DIY Life

As you fire up your central air conditioner, is the temperature really what it says? If it's not, you could be spending extra bucks on your electricity bills. The good news is that you can take care of it yourself without calling a service person. And if you know it's not right, follow these steps before buying a new one:

1. Turn off the power to the heater and A/C.
2. Remove the cover.
3. Obviously, change any batteries.
4. Clean the bimetal coil with a soft, clean brush. On a round thermostat, you might have to turn the dial for complete access.
5. Remove the body from the base on a round model. There are usually screws involved.
6. Clean the switch contacts with a piece of bond paper.
7. Replace the body on a round model.
8. Adjust the anticipator. Start by finding and noting the amp setting; it may be in your manual, on the furnace service panel or on the boiler's transformer. Look at the anticipator setting on the scale. If it's off, adjust it with your fingernail; or you nail-biters (you know who you are), use the point on a pen.
   NOTE: On an air heating distribution system set it to the amp setting. On a water heating distribution system set it to (amp setting X 1.4). I have no idea why.
9. Replace the cover.
   

I recently ran across a tool concept as I was "window shopping" new things on the tool market. What I found is a beauty of an adjustable wrench manufactured by Irwin Industrial Tools.( Not the wrench pictured).

I don't know if an adjustable wrench with a lever for adjustment rather than the old screw mechanism is a totally new idea but I can sure guarantee you that I have never seen the concept executed as nicely as this tool appears to be.

This lifetime guaranteed wrench is two times faster to adjust than the standard screw mechanism adjustable wrench the manufacturer claims. It would seem that the secret is in how the lever mechanism releases the jaw with one lever action and leaves it free to be adjusted. The wrench head has graduated markings to indicate the size of the jaw opening and the manufacturer states that the internal jaw slide is grooved.

These ergonomically focused wrenches start at a length of 6" with a girth of 7/8" and range all the way to a 12" model with a girth of 1-1/2". It was reported in one review that the wrenches start in price at about $20.