Month: January 2019

I added a “recommended reading” page here for great books I read along the way. At the moment, the list is short but as I look at my library I’ll continue to add more titles.

Personal and professional challenges allow us to grow.  It can be to improve a score, reduce time spent, find a better route, etc.  It’s what teaches us what our strengths are and what weaknesses we need to be aware of.  Successes teach us what works. Failures give us an opportunity to reflect on why something didn’t work. 

A Better Mousetrap… err, Air Conditioner

A couple years ago my wife and I used to live in a townhouse in New Hampshire.  We liked the place but we couldn’t install a central a/c unit since we rented. The only option at the time, aside from moving or suffering the summer heat, was to go with a couple window units.

After installing a window air conditioner unit, I gave myself a challenge.  I set 3 simple criteria the frame had to meet to be successful:

1. Safety – make it impossible for it to fall out
2. Quality – absolutely no bugs or water could come in
3. Efficiency – make it easy to changeout between seasons

Essentially, I took a home project and used it as an opportunity to broaden a couple skills I hadn’t used in a long time – 3D modeling and woodworking. 

Safety

If you were on the street level looking at the townhouse, the 2^nd floor rooms were technically three floors from the ground on the back of the building.  Essentially, if an a/c unit fell from that height it would kill someone. 

In short, I live by Murphy’s Law (if it can happen, it will) so it had to be impossible to fall out when installing or removing it.  Applying some engineering and Lean terminology to this, it was an exercise to poka-yoke the process.

Quality

When buying a window unit, I am not a fan of those plastic wings they include.  They let bugs in (lady bugs and aphids seem to fit between anything!).  They leak air by them.  Further, if you see light in the bottom or top of the accordion material it’s not a very good seal. Also, when it rained with high winds a little water breakthrough between the accordion and plastic base was inevitable.

Efficiency

I wanted a solid frame that would go around the unit so the frame did not rely on the window shutting to pin it in place.  Moreover, the a/c unit would be installed into the frame with a couple screws to hold it in place and the frame inserted into the window.

Version 1.0 – The Prototype

After defining what I was trying to achieve, I began measuring everything started building the 3D model.  I made a working model of the a/c unit and the window frame. 

To clarify (and be fair), I didn’t start out as an engineer and my education wasn’t directly in engineering. I didn’t have a lot of hands-on 3D modeling experience prior. A few years before this endeavor I played around with a software package called Sketchup and mapped out a shed in my backyard when I lived in Erie, PA.  That is to say, it was one of those situations where you’re not sure if you have enough room to install something into it and you start drawing with a simple box. 

Game On

Subsequently, it turned into a kind of game to me to see what other details I could add to it without breaking the model.  With that previous “practice run”, I set out to build something new in virtual space.

After that, using the virtual model for each piece’s dimensions I used the adage “measure twice, cut once” to build the frame and minimize wasting materials.  The ledge in the back was for the window to set on.  In addition, the ledge was inset by about a ¼” to rest against the vertical window frame.  This made it impossible to fall out of the window.

Next, I painted the frame to seal it and help it blend it in aesthetically with the window frame.  The prototype performed perfectly. It successfully >kept the bugs out, sealed perfectly against the weather, and easily installed/uninstalled from the window.

Ultimately, the first a/c frame was a springboard for the next project.  I had a larger window unit for the 4^th floor that had a little different problem. The top floor was considerably larger and the temperature upwards of 95+ degrees in the summer . Also, the window was a double and the a/c unit was almost twice as heavy.  I had to implement a shelf to balance the weight and keep it from pulling outward too hard on the window frame.

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Unfortunately, I took a new job and we moved before I finished building the larger frame.  I learned a lot in the process and it made for some great conversations with friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors. As for the next personal building challenges, I am working on a custom piece for a tv and plans for a mini jet engine from a truck turbo.

How do you challenge yourself?

This week I decided to try something I thought about for a few years. Blogging is something you hear a lot about. People blog about cool new tech, their cat’s latest antics, or some adrenaline fueled escapade like skydiving . As a 40-something engineer/tech/chemist guy it never seemed like something I really considered doing. However, after someone asked me “tell me something that’s not on your resume” I realized what would I say? Would I mention a personal challenge I bested, a quirky anecdote, or rattle off a bunch of professional skills? So, after reflecting on this for a couple days, I thought why not set up a blog to share some of my experiences. Most importantly, maybe it would resonate with others.

So for this first challenge my goal is to write five pieces or stories by the end of February 2019.

Come along with me on this journey and if you have a similar story please share it by leaving a comment.