Purenat Water Filter System Review

When our new refrigerator arrived back in February 2024, it came with an ice maker. But I didn't have easy access to water or the money to buy a water filter. The water line would need to be routed through several kitchen cabinets and behind the oven to reach the back of the refrigerator. Six months later, I received a cash gift card for my birthday and decided to use it to finally hookup the ice maker. During the long wait, I had been researching water filters and had put the Purenat under sink system on my Amazon wishlist. It took a while to find one because there are so many to choose from. I picked the Purenat because it can handle both kitchen faucet and the icemaker (see image). It also comes with enough fittings to handle most installations, and the price was very reasonable. I mainly wanted a filter that would reduce rust, lead, heavy metals, chemical impurities, and Chlorine taste from the tap water.

Being able to have filtered water on the cold side of the faucet is a big plus. This will allow us to stop buying bottled water from the grocery store. Bottled water isn't expensive, but I figure we can save enough money to pay for the filter in a year or two. It didn't take long to install the filter. I first needed to fix the valve for the hot water under the sink. It would no longer turn and needed to be replaced. I bought a 1/2" Sharkbit Max 1/4 turn valve because they don't need solder. I bought a pipe cutter to remove the old valve. After deburring the end of the copper pipe, I pushed the new valve onto the end of the pipe and hooked up the line for the faucet. No leaks! Great, so I proceeded to install the filter and hooked it up to the cold-water supply and then to the cold faucet.

I waited until the next day to route the 1/4" OD tubing to the refrigerator. That part took the most time. The Purenat filter came with 15 feet of tubing. I thought that would be enough, but it didn't allow the refrigerator to be pulled out from the wall. Lowes only sells 1/4" OD tubing in a 25-foot length and I only needed an extra 5 feet. It's a good thing that they only charge $5.48 for a 25-foot roll. I put an extra shut-off valve behind the refrigerator and one at the filter which is mounted under the sink. I opened the valves and there were no leaks! I turned on the ice maker and it started working right away. I threw out the first bin of ice before using any, which is what they recommend. I was impressed with the quality of the water coming from the filter. The reviews said that there was no noticeable reduction in water pressure, and I can confirm that to be true. Many reviews for other filters had complained about lack of water pressure. I'm sure the filter isn't going to be as good as some of the more expensive models that can remove TDS (Total Dissolved Solids), but it is much better than not having a filter.

WEP 882D Soldering Station Review

 In July (2024) I purchased a new soldering station to use in repairing Xbox One controllers. I decided to go with the WEP 882D Soldering Station because it has a digital readout and a hot air attachment. I debated getting a hot air gun separately but thought that I would give this a try instead. Normally the WEP 882D sells for $56.99, but it was marked down to $43.99 for Prime Day. After using it for a few weeks, I especially like how quickly it heats up. The digital temp readout lets you know when it is ready to use. I would always have to wait for my old soldering iron to heat up and wasted a lot of time waiting for it to get hot. The soldering iron comes with 6 different tips and 3 nozzle sizes for the hot air gun.  

I probably won't be using the hot air feature very often, but it works well and it's good to have it there when you need it. I also like that it has numerous safety features built in, like sleep mode for the soldering iron, and standby mode for hot air gun. The temperature range goes from 392-896°F. By default, the soldering iron turns on first and recalls the last temperature setting. If you want to use the heat gun, you can turn the soldering iron off by pushing the two blue buttons, then push the two blue buttons above to turn on the hot air. Other accessories include two rolls of solder, tweezers, solder sucker, and soldering iron holder with tip cleaner. I have an electric solder removal tool so the one included isn't going to get used. Overall, the WEP 882D may not hold up to heavy use, but for the average do-it-yourself user, it has enough features to assist with the occasional solder repair.

The circuit boards in Xbox controllers have very small parts, so I use the two smallest soldering tips. Most of the parts are too small to replace without the help of a microscope. I use a large magnifying glass to see solder joints when replacing some of the larger components. I find that the control sticks on model 1708 controllers are easier to repair than the newer 1914 models. For some reason solder removal is more difficult on the newer controllers. I had thought that a used 1914 controller would sell for more than a 1708, but that isn't always the case. The 1708's are selling faster than the 1914 controllers which are priced at only a few dollars more. I have 5 controllers listed for sale and 3 of them and 1914's.

So far, I have sold 10 refurbished controllers and 6 of them were model 1708. I am very picky when it comes to buying broken controllers. I look for the ones that have good thumb-sticks and have photos of the battery compartment. If the thumb-sticks look good, it hasn't been abused and if the label in the battery compartment is intact, then it probably hasn't been opened. The other problem is price. I can't spend more than $12 for a broken controller and that includes shipping. Anything above that and it's not worth trying to repair and resell. But I will spend a little more on a special edition controller, because they have a higher resale value. I see a lot of broken controllers listed in the $18 to $24 range. That's fine if you are going to repair it and keep it for yourself, but there is no money to be made on resale. 

DoorDash Scams

DoorDash is an American company operating an online food ordering and food delivery service. It is similar to ride share companies like Uber and Lyft, except they specialize in food delivery. There are several other food delivery companies, for example GrubHub and Uber Eats. As of March 2024, DoorDash has the biggest market share of the online food delivery market in the United States. My girlfriend recently started working as a shift manager at Pizza Hut and in two weeks she has already experienced several online food order scams. The latest one was an order that was picked up by a DoorDash driver. A short time later, another driver showed up to pick up the same order. They had to tell the driver that the order was already picked up. This happened four more times for the same order. If you count the first driver, there was a total of six different DoorDash drivers looking for the same order.

Our best guess is that the first driver unassigned the order and kept it for himself. Another driver saw the unassigned order and claimed the delivery assignment. Upon finding out that the order was already gone, they unassigned themselves from the order... and on it went for each driver. Needless to say, this is just one example of the huge waste of resources, time, and money that is taking place in the fast-food industry. Other scams are orders placed for bogus addresses and people that never show up to pick up their order. Not to mention employees who steal from the till, don't share tips, and make food to take home without paying. DoorDash drivers are not all bad. They have to deal with scams directed specifically at them.

DoorDash has been known to close a driver's account without warning. Often as a result of a bogus complaint by a customer who wanted their order for free. Scammers will take advantage of drivers by contacting them directly and posing as someone from DoorDash. Once they get their account information, they change the bank account info and steal the driver's money. There are numerous videos on YouTube about drivers who have been scammed like this. So, it can be as simple as not paying for a food order to a complex identity theft online money scam. I'm not sure why restaurants like Pizza Hut allow DoorDash to pick up orders when they have their own deliver drivers. Seems like it would be a service that would be better suited for a restaurant that didn't have home delivery. Loss potential is still there, but at least you have some control over the order verification process and who is delivering your food orders.

Electric Lawn Mower Manufacturers

 Popular Mechanics recently published an article titled "The 8 Best Electric Lawn Mowers of 2024". That got me thinking about a replacement for my 30-year-old gas powered Lawn Boy mower. It still runs, but it is getting harder to find the 2-cycle oil that you need to mix with the gas. They used to have it at every gas station in town. But now, you have to order it online or drive to the nearest Arrow hardware store. My neighbors to the right and left have both switched to electric mowers. The advantages of an electric mower are that they are quiet, and you don't have to mess with the gas and oil. Many are now just as powerful as a gas mower with all the same features. Electric mowers cost just as much as a gas and replacement, or spare batteries, are rather expensive.

California has banned the sale of gas-powered mowers starting in 2024 and Minnesota has introduced a bill that would ban the sale of non-electric lawn equipment. With a mandate that everyone's next mower needs to be electric, I wanted to look at some of the companies that make electric mowers. You would think that they are making tons of money, but that isn't the case. Maybe it is too early in the replacement cycle, or because only one state has a ban on gas mowers. It could be that we are still in the early adopter stage, kind of like what happened with electric vehicles. Electric mowers have been around for a while. The early ones needed an extension cord. You can still buy a mower that needs a cord, but what we are looking at here, are the latest battery-operated models. Here are some of the popular lawn equipment manufacturers out there: Ego, Echo, Ryobi, Toro, Craftsman, Worx, and Husqvarna. 

Only one of these is what I would consider an American company. Toro is based in Bloomington, MN. The others are owned by companies based in foreign countries like China, Japan, and Sweden. Ego is a mower that you find in a lot of retail stores, but they are owned by a Chinese holding company. The only company I would consider buying stock in is Toro (TTC). As of today, the stock price is $96 per share. In the past year, the stock has traded in a range between $80 to $102. Toro equipment is popular with lawn care professionals. The home lawncare market is saturated with mowers from all of the non-domestic manufacturers listed above. It is unlikely that Toro will see a spike in sales with all of the competition in the home lawncare market. But they may see a small bump is sales as pros switch to battery mowers in the coming years. I would probably buy a Toro to replace my Lawn Boy, instead of one of the mower brands you find at the local home center. For now, I'll have to keep using it until it breaks. You can still buy a Lawn Boy, but they only have 3 gas powered models to choose from. Curious enough, The Toro Company acquired Lawn-Boy in 1989 and discontinued production of most of its equipment.