32 Xbox Controllers Sold on Ebay

 In the past ten months I sold 32 refurbished Xbox One controllers on Ebay. Last year I sold 21. My goal was to sell 50 this year, but it was too difficult to find used controllers at the right price. Net profit for the 32 controllers was $280.25 which is an average of $8.76 per controller. That is what was left after deducting the cost of the controller, shipping, and Ebay fees. I also spent $130 on parts to repair the controllers. That lowers my profit to $150, but I bought the parts on Ebay with gift cards that I acquired from an online casino. So, the parts didn't cost me anything except my time to collect and play my free spins.

The controller pictured is an Xbox X|S model 1914 fourth generation controller. The Shock Blue Xbox Wireless controller was released on the Xbox Series X|S's launch back in 2020. This variant was only available at retail stores. I repaired the stick drift and installed new eXtremeRate thumbsticks and performance rubberized grips. A brand new one at Best Buy is $49.95 with free shipping. With the eXtremeRate parts added, this one is worth close to that. Normally I don't add aftermarket parts, but in this case, I was missing one of the back handle grips and the thumbsticks were worn. I paid about $10 for this one and put $28 in parts into it. That doesn't leave a lot of room for profit, so I may keep this one for myself.

I have two other controllers that are ready to sell, and another one that I just bought that should arrive in a few days. Now that we are into November, I will probably stop listing refurbished controllers on Ebay. Shipping prices increase during the holidays and the post office is usually busier than normal this time of the year. I will still keep looking for controllers to repair, but I will only buy them if they are not totally trashed and are at a fair price. That should give me more time to get back to working on home improvement projects and playing Xbox games. 

I just finish Guardians of the Galaxy. The game was just challenging enough to make it fun to play. I only had to go online a couple times to figure out how to finish a level. I'm about halfway through the single player campaign on Battlefield 5 and have several other games (Fallout 4, Farcry 6, Hogwarts Legacy) to play after that. My Thrustmaster TMX force feedback steering wheel is also ready for more F1 2016 racing this winter. Nascar 25 came out in October, but they don't make a version for Xbox One X. Maybe it's time to start looking for a used Xbox Series X|S. Too bad a used one still costs over $400.

Home Video Security System

 I've always wanted to get a video security system for my home. But I didn't want to buy a brand-new system. There are lots of options out there, so I first had to make a list of my requirements. I wanted a wired system with at least 4 cameras. The wire had to be light colored so it wouldn't stand out against the tan siding on my home. It also needed to have at least a 1TB hard drive, 1080p resolution, and have remote viewing capabilities. I had narrowed the brands to either Lorex or Swann with possible budget alternates Samsung or Night Owl. Samsung no longer makes video security systems, but you can still find them on the used market.

A wireless system from SimpliSafe, Arlo, or Blink would be easier to install, but I don't want to mess with batteries or connection reliability. The system I ended up getting was from Night Owl. It came with 4 cameras and can be expanded to 8. It also has all of the other features that were on my list. I bought it used for $71.48 with tax and shipping. The cameras and cables looked brand new. The only thing that was missing was an HDMI cable and a mouse. My biggest challenge would be installing the cameras. I decided to put two in the front and two in the back of the house.

I needed to buy a few more items to complete the installation. A staple gun for the low voltage cables, grommets for two wall holes, self-adhesive wire clips, two junction boxes, and an 1/4" x 8" drill bit for making pilot holes. At the front of the house, I used a 3/4" drill bit to make the holes for the wire in the garage. From the garage, the wire for the front cameras went into the master bedroom where the DVR would be located. At the back of the house, I used the junction boxes to mount the cameras and routed the cable along the siding and into the bedroom. The scariest part was drilling the holes, because you want to get it right the first time. Even with a 3/4" hole, it was tricky getting two sets of wire to pass through.

I don't have the remote viewing or email alerts setup yet, but the video looks good during the day. At night, the night vision tends to make the nearest object glow, and bugs seem to be attracted to the infrared light. The system is set to capture motion. One of the first videos it captured was a spider that dropped down right in front of the camera. At night it looked huge and was glowing white. I played it back for my girlfriend and it made her jump. So far it hasn't recorded anything other than rabbits and package deliveries. It will just make it easier to see what happened if anything suspicious does occur.

Follow up: A few weeks after I posted this, my cameras started having problems activating night vision. The infrared LEDs would flash, and one camera was completely dark. I tried rebooting the system, but that didn't fix the problem. The power output on the transformer for the cameras showed 11 volts with no cameras connected. It should be a minimum of 12 volts, so I connected only two cameras to the transformer, and the problem went away. This proved that the transformer was bad. If you have a similar issue with your wired security system, check that your camera transformer is the proper size for your setup and is working properly. For now, I'm using two transformers to power my cameras.

My Neighbor's Tree Branch

 I woke up at 5 AM to the sound of heavy wind gusting outside. Normally, the city weather sirens go off if a storm has the potential to cause damage. But this time, there was no warning and no alerts on my phone. Still the wind gusts had me worried. I got out of bed and took a look out the front window. In front of our house, the next-door neighbor has a giant maple tree near the property line. I watched the tree swaying violently back and forth in the wind. My initial concern was if the shingles on our roof would survive the heavy wind gusts. I looked back at the neighbor's tree just in time to see a large 8" diameter branch break off and fly through the air. It landed at the edge of our driveway, about 30 feet away from the tree.

Shortly after that, a smaller branch broke off and landed on a small birch tree in our front yard. I went to the weather app on my phone. Radar showed a narrow band of thunderstorms over the city. It looked like the storm was due to pass by in the next 10 minutes, so I went back to bed. The next morning, this is what my yard looked like:

The branch is much larger than it looks and weighed several hundred pounds.

In the photo below, you can see how far the branch flew through the air.

I guess I'm responsible for cleaning up anything that falls in my yard. It took about two hours to cut and pick up the branches that had fallen. In the Fall, this tree dumps several inches of leaves on our lawn, which I always look forward to removing. Trees are nice to have around unless you have one that overhangs your yard with a neighbor that isn't interested in tree maintenance.

Laundry Room Faucet Upgrade

 I've been looking for a faucet to replace the old one in our laundry room. The old one was in rough shape, and you had to twist the knobs really hard to prevent the faucet from dripping. I decided on the Moen Chateau model 74998 which sells for $54.90 on Amazon. Of course I didn't want to pay that much, so I went to Ebay to see if I could find a better deal. I found a seller who had the same model in open box condition for $49. I put it on my watch list and a few days later they lowered the price to $40 with free shipping. This was a good discount, so I placed the order.

Four days later the faucet arrived. It was in like-new condition and although the box was opened, all the parts were there. Now it was time to remove the old faucet and install the new one. Under the sink the valves for the hot and cold would not turn. This was similar to what I encountered with the valves under the kitchen sink. Instead of ordering new valves, I decided to shut the water off at the main. I can always go back later and replace the valves. I would have to wait for water to drain out of the lines. It also caused excess water to drain out under the sink. I had a small bucket and put a towel down to absorb the fallout. The plastic hardware connecting the old faucet to the sink came off without too much trouble. But the plastic nuts that secured the water lines to the faucet needed to be replaced.

Old Faucet

 Luckly, the new faucet came with better quality mounting hardware. I had to remove the 1/4" supply lines and take off the compression ring on each line in order to get the new hardware on. A little silicone grease helped get the job done. I tightened everything up and turned the water back on. No leaks, but there was air in the lines because the main had been shut off. After the air was out all of the lines, everything was back to normal. The new faucet is the update I was hoping for, and I can check another DIY project off my list.

New Faucet

Kitchen Sink Project Finished

 It took several months before I was ready to install the Ebay kitchen sink that I refurbished. I first needed to fix a leak in the hot water line that goes to the dishwasher. I also needed to replace the shutoff valve on that line. Because the leak was right at the tee that goes to the dishwasher, I needed a new tee in addition to the shut off valve. I noticed that the copper pipe for the hot water was soldered to the cold-water line. I figured this was done to give the pipes some support. I decided to reroute the hot water line for the dishwasher to the back wall and put in a 90-degree elbow. I also needed about 10 inches of copper pipe and some 1/2" pipe clamps to secure the pipe to the back wall.

The under-sink photo shows how little room there is to work. The garbage disposal is on the left and the white canister on the right is a water filter. I used SharkBite Max fittings which do not require solder. My only worry was that the copper hot water supply line was pitted from the leak. SharkBite fittings need a smooth surface. I used a 3M stripping pad to clean the old pipe as best as I could. After that it was time to start cutting pipe. I used a Ridgid 40617 Model 101 close quarters tubing cutter to remove the old tee. The part that was soldered to the cold-water line was cut with a reciprocating saw. After deburring all of the cuts, the new SharkBite fittings were installed. I then installed clamps to give some support to the copper pipes. When I turned the water back on, I found only one leak where the dishwasher line connects to the shutoff valve. It just needed to be tightened a bit more. The pipe repair took about 4 hours.

Several weeks later, with the under-sink repairs completed, it was time to remove the old sink. I first disconnected the water lines to the faucet and then removed the garbage disposal. This gave me room to get at the 6 clamps that hold the sink in place. With the clamps removed I was able to lift the sink out. I then moved the faucet and the garbage disposal mounting hardware to the new sink. Everything was going well until I tried to remove the drain from the right side of the old sink. I tried using an adjustable plumber's wrench, but that didn't work. As a last resort I tried my 12" pipe wrench. That made the whole drain rotate, but the nut would not budge. I gave up and went to Lowes and bought a new drain assembly for $22.

With both drains in place and the faucet mounted I was ready to install the new sink. The 2-inch deeper sink bowls made reinstalling the clamps a little difficult. I had to cut about an inch off the plastic drainpipe on the right side. The garbage disposal was heavy, but I managed to get it mounted. The drainpipe on the left side had just enough adjustment to line up with the garbage disposal. I then connected the water lines to the faucet. No leaks! The last step was to put silicone caulk around the outside of the sink. The removal and installation took about 8 hours. Total project cost was about $180. It doesn't look much different, but it is nice to get rid of the dull finish and the dent between the bowls.