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| author | Bradley Taunt <bt@btxx.org> | 2024-06-06 08:05:12 -0400 |
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| committer | Bradley Taunt <bt@btxx.org> | 2024-06-06 08:05:12 -0400 |
| commit | 6b742c459266b18e2b375b35205ce8a6c02f0452 (patch) | |
| tree | b16fbb9a045e33dd6c97eb5ab72e6ff4d9237ea3 /build/over-engineering-an-oil-tank/index.html | |
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diff --git a/build/over-engineering-an-oil-tank/index.html b/build/over-engineering-an-oil-tank/index.html new file mode 100644 index 0000000..368e2b1 --- /dev/null +++ b/build/over-engineering-an-oil-tank/index.html @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +<!doctype html> +<html lang="en" id="top"> +<head> + <meta charset="utf-8"> + <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> + <link rel="icon" href="data:,"> + <title>Over-Engineering an Oil Tank Gauge</title> + <link href="https://bt.ht/atom.xml" type="application/atom+xml" rel="alternate" title="Atom feed for blog posts" /> + <style>*{box-sizing:border-box;}body{font-family:sans-serif;margin:0 auto;max-width:650px;padding:1rem;}img{max-width:100%;}pre{overflow:auto;}table{text-align:left;width:100%;}</style> +</head> + +<nav> + <a href="#menu">Menu ↓</a> +</nav> + +<main> +<h1>Over-Engineering an Oil Tank Gauge</h1> +<p>2020-09-09</p> +<p>I almost went down the path of investing a huge amount of time and effort into fixing a stuck oil fuel tank float-gauge in my house. Recently, the float mechanism became stuck and permanently displayed <code>empty</code> regardless of how much fuel was in the tank - not ideal. It's a 20 year-old tank, so I wasn't surprised that the float finally gave out. </p> +<p>Being the wannabe tinkerer that I am, a light bulb went off in my head and I started thinking on how to incorporate some ultrasonic system to display the accurate fuel reading digitally. Obviously my first thought was just to replace the float gauge with a new one and be done with it. That didn't sound very <em>fun</em> though.</p> +<p>I briefly looked at other similar projects and started brainstorming the best way I would implement this for my own situation. The best option I came across seemed to be this: <a href="https://scottiestech.info/2017/10/24/diy-ultrasonic-fuel-gauge-level-sensor/">DIY Ultrasonic Fuel Gauge / Level Sensor</a></p> +<p>An ultrasonic system with a cool mini display sounded pretty rad - much cooler than just replacing the broken gauge with a new float arm. So it was settled.</p> +<h2>My oil think-tank</h2> +<p>I quickly thought through my options in my head before jumping too far into things (and even included a "poor-mans" temperature strip option):</p> +<table> +<tr><th>Solution </th><th>Cost </th><th>Time </th></tr> +<tr><td>Ultrasonic Gauge </td><td>$40-50 </td><td>~2-3 hours </td></tr> +<tr><td>New Float Gauge </td><td>$25-30 </td><td>~45 minutes </td></tr> +<tr><td>Temperature Strips </td><td>$10 </td><td>~2 minutes </td></tr> +</table> +My mind was still set on building and implementing the ultrasonic option. It would be a great learning experience at the very least!<p>So, before I ordered any parts or started designing a case that would house this new super-cool device, I went to investigate/remove the float gauge to get a better look at the damage. With the help of some penetrating oil (the original installer went crazy with the pipe dope) and my trusty wrench, I opened up the gauge cap, partly lifting the float from the tank. Right away I noticed that the float and shaft were slightly stuck together in one small area. I poked it with my finger.</p> +<p><em>The float set itself back into the correct position. It was fixed.</em></p> +<p>How could I have been so dumb. I was so excited about <em>building something</em> that I jumped into implementation before fully realizing the problem. Talk about a metaphor for web dev, am I right?</p> +<h2>Overthinking simple problems</h2> +<p>I can't speak for all designers / developers out there, but I catch myself (far more often than I'd like to admit) over-engineering a solution because of some perceived notion that it is the "best" option. Most of the time it isn't actually better, it just seems more <em>fun</em>.</p> +<p>Now don't get me wrong, fun is a good thing most of the time. It's just that some instances call for the quickest, cleanest, easiest solution in the name of efficiency - just be sure to have fully explored the problem <em>first</em>.</p> +<h2>Final decision</h2> +<p>So I ended up doing nothing. I simply re-threaded the cap and placed the float back inside the tank. I know I saved myself time and money, but I can't help but feel like I failed...</p> +<p>Just like in the world of software, it's best to avoid over-engineering simple problems.</p> +<footer role="contentinfo"> + <h2>Menu Navigation</h2> + <ul id="menu"> + <li><a href="/">Home</a></li> + <li><a href="/projects">Projects</a></li> + <li><a href="/uses">Uses</a></li> + <li><a href="/wiki">Wiki</a></li> + <li><a href="/resume">Resume</a></li> + <li><a href="/colophon">Colophon</a></li> + <li><a href="/now">Now</a></li> + <li><a href="/donate">Donate</a></li> + <li><a href="/atom.xml">RSS</a></li> + <li><a href="#top">↑ Top of the page</a></li> + </ul> + <small> + Built with <a href="https://git.sr.ht/~bt/barf">barf</a>. <br> + Maintained with ♥ for the web. <br> + Proud supporter of <a href="https://usefathom.com/ref/DKHJVX">Fathom</a> & <a href="https://nextdns.io/?from=74d3p3h8">NextDNS</a>. <br> + The content for this site is <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">CC-BY-SA</a>.<br> The <a href="https://git.sr.ht/~bt/bt.ht">code for this site</a> is <a href="https://git.sr.ht/~bt/bt.ht/tree/master/item/LICENSE">MIT</a>. + </small> +</footer>
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