Something Random

ddrueding

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For the last several weeks I've been semi-obsessed with the notion that my dream house would be about 1000sq.ft. hanging from a Zeppelin. After a couple weeks of falling asleep visualizing it I finally got a couple hours tonight to sketch something up. Time to start doing the math on how large an envelope would be required to lift such a thing.Untitled-1.jpg
 

Chewy509

Wotty wot wot.
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For the last several weeks I've been semi-obsessed with the notion that my dream house would be about 1000sq.ft. hanging from a Zeppelin. After a couple weeks of falling asleep visualizing it I finally got a couple hours tonight to sketch something up. Time to start doing the math on how large an envelope would be required to lift such a thing.View attachment 709

Looks like a house from SIMS... (the game).
 

snowhiker

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If you need a lot of SATA ports try this board. The ASRock Z87 Extreme11/AC.
16 SAS/SATA ports (LSI 3008) + 6 SATA (Z87 chipset) = 22 6Gbps ports.
 

Stereodude

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For the last several weeks I've been semi-obsessed with the notion that my dream house would be about 1000sq.ft. hanging from a Zeppelin. After a couple weeks of falling asleep visualizing it I finally got a couple hours tonight to sketch something up. Time to start doing the math on how large an envelope would be required to lift such a thing.View attachment 709
You apparently have way too much free time. :p
 

Bozo

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First rain is upon us, and my mother-in-law is complaining that the water going down the downspout is making too much noise (the back of the house isn't as soundproof as our bedroom). I'm tempted to try two remedies:

1. Dynamat the inside of the lower spout.
2. Insert a plastic scrubbing pad to decelerate the drops before they reach the bend in the pipe.

Both of these should survive for a winter at least if they are protected from UV, right?

Generally downspouts should not be plumb. A slight angle lets the water run down the back of the downspout. Pretty much eliminates the drip, drip, drip .....
 

ddrueding

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You apparently have way too much free time. :p

They say you get a song stuck in your head when you know one part, but then forget what comes next, so the part you know runs over and over.

I get crazy ideas stuck in my head until I can confirm absolutely that they are impossible. Then I can move on.
 

timwhit

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Your zeppelin house is probably possible, might just be out of your price range. I could see issues in high winds as well.
 

Handruin

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For the last several weeks I've been semi-obsessed with the notion that my dream house would be about 1000sq.ft. hanging from a Zeppelin. After a couple weeks of falling asleep visualizing it I finally got a couple hours tonight to sketch something up. Time to start doing the math on how large an envelope would be required to lift such a thing.View attachment 709

Your zeppelin house is probably possible, might just be out of your price range. I could see issues in high winds as well.

Looks like a fun idea. Nothing wrong with putting ideas down on paper.

Other issues could be weight related to food and water storage for lengthy flight and travel durations. Water may be collectable via clouds and rain...maybe. Batteries for solar energy storage might also add weight. There are many engineering challenges to overcome but with the right budget it'll be feasible.
 

ddrueding

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Your zeppelin house is probably possible, might just be out of your price range. I could see issues in high winds as well.

The idea first started after one of our regular walks around Carmel-by-the-Sea. We were looking at the different lots and discussing what we would do there. All of them had issues and all of them were high-7-figures. I suspect that such a craft could be constructed for ~$5 million and maintained for $250k/year.

Looks like a fun idea. Nothing wrong with putting ideas down on paper.

Other issues could be weight related to food and water storage for lengthy flight and travel durations. Water may be collectable via clouds and rain...maybe. Batteries for solar energy storage might also add weight. There are many engineering challenges to overcome but with the right budget it'll be feasible.

The Hindenburg had a useful load of about 10,000kg (90 people plus luggage). It was also 800ft+ (245m) long. It could do 80mph with <4,000hp.

My current plan would be to do what they wanted with the Hindenburg but never did; inner envelopes with Hydrogen surrounded by outer envelopes of Helium. Solar panels up top and fuel cells inside driving electric motors. SF to Melbourne would be about 4 days, so we wouldn't need that many supplies. The parallels to a sailboat are actually pretty complete. Being able to travel at 80mph means being able to avoid storms.

Currently working on figuring out what that gondola would weigh.
 

Clocker

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She'll be here through the winter. I think she's leaving in mid-March. I think the problem is that I've set a pretty high bar as far as comfort and luxury go. If she only complains about one thing like this a week I can handle it.
It just blows my mind that you are giving her the opportunity to stay at your place at no cost and she is complaining about...anything! Oh well. Different strokes for different folks I guess.
 

ddrueding

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It just blows my mind that you are giving her the opportunity to stay at your place at no cost and she is complaining about...anything! Oh well. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

Like I said, I set the bar (for myself) pretty high at the start. I actually am pretty happy that that is the best thing someone who stays with us can complain about. When we started the rebuild we wanted a place that was a similar to a high-end B&B as possible in feel and comfort. Slowly making the place better...

And that no-cost thing; we are supporting her anyway (even in Moscow), so that isn't that big a change ;)
 

jtr1962

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For the last several weeks I've been semi-obsessed with the notion that my dream house would be about 1000sq.ft. hanging from a Zeppelin. After a couple weeks of falling asleep visualizing it I finally got a couple hours tonight to sketch something up. Time to start doing the math on how large an envelope would be required to lift such a thing.View attachment 709
I love this kind of out of the box thinking. If I ever hit it big financially I'll join you planning such a thing. Mine might be even more "out there" because I want to be able to reach very high altitudes. That might require a HUGE gas bag the size of a supertanker. Or perhaps a hybrid design which has two envelopes. The normal one is for flying at regular altitudes. It has the capability to expand in volume maybe a few dozen times to enable very high altitudes. The gondola of course would need to be pressurized. I'm thinking how relaxing it might be living in comfort at about 100,000 feet, looking out at a black sky and seeing the curvature of the Earth. Not quite outer space, but close.


The idea first started after one of our regular walks around Carmel-by-the-Sea. We were looking at the different lots and discussing what we would do there. All of them had issues and all of them were high-7-figures. I suspect that such a craft could be constructed for ~$5 million and maintained for $250k/year.

The Hindenburg had a useful load of about 10,000kg (90 people plus luggage). It was also 800ft+ (245m) long. It could do 80mph with <4,000hp.

My current plan would be to do what they wanted with the Hindenburg but never did; inner envelopes with Hydrogen surrounded by outer envelopes of Helium. Solar panels up top and fuel cells inside driving electric motors. SF to Melbourne would be about 4 days, so we wouldn't need that many supplies. The parallels to a sailboat are actually pretty complete. Being able to travel at 80mph means being able to avoid storms.

Currently working on figuring out what that gondola would weigh.
By making the gas bag longer and smaller diameter you might be able to increase the speed significantly. With all electric power you won't suffer from power decrease with altitude as happens with internal combustion engines. And your solar cells get more efficient the higher up you go. You just need larger props to push the thinner air but I'm thinking if the thing can get to at least the altitude a commercial jetliner flies at you might be able to cruise at well over 80 mph on solar power alone. The downside is those altitudes are regulated air space. If you can design the thing to get above about 45,000 feet you essentially have most of the sky to yourself (outside of restricted military air space). ASAIK, the highest commercial jets ever fly is 43,000 feet, although I imagine they might make excursions slightly higher to fly over weather in exceptional cases.

Now we need to start playing Powerball when the jackpots get into the hundreds of millions. ;)
 

CougTek

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For the last several weeks I've been semi-obsessed with the notion that my dream house would be about 1000sq.ft. hanging from a Zeppelin.[...]View attachment 709
The shower is too close to the dung container. You also need to make that a two-stories project. You need a basement for the bench, the weights, a cardio gear of your liking and of course, a home entertainment system.
 

timwhit

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The shower is too close to the dung container. You also need to make that a two-stories project. You need a basement for the bench, the weights, a cardio gear of your liking and of course, a home entertainment system.

Where does the TV go?
 

ddrueding

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Where does the TV go?

At home now I have a high-end projector and a 92" screen. It hasn't been on for nearly a year. In front of a huge window (10' wide and 7' tall) we have our desks, each with wireless headphones and large (mine 30", hers 27") monitors. That is where we spend all our time when we aren't with the kid. I've replicated the same thing there.
 

ddrueding

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The shower is too close to the dung container. You also need to make that a two-stories project. You need a basement for the bench, the weights, a cardio gear of your liking and of course, a home entertainment system.

I'm a big fan of the "wet room" configuration, so having the toilet that close just makes it easier to clean ;) The weight bench (and even the bathtub) are out due to weight considerations. I've attached the floorplan.

Plan.png
 

snowhiker

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OMG what a pain in the ass today has been.

tl;dr = Can't get my car's "drive cycle" to reset so I can get smog check.

My "Service Engine Soon" light went on last week so I took my car in for servicing. The last time the light went on it was caused by a faulty gas cap which was an easy/cheap fix. Not this time:

1) Leaking coolant and thermostat going bad. So new thermostat, hoses and coolant flush.
2) Complete tune up. Plugs and wires.
3) Computer Diagnostic check.

Plus the normal periodic maintenance.
4) Air filter.
5) Oil/filter change.
6) Fuel filter.
7) Tire rotation.
8) Brake adjustment.

My car (2002 Saturn SL2) just passed the 100k mark and has never had a tune-up so I'm not too upset about the repairs or the $1100 price tag for repairs and service.

Here is where my day went south. After the repairs all the computer codes were reset, but I have to get a "smog check" very soon. The tech says I have to get all the emission sensors reset and in a "ready/working/good" state because if more than one isn't reset I automatically fail smog check. He said drive 30-50 miles, then come back and we'll check the OBDII to see if the "drive cycle" has been reset.

Well they were not all reset. I drove 50 miles. I did city driving (start/stop) then hit the freeway for 10+ minutes of constant driving, then more city driving. Still no-go.

What a PITA. Well I'm off to try this again.

I did learn one thing...If you want to F*ck with somebody and you know they are going for a smog check soon, just loosen their gas cap. That will throw a check engine light and they will auto-fail the smog check. Or just disconnect there battery to reset computer. No completed drive cycle also equals an auto-fail smog check.
 

timwhit

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Auto Zone will usually check your codes for you for free if you want to get them checked before getting the emissions checked.
 

LunarMist

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She'll be here through the winter. I think she's leaving in mid-March. I think the problem is that I've set a pretty high bar as far as comfort and luxury go. If she only complains about one thing like this a week I can handle it.

Don't kiss in laws ass too much. It will only get worse. :( Isn't she from a former commie country? I'm sure she's endured much worse - probably did not have LED lighting everywhere and 92-foot TV projectors. :p
 

ddrueding

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Don't kiss in laws ass too much. It will only get worse. :( Isn't she from a former commie country? I'm sure she's endured much worse - probably did not have LED lighting everywhere and 92-foot TV projectors. :p

She'll be going back to Moscow. She's in her 70s and lived there her whole life, so yeah, endured a fair bit worse ;)
 

mubs

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Here is where my day went south. After the repairs all the computer codes were reset, but I have to get a "smog check" very soon. The tech says I have to get all the emission sensors reset and in a "ready/working/good" state because if more than one isn't reset I automatically fail smog check. He said drive 30-50 miles, then come back and we'll check the OBDII to see if the "drive cycle" has been reset.

Well they were not all reset. I drove 50 miles. I did city driving (start/stop) then hit the freeway for 10+ minutes of constant driving, then more city driving. Still no-go.

What a PITA. Well I'm off to try this again.

I did learn one thing...If you want to F*ck with somebody and you know they are going for a smog check soon, just loosen their gas cap. That will throw a check engine light and they will auto-fail the smog check. Or just disconnect there battery to reset computer. No completed drive cycle also equals an auto-fail smog check.
Gosh, SH, I had no idea OBD-II was so complicated. Curious to know if the stuff you linked to applies to Saturn only (obviously the link refers to Saturn), early implementations of OBD-II, or to all cars, even current ones. What a royal pain, indeed.
 

snowhiker

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Anybody have one of those OBD-II readers? I'm willing to drop a few bills to get a tester that will let me read the codes. I don't have a laptop so I'd need actual hardware instead of just the cable and computer program.

Auto Zone will usually check your codes for you for free if you want to get them checked before getting the emissions checked.

Yeah I've read that somewhere else as well.

Gosh, SH, I had no idea OBD-II was so complicated. Curious to know if the stuff you linked to applies to Saturn only (obviously the link refers to Saturn), early implementations of OBD-II, or to all cars, even current ones. What a royal pain, indeed.

I don't know if that drive cycle document is Saturn only, but I'm guessing it would apply to most cars. The slowing down without breaking was annoying. The exit ramps here in AZ are 1/4-1/2 mile long so costing down to 20 MPH is not easy when someone behind you going 70+ on the long exit ramp.

Maybe newer cars have more sophisticated OBD-II systems that reset much quicker.
 

Bozo

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Here in PA the car must have a minimum of 40 miles on it after a computer reset. The computer keeps track of the resets and millage. It's to keep people from resetting the computer and then going for the emissions test.
 

Mercutio

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This got a laugh out of me.

FDRX7kj.jpg
 

Stereodude

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Anybody have one of those OBD-II readers? I'm willing to drop a few bills to get a tester that will let me read the codes. I don't have a laptop so I'd need actual hardware instead of just the cable and computer program.
I have one I picked up several years ago. You can get more sophisticated models now for under $100 now. I have an Actron model. I'd suggest going to Amazon.com searching for OBD ii scanner and finding a well rated model in your target price range.
 

mubs

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Totally awesome, Merc. I too always wondered why you guys have so many states. They used to teach kids rhymes in school that put the states in alpha sequence so they could recount all of them. I guess my daughter's forgotten it now.
 

LunarMist

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Totally awesome, Merc. I too always wondered why you guys have so many states. They used to teach kids rhymes in school that put the states in alpha sequence so they could recount all of them. I guess my daughter's forgotten it now.

Japan has 47 prefectures IIRC and is not so large of a country.
 

CougTek

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Totally awesome, Merc. I too always wondered why you guys have so many states.
Doesn't India have something like 28 states, plus another 7 territories, despite being much, much smaller than the U.S? Of course, you have four times as many people, but you probably don't have much more than one third the territory.
 

mubs

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Doesn't India have something like 28 states, plus another 7 territories, despite being much, much smaller than the U.S? Of course, you have four times as many people, but you probably don't have much more than one third the territory.
Yeah. Some states got split about a decade back. More opportunity for more politicians to enrich themselves; where there was one govt. now there are two. Etc.

Now there is talk of splitting yet another state.

What was once a gazillion different ethnicities was united (mostly) by the Muslim invaders, then wholly by the British. The strain of having to be part of one (apparent) whole is showing. It's in the DNA of every Indian to pull in a different direction. The very first, and original "my way or the highway" people in the universe.
 

LunarMist

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Had another MRI scan. Apparently there is nothing going on in my head, so nobody has a clue.
 
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