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Dave Caolo

Dave Caolo was born with an innate love of electronics. Upon receiving a Commodore 64 as a child, Dave spent hours writing simple BASIC routines. Upon seeing a Macintosh 1984, he was hooked. Today, Dave works as an IT director for a national corporation, and operates or contributes to a number of websites, including Kaylow Media and Daddy Daze. He's the assistant lead blogger at The Unofficial Apple Weblog and a part-time contributor to DIY Life. Finally, Dave contributes a weekly article to The Parenting Post, the official weblog of Parenting Magazine. He spends his free time playing with his kids, reading, listening to music and whatever else it is that geeks do. It's Dave's belief that machines aren't intimidating automatons, but tools to make our lives more interesting and fun.

Flush less water with a soda bottle

If you've got an older toilet in your house (not the High efficiency (HET) models), you're using more water per flush than necessary, which depletes resources and your wallet. Here's a simple trick that costs less than installing a new toilet.

Fill an old, plastic soda bottle with water and place it inside the tank. Let's say your family flushes the toilet five times a day. Since the bottle displaces exactly 2 liters of water, that's 10 liters you won't be pulling into your house (or paying for!).

Again, don't try this with a HET. But those of us with older models may give it a try.
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Liberate a childproof cap

Child proof caps certainly have their place. However, those of us who don't need an extra layer of protection between ourselves and the Tylenol just find them frustrating. Instructables has the fix.

In fact, they've demonstrated how to "disable" the three types of childproof tops: "Push down and turn," "Squeeze and turn" and "Press tab and turn." You'll need a thumbtack, a spoon and fingernail clippers, so get out your McGyver kits.

Now, we don't recommend performing these hacks in homes with children. Of course you knew that, but we had to say it anyway.

[Via Lifehacker]
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Knit toddler viking hats

How are my kids like vikings? Well, they've pillaged my bank account, terrorized my pets and sacked my free time. I ought to dress the little miscreants accordingly.

Luckily, there's a great "baby viking hat" kit available at Bella Knitting, which includes the pattern and tutorial, plus 2 balls of Aurora 8 yarn and white accent yarn. You can make either a newborn and young baby-sized hat, for either a girl (pictured, with wings and braids) or a boy (with horns). It sells for $24.50US.

We love those braids. Happy knitting.

[Via NOTCOT]
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Design a custom moleskine travel notebook

I love Moleskine City Notebooks. If you're unfamiliar, they're pocket sized, hard bound notebooks that contain maps, transportation info, blank pages for notes and more. As you travel, you can add your own stories, reference information, contacts, whatever.

To quote Aldous Huxley, "...the only useful guidebook will be the one which he himself has written."

The problem is this: The manufacturers have only made them for a few cities. Those of you in world-class locations like New York City, Amsterdam, Barcelona or Dublin are covered. The rest of us are out of luck.

That's why when I saw this Flickr set of a DIY project to make one, I thought, "I must do this!" Here is the step-by-step process I used when making my DIY Moleskine City Book: Cape Cod Edition.

[Via Moleskinerie]

Gallery: DIY Moleskine City Notebook

The materialsRemoving the PopOut mapMap removedCement your mapMap in place

Continue reading Design a custom moleskine travel notebook

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Clean a dishwasher with Kool-Aid

Recently, we showed you how to freshen a laundry load with vinegar. This reminded me of a similar experience I had.

For many years, I worked in an industrial setting. Our dishwashers ran for several hours per day. Despite the near-constant cleaning, they'd occasionally get stained. I was wondering what to do about it when someone suggested, "Run it with a packet of Kool-Aid."

Lemonade Kool-Aid, to be exact. With no dishes and Kool-Aid in the detergent compartment, we began a cycle. At the end, the stains were gone, as the citric acid in the mix had removed the stains (kind of makes you wonder about putting it in your body, doesn't it?).

It's a trick I've re-used, and the folks at Real Simple have made the same discovery. So, the next time you're grocery shopping, pick up some Kool-Aid. Oh, yeah!
Comments [1]

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