Zero Waste

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/36021551

As a zero waste OCD nutter, I end up with a lot of TV and radio devices pulled from dumpsters and 2nd-hand markets. The remote controls (RCs) are almost always missing. For many devices, the whole fucking device becomes totally unusable without the RC. Which is probably why many devices end up in the trash -- because the remote was lost or chewed up by a dog.

Apparently humans have not evolved to be smart enough to create an open standard mandating that all appliances with remote controls have a published manual containing the IR signal specs for every function to then enable the signals to be reproduced.

Palm pilots (somewhat viable)

In the 1990s, Palm pilots had integrated infrared sensors w/LED. There was a very useful third-party app enabling physical remote controls to be copied. You could design your own button layout and have a tab for every RC. Of course the problem is that you needed the original RC as a source to copy.

Smartphones (nope)

Smartphones are worse than Palm pilots. IR sensors are RARE. There are IR dongles that can be attached to a smartphone (either USB or headphone jack). It’s a bit redicious if you have to have a dongle hanging off the edge of your phone wherever you go. The phone would not likely slide into an arm strap w/the dongle. So you wouldn’t carry it around, which means you have to keep track of it. It’s something else that can get lost (manufacturers and sellers love that feature).

Universal RCs (nope)

Like OEM remotes, these have a fixed set of buttons. But of course they have to try to guess what buttons will be needed. They include a database of hundreds of signal sets, but you are likely fucked if the device is an obscure or rebranded no name generic. I have radios that have the branding of the grocery store that sold them, FFS. No chance that would be in these preset DBs. I also have 4 different models of the same radio brand, and the RCs are incompatible w/each other same brand device (WTF).

The collective solution

Lobby for policy to force an open standard and then mandate the use of it.

The quazi individual solution (using smartphones)

1. Derive a list of smartphones with built-in IR sensors and LEDs.
2. Port a FOSS distro of some kind to all those phones.
3. Code 2 FOSS apps, one for linux distros and one for f-droid for AOS forks. Or make one app that’s ported to both.

The app should be able to record existing OEM RCs. And in the absence of the OEM RC, it should be able to sync to an open data crowd-sourced DB (which means it should also be able to export datasets to the project).

The quazi individual solution (using dumbphones)

A lot of Sony Ericsson feature phones have IR sensors and an LED for the purpose of syncing the contacts, SMSs, etc. The FOSS Gammu app exploits this. If an app could be pushed to those phones it would basically repurpose otherwise wasted dumbphones to help salvage otherwise wasted RC-less appliances.

Folks are dumping laser printers that still have toner in them. Or even if it’s “empty”, not everyone knows the shaking trick. I also find on the 2nd-hand market really dirt cheap toner cartridges, like $/€ 1—5, but they are never for my model of printer.

So is it sensible to try to salvage the toner from incompatible cartridges? A loooong time ago toner came in a bottle (like a big version of the plastic ketchup bottles in small diners). The printer had no cartridge, just a toner tank with a lid. You open the lid and squeeze the bottle.

I think toner is thought to be too hazardous or messy for these days of more persnickety/pampering designs. Everything seems to use a cartridge now. But in terms of recovering toner destined for landfill, what can we do?

Drilling a hole seems like a risk because plastic bits would fall in with the toner. But what if a soldering iron is used to melt a hole? I’m thinking the hole would have to be big enough for vinyl aqarium tubing to connect the salvage cartridge to the target cartridge. Then the salvage cartridge would have to be rattled to move the toner down the tube. I don’t suppose there is any practical way to use a vacuum.

Of course before melting anything, I would look for an existing exit nipple or port and try to plumb the two exits together. Or transfer to a squeeze bottle then try to mate the squeeze bottle to the target cartridge exit opening.

An Amazon warehouse insider told me they routinely throw away new unsold products because warehouse space is limited and they have to get rid of the slower moving products. Amazon is very protective of that whole process. They don’t want people to know about it. They also don’t want the products to end up in the hands of someone who would sell the stuff on eBay or some other competitor. They in fact caught employees doing that. So now the area where these products are handled is resticted access w/locked doors; workers closely monitored so Amazon can ensure destruction. Amazon fabricates the reasons for trashing the products. They want to book the waste as “defective” products even though they are in perfect working (new) condition.

I just noticed the EU’s ecodesign framework of 2024 has this new law requiring disclosure:

and this new prohibition:

Seems useful superficially, but then you look at annex 7 and it’s just clothing:

I think it’s mostly electronics that Amazon wastes, so I guess Amazon won’t be blocked at this stage.. but the reporting still applies.

My fridge (Zanussi Z19/4D) quit working. The compressor and relay are both fine. I hotwired the relay and bypassed the thermostat. So I can force the fridge to run on demand using a switch.

Either the thermostat is broken, or some mystery component attached to the thermostat is broken. These parts are no longer sold for my model. Amazon sells “universal” thermostats cheaply, but I boycott Amazon. In fact, I try to boycott banks too so I don’t shop online generally. In the off chance that a 230v universal thermostat were sold locally, I still don’t know if it solves my problem.

So what can I do with this fridge? I could put a timer on it and set it to run 1 hr/day, or something. Is it worth it? I suppose a timer would not be accurate enough to use for food. Temps would probably be unstable. But I wonder if it’d be good for keeping wine or beer slightly chilled. Someone persnickety enough to want a wine cooler might not like the temp fluctuations a timer would bring.

Might it make sense to pull it out for parties and have it continuously run to keep drinks cold? Or would they freeze?

These use-cases don’t really interest me directly. I prefer beer nearly room temp anyway. But I’m just looking for ideas maybe to pawn the thing off onto someone else to prevent waste.

Should I trash it? I would likely harvest the working compressor in that case, but then do what with that? I could look for a trashed fridge that just needs a compressor, but I have never plumbed a compressor and messed with coolant. Can a novice handle that?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/40709622

Getting burnt by repair-hostile makers of washing machines who refuse to share documentation inspired this form letter (in LaTeX):

\documentclass[DIV=16]{scrlttr2}

%\LoadLetterOption{NF}              % uncomment for French standard windowed envelope
%\LoadLetterOption{DIN}             % uncomment for German standard windowed envelope
%\LoadLetterOption{UScommercial9DW} % uncomment for US standard double-windowed envelope

\usepackage{ragged2e} % needed to restore the loss of paragraph indents when \raggedright is used
\usepackage{hyperref}

\setlength{\RaggedRightParindent}{\parindent} % restore the loss of paragraph indents when \raggedright is used
\RaggedRight

\newcommand{\appliance}{washing machine} % replace with whatever you need to buy
\newcommand{\mfr}{Machine Maker} % replace with Whirlpool, or whatever
\newcommand{\mfrAddress}{123 sesame street\\90210} % replace with mfr address

\begin{letter}{%
  \mfr\\
  \mfrAddress}

  \opening{Dear \mfr,}

I am in the market for a \appliance.
When I asked the local retailer (whose profession is to sell your products)
which \mfr\ models include service manuals, they were helpless.
Could not find a single machine that respects consumers and thus their right to repair.
Zero. Every product by \mfr\ in their showroom was anti-consumer.

There are no service manuals published on your website either. 
When looking at various second-hand models, many basic user guides were missing as well,
apparently depending on the age of the unit.

I will not buy a disposable anti-consumer \appliance.
Those are for stupid consumers.
A \emph{\bfseries good} \appliance\ meets this criteria:

  \begin{enumerate}
  \item has a \emph{good} service manual which is available to anyone, free of charge
  \item has no cloud-dependency (\emph{all} functionality accessible without Internet)
  \item has no app, OR has a \emph{good} app
  \end{enumerate}

  A \emph{good} app satisfies this criteria:
  \begin{itemize}
  \item open source
  \item requires no patronisation of Google or Apple to obtain
  \item has an APK file directly on your website or on f-droid.org
  \end{itemize}

  A \emph{good} service manual meets this criteria:
  \begin{itemize}
  \item wiring diagram
  \item parts diagram with part numbers
  \item inventory of components including the manuafacturers and models, and functional resistence ranges (Ω)
  \item error codes and their meanings
  \item steps to reach diagnostic mode and steps to use it
  \end{itemize}

Do you make any \emph{good} pro-consumer \appliance s with a good service manual, with no bad apps?
If yes, please send me the service manual and I will take your product seriously.
If not, you are sure to lose the competition.
If everyone else loses the competition as well, then I will continue washing my clothes by hand
-- perhaps with this repairable machine: \url{www.thewashingmachineproject.org}.


  \closing{Sincerely,}
\end{letter}

I suggest sending that letter to every manufacturer making machines for your region. It will get no results but it will send the message they don’t hear enough of.