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.

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.

Bird House Project

 Last fall I started building a bird house with some scrap wood that I had laying around. After I decided on the dimensions, I decided to build two of them. The interior is 5-1/2" x 7" and the ends are 7" high cut at a 45-degree angle. I thought that it would be too heavy if I made all of the pieces from 3/4" thick wood, so I bought a small piece of 1/2" plywood for the sides and roof. I made the roof so that it can be removed for cleaning. All of the angle cuts were done on a Black+Decker table saw. The perch is a piece of 3/8" dia. oak dowel.

After the main parts were assembled, I couldn't decide how to finish the roof, so I let the two unfinished bird houses sit in the garage all winter. Once spring arrived, I started thinking about what I was going to use for roofing. I thought about using some old roofing from my house, but that was too thick and hard to cut. They make roofing for doll houses, but I didn't think any of those options would last very long outside. I finally settled on sandpaper. I happened to have some unused 3"x 21" sanding belts that I bought on Amazon back in 2022. The 80 grit was about right, and the color looked good too. 

I didn't plan it this way, but the belts are 21" and the roof was 10-1/2" long. I needed to cut up 2 belts for each roof. I also needed to find a piece of molding for the roof cap. I selected a .875-in x 8.0-ft white hardwood molding with a leaf pattern from Lowes. Since the molding was 8 feet long, I decided to trim out the front of each house and paint the vines green. This helped hide the roof line gap and two screws along the bottom edge. I then applied Minwax Puritan Pine stain and a coat of Rust-oleum Ultra-Cover Clear that I had left over from a previous project.

The entrance hole is 1-1/2" diameter, about the size for a wren, finch, or a swallow. I plan on mounting these guys to 4x4 posts in the shade near the garden. Although, they almost look too good to leave outside. Next time I would use a hand miter saw. I spent a lot of time sanding the ends of the trim pieces, so they fit together nicely. I would also make the whole thing out of 1/2" plywood. With the 3/4" thick boards, each house weighs 3 Lbs. - 2 Oz. It took a long time to build because I didn't like any of the designs for the ones I found on the Internet. I had to think about the size of each piece and then cut double the amount so that I could build two. Hopefully birds will appreciate the effort, and the new houses will draw more of them to the back yard.