The Lance J. Technoweb

I no longer use a cable company for Internet service. My new Internet service provider offers me Internet over WiFi, otherwise known as a Wireless ISP (WISP).  I use a WiFi router as the gateway to my WISP, and it was far easier to get reliable high performance than I originally envisioned.   My neighbor is a professional with a lot of Internet needs. He contracts with a company that has a huge Internet pipe, and he offers the service to the neighbors using 802.11ac wireless. Given my close proximity to him and the low cost of service, this is an incredible deal for Internet service.   At first I thought I would need to install a dedicated outdoor WiFi access point with a directional antenna to get a decent signal, but I decided to start simple and experiment with equipment I had around the house. Since I like the quality, functionality, and price point of MikroTik gear, I decided to start with the inexpensive MikroTik hAP AC Lite I had on hand. At first I connected to ...

I've seen people repeat the false claim that dishwasher detergent pods should be thrown in the dishwasher, and not be placed into the automatic dispenser cup. WRONG!!! Throwing your dishwasher detergent pod into the bottom of your dishwasher results in failed cleaning, as anything at the bottom of the dishwasher at the start of its cycle is quickly pushed down the drain. Always put the dishwasher pod in the dispenser and close the lid   Why?  Because the very first thing a modern dishwasher tries to do is push out the majority of food debris. All the crumbs and ketchup and milk or whatever is quickly rinsed to the bottom of your dishwasher.  Then, everything on the bottom of your dishwasher is pumped out as waste, including your detergent pod.  Whoops! Here are the details of the typical sequence performed during a modern dishwasher run: Debris Rinse Cycle: Fill with water.  Knock debris off of items for roughly 5 to 7 minutes. Drain. Wash with Detergent Cycle...

Today I repaired the broken light controller of my Casablanca ceiling fan.  I could turn the fan on and off, but the light bulbs stayed on whenever the fan was running.  Here, I show how I easily fixed the controller board to restore normal operation for about $5. The problem I has was this: Pushing the "light" button resulted in some flicker, but the lamp remained "on".  The only way to turn off the light was to turn off the fan.  One of my many Hunter / Casablanca fans with lights. The fan sales guy I talked to wasn't interested in repairing my broken fan.  He said my only solution was to have a new fan unit installed for several hundred dollars.  That'd be a shame because other than the light issue, the fan is fantastic. Happily, I have found two ways to fix this problem for under $5.    The Repair Options I realized that the problem was inside the fan unit, and not the "Inteli Touch" push button controls.  It seems that all the "smarts...