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Troubleshooting, Maintenance, and Repair
We live in a culture of obscene waste and mindless disposability. Most of us give little thought to maintaining the tools and machines we have if they get a little long in the tooth or stop working. One of the many positive developments that has grown out of the maker movement is a growing interest in repairing, maintaining, or repurposing the hardware in our lives. Part of the maker ethos is to know the technology in your life—to not be afraid to look under the hood of the machines you use and to understand how they work. Once you do, being able to troubleshoot, repair, and upgrade becomes far more achievable. What follows are a few miscellaneous tips related to troubleshooting, maintaining, and repairing your gear.
Find (or Start) a Repair Cafe
A trend that is starting to spread worldwide, especially in Europe, is the emergence of repair cafes. These can be actual physical shops or regular events held at libraries, schools, churches, and other public places. Residents bring their broken appliances and consumer electronics, and instructors help them troubleshoot and hopefully repair their gear. Often, the exchange is free, donation-based, or requires only a small fee. Repaircafe.org maintains a global map of repair cafes. If you don’t see one in your area, consider starting one. It’s a great way to do something positive for your community, a way to socialize with your neighbors, and a great way to help slow the endless bulldozing of waste into your local landfill.
Troubleshooting Old Circuit Board Glue
In all of my years of monkeying with electronics and hacking hardware, I never in a million years thought that the glue used to secure components onto a circuit board could be a factor in circuit failure. But in a video on Mr. Carlson’s Lab on YouTube, Mr. Carlson shows how, over time, the circuit board glue used in consumer electronics actually becomes conductive and should always be looked at along with any other components when you’re trying to troubleshoot an old, dead circuit. He says that the darker the glue has turned, the more conductive (and therefore suspect) it is likely to be.
Maintaining an Iron
Dirty irons can leave permanent marks and smudges on fabric and garments, and blocked steam vents can keep your iron from properly pressing, and that’s definitely not ideal when you’re in the middle of a project! To clean your iron, place two paper towels on your ironing board and then place an unused dryer sheet on one of them. Rub the hot iron over the dryer sheet for a few seconds and then over the other paper towel. Do this until your iron plate is clean. To clean out the steam vents, use cotton swabs and some distilled water (on a cool iron). When you’re done, wipe down the entire plate with water and then dry. Done!
Cleaning Chrome with Aluminum Foil
If you have some shabby-looking chrome with a little bit of moderate pitting and rust, you can partially rejuvenate it with nothing more than a ball of aluminum foil and some water. Some people recommend Diet Coke instead of water. Others swear by vinegar. Experiment and see what works best for your application.
