When lighting fixtures and electricity were cheap, the question of a thrifty approach to choosing lighting for stairwells was not seriously considered by anyone. But life has taught everyone to count every penny, so there’s no need to convince anyone about the advisability of using an automatic stairwell and corridor lighting switch (ASCLS). The question Read more…
I’ve been familiar with the “Modelist-Konstruktor” magazine for more than a year now. Mainly as an avid reader and somewhat less as a DIY enthusiast, trying to implement in practice some of the promoted ideas and original technical solutions in the conditions of a simple home workshop. Now I’m offering one of my own developments. Read more…
A mini-electro-calorifier (MEC) type heater is unlikely to surprise anyone these days. These compact and quite convenient household appliances can be purchased to suit any taste. However, it’s not at all necessary to spend money on industrial products, let alone imported ones. I, for example, have long been using a homemade MEC that, by unanimous Read more…
While equipping my bathroom as a sauna (see “Modelist-Konstruktor” No. 10, 1997), I decided to make a powerful (3 — 3.5 kW) and reliable heater myself. The most acceptable option seemed to me to be an electric heater in a tin bucket with an asbestos-cement terminal block and brass studs, covered with a hinged metal Read more…
They say you can’t save much on matches, and yet… A simple and practical electronic “match,” the description of which we offer to readers’ attention, will free you from the need to constantly monitor that matchboxes don’t remain empty. The “match” works as follows. The electrical energy accumulated by capacitor C1 (see the schematic diagram) Read more…
What lengths fishermen won’t go to for good luck. Once my friend — an avid angler — complained that often the catch turns out meager simply because there’s no way to cast a bottom fishing rod to the spot where, presumably, the fish should be: either bushes are in the way, or there’s not enough Read more…
It’s no secret that halogen lamps used in automobiles often fail. This happens as a result of a current surge that inevitably occurs every time they are switched on, when the filament coil is still in an unheated (cold) state. For example, a “halogen” fog lamp is designed to operate in normal mode with a Read more…
If a radio amateur’s inventory is burdened by a low-power portable radio station (or a set of two stations) designed for communication in the civilian range of 26.9 — 27.2 MHz, I propose a way to make good use of them. Often, a radio amateur is simultaneously a car owner and a dacha owner, who, Read more…
I propose a design for a gasoline-electric unit (GEU) “Firefly”, designed for charging batteries, powering lighting lamps and other DC consumers at 12 V. I developed this unit three years ago at the request of my friend, an avid hunter and fisherman. Since then, “Firefly” has been serving reliably, lighting his taiga cabin and helping Read more…
One of the inconveniences in the design of many cars is that the interior light immediately turns off when the doors are closed. There are, of course, special devices that delay switching off the lighting for 5–15 seconds, allowing the driver to check the dashboard, the controls, and insert the ignition key. However, such solutions Read more…
