyone can fell a tree with a chainsaw, but how many can fell in with a foot or two of precision as these guys could?
If we are to be more self-sufficient and less reliant on corporations and experts, we must learn new skills. Avoiding technology is not an advantage as some may think. What is important is not avoiding technology, but rather avoiding learning useful skills and relying on technology as a crutch.
We must be the master of technology, not its slave. Thoughts anyone?… Read the rest
]]>Have you ever wondered how digital cameras detect faces? If you thought that computer vision was rocket science and too difficult, that notion is no longer true.
There is this wonderful open source library called OpenCV that runs on Windows, Linux, Mac, iOS, Android and now RaspberryPi. Sophisticated visual algorithms are no longer limited to only high performance desktop computers. Using either your smartphone or a RaspberryPi, you can embed image detection in everyday life.
To get started, download the software needed for your device. Here are some nice tutorials to get you up to speed on using it.
Anyone using OpenCV? What are you doing with it?… Read the rest
]]>We are pleased to announce the grand opening of our online store. It is a store unlike any other – either online or brick and mortar. Reflecting the diversity of the ProvideYourOwn website, our goal is to provide the resources you may need in your quest to reclaim your life from big corporations, crummy products and boxed-in living.
Our initial offerings are just the beginning. In the weeks and months ahead, we plan to add even more resources to help you. Here is just a taste of what we currently offer as well as future solutions we have in mind:
Here at ProvideYourOwn, we think that LEDs are the greatest thing since sliced bread. We have written some already about their wonderfulness, and will continue to do so. While LEDs still excel as indicator lights, in the near future we will be seeing them lighting our homes, landscapes, providing festive decoration and even personal ornamentation.
As is so common with many consumer products these days, most LED products available are poorly designed; providing a woefully inadequate and sickly blueish light. This realm is one where you can provide your solution that is far superior.
A … Read the rest
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