Recent content by ericdockum

Thanks for the link to the interesting paper. I will have to have a read in detail - who knew heating cellulose in a microwave could be so complex? My 1st major takeaway is that microwave heating starts the breakdown of cellulose 120c lower than simply heating it - 180c mentioned. Hence MW...

Here, of course! :D

I used to do the bowls individually prior to the new kitchen crockery, as the old ones were too wide to fit 2 in at once. Since you raise the matter, I find now I can save about 20 sec heating time overall by putting the 2 together, which of course is about 2 hours over a year. (We have really...

I was more interested in the effect of a microwave on wood that was already dried, down to bound water only. I can see that quick drying wet wood could cause damage as the hot water/steam would have to escape. Did you try heating already kiln dried wood? That is what I would be using, small...

Ok, I guess my plan is as follows: 1) Forget about woodturning at breakfast time and add jam to my porridge. :D 2) Find a cheap second hand microwave for the Workshop 3) Fix workshop extractor so any cooking smells are removed. 4) Test said microwave for functionality with pies, may need...

I am still in shock from the cost of the kitchen, maybe I need a second hand microwave for experimental purposes. Do the "odd bits and pieces for the shed" include pies at all? Not that I would ever consider a sneaky pie in the workshop, especially as my extraction system is currently U/S.

Regretfully we have a brand new kitchen with carefully matched crockery. However I am sure in the fullness of time one bowl will acquire a chip, which will then be mine and problem solved. Did think of using a marker pen on the bottom of the bowl, but there might be a flaw with that.

i suspect a small amount of wood in with 300cc of milk + bowl in the would not heat so fast, as the water in the milk would take a lot of the energy. If overheated it might boil over and put out the wood as failsafe? The porridge doesn't get much over 70C. The soap dish scenario might be more...

Here is my question – is it ok to put items of dried wood, (dried down to bound water only), in a microwave for short periods.? Do they heat slowly, or more quickly than wet wood? The reasons for the question are as follows. 1) Every morning I make breakfast that includes porridge in...

The iron I got seems ok, solidly built, no problem at all, pleasantly surprised at the price in fact. It smoked a little on first use, but that was to be expected. It was from Holland, and came with a Shuko plug and uk adaptor, which was fine, I put a uk plug on it (from my old small soldering...

here is the kit. I ended up modifying the iron into what I could have simply bought in a pyrograph kit I think. The only possible only bump in the road would be if the pyrograph kit didn't use the metric series threads that the brand maker uses. If that was the case I would just have to...

I have just got into this, and today have a working system up and running using the brand manufacturer in etsy mentioned above. However as a beginner maybe I didn't do enough research first, and should have focused more on the ancillaries rather than having the brand made up. I suspect others...

Has anyone used Low Melt glue gun/sticks? Never tried them myself. These have an application temperature between 120°C-140°C, which is probably some 70 Deg. C below the conventional hot melt guns. Try "low melt glue gun" in t'web. I just wonder if as it operates at a lower temperature...

I use sheet closed cell foam. This I get in camping shops as a "MilMat" or similar, a thin foam that you are supposed to lay on to sleep. it is usually sold as a roll, about 6' x 3'. Price about a fiver if you look out for it, check Lidl etc as they occasionally sell it. I buy the cheapest...

Laederiet looks interesting, I have made some knives in the past, and it looks like they have everything, and a fantastic range of hides and materials. I was in New Zealand a few years ago, and picked up some skins there that have been very useful. I need to restock a bit now. It is straight...