4 ms·

Maxi checking in. I have racks of labelled drawers full of bearings, screws, glues, specialty tapes, oodles of hand tools, power tools, ad infinitum. I'm honest

Maxi checking in. I have racks of labelled drawers full of bearings, screws, glues, specialty tapes, oodles of hand tools, power tools, ad infinitum. I'm honestly not super competent or anything (I barely know what I'm doing, in any domain) but I do learn new things all the time and it brings me joy. I miss the clarity of minimalism, but I can also have a different view on wallets - they're just leather and some stitching and such, and I can change them to be what I need. Of course it's a very particular type of programmer disease to fixate on having equipment that can compile any possible wallet to solve the problem of having a wallet. I get a kick out of dumb stuff like fixing the dishwasher latch by bending a new spring rather than getting the $70 replacement part (... probably spending $100 of my labour, good thing my free time is worthless!). I spend a lot on storage systems and need a lot of discipline around stuff like deciding a place for things before acquiring them. It's a tradeoff I'm OK with.

0xr0kk3r 3y ago
"rather than getting the $70 replacement part" Appliance repair usually starts at a $100 house-call fee and goes up from there. It is cheaper to buy a new dishwasher than get it repaired.
- Blackthorn 3y ago
  The person is talking about buying the part and installing it themselves, not paying someone to come repair it for them.
- Thorrez 3y ago
  When I moved into my apartment, the racks in the dishwasher were badly rusted. I told the management. They replaced the entire dishwasher. They said they couldn't get a replacement rack.
  - throw0101b 3y ago
    > They replaced the entire dishwasher. They said they couldn't get a replacement rack. What are the margins on replacement racks? Someone would have to pay for warehousing, stock tracking, employees for packing/shipping, then add shipping costs. Why would anyone offer them?
    - briHass 3y ago
      This problem is multiplied by the fact that most consumer goods have subtle differences in design between brands and even model lines within the brand. If there were only 2 or 3 different, standardized dishwasher racks for all models, stocking those few would be cost effective. As someone that owns a number of small-engine powered devices, I'm always amazed at how easy/cheap it is to find parts. Most small engines are either one of a couple Briggs and Stratton models, or a knockoff of same. Even across models, B&S usually did a pretty good job of reusing common parts. When you need a part, you can cross reference various part numbers to find either the OEM part or dozens of cheap Chinese copies.
      - bombcar 3y ago
        Small engine devices also often utilize belts so you can replace the whole engine with various different ones and only have to line up and size the proper belt.
  - justusthane 3y ago
    We bought a house recently and the racks in the (old) dishwasher are rusted. I thought it would be cheap to replace them. $400 for new top and bottom racks. $425 for a new dishwasher. I am gobsmacked.
  - bombcar 3y ago
    You often can get the part, but it’s expensive and with shipping and hassle you might as well but a new dishwasher. Especially as a landlord, spend $200-400 to replace the racks or buy a new for $500 and pretty much guarantee no calls on that item for five years.
- irrational 3y ago
  Unless you repair it yourself. I’ve done things like replacing the bearings and a cracked spider arm in our clothes washer. Not only was it cheap to do so, I also learned a lot about how a washer is put together by dismantling one down almost all the way. Same with replacing the heating element in the dryer.
  - jemmyw 3y ago
    Living in a country that is a smaller market really sucks on this front because I either cannot get the parts, or they cost more to ship here than the cost of the part itself. Last time I got something for my coffee machine that the manufacturer refused to sell it cost $80 to ship it here from a parts warehouse.
dieselgate 3y ago
I was using a broccoli rubber band as a wallet for years but they have a tendency to break after a while. Have settled on a metal binder clip and it’s worked much better - less friction in/out of pocket too
- xyzzy123 3y ago
  This is my favourite kind of minimalism.
- gnicholas 3y ago
  I use a broccoli rubber band as a minimalist iPhone 'case'. [1] It makes the back and bottom of the phone grippy, so it's easier to hold. It does slightly block the corners of the screen, but not much. It doesn't provide much protection in case of a drop, obviously. But the added grippiness makes drops much less likely! I have occasionally bought broccoli that I didn't need just so I could get another rubber band, after my previous one broke. They typically last 2 months or so. 1: https://imgur.com/a/E2yO6XX https://imgur.com/a/E2yO6XX
  - johnchristopher 3y ago
    > It doesn't provide much protection in case of a drop, obviously. But the added grippiness makes drops much less likely! I found popsockets and ring holders a better option in that regard https://image.gsmpunt.nl/blog/image/image_3.png https://image.gsmpunt.nl/blog/image/image_3.png
    - TeMPOraL 3y ago
      > popsockets Oh so this is what those weird phone attachments are called. Thanks!
      - rationalist 3y ago
        Be advised that they seemed to have changed their design and tape material. They advertise the lower quality tape as "re-adjustable".
gooseyman 3y ago
I relate to this so much. I love bring the extra screw up from the basement I saved 4 years ago knowing this moment would one day come where I need it. Now is it on the bottom of the red or the blue folgers coffee can. That said - tools and home improvement objects are allowed in the maximum as long as they fit in the basement workshop, that’s my only rule.
- fiznool 3y ago
  My box of wires in the attic is often the butt of my wife’s jokes, but every once in a while I find that satellite coax connector I’ve been saving, or the scart cable that is the only thing standing between old vhs tapes and nostalgia.

0xr0kk3r 3y ago

"rather than getting the $70 replacement part" Appliance repair usually starts at a $100 house-call fee and goes up from there. It is cheaper to buy a new dishwasher than get it repaired.

Blackthorn 3y ago
The person is talking about buying the part and installing it themselves, not paying someone to come repair it for them.
Thorrez 3y ago
When I moved into my apartment, the racks in the dishwasher were badly rusted. I told the management. They replaced the entire dishwasher. They said they couldn't get a replacement rack.
- throw0101b 3y ago
  > They replaced the entire dishwasher. They said they couldn't get a replacement rack. What are the margins on replacement racks? Someone would have to pay for warehousing, stock tracking, employees for packing/shipping, then add shipping costs. Why would anyone offer them?
  - briHass 3y ago
    This problem is multiplied by the fact that most consumer goods have subtle differences in design between brands and even model lines within the brand. If there were only 2 or 3 different, standardized dishwasher racks for all models, stocking those few would be cost effective. As someone that owns a number of small-engine powered devices, I'm always amazed at how easy/cheap it is to find parts. Most small engines are either one of a couple Briggs and Stratton models, or a knockoff of same. Even across models, B&S usually did a pretty good job of reusing common parts. When you need a part, you can cross reference various part numbers to find either the OEM part or dozens of cheap Chinese copies.
    - bombcar 3y ago
      Small engine devices also often utilize belts so you can replace the whole engine with various different ones and only have to line up and size the proper belt.
- justusthane 3y ago
  We bought a house recently and the racks in the (old) dishwasher are rusted. I thought it would be cheap to replace them. $400 for new top and bottom racks. $425 for a new dishwasher. I am gobsmacked.
- bombcar 3y ago
  You often can get the part, but it’s expensive and with shipping and hassle you might as well but a new dishwasher. Especially as a landlord, spend $200-400 to replace the racks or buy a new for $500 and pretty much guarantee no calls on that item for five years.
irrational 3y ago
Unless you repair it yourself. I’ve done things like replacing the bearings and a cracked spider arm in our clothes washer. Not only was it cheap to do so, I also learned a lot about how a washer is put together by dismantling one down almost all the way. Same with replacing the heating element in the dryer.
- jemmyw 3y ago
  Living in a country that is a smaller market really sucks on this front because I either cannot get the parts, or they cost more to ship here than the cost of the part itself. Last time I got something for my coffee machine that the manufacturer refused to sell it cost $80 to ship it here from a parts warehouse.

dieselgate 3y ago

I was using a broccoli rubber band as a wallet for years but they have a tendency to break after a while. Have settled on a metal binder clip and it’s worked much better - less friction in/out of pocket too

xyzzy123 3y ago
This is my favourite kind of minimalism.
gnicholas 3y ago
I use a broccoli rubber band as a minimalist iPhone 'case'. [1] It makes the back and bottom of the phone grippy, so it's easier to hold. It does slightly block the corners of the screen, but not much. It doesn't provide much protection in case of a drop, obviously. But the added grippiness makes drops much less likely! I have occasionally bought broccoli that I didn't need just so I could get another rubber band, after my previous one broke. They typically last 2 months or so. 1: https://imgur.com/a/E2yO6XX https://imgur.com/a/E2yO6XX
- johnchristopher 3y ago
  > It doesn't provide much protection in case of a drop, obviously. But the added grippiness makes drops much less likely! I found popsockets and ring holders a better option in that regard https://image.gsmpunt.nl/blog/image/image_3.png https://image.gsmpunt.nl/blog/image/image_3.png
  - TeMPOraL 3y ago
    > popsockets Oh so this is what those weird phone attachments are called. Thanks!
    - rationalist 3y ago
      Be advised that they seemed to have changed their design and tape material. They advertise the lower quality tape as "re-adjustable".

gooseyman 3y ago

I relate to this so much. I love bring the extra screw up from the basement I saved 4 years ago knowing this moment would one day come where I need it. Now is it on the bottom of the red or the blue folgers coffee can. That said - tools and home improvement objects are allowed in the maximum as long as they fit in the basement workshop, that’s my only rule.

fiznool 3y ago
My box of wires in the attic is often the butt of my wife’s jokes, but every once in a while I find that satellite coax connector I’ve been saving, or the scart cable that is the only thing standing between old vhs tapes and nostalgia.