Steve Jenkins

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If you’ve got a KitchenAid (or Whirlpool, or Kenmore) fridge with an ice maker that’s not making ice, don’t call the repairman. This is a very easy (and relatively inexpensive) fix that you can totally do yourself. These same instructions will work for any similar Whirlpool, Maytag, Kenmore, Amana, or JennAir […]

How to Cheaply Fix a KitchenAid / Whirlpool Ice Maker ...

This entry was posted in DIY and tagged Amana DIY freezer ice maker ice maker stopped working ice maker won't work icemaker JennAir Kenmore KitchenAid Maytag refrigerator replace ice maker Whirlpool on by
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My initial review of the KOHLER Touchless Toilet Flush Kit was positive… except for the part where the unit started to magically flush the toilet all by itself in the middle of the night. I called it the “phantom flush.” If you recall from my review, KOHLER promised to send me […]

Product Update: KOHLER Touchless Toilet Flush Kit Parts Upgrade

This entry was posted in DIY Home Theater & Automation Product Reviews Technology and tagged automatic flush Kohler phantom flush plumbing review toilet touchless toilet flush kit on by (updated 3523 days ago)
Linux Uptime 13
If you’re looking for the fastest and easiest way to get DMARC verification working on a RedHat (Fedora, RHEL or CentOS) mail server, I highly recommend OpenDMARC. I’m a bit biased, as I currently maintain the OpenDMARC package in the Fedora and EPEL repositories. This article will help you install the […]

Installing OpenDMARC RPM via Yum with Postfix or Sendmail (for ...

This entry was posted in Linux Reference Technology and tagged CentOS configure DKIM DMARC EPEL Fedora how to OpenDKIM OpenDMARC Redhat RHEL set up SPF on by (updated 3501 days ago)
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For a few years now, I’ve been using a Linksys E4200 v1 router (running DD-WRT) as the main router at my house. However, because the WiFi signal from the router isn’t strong enough to reliably reach all the rooms in the house, I picked up a few inexpensive Belkin F7D3302 / F7D7302 […]

Adding Heat Sinks and Overclocking a Belkin F7D3302 / F7D7302 ...

This entry was posted in DIY Linux Technology and tagged Belkin cooling DD-WRT heat sink mod modding overclock router on by (updated 3527 days ago)
In this video, I walk through replacing the stock grips on a Sig Sauer 1911 Tac Ops with replacement Magpul MOE 1911 Grip Panels, and discuss whether this modification should be considered an “upgrade.” Magpul makes these available in a variety of textures and colors.

Video: Installing Magpul MOE 1911 Grip Panels on a Sig ...

This entry was posted in Guns and tagged 1911 grip grip panels Mapul modification MOE Sig Sauer Tac Ops TACOPS Upgrade on by (updated 3536 days ago)
Hydrogen sulfide gas smells like rotten eggs 30
If your hot water smells like rotten eggs, don’t panic. It’s almost certainly something you can fix on your own, and there are a few different ways you can try to fix it. First, to make sure your hot water heater is the source (and that this is the blog post you’re […]

How to Fix Rotten Egg Smell in your Water

This entry was posted in DIY and tagged plumbing rotten egg smell smelly water sulfur smell water water water heater on by (updated 2370 days ago)
MeteoBridge Push Services tab with MySQL query included. 8
In my initial review of the MeteoBridge weather station interface device, I discussed its basic features, and briefly mentioned that it also included more advanced functionality, including the ability to store weather data from your weather station in a MySQL database (or a MySQL-compatible one, like MariaDB). But after searching online for an […]

Storing Weather Station Data in MySQL from MeteoBridge

This entry was posted in Linux Technology and tagged Davis MeteoBridge weather station on by (updated 3565 days ago)
standard MeteoBridge hardware configuration 16
I’ve been a weather geek (or as weather geeks would write it: “Wx geek”) since 2001, when I bought an Oregon Scientific WMR968 weather station. Within a couple of years, I’d connected my weather station’s console via a serial cable to a dedicated computer in my basement running Windows 95 and Ambient’s Virtual Weather Station (VWS) software, which […]

Product Review & How-To: Using MeteoBridge to Connect your Weather ...

This entry was posted in Home Theater & Automation Linux Product Reviews Technology and tagged Belfryboy data-logger Davis MeteoBridge MeteoBridge review product review review upload weather station Weather Underground on by (updated 3310 days ago)
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My original ecobee3 review is now two months old, so I decided a “here’s how things are going two months later” post might be in order. Over the past two months, I’ve received numerous questions (both in my blog comments and over in the ecobee discussion forum at SmartHomeHub.net), and I’ve also […]

ecobee3 Review Followup: Two Month Update

This entry was posted in Home Theater & Automation Product Reviews Technology and tagged ecobee ecobee vs Nest ecobee3 Home IQ Nest review update on by (updated 3595 days ago)
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Remember when you were a little kid, and your mother would take you to the supermarket, and as you approached the glass doors you’d wave your hand at them… causing them to open… with… The Force? It was almost like magic! Sure, deep down you probably knew there was some kind […]

Product Review: KOHLER Touchless Toilet Flush Kit

This entry was posted in DIY Home Theater & Automation Product Reviews Technology and tagged automatic flush Kohler plumbing review toilet touchless toilet flush kit on by (updated 3523 days ago)
Updated HomeIQ Activity and Temperature 5
Sir Francis Bacon is commonly credited for coining the phrase “scientia potentia est” — Latin for “knowledge is power.” Though one might argue that, instead,  control is power, particularly in the world of smart home devices, such as WiFi thermostats. The new ecobee3 smart thermostat does indeed give you greater control over your home’s comfort, while […]

First Look: ecobee3 Web-based Home IQ Charts

This entry was posted in Home Theater & Automation Technology and tagged chart data ecobee ecobee3 Home IQ HomeIQ on by (updated 3422 days ago)
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When I first received an ecobee3 smart thermostat for review, I wrote a guide to installing an ecobee3 for first-time ecobee users. This post, by contrast, is for ecobee old-timers. I’ll walk through how to replace your original ecobee “Smart” unit and upgrade to the ecobee3, while re-using your existing in-wall wiring […]

Upgrade Install Guide: ecobee original Smart Thermostat to ecobee3

This entry was posted in Uncategorized and tagged ecobee ecobee smart ecobee3 guide how to Install thermostat Upgrade on by (updated 3647 days ago)
TPMS warning on dash 50
Last month, I noticed the Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) warning light turn on in my 2007 GMC Yukon Denali. When I pressed the button on the dash to see my tire pressures, the left-front tire showed nothing… meaning the computer wasn’t getting any data from that wheel. After a few miles, it started […]

TPMS Warning Light? Replace your TPMS Sensors for Cheap

This entry was posted in Cars DIY and tagged Discount Tire GMC replace TPMS sensor tire pressure monitoring system TPMS TPMS light warning light on by (updated 3649 days ago)
Furnace ignitor working properly 42
You wake up in the morning, or come home from work, and you can instantly tell something is wrong. The house is cold. You can hear the furnace running, and you can even feel air coming out of the registers. But it’s not hot air coming out, it’s cold! Well, it’s not COLD cold, […]

Fix Your Furnace If It’s Not Blowing Warm Air

This entry was posted in DIY and tagged Byant Currier DIY furnace blowing cold air furnace broken furnace ignitor furnace not blowing hot air gas furnace hot surface ignitor how to fix a furnace igniter Lennox Trane on by (updated 3657 days ago)
FreeDNS.Afraid.org A Record Setup 11
The Problem In the “early” days of the internet, you could find free Dynamic DNS (DDNS) accounts everywhere. The providers of those free services, such as DynDns, hoped that by giving you a freebie, you’d eventually become a paying customer for one of their pay services. Unsurprisingly, that’s not what happened. […]

Using FreeDNS.Afraid.org with DD-WRT when you lose your Free DynDns ...

This entry was posted in Linux Reference Technology and tagged Afraid.org DD-WRT DDNS DDNS service DynDNS Free DDNS FreeDNS.Afraid.org how to howto on by (updated 3311 days ago)
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You probably haven’t stopped and really thought about exactly how many devices you have in your home that plug into a power outlet. So do it now. Go ahead. I’ll wait…. Now, think about how many of those devices have some sort of electronic or digital component. It’s probably way […]

What’s the “Best” Whole-House Surge Protection?

This entry was posted in DIY Home Theater & Automation Product Reviews Technology and tagged 51120-1 CHSPT2ULTRA compare comparison Cutler Hammer Eaton Leviton lightning product review review Schneider Electric SDSB1175C Square D surge suppressor SurgeBreaker Plus SYC-120/240-T2 Syscom whole-house surge protector on by (updated 3682 days ago)
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I received an email today from a friend and fellow Linux sysadmin, Todd Lyons, informing me of a very sneaky way to exploit the Shellshock vulnerability under what he calls “just the wrong conditions.” Here’s how his email starts out: With your recent blog post, you might also want to […]

Shellshock Warning: Even after patching, your old vulnerable bash binary ...

This entry was posted in Linux Reference Technology and tagged shellshock shellshock bug vulnerable on by (updated 3703 days ago)
Setting up multiple WLANs in DD-WRT 3
Because I publish a lot of articles on DD-WRT router firmware, and I also recently published an article on patching the Shellshock bug on older Fedora-based Linux systems, I’ve been receiving a lot of emails asking if DD-WRT firmware is affected by the Shellshock Bash bug. The answer is… maybe. By default, the […]

Is DD-WRT Vulnerable to the Shellshock Bash Bug?

This entry was posted in Linux Reference Technology and tagged bash Bash on DD-WRT DD-WRT ddwrt exploit patch shellshock shellshock bug shellshock on DD-WRT vulnerable on by (updated 3704 days ago)
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With the announcement of the Shellshock Bash Bug, Linux admins around the world have been scrambling to patch their Bash shells so that they’re no longer vulnerable to the exploit. If you have a Fedora, RHEL, or CentOS system that hasn’t reached End-Of-Life, then updating to a patched version of […]

How to Manually Update Bash to Patch Shellshock Bug on ...

This entry was posted in Linux Reference Technology and tagged bash bug Fedora 14 Fedora 15 Fedora 16 Fedora 17 Fedora 18 Fedora 19 GNU patch patch bash manually patch old Fedora shellshock shellshock bug on by (updated 3689 days ago)
Proper ecobee3 wiring for PEK users 73
So you got your hands on an ecobee3 smart thermostat, and instead of reading through the installation manual (which is actually pretty good), you came to the Internet to figure out how to install your ecobee3. OK, fine… I’ll help you. 🙂 This how-to guide for installing your ecobee3 covers a […]

How to Install an ecobee3 Smart Thermostat

This entry was posted in DIY Home Theater & Automation Technology and tagged ecobee ecobee 3 ecobee3 guide help how to how to install ecobee3 howto Install on by (updated 3647 days ago)
The new ecobee3 136
In 2009, Toronto-based ecobee released the very first “smart” thermostat  and called it, not surprisingly, the “ecobee Smart” (see my original review of the Smart from 2010). Since then, they’ve followed up with the ecobee Si (which I call the Smart’s “little brother”), along with a handful of firmware and mobile app updates for […]

ecobee 3 Review

This entry was posted in Home Theater & Automation Product Reviews Technology and tagged compare ecobee ecobee 3 ecobee 3 review ecobee3 Lyric Nest product review review vs on by (updated 3644 days ago)