I thought I'd start this general chat thread for what members are doing with their time at home.
I'm on a month's leave and doing a range of odd jobs at home and at the rentals.
One such job was to finally tackle a slow leak coming from our Russell Hobbs electric kettle.
The kettle is probably ancient by today's throwaway standards.
It's this one:
only with teardrop shaped windows, not the vertical ones shown on this model:
The slow leak producing a few drops at the base of the handle was a worry for an electric kettle, so it was high time this Engineer on leave did something about it.
Dismantling the kettle revealed that, thanks to having the cute windows to monitor water level, the design also incorporated a pair of lamps, one blue for 'standby' and one red for 'heating', helfway up the body hidden by the handle piece.
Because of this lovely colour feature the otherwise intact steel enclosure had a cutout for a plastic bubble to fit and supposedly seal, allowing the two lamps to glow into the water. It's here that some trickle was making its way right past the power switch in the base of the handle.
What were Russell Hobbs' designers thinking?
Well, after sourcing a suitable clear, food grade, neutral curing, high temperature silicone sealant, I applied it with a soapy finger (great tradie's tip) and let it set for at least 24 hours. I then gave it quite a few boil cycles to ensure the integrity of the seal and the absence of any aftertaste and we're away and boiling once again.
I also have a story about a custom designed porthole for a reconditioned rainwater tank but I'll save that for another post if this one doesn't get voted out of existence.
