DIY Life

Technology is both a blessing and a curse. Sure, cell phones are getting smaller and smaller, which is a plus for portability. To me, though, small cell phones spell opportunity for accidents. It is easier for them to slip through hands and wind up, say, in a bathtub, boiling pot of pasta, or bowl of soup.

If you are like me and you've just ruined your free cell phone that came with your cheap calling plan, you probably aren't too alarmed. Is that fancy iPhone more your style? You'll want to do something about your wet cell phone, and fast.

Popular Mechanics gives detailed, step-by-step instructions of how to attempt to save your cell phone after getting it wet. Tips like surrounding it in dry rice or silica gel packets could help, as could using an air compressor or shop vac to blow or suck the wetness out.

Other tips? Avoid heat (no hair dryers!) and rinse with fresh water if salt water has gotten into your cell. Hopefully these tips will help you save your fancy cell phone so you don't end up with the free version, like me.

(via HackNMod)

You know, there are some DIY projects that are such a bad, bad, bad idea that you can't imagine people need to be told NOT to do them, and yet they're out there! Here we have just such a bad, bad, bad idea.

It's the cell phone hoax -- you know, the one where someone apparently makes a kernel of popcorn explode using their cell phone? Seems it's done by taking the magnetron out of your microwave and cooking the kernel from under the table. Do we really, really need to explain that a magnetron is dangerous? That there's a good reason it's carefully housed inside a casing inside your microwave?

That reason would be radioactivity. You know, the stuff that causes cancer, mutations, sterility and/or death, which is really not something you want to broadcast willy-nilly all over your kitchen.

So, yes, you likely can pop a popcorn kernel this way. And your future children may all be born with three eyeballs. Are you sure it's worth it?

In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, HSN LP has conducted a voluntary recall of about 17,000 power strips for Charge-It-All Valets. The power strip, located inside the valet, has undersized wires, posing a fire and shock hazard to consumers.

Manufactured in China and sold exclusively by HSN LP from October 2007 through January 2008, this recall is for the medium and large Joy Mangano Charge-It-All Valets, which are boxes with divided compartments that come with a power strip, allowing consumers to recharge and organize such items as cell phones and other electronic devices. Please check the CPSC press release for more information on the recalled power strips.

HSN LP is directly contacting consumers who own the recalled valets and will provide a replacement power strip and an in-store refund, and also pay for shipping charges for consumers to return the product. For more information, contact HSN at (888) 540-7052 or visit their website at www.hsn.com.

There are 200 million cell phone subscribers in the US and 5 million of those change carriers each month, which often accompanies a new phone. That is a lot of cell phones getting tossed aside probably into junk drawers and eventually into the trash. The disposal of old cell phones is no simple issue. Previously, selected mobile carriers would take them back, but not without hassle. Now, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has partnered with cell phone manufactures and retailers to make cell phone recycling simple and sustainable.

Partners in the Plug-In to e-Cycling Program will take back cell phones in-store or through mail-in offers. Best Buy, Cellular, Office Depot and Staples are all participating in this initiative. Currently, only 20% of discarded cell phones are recycled. The hope is that by making recycling as easy as dropping it in-store or in the mailbox, more people will be inclined to recycle their old phones. The program doesn't just recycle, but does their best to re-use or re-furbish as a first option. This ensures that the littlest possible energy and materials are used and that when a phone is finally done it's properly disposed of. The EPA has released a series of podcasts designed to educate consumers about the mission and functions of this new program.

Next time you're upgrading your phone, consider your options. Finally the simple route is also the most environmentally conscious. Take part in the Plug-In to e-Cycling program.

AOL Money has an interesting article: Top 5ive Things Never to Repair. Although you'll need to check the article itself to understand the reasoning behind it, if you're curious, the five items are:

• Computers
• Digital cameras
• MP3 players
• Microwaves
• Cell phones

Read more about it after the break!