Solution to choppy video playback on VLC app on M3 and M4 Macs

 I've been using VLC to play back videos for years on both Mac and Windows machines.  It's a great app.  

I recently bought new M3 and M4 Macs to replace my old Intel Mac machines.  Most apps work just fine on the newer Macs.  

VLC, however, has not worked well -- videos are always stuttering or buffering, playing back so they look choppy.  I've been using IINA instead, which plays videos back beautifully.  I finally had some time this weekend to try to resolve the problem with VLC.  

I went through all the suggestions on the web.  I uninstalled VLC completely (I think), installed the most recent version, and tried increasing File Caching and other settings.  

This is the solution that finally worked for me: 
Under Settings > Video > Output modules -- change Video output module to "Mac OS X Open GL video output". 

I Don't Get It: Don't Banks and Stores Always Say NOT To Click on Links in Emails, Since They May Be Fraudulent?

 I've been told countless times by banks and stores that I should not click on links that are in emails, since those emails might be fraudulent.  

Yet every email I get from my banks has links in them!  

I am not a rube -- I know to check any links from emails to make sure that the links go to something like chase.com.  But still, WTF, banks!  

Hey banks!  Stop using links in your emails if you are going to lecture your customers over and over that they should never click on links in emails! 

A Review of IP cameras, or Surveillance Cameras: Amcrest, Wyze, Arlo, Reolink, and more

 A friend asked me about IP cameras, or surveillance cameras.  He wanted to put one outside to monitor package deliveries, and also wanted to use a solar panel instead of running a power wire to the camera.  Here's some of my answer to him, and more.  

I've been using web-based IP (Internet Protocol) cameras starting with D-Link DCS-900 "Fast Ethernet Internet Cameras" back in 2008 or so.  Those were a pain to set up -- you had to learn "port forwarding" -- but worked very cool at the time and worked well.  I've since used Amcrests, Arlo, Wyze, Eufy (not extensively), and Reolink cameras.  

I generally use my cameras to keep an eye on several structures and houses, but after the fact.  I don't rely on them to tell me if a person is walking around the house in that moment, for example. I use the cameras to confirm that garage doors are closed, and as evidence after the fact, in case someone breaks into the house or steals a package - which luckily I do not have ongoing problems with.  I generally put my cameras inside windows and they look out.  I don't want to deal with cameras getting stolen if they are placed outside; and I don't care if the cameras match the interior decor. 

One big criteria for IP cams is that I want the cameras to send stills or videos to the cloud or to an email address for no fee.  Many companies originally did that and then changed their plans.  Wyze cams will store your videos for 7 days, for no fee.  It's called Cam Lite Plus and is a bit difficult to figure out.  They'd rather you pay. of course.  One issue with Wyze cams is the 5 minute cooldown period between recording motion events unless you pay for Cam Plus, a monthly fee.  I don't pay and I don't mind the cooldown period.  

I bought two Arlo systems in 2018 and 2019 based primarily on the company's promise of free 7-day cloud storage of motion events.  Just a few days ago (January 2023), the company announced that it would no long offer free cloud storage for my model of cameras.  I would not recommend Arlo cameras to anyone due to this broken promise (and the clearly specious excuse that the cameras were "end-of-life" but hey, if you want to pay for a subscription plan, they won't quite be "end-of-life".)  Arlo has proven that it can't be trusted to honor its promises to customers. 

I've used Amcrest 720P and 1080P IP cameras since the D-Link cameras, since 2014 at least. I use Amcrests for their ability to email motion-activated still images.  I don't use them for cloud recording.  The Amcrests can be a pain to set up, but once set up, they are pretty reliable.  Amcrests can work off wifi and also hardwired with Ethernet cables.  

Here's an Amcrest camera at Amazon: 

Amcrest ProHD 1080P WiFi 2MP (1920TVL) Indoor Pan/Tilt Security Wireless IP Camera IP2M-841B (Black)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0145OQTPG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

I see from Amazon that I bought one in 2018; all of mine except one are still going strong.  White one is $36; black one is $40.  This is about what I have paid over the years, they have not gone down in price.

Amcrests are not perfect.  The setup can be a PITA compared to Wyze cams.  The web interface is OK but old. The Phone app interface is OK but old. I do recommend them since they are pretty rock solid once set up.  

Reolink allows you 7 days of free cloud recording but you are limited to one camera (sure, you could create a second account, which I have done) and you have to effing renew your $0 plan every month, for every account.  I hate that kind of corporate busywork. The Reolinks are unreliable in my experience.  The Android phone app more often than not tells me that it cannot connect to the Reolink.  The Reolink clips to the cloud don't match the clips that are recorded on the SD card on the camera itself.  Like Amcrests, Reolinks can email stills of motion events, but the stills are not as sharp as the ones from the Amcrests.  

I have heard good things about Eufy and tried a couple.  One simply would not connect to my router at the time.  The other would connect.  I returned both.  The Eufys seemed fine, and folks in online forums liked them MUCH better than Wyze. However, Eufy (same company as Anker) made a huge mistake.  They actually lied about the security of their cameras.  

Anker’s Eufy lied to us about the security of its security cameras: 

https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/30/23486753/anker-eufy-security-camera-cloud-private-encryption-authentication-storage

As you do your research, you will find that vital information whether one has to pay subscription fees to have images or videos recorded in the cloud is VERY difficult to find, even in third-party reviews!!  This kind of informatoin must purposely be lacking from these review sites since they take advertising dollars.  A lot of reviews will say hey, you can put an SD card in the camera and it will record 24/7 or something like that, and you can view events from the SD card from weeks past.  But WTF -- what if someone breaks in your place and steals the camera and SD card in it (even easier if the camera is outdoors)?  Unless you have stills or video sent to the cloud, that SD card is useless. 

I researched many if not most of the other options out there -- TP-Link, Nest, Blink, Ring.  They all have subscription fees AFAIK to work like you'd want. 

Here are some somewhat random notes and observations: 

All IP cams that I know will only take 2.4Ghz wifi, not the 5Ghz band. 

The best thing about Amcrest and Reolink is that they will send email alerts with still images.  Getting the email alerts set up can be a pain, however.  Reolink has the same email settings as Amcrests -- and better online documentation and forums.  If you have trouble getting an Amcrest camera to send email notifications, then check what Reolink's forums recommend.  

Once I tried to see a license plate from my Amcrests (and then tried with all my cams, most of which are 1080p).  I generally could NOT decipher a license plate from the still image from any 1080p cams.

I like Wyze cams because they are quick to set up, easy to use, and have a good phone app that lets me see if my cameras at various structures are on or off.  The phone interface is great -- well-designed.  There's no way to view the cameras or events on a desktop computer, unless you use outside tools like tinycampro or an Android Bluestacks simulator.  

I turn the Wyze cameras on and off from the phone app all the time.  This is near-impossible to do with Amcrest cameras.  I can see what cameras are completely off, either no internet or power, which is useful if I need to know if power or internet has gone off at a property.  There's sometimes significant time lag between the time power comes back on and the Wyze app shows cameras back on; sometimes you have to push the ON button in the app for the Wyze app to realize and show that all cameras in a home are indeed "on".  

Reolink has cameras with solar capability.  They seem to have everything you or I would want.  7-day cloud recording, what seems like good support, tons of models, indoor and outdoor cams.  I am just not impressed with the still images sent by email (very low-res), the finicky nature of the cameras, and the poor layout of the apps.  I have had to mess with my basic E1 cameras an inordinate amount.  They often are disconnected on the phone app but are later accessible.  They often do way too much motion detection, too many alerts, using up my a data plan at one house.  The events in the SD cards in the cameras don't match what's in the cloud or what was sent over email.  If the camera detects motion, shouldn't the stills sent via email match what is stored on the SD card and in the cloud?  Not with Reolink.  Granted, I bought the cheapest version of the brand. 

I have the original Arlo outdoor cameras (VMC3030, but of course this model of camera came in a ton of confusing other names, matched with base stations).  They require a base station (cameras don't connect directly to wifi, have to put a damn base station connected to your router, WTF) and take rechargeable CR123A batteries or something like those.  They gave free 7 day cloud recording.  I still use them but believe that free 7-day cloud recording is gone from newer models.  These cameras are cool -- I do use them outdoors and the rechargeable CR123A batteries last about 3 months -- so the cameras are completely wireless.  The cameras have a good design with mounts that use strong magnets (so does Wyze).  When they work, they are OK.  But one of them (10 feet from the base station, at the front door) constantly disconnects, it's a "bad" camera because the second camera is a good 100 feet away from the base station and does not disconnect as often.  Arlo cameras get great reviews and might do what you need, but they are more expensive.  They are also a pain in the butt, requiring constant fiddling since they require base station, need to recharge batteries, and often disconnect.  With Wyze and Amcrest cameras, you set the camera up, and you are pretty much done -- they can go and go with no issue for months and months.  Amcrests take long time to set up, and you will have to consult forums to get things like email settings.  Setting up Wyze cams is pretty much dead simple, with the phone app to set up and get going.  Of course, figuring out the best way to set up Wyze cams takes a while; there are some tips and tricks to know.

Nextdoor.com's Notification Options Are Crazy Complicated!

 Yowzy!  I went to nextdoor.com to try to turn off some notifications that I was getting.  Holy crap!  Take a look at all the options someone is supposed to go through.  

This proliferation of choices is proliferating everywhere!  It's making people crazy!

How Ridiculous Making Coffee Has Become

Have you noticed how ridiculous making coffee has become?  All the experts, sippers, methods, varieties, etc?  All the techniques and machines?  

I must admit that I have been drawn into the coffee scene a bit myself.  I love good ice coffee and actually spend $5 to $6 to buy it at Vietnamese cafes every other week when I am in the Bay Area.  Anyone who knows me would know that is a lot of money to spend on a frigging drink, for me.   I've bought several superautomatic espresso machines (I had to look up what type I have been buying) due to an Italian diver friend of mine from long ago that my friend Steve Drogin introduced me to -- Sergio Angelini.  Thanks Sergio!

 I started with a Saeco Vienna machine as did many of Drogin's pals.  That finally broke and I have stayed with the Saeco machines, all refurbed, most from woot or Seattle Coffee Gear (which is where woot used to get their refurbed espresso machines).  I know what I like in beans and what I get out of these machines, and they all use the same main part, so I've become familiar enough to maintain them and even fix them to some extent when something goes wong.  

I have French presses and moka stovetop espresso makers.  I have cheapo American style brewers like you find in every hotel room in America.  I have a couple of Lavazza Blue machines that use capsules.  I was somewhat conned into buying a cold-coffee maker -- which turned out to be just a plastic French press that you put in a fridge rather than using hot water in!   Same effing thing -- I already had several of them!   

The newest rage is "pour over coffee."  There's a great coffee place in Olympia that makes great lattes.  But I am a plebe.  The real coffee artists and aficionados gather around the counter where there are glass beakers and lab stuff, making and drinking "pour over coffee." I would see them over there at the counter, separated from us commoners, sipping, pursing their lips, and savoring their fine coffee pour-overs.  

Therefore I paid attention when slickdeals, a site that I peruse often, mentioned this deal on an OXO Brew Single Serve Pour-Over Coffee Maker.  I read through the forum discussion, which went on for more than 10 pages (well, I did not finish it).  I attach the first two or three pages for your benefit.  Huge discussion about glass versus plastic, filters, etc.  So I bought the thing.  Imagine my surprise --- it's just a plastic cup with some holes in it (which disperse hot water evenly).  Then just a plastic funnel with a hole in it, in which you place a standard paper coffee filter!  Everything just goes from the holes at the top, through the filter, into a coffee mug!  Voila!  no difference really from hot water going through a plastic funnel/filter in my $10 Black and Decker coffee machine which I bought for visitors who could not figure out how to use my Saeco automatic espresso machine!  

Seriously, first, why do Americans absolutely have to have coffee makers in their hotel room?  Every effing hotel room in the US has a coffee machine.  And now the endless discussions on pour-over coffee, which is just hot water poured on coffee, like any hotel coffee machine?  

And how the eff is Starbucks still making money?  Their drinks are nothing but candy, coffee-flavored milk shakes, that get all gummy and lose their flavor after the first sip!  

We Americans sure are rich as hell to be spending so much time and moola on coffee and its endless permutations.  

The discussion above is from a Slickdeals forum: 

https://slickdeals.net/f/16222786-12-oz-oxo-brew-single-serve-pour-over-coffee-maker-14?attrsrc=search%3Aterm%3Aoxo+pour%7Csearch%3Apage%3A1%7Csearch%3Aposition%3A1%7Csearch%3Aresult_type%3Athread%7Csearch%3Aresult_id%3A16222786&src=SiteSearchV2Algo1

Featured Comments

So someone whose coffee expertise I really respect actually recommends plastic over ceramic or glass for pour-over brewers: https://youtu.be/1oB1oDrDkHM?t=138

Solid plastic.

It works better than the usual funnel type of coffee maker because of the tank that meters out the water proportionally. Tastes much better because you don't pour too much too soon and you don't have to stand there pouring a little at a time. We use ours while camping off the grid, heating water on the stove with no microwave available. Perfect for that use.

I got one of these a few months ago and I really like it. It makes brewing really easy. It's made of a very durable plastic and if you fill the tank up to the brim it makes a lot of coffee at all once in a set-and-forget kind of way. 

I have the starbucks branded one and it has worked well for daily use! Great price since starbucks used to sell theirs for $20. They have a new one that is not from OXO now…

 

Driveway motion detector to warn of break-in to a vehicle

 



For folks wanting to protect their cars from thieves going after catalytic converters, registration tags, etc: I bought one of these Hosmart driveway motion detectors with alarm, and I am surprised at how well this thing works! I use it when parking somewhere and going on a hike with my dog. I have an RV and would hate to come back to find the RV stolen or broken into. I just mount the motion detector in the inside of the RV and carry the alarm with me -- it works at least 1/4 mile away by my testing and probably more. It does not give many (really, any) false alarms -- just alarms when it senses motion from a human or other warm body.

https://www.amazon.com/Hosmart-Rechargable-Driveway-Wireless-Weatherproof/dp/B07PRGGRGW/ref=sr_1_3?crid=4IUS76GA0D06&keywords=hosmart&qid=1669140591&sprefix=hosmart%2Caps%2C817&sr=8-3
1/2 Mile Hosmart Driveway Alarm Wireless Sensor System & Driveway Sensor (I agree that the name of the thing is not the greatest!) 

I imagine that if you park your car on the street in front of your house, you would put the motion sensor under the car, hidden by a tire, and it would alert you if someone (or maybe a cat) crawls under the car. Of course, a friend of mine said that maybe you would not want to do anything if the alarm goes off when I was on a hike, since the thieves might have weapons. I'd rather know than not know. 

The alarm unit can be powered by 4 AA batteries, or an AC adapter.  The motion sensor is charged using a USB cable and any phone charger, and the battery in it still had a charge, enough so the alarm worked fine after sitting six months in storage

I went on a hike last month at a remote area in Puget Sound, and I had a second phone with a working cell data plan (just $10 per month from tello). I put this phone in my car and made sure that it was turned on, that it could get a cell signal where or near I was hiking. I used Google's Find Device app to make sure that my phone was indeed being located and hid it in the car. If the car had gotten stolen, I'd know where the car was. I guess Apple Airtags can do the same thing without a cell phone plan.

WTF is up with clerks and flight attendants, anyone in any small position of authority, deciding to make up rules all by themselves?

 I have not complained on this blog for a while, so here goes: 

 WTF is up with clerks and flight attendants, anyone in any small position of authority, deciding to make up rules all by themselves?  It seems to be happening more and more.  

 Here are some examples that happened in the past: 

Home Depot has policy that allows dogs in their stores.  This was six years ago, before the dog-loving craze of today.  I walked in a Home Depot with my dog Max.  I've been in numerous different Home Depot  stores in the past with my dog, and I do it because the dog really enjoys exploring new spots (and my current Lab, Moose, loves eating the bits of cardboard on the floor, which is a pain since he can get plugged up).  This time, however, a male Home Depot staffperson stops me and says that dogs aren't allowed.  I don't argue and leave, and put the dog in the car (which I don't like to do, since it can get hot in the car after just a few minutes; the alternative of leaving the windows fully rolled down is unsafe for the dog AND the car).  Later, I do some research and the rule is that all dogs are allowed in all Home Depot stores!  This guy just didn't like dogs and made up a rule all on his own! 

 I saw on the news and later on Youtube, a Delta Airlines flight attendant (pre-Covid) full of authority, tells a family that their kid will be put in a foster home if they don't give up their paid seat!  

Flight attendants told the Schear family that if they didn’t give up the seat, they would be removed from the flight. “Then it’s going to be a federal offense,” a crew member warned Brian. “I mean, you and your wife will be in jail and your kids will be put in foster care,” the flight attendant continued.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOeI26r3w6w

The flight attendant just made this crap up!  

 Yesterday, I go into Ace Hardware and take advantage of their sale -- buy two air filters, get one of lesser or equal value free.  I bought two of one size and one of another, and both are the same price.  The clerk rang it up and I did not realize that the machine actually did the calculation just fine.  I asked him why I did not get the third free.  

He made up a new rule, just like that!, "All air filters have to be the same size, sorry man."  I did not argue, I just told him to ring up the two that were the same size and I would go and get a third of the same size since it was free.  No, he had to ring it all up again.  I went to the back and got a third filter that was the same price and the size I wanted.  The ad is attached is pretty clear.  Why did Ace Hardware clerk have to make this crap up?  Because he is lazy!  

 

Air Pump Recommendations for Inflatable Kayaks (IKs) and Stand-Up Paddleboards (SUPs)

 I have both inflatable kayaks and stand-up paddleboards.  I like them both as does my dog Moose.  I use my Tower SUPs more than my tandem IKs; they are smaller, lighter, and just easier to lug around.  The IKs are more stable in whitewater.  I've only used them in very low Class 2 rapids.  They are great, but since I bought tandems (for why else than so Moose could come with me!) they are heavier and longer.  

My grouchy friend in Portland wrote me recently: 

    "Hey- what kind of pump should I get for my IK? Foot pump or NRS Wonder Pump 6?"

And my much less grouchy friends in Denver asked what kind of pumps I'd recommend for their new SUP: "You are correct. We need to get an electric pump. Took me longer than I wanted to pump this sucker up in 100 degree temperature. I need to find the message you sent with your recommendations."

*****

IKs need to be inflated to about 2 psi, whereas SUPs should be inflated up to 6 to 10 psi.  This is a pretty big difference.  

From the Aire inflatable kayak manual:

Top off each chamber in the same pattern. If you hear a humming sound in the floor valve, it’s the pressure release indicating the floor has reached maximum pressure (2.5 psi) and you can stop pumping. For the other chambers, using your thumb you should be able to depress about ½” from the top center of the tube. 

For IKs, here's what I recommend these days: 

I think the best all around (for IK) is a foot pump.  

However, I am always confused as the best Bravo foot pump to get and how many frigging models there are.

I have lately been using a Bravo! 9 Double Chamber High Volume and High Pressure 14.5 PSI Foot Pump to inflate my inflatable kayak (an NRS Outlaw II) so that they are semi-rigid.  This is overkill for an IK, which only needs 2.5 psi.  

Here's an inexpensive Bravo foot pump that will work for a while:

https://www.westmarine.com/buy/west-marine--bravo-7-foot-pump--10967644

Bravo 7 foot pump only $20, that's a deal.

I'll then pull out the awesome K-100 pump to finish off the pumping task.  The K-100 pump is just great.  I bought this pump with the internal check valve so air won't go back into the pump.  The internal check valve only cost $2.95 more, so it's a no-brainer to order it along with the pump.  

I also bought a K100 hand pump:

https://www.nrs.com/product/1714/k-pump-100

I love this thing.  It is great.  The Bravo foot pump will get you just about the whole way you need (for IKs, not SUPs).  I use K100 hand pump to top off the IKs (and to pump my SUP sup to 6 to 10 psi).

To get the IK inflated initially, rather than a foot pump, I'll often use an electric high-volume inflator as I describe below.  

****

To inflate a SUP (6 to 10 psi): 

Any of these will work to get your SUP up to 1-2 psi (initial high-volume inflation):

Bravo foot pump

Ryobi high volume inflator with battery or dual inflator

any electric inflating pump, like this one or the $11 one below:

https://smile.amazon.com/Electric-Portable-Quick-Fill-Inflator-Inflatable/dp/B074NZY3SQ/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=air+pump&qid=1598152824&sr=8-5

Here's an inexpensive pump that would work for initial high volume inflation:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14288885-outdoormaster-op420-0-64-ps-electric-air-mattress-pump-11-19-amazon?src=SiteSearchV2_SearchBarV2Algo1

$11.19 @ Amazon with code W76U5FDK

I have also used this pump, which works great off my car battery: 

Sevylor SUP and Water Sport Electric Pump, 12V, 15-PSI

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sevylor-SUP-and-Water-Sport-Electric-Pump-12V-15-PSI/35395714

(No longer at Amazon, probably temporary)

Electric air pumps work great when you are putting stuff together in your garage, but when you get to a parking lot, it's hot, you have a dog that is in a rush and wants to run around, there are lots of people, then having to hook an electric pump up to your car and inflate the SUP is just not advisable or workable.  Usually, I get my SUP initially inflated in my garage up to 1 to 2 psi -- I get it mostly filled up but nowhere near full with an electric inflator.  

I've been using a Ryobi high volume inflator or dual inflator for the initial high-volume inflation: 

https://www.ryobitools.com/products/details/one-18v-high-volume-power-inflator

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-18-Volt-ONE-Dual-Function-Inflator-Deflator-Tool-Only-P747/308746324

I LOVE the Ryobi dual inflator and use it to fill my car and bike tires too.  The psi gauge is actually accurate and shuts off when tires reach the set psi!!!  And, using it is easy to figure out! Good user interface!  No have to read manual!

Once I get to the river put-in site, I'll use a K100 pump to get the SUP up to 6-10 psi.  

ASPCA's Poison Control Hotline Helped When My Dog Ate Mouse Poison

 The most important stuff first: 

ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center Phone Number: (888) 426-4435

https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control

From their website: The ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (APCC) is your best resource for any animal poison-related emergency, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. If you think your pet may have ingested a potentially poisonous substance, call (888) 426-4435. A consultation fee may apply.

*****

I've had Labs or Lab mutts for the past 30+ years.  They are great dogs, but they eat EVERYTHING.  EVERYTHING.   This post is about my experience when my dog Moose ate mouse poison.  

Here at my house in WA state, we have an ongoing mice problem.  So I bought some mice bait traps from Amazon and Lowe's near my house.  Here's what I bought: 

Tomcat Mouse Killer Refillable Station, Includes 1 Bait Station with 16, 1-oz. Baits - Child & Dog Resistant - Use Indoors & Outdoors to Kill Mice

The package arrived from Amazon, and I took it out from the Amazon package when the thin plastic bag broke.  The makers put their product in a very thin bag and it tore on its own!  Not thinking, I put the broken plastic bag on the floor of the garage.  

The next morning, I noticed Moose (a chocolate Lab, 80 pounds in size) had that "I'm so happy being bad" look on his face.   He had obviously eaten some of the mice bait.  This was a bit after 7AM in the morning, on a weekday.  Of course I was panicked and started calling vets.  We've taken our dogs to a local vet about four miles away for several years -- when we are in Olympia.  In recent years, this vet's staff NEVER f**king answers the phone!  Why don't they get more people to answer the phone?  Moose cut his paw last year during working hours; I called the vet, and they had no space to see him -- so I had to call around and drive Moose to a vet about 25 miles away.  OK, that was one time.  But they did not answer the phone back then during my dog's time of need and the ensuing phone tag was super stressful.  

My local vet had a message to call an emergency clinic.  This was 710am. I called the emergency clinic (about ten miles away), and they said that I had to call the Poison Control Hotline first.  I did so and was put on hold.  Did I mention that I was stressed?  I figured that time was of the essence, so I needed to get Moose to the vet to get his stomach pumped ASAP!  I could not take being on hold any longer (about three minutes) and jumped in the car to drive to the emergency vet.  At the main intersection from my home, I could have  turned one way and gone to the local vet, or turned the other way and it would have taken 20 minutess to get to downtown Oly for the emergency clinic. I decided against the local vet that was two minutes away -- they just have never been there for me and my dog when I needed them!  Again, I was really stressed out.  I had no idea how much Moose had eaten or how quickly the poison might get to him.  

While I was driving, I dialed the poison control hotline and finally got someone rather than being put on hold.  If you call the Poison Control Hotline, you will always get a standard greeting and message to press 1, etc and the message that there is a $75 fee.  I was not initially happy about this message and had no idea what this Poison Control Hotline was from, who ran it, etc.  Was it a government service, a for-profit business, what?  Was I wasting precious time by calling them?  Shouldn't I just haul ass to the emergency vet rather than wasting time calling?  

Thankfully, a calm woman named Lauren answered.  I pulled over to talk to her.  Luckily I could hear her well; I have a pretty bad hearing problem and often can't understand people on the phone (something most businesses need to recognize when they always force hearing-disabled people like me to speak on the phone!).  

I had (surprisingly, given my rush and stress) thought to take the package with me with all the bait in there.  She asked me the ingredients and EPA codes on the package.  I could find the ingredients but not the EPA codes -- looked everywhere on the package, several times.  Lauren kept asking me for the EPA number, which I could not find.  Thankfully the bag stated how many blocks of bait was in there -- 16 blocks.  When Lauren put me on hold, I counted 15 blocks left.  Whew, it was good that the manufacturer put the number of blocks on the package ( but bad that they used such a thin bag to contain the poison!).  Finally Lauren came back and said "no worries, Moose is big enough that eating one block of this poison should be no problem."  It turns out that there was no need to visit the emergency vet or even induce vomiting.  Moose, being 80 pounds, could eat up to four blocks with no issues. Supposedly.  

Here are some more details and things I learned: 

The active ingredient in this Tomcat Mouse Poison is Bromethalin (CAS #63333-35-7), 0.01%.  Other Ingredients**Contains Denatonium Benzoate 99.99%.  

Since I was relieved and no longer so stressed, I found the EPA numbers easily -- they were in plain view to the very left of the ingredients!  People can't operate that well under stress!  At least not me.  

EPA REG NO. 90780-10

EP EST. NO. 12455-W1-1

If you have a dog, get a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and store it in case you need to induce vomiting.  I had none at the house.  This should be a last resort (call the Poison Control Hotline and rush the dog to the vet!) but there's information about how to do this online.  All the stores that I've checked locally are out of hydrogen peroxide right now, due to the pandemic.  

I talked to Lauren and determined that the Poison Control Hotline is "under the ASPCA umbrella," but the hotline needs funding, so they do charge a $75 fee.  My wife donates to ASPCA and other animal rescue organizations every year, but I had the impression that ASPCA was one of those lame nonprofits that always, always asked for money, more money, more more more -- and was more of a marketing organization than something that actually did real work (hear that, AAA and to a lesser extent, AARP?).  I am happy to find out that ASPCA has real world services that help people and animals, rather than just being a marketing organization that takes your money and then spends it on mailings to get more money out of you.  

I told this story to a friend, and he wrote: 

> I’m also SHOCKED that there is a $75 fee for poison control.  Who knew?

I have no issue with paying this fee.  They said at the beginning of the voice answering service that there would be a $75 fee.  Also, Lauren took all my information down and gave me her evaluation first, before asking for my credit card, so it was classy on their part.  Good for the ASPCA.

Another thumbs up to ASPCA -- in Monterey County, where I have another home and spend a lot of time, ASPCA is very visible in helping out evacuees and taking in farm animals from the recent wildfires.  This hotline is obviously a service that all vets are making people use in cases of poisoning. So here's a nonprofit that really is doing real work.  Unlike a lot of other bulls*** nonprofits.  Why don't nonprofits pay tax anyway?  I saw an essay on this.  

Thanks, ASPCA and especially the Poison Control Hotline!  

Screw you, local vet that never answers the phone and is never there when your clients need you!  

Moose, that idiot dog, is fine.  

Costco - Incredibly Wasteful Packaging

 I've been a Costco member for years.  Costco's generally great.  However, some of their practices are incredibly wasteful.  They force their vendors to put small items in giant blister packages so that customers can't shoplift the items.  

I recently ordered a small, portable hard drive from Costco.com.  The hard drive is the size of a deck of cards.  It came in the customary large blister packaging, and even worse, the blister packaging came in a box the size of my garbage can!  

That's the hard drive in the red circle.  What a waste.  

How to Put a the Bing Image of the Day as Your Mac Wallpaper

I like going to bing.com due to the great images that are featured on the webpage, that change daily. For Windows 10, there's even a Bing Wallpapers app that will put the Bing Image of the Day as your computer screen's desktop wallpaper. Unfortunately, for Windows 7 and Mac users, there is no official app that can do this.

For Macs, there is an app in the App Store called Bing Wallpaper or something like that, that costs $4.99. I did some research and created my own app to accomplish this using a Python script and iCal Automator event. I have never used Python before but have made iCal events.  Here's what I did:

I got a Python script called bing.py from:
https://github.com/declangao/Bing-Wallpaper-for-Mac

Thanks, declangao! Here's the description:
"A simple Python script capable of batch-downloading and setting Bing picture of the day as wallpaper on your Mac OS X."


I then did some research on how to run a Python script on my Mac. It was easy. I learned a bit about MS-DOS and command lines back in my college undergrad days, so I know how to use Teminal commands on a Mac.

To run a Python script on a Mac using Terminal:
change directory to your desktop: cd Desktop
run the Python script: Python bing.py (or your own simpler filename.py) [.py file must be on Desktop]

I ran the Python script and my Mac wallpaper did indeed change to the current day's Bing wallpaper. So the script worked!


Next:
To create a Python Unix executable file, that opens a new Terminal window and executes a Python file: generally follow these directions:

https://martechwithme.com/convert-python-script-app-windows-mac/#formac
https://martechwithme.com/schedule-python-scripts-windows-mac/#formac

martechwithme.com's directions had me create a new text file and input these lines:

#!/bin/sh
Python /Users/norbertwu/Documents/Python_test/test.py  [I created a folder called Python_test in the Documents folder]

then save the file to the folder Python_test, save without an extension
in Terminal: enter "chmod 755 /Users/norbertwu/Documents/Python_test/test

This changes the permissions for the file so that it becomes a Unix executable file. However, I discovered that I needed to add the extension ".command" to this file, so that this would open a new Terminal window and execute the python commands.


So my steps were:
create a file called test_python and put the following text in it:

#!/bin/sh
Python /Users/norbertwu/Desktop/test.py [wherever the python script is located]


In Terminal, do the command chmod 755 on the test_python file.
Then rename the test_python file to test_python.command.

Done! By double-clicking the test_python.command file, a new Terminal window is opened and the Python script executes.


I opened the bing.py file and saw the first line was: #!/usr/bin/env python
So all I did was go to Terminal: cd Desktop [the file bing.py was on the Desktop]
chmod 755 bing.py

Then I changed bing.py file to bing.command (actually bingtest.command).
Thus, bing.command became an executable file.


Next, I used Automator:
martechwithme.com writes: Finally, if you want a real application file instead of a simple Unix executable that you will be able to schedule, we can do so by launching Automator.

Launch Automator: After launching the program, choose to create an “Application”.

In the list of actions on the left side, get the parameter “Get Specified Finder Items”. Once you added it to your right panel in Automator, you should be able to “Add” an item to this action. At this point, you want to browse through your files and select your Unix Executable.

After that, we need to add a new action, namely “Open Finder Items”. This will trigger to open the file selected previously in its default application.

All that’s left is to save. Choose a name that you will recognize and you will now have your own .app file ready to be launched! 

I ended with an Automator file called changeBingWallpaper.app which just runs the bing.py executable file.


You can create an iCal event that will run an AppleScript or Automator action at a given time, and have that event repeat at the same time every day.

I then created an iCal event (can do it in iCal or Automator): let's do it in Automator:
https://martechwithme.com/schedule-python-scripts-windows-mac/#formac has tips:

choose Automator, then New file -- Calendar Alarm.

This will create a separate calendar overlay in iCal, and put an event in there.

We then need to add an Alert. A “Custom” one precisely, following the screenshot below:

A Custom Alert allows us to set a different action at the time of event. One of these actions is “Open a file”

Choose the file .app you would wish to open once the event is triggered and set the “Alert” to trigger “At time of event”

Finally and to ensure that scripts are launched periodically, it is time to define the “Repeat” setting of the event.

You can hide the Automator calendar overlay, or show it, as you wish.


This opened a Terminal window every day at 8am, ran the Documents/Python_scripts/bingtest.command file and then left the Terminal window open.

To close the "hanging" Terminal window: I went to Terminal preferences: choose "close when script exits."
I did not want a notification window or to see the iCal window after this iCal event, so I did the following:
no iCal notifications in System Preferences and/or in the iCal Automator calendar, right click, turn off Alerts


There are a ton of other ways to do this, involving various programs like LaunchControl, etc.

Even Fidelity Investments Lies and Puts Links in Emails!

I've been a client of Fidelity Investments for many years.  They generally try to hold themselves to a fairly high standard, but like all companies, are constantly trying to get me to get paperless statements.  My banks are bad about this too -- every other time that I log into my bank's website, I get a popup asking me to go paperless before I can do my banking business online.  It's irritating.

However, today I got an email from Fidelity that is just too duplicitous.  Obviously, it's another attempt to have me go paperless (which saves them money, since they don't have to mail me statements).  But come on!  Don't use a deceitful reason to try to get me to go paperless!  Take a look:


"We’ve heard from many clients that they are concerned with receiving paper mail in this current environment. If you’re concerned as well, you have an alternative. You can switch to eDelivery—it’s safe, it’s easy, and it offers many other benefits as well."


This is such a load of crap! No one is worried about getting the virus in the mail. Don't lie and treat your customers like idiots. We customers can simply not touch paper statements or trash them! We know that we can get electronic statements by going to your website, but we want paper statements! Quit trying to get us to go e-delivery!






Not only does Fidelity lie in this email to its customers, but it has at least three links that ask you to "Agree" or log into your account. This, after Fidelity and all banks repeatedly tell customers to NEVER click on a link in an email.


****
Here's what Fidelity says in this webpage:
https://www.fidelity.com/security/look-out-for-suspicious-emails

"Cyber criminals try to gain your personal information via numerous deceptive means such as legitimate-looking emails with fake web links, phone numbers, and attachments. This method of email fraud is called phishing.

Avoid opening links or attachments in an email you are not expecting. Phishing emails will often ask you for personal information in an effort to obtain access to your financial assets and identity. Responding with sensitive information (like account numbers, passwords or social security numbers) is never a good idea."


****
You can't trust any company in this day and age to actually have integrity. Not even Fidelity Investments.

Airline Shopping Malls Are Great to Keep Your Account Active, but Don't Use Target.com!

I have tons of airline miles, with United, British Airways, Delta, American, etc from flying with them for years as a traveling underwater photographer, and from accumulating miles by using airline-affiliated credit cards.  Those airline miles are valuable!

I've been able to fly first class on Emirates for "free" by using miles, to Dubai and then South Africa, which was really a great experience.  I was able to get business-class tickets for my wife and her sister to travel to London and Paris a couple of years ago.  I recently visited my friend Beez in State College, PA, by using United miles, and was able to fly from Monterey to State College with a couple of stops in between.  This was a great deal since taking that route normally would cost quite a bit of money due to the low-volume ending airports.  By using miles and "Saver Awards" on United, I only had to use 25,000 miles round trip.  Too bad that United has pretty much stopped issuing award tickets.

Delta and United's miles no longer expire, but they may close your account if there's no activity in two years or certain periods.  I don't quite trust them.  British Airways, Alaska, and American miles all expire in 18 months to three years, depending on the airline.

I have miles in all the above airlines and try to show some activity every two years, regardless of the airline's policy.  It's not difficult to earn miles and there are plenty of websites that discuss how to keep your airline frequent flyer accounts active, and your miles from expiring.

I often try to remember to shop through an airline's shopping mall portal, which you can find from Google.  It's easy -- just go to the airline's shopping portal, enter your frequent flyer account number and password, and then choose a retailer that you would normally order something from.  Unfortunately, the online retailers that my wife and I use a lot -- Amazon, Ebay, Easy -- are no longer on these shopping portals.  But Target, Home Depot, and tons of other retailers are on the shopping portals.

However, BEWARE.  You might as well not shop at Target through an airline's shopping mall and expect to get points.  I made the mistake recently.  The airline shopping mall did track my visit and showed that I had visited Target.  However, it never credited my account with any miles for my Target purchase!  I wrote them to claim the missing miles, and here's the reply:

Kelly Yeung (British Airways Avios eStore)

Mar 26, 05:57 GMT

Dear Mr/Ms Wu,

Thank you for your email.

We’re unable to credit your account as your purchase is not eligible for Avios. The Special Terms of Target say:

Target does not offer a reward on: grocery, household commodities and essentials, home appliances, health, beauty, personal care, baby care items (diapers, wipes, food, and toiletries), pet care and supplies, electronics (including TV, portable, computer software and hardware and services), toys, sporting goods, movies, digital entertainment, video games and consoles, contract mobile phones, prepaid cards, gift cards, music, books and magazines, Target Pharmacy and OTC, automotive accessories, Target Photo, photo lab, Target Optical, Target Café, starbucks, pizza hut express, SweetJOJO, and orders deemed by Target to be for resale.

We’re sorry for any disappointment this causes.

You can view the Special Terms of all our retailers by visiting British Airways Avios eStore online at http://www.shopping.ba.com/, where we have an extensive help section, answering the most frequently asked questions.

Thanks again for contacting us.

Kind regards,

Kelly Yeung
British Airways Avios eStore

*****

So, given all the stuff that is not eligible, what exactly can you buy through Target.com and get miles for?  Everything is excluded, so why is Target even in the airline shopping malls?  I can't think of anything that I'd buy at Target that would be eligible!  

Ridiculous!  And bad on you, Target!  Bad Target!

Home Depot is awesome as is the airline shopping portal, and HD honors the points.  Unlike Target.

Amazon Returns: Great, But Don't Choose "The UPS Store Dropoff" Option!

I've always been very happy, indeed thrilled and surprised with Amazon's practices and obvious attention to good customer service.  Their returns process has always struck me as fair and easy to do.

Just about all the time, I've chosen the option to print a UPS label and then deliver the item being returned in my own box, to a local UPS Store.  I ALWAYS get a physical receipt from the UPS Store showing that I dropped the return item off.  Most of the time, I get an email from Amazon stating that my account has been refunded in just a couple of hours.  Amazon generally promises such a refund once it receives your return item, so this is an example where Amazon under-promises and over-delivers -- which is just outstanding, smart customer service.  Few companies do this.

Two weeks ago, however, I chose the option that Amazon gave me to show a bar code at the UPS Store.  Amazon stated that I just needed to show the bar code and did not need to box up the returned item.  Well, this was a mistake!



Here's what I wrote Amazon Customer Service:

I am writing because I hope Amazon will improve its service in this return situation.  My recent experience, where I returned an item with just a barcode and no packaging (as directed by Amazon) to a UPS Store, was very frustrating, and contrary to all the other good Amazon return experiences that I have had.  In the future, I certainly won't bring a return to the UPS store with just a barcode since it does not seem that I will ever see proper tracking of my package, never mind a timely refund.

I hope that you can pass on my complaints about this situation to upper management.  I feel that the use of a UPS barcode rather than a UPS label is not a good practice for your customers.  I like using UPS labels and packaging up a shipment because I have a firm tracking number that actually tracks my package.  If you bring a returned Amazon item to the UPS store with Amazon's instructions that just a barcode and no packaging is required, then you better get a receipt!  Because that's all the proof that you will have.  The tracking number on that receipt won't work because your item gets put in a larger box, which the UPS Store may hold until it's full, which could be up to five business days later.  Once that box goes out, it has its own reference number (not a tracking number, says staff at my local UPS Store).  So there's absolutely no way for you to track your package, and you must follow up with Amazon to get the Amazon refund.



The staff at the UPS Store will say that you can't track your package on the UPS website -- you have to track it on the Amazon website.  However, the Amazon website doesn't provide tracking of your item -- it only says "our refund will be processed when we receive your item."  So this is a classic "customer can't win, Catch-22" scenario, where the customer drops off an item, but then the item is lost in transit, and the UPS Store says you have to take this up with Amazon, and Amazon probably says that you have to take this up with the UPS Store.

Here's what a reddit thread says about this situation:
https://www.reddit.com/r/UPS/comments/cd86xg/shipment_ready_for_ups/

Upon further examination via the Amazon returns center, I noticed that for multiple shipments made via QR code, Amazon has the UPS Store bundle some items together in a large package and that the tracking number that prints with a receipt may not be the tracking number that the returns left the store with.

And here's what a couple of UPS Store websites for local stores said: 

We recommend using the print label option located under the “2 other options” link.

If you do not have a printer, you can “forward return label to a friend to print.” Email the label to shipit@*****.com, and our staff will print the label when you arrive to drop off your package. There is a minimal fee of $0.10 to print the label, and if your box needs to be taped up, we can do that too for $0.54. We also have polypropylene bags available for $0.99. As always, we do have professional packing services here for any item you may need to ship.  

I Am So Sick of Marketing Ploys That Address Me By My First Name

I am so tired of companies mailing and emailing me marketing material that they've "customized" so that my first name is used.  Here's an example:



I mean, PLEASE.  Every company now starts an email or letter with "Dear Norbert" as if I am fooled that this not a form letter.  Thus starts the deception and lies.

United never treats any of its customers well on the ground, in the lounges, or on the planes. I've severely cut back traveling by air because I feel like a prisoner flying now. I certainly don't feel like United considers me "part of our United family." If they consider me part of the family, then United's family is like the Turpin family, "in which David and Louise Turpin imprisoned their thirteen children for years or decades."

United doesn't have a great record of treating its customers well. 

 From Inc.com: Remember That Guy Who Was Knocked Out and Then Dragged Off His United Airlines Flight? (Now an Officer Is Suing the Airline): Who can forget the images of that 69-year-old Kentucky doctor -- David Dao -- who was knocked out, then dragged off a United Airlines plane when he refused to give up his seat on the overbooked flight from Chicago O'Hare to Louisville, Kentucky? In one remarkable act of poor customer service, United Airlines proved that it could indeed happen to anyone.

Gotta Love This Response From an Oxford Bursar to Student Protest

https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/a-heated-oxford-education-11580680180

Students protested, wanting Oxford University to immediately divest its holdings in oil companies, due to global warming.

The students want the college to sell the more than $10 million of its endowment now invested in Shell and BP, and they want it now.

....

Bursar Andrew Parker made them a counteroffer. “I am not able to arrange any divestment at short notice,” he wrote. “But I can arrange for the gas central heating in college to be switched off with immediate effect. Please let me know if you support this proposal.”

Students accused him of being flippant:

“it’s January and it would be borderline dangerous to shut off the central heating.” Another suggested Mr. Parker was being provocative.

...the bursar responded with wisdom: “You are right that I am being provocative but I am provoking some clear thinking, I hope. It is all too easy to request others to do things that carry no personal cost to yourself. The question is whether you and others are prepared to make personal sacrifices to achieve the goals of environmental improvement (which I support as a goal).”

What a spot-on reply from the bursar (whatever that is). 

Propane Water Heater for Outdoor Showers and Heating a Spa

Update 2-2020:
I recommend the Camplux 5L portable Liquid Propane Tankless Water Heater rather than the Eccotemp.  It seems to be a higher quality, and the gas runs more continuously even in a little wind.  It does not require you to turn on any switch or button to ignite the gas; this is done automatically when the unit is turned on.  In short, the Camplux unit runs far more dependably and continuously than the Eccotemp -- which maddeningly turns off in the slightest bit of wind.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B01CJPU6JI/ref=dp_olp_0?ie=UTF8&condition=all

I also recommend the Seaflo Water Diaphragm Self Priming Pump rather than the Flojet.  It comes with a strainer and barbed hose adapters, so using 1/2" vinyl ID tubing is easier than the Eccotemp.  I don't like the fact that the threaded connectors on the pump are plastic, but the supplied plastic strainer and hose adapters are also plastic, so there's less chance of stripping threads on the pump.  The outlet connector/adapter combination did leak a bit, so I bought another plastic barb adapter from Amazon, and changed the tubing from stiff braided tubing to more flexible clear vinyl tubing.  This stopped the small leak.  The Flojet pump has been a bit maddening -- it leaks constantly.  The Flojet accepts proprietary plastic fittings with O-rings in them, and these snap in place on the inlet and outlet ports of the pump.  These fittings often leak, and when they do, it's hard to get them to stop.

https://www.amazon.com/Diaphragm-Priming-Gallons-Marine-Demand/dp/B00P8BE6S8/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=seaflo&qid=1580918986&s=hi&sr=1-2

This fitting replaced one of the leaking connectors:
SHURFLO 244-3926 Elbow Fitting Wingnut Swivel-Nylon 14 Npt (F) X 1/2" Barb
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B002IZJ7D6/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_4?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

With the Camplux water heater and Seaflo pump, I was able to heat water for a spa every day for two weeks, with almost no trouble at all.  With the Eccotemp and Flojet, I find myself running over to the heater every five or ten minutes, constantly messing with the connections, and constantly having to turn the unit on and off again to get the burners going.

*******

Here's my earlier post: 

I discovered an Eccotemp propane water heater on Amazon, along with a very helpful review.  It's made for providing hot water on demand for showering when camping or otherwise outdoors.  I am using it to heat an outdoor spa with propane gas rather than using electricity, which is a huge cost savings here in California.  A disclaimer: the instructions for this propane water heater state that one should NOT use this heater for a spa.

Here's the product description:

Eccotemp L5 1.5 GPM Portable 37,500 BTU Liquid Propane Outdoor Tankless

Water Heater

https://www.eccotemp.com/eccotemp-l5-portable-outdoor-tankless-water-heater/

Eccotemp L5 Portable Tankless Water Heater

Simply attach a garden hose and a 20-pound (lb.) propane tank and you

are guaranteed to enjoy the luxury of hot water anywhere. The Eccotemp

L5 Portable Outdoor Tankless Water Heater is the original and

best-selling portable water heater on the market today. You get instant,

endless hot water wherever you are. The Eccotemp L5 is perfect for

campsites, cabins or simply around the house. Wash your car, wash your

boat, take a hot shower, or even wash your horse and the Eccotemp L5

will help make daily tasks much easier. This model includes an

electronic ignition powered by 2 "D" cell batteries making it great for

off grid or any location where electricity is not readily available. The

ideal operating range for the L5 is 20~80 PSI with a 1.5 GPM flow. It is

compatible with 12-volt pumps and works perfectly with our EccoFlo Pump

& Strainer.

Here's the review from Amazon (thanks, reviewer!):

Update: living in California and running the spa 24/7 @ 104 degrees, it

has been costing me upwards of $130.00 a month in electricity. I monitored it's consumption using a kill-a-watt.

So I put together a propane powered water heating system and it heats

the spa at about 1 degree every 2 or 3 minutes so it only takes about an

hour or two to get it up to 104 and costs me pennies. I've attached some

photos of it (without the propane tank inside the container). Now I just

flick the switch on the front, an LED turns on, pump stars up, heater

automatically fires up and the spa starts heating. Couldn't be easier.

And now I don't need to run the filter all the time either. Much nicer.

In case anyone is interested here is the parts list, all purchased from

Amazon except for the 20lb propane and hoses I got at Home Depot all

hoses are 3/4" clear so they are barely noticeable going into the spa:

Eccotemp L5 Portable Tankless Water Heater

Flojet 2.9 GPM pump

Kastar LCD AC Adapter 12V 6A

Bond 67635 Tank Hideaway

30 Amp 12 Volt LED ON-OFF Rocker Switch

20 lb. propane tank

Here's my experience.

This Eccotemp L5 water heater is EXTREMELY fussy and I have finally, after several hours of testing, hopefully figured out how to make it stay on consistently.  I do NOT recommend Eccotemp as a company.  There are about a dozen sellers and makers on Amazon that appear to sell the exact same unit -- probably all these are made in China from the same factory; US distributors import them and then slap their own labels on them. 

I did buy my first heater from Home Depot, and it was an Eccotemp.  I also bought a Flojet water pump from Eccotemp without realizing it -- just bought a new unit on Amazon and realized later that the seller was Eccotemp. 

First, don't ever give your email or phone when shopping on the Eccotemp website!  I did check out their website before buying the unit from Home Depot.  Their website would not apply a coupon and was generally hard to navigate.  I went through checkout and gave up.  Then salesmen from Eccotemp emailed me twice asking why I left the item in the shopping cart.  I finally wrote them back and asked them to stop bothering me.  Then someone from the company CALLED ME on my phone and left another message!  That's borderline stalking!

In later interactions with the company, I did not find customer service to be helpful.  They demanded to know irrelevant information like the serial number and did not bother answering my questions.  When I decided that I had enough problems with the Flojet pump, which had arrived in a repackaged, reused state -- the agent from Eccotemp refused to consider my return request and told me that all items are sold refurbished.  I sent her my Amazon receipt, which clearly stated: New.  After that, she stated that I could return the item but did not supply a return shipping label.  Obviously, it would be up to me to pay for shipping of this item back to them. 

Again, I'd recommend not buying from Eccotemp.  Their customer service was not helpful, and I think that they spend far more time and effort on trying to sell units than trying to support customers.  I see many sellers of propane water heaters -- Camplux, Triton, Camp Chef, and the list goes on. 

I actually did not want to return the pump and heater.  It would have been a pain in the butt to package everything up and ship it.  I just wanted to have some help in solving the problems that I was having with the items.  I kept reading tips on the internet and eventually figured out solutions to the problems I was having: leaks, an overheated pump, and the heater not staying lit for more than a few seconds at a time. 

Leaks:

I believe that plumbing and keeping water from leaking, in general, is among the most deceptively simple tasks known to man!  No matter how many Youtube videos, how simple the job seems, water will still leak if I do my own plumbing tasks!  Always!  And we are all living on the edge -- I was eating breakfast in my house one morning, and boom! the pipe under the kitchen sink just burst like that, no warning.  If I had not been there and shut the house water down within seconds, the house would have had all kinds of water damage!  This kind of blowout could happen to anyone at any time in any house, building, etc!  My wife's father had this happen in his house a few years ago.  She and her sister were in his house when a pipe burst.  Even though they were there, water destroyed the wood floor and carpet (mold problems!) and it took weeks to repair and thousands of dollars!  We are all living on the edge!

Eccotemp L-5 propane water heater fittings for hoses: propane, shower hose, and 1/2" male pipe fitting from left to right.  

OK, so this Eccotemp water heater has an inlet for H2O and an outlet.  The outlet works fine.  It came with a shower hose metal thing and I just took off the shower head (which seemed fine, but is not a good thing to do - more later).  Easy.  No leak, there's a washer on the inside of the connector. The hose attaches to the bottom of the unit easily and without leaks, with just hand-tightening. 

The Flojet pump is awesome and is a well-known brand.  The Flojet pump takes water from hot tub and pumps it into the propane heater.  It came with some fittings.  The plastic barbed fittings work great, they have O-rings on the sides and they slide into the Flojet easily, and accept 1/2" vinyl tubing.  No leaks, easy installation.

The water input to the water heater was a huge pain in the ass.  I spent hours trying to get the correct adapter so there was no leak either at the heater end or at the Flojet end.  Here's what I discovered:

On left: Delrin (plastic) 1/2" pipe fitting adapter with brass Eccotemp-supplied adapter to fit 3/4" garden hose fitting.  The brass part was too deep for the plastic part.  Using two O-rings instead of one solved this leakage problem.  On right: Eccotemp-supplied 1/2" pipe fitting to 3/4" garden hose fitting.  This adapter leaked in the middle at at the garden hose end initially.  

1.  Using a garden hose and the adapters supplied with the Flojet, both ends leaked.  At the heater end, there's a 1/2" male pipe fitting connector.  The heater came with a garden hose adapter that swiveled.  This goddamn part leaked endlessly.  I finally changed the hose that I was using, tightened the hose to the adapter end very tightly (have to make sure that O-ring hits the end of the hose) and problem solved - on that end. 

Another problem I found is that the Eccotemp-supplied brass adapter end going to the heater was too long, with too many threads.  The 1/2" male pipe fitting coming out of the heater only has about three threads.  The adapter has 4 times as many threads and is way longer than it should be.  Just be sure to screw in this adapter all the way up -- it is a real pain in the butt, especially if you have to unscrew this multiple times, like I did. 

Finally, the end to the Flojet also leaked.  The Flojet has a nice system where a plastic (Delrin) adapter with an O-ring just slides right into the pump and snaps in place.  No leak there, easy to install.  The problem is with the Eccotemp-supplied brass adapters.  They are all too long. To use a garden hose on the unit, I had to put a Flojet Delrin adapter with a male 1/2" pipe fitting.  I then used an Eccotemp brass adapter that converted the male 1/2" pipe fitting to a male garden hose fitting. That combination leaked.  I solved the problem by using two O-rings (1/2" pipe fitting) rather than one.  The adapter from the Eccotemp was just too deep; the Delrin adapter from the Flojet could not maintain a seal with just one O-ring.  It required two O-rings. 

2.  Using 1/2" ID vinyl tubing for all water connections: I was pretty set on using vinyl tubing rather than a garden hose for my water connections.  For the input hose to the water heater, I finally (after hours) found the proper adapters:

I've tried various adapters and believe that I found the proper adapter (not at my local hardware store):

ATITOWEL 5PCS 12mm Barb Brass Hose Fitting, Connector - G 1/2" Female Pipe Fit For 1/2" Hose ID

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07SRPP4DB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The barb fitting on these adapters fit my 1/2" ID vinyl hose but was just a bit too small.  This meant that the vinyl hose slid on easily, but I needed to crank down the hose clamp as tight as it would go, so the vinyl hose connection to the barb would not leak.

Take it from someone who spent hours trying to get the adapters and other parts to work with 1/2" ID vinyl hoses.  Just use the garden hose adapter for the incoming water to the heater, and a 6 to 10 foot RV garden hose (suitable for drinking water) instead of vinyl hoses and 1/2" pipe fittings. 

For the hose that takes water from the spa into the Flojet, I used a Flojet Delrin adapter and 1/2" vinyl tubing.  This worked fine and never gave me any problems. 

Flojet pump overheating:

Before I figured out what was going on, the Flojet pump would just stop working.  It became quite hot, as did the 12V power adapter.  I wrote Eccotemp asking if the pump had thermal protection (where it would shut off automatically if it got too hot) but they did not care about answering my question, demanding that I supply a serial number and other information. 

I finally, after much reading, decided that the Flojet must indeed have thermal protection.  It's not stated anywhere that I could find.  Eccotemp was no help.  One person in forums stated that he had the same problem and was thinking of buying a pump that was specially designed to handle hot water from a spa. 

I finally realized that the Flojet is a really smart pump, and pretty bulletproof.  It was working too hard without the shower head connected to the output hose (I had taken the head off, and water was coming directly through the stainless hot water hose into my spa).  This was making the pump work too hard.  I put the showerhead back on, and this provided some pressure so the pump was not working so hard.  This solved most of the pump overheating problems. 

The Flojet is a great unit.  Be sure to have the water output connected to something (like the shower head) that provides some pressure.  I had an open hose at first, and this provided unrestricted flow from the output of the Flojet.  Turns out that this is not a good thing -- it made the Flojet heat up constantly. 

The next problem I had was that the propane heater kept shutting off.  In normal operation, it should turn on, the two-D-cell spark igniter lights the flame, and the pump circulates the water from the spa through the water heater.  However, the heater kept shutting off (the flames would go out) and the pump overheats for some reason when this happens. 

Propane flame keeps shutting off:

Here's what I wrote to Eccotemp customer support:

Dec 7, 1:48 PM EST:

I have spent hours trying to get this L5 heater to work consistently. It just will not stay lit. I know about the heater needing to sense water pressure, and the 20-minute shutoff (sometimes, however, it stays on for over 40 minutes). Today I noticed that hot water is dripping from the inside of the heater approximately one drop every five seconds. The heater just will not stay on for more than three minutes. I bought this from Home Depot and can return it but wonder if your staff has suggestions, and if this is expected behavior or not.

Here's the reply from Eccotemp:

Tech Support M, Dec 9, 2:06 PM EST:

Hello Norbert,

Thank you for contacting Eccotemp Systems Help Desk. Our goal is to provide you with the best customer service possible. Please note we have received your request and will take all steps necessary to resolve your issue.

For your records, your ticket number is located above. We regret any inconvenience that this issue may be causing you and please be assured that we will do what is necessary to resolve it. Please don't hesitate to contact us anytime or to update this ticket as needed.

Regarding this matter, please provide us with photos of the following to better assess the issue:

* Important: Overall photo of the water heater's set up and installation (including plumbing and ventilation) is required before any parts, unit replacement or further troubleshooting can be processed

* Internal view of the water heater

* The damage or point of the problem (leak)

* Serial number located at the right side of the heater

Once these photos have been received, we will contact you to let you know how we can proceed.

We appreciate your time and thank you for choosing Eccotemp.

* If you have not done so, please take the time to register your product with us here https://eccotemp.zendesk.com/entries/23454072-Product-Registration.

Regards,

Vanessa

Technical Support Team

Eccotemp Systems LLC

1-866-356-1992

(Monday to Friday 9:00 AM - 8:00 PM EST)

****

Well, that did not answer my question. 

I found some tips on the internet:

- One of the common problems, why your Eccotemp L5 water heater turns off after successful lighting, is because of the insufficient pressure. If you have the old L5 model, there is a washer inside the brass fitting on the end of the regulator hose which goes into the heater. If it fell off just push it back in. Now the sufficient pressure will sustain the combustion. New model doesn't include this washer.

- If there is a high wind and water heater is not protected, it will blow out the flame.

Disconnect your incoming water line. There is a screen immediately inside of the incoming water pipe that may have clogged over time and is reducing the water flow and water pressure. (Clean that out if needed)

Fresh batteries (Inserted correctly?)

These tips from the Eccotemp website were hints -- but what the heck do the flame sensors actually do?  Do they tell the igniters to send a spark if the flame is out -- because that sure is not happening. 

Check to be sure the thermocouple located in the top left of the heat exchanger is pushed in enough. The thermocouple acts as a second flame sensor.

Check to be sure the flame sensor is hooked up and for sure connected.

This tip from an Eccotemp forum was a bit more helpful:

Prior to completing the following steps, please make sure that your L5 / L7 has completely cooled and your gas supply is turned on. Take the cover off by removing the 2 screws at top and 2 on the bottom and the knobs pull out. Disconnect and reconnect all wire connections to ensure that everything is properly seated. There is a flame sensor directly above the burner. There are 3 black rubber wires going up to the burner area. Two of these rubber wires are attached to igniters and one is attached to the flame sensor. The flame sensor has a noticeably longer piece of metal. It should be on the far right and have a piece of blue tape on its wire. The L5 / L7 has a heat sensor at the top left. This looped yellow wire is centered over a small square opening in the heat exchanger. Make sure that this wire loops slightly inside of the opening. If it is bent away from the opening, you can push on it and it will bend easily.

I did take the front cover off the heater and saw the heat sensor.  I did push it down slightly further into the opening.  Again, the post does not say exactly what the heat sensor does -- does it get the flame going again if the flame blows out? 

I also figured out, after my own experience and reading forums, that the flames get blown out if there is any wind or breeze whatsoever.  Just a touch of wind, and this heater will not stay lit.

I put a metal shield across the front of the heater, which blocked wind blowing into the top of the heater, and this seems to help greatly. 

 

Other comments and answers that I saw during my long research on the web:

-very disappointed with it, because it goes out extremely easy. It barely takes a slight breeze. I will have to return it. 

-Blows out with the slightest breeze. Switch in water wand very difficult. This unit works very well in zero wind. The temperature is consistent and comes up fast. A small breeze will however blow out the flame. The switch in the wand is very difficult to operate. I contacted them about the wand difficulties and just got blown off. ..Hate the timed on/off switch. Must be very protected from freezing temperatures when not in use. If you have an enclosed heated space w only cold water this unit might work great, if you don't get a defective wand.

-Eccotemp L5 purchased 6/14 has developed a problem with gas burner going out frequently. Always able to start, Some times it will stay lit

Answer from Eccotemp: The number one reason that the portable tankless water heater does not ignite is that there is not enough water pressure. You need a minimum of 0.25-10 PSI, sustained. Municipal water should supply enough water pressure. Most 12/18/120/240 pumps well as long as they are capable of delivering pressure of 0.25-10 PSI or greater.

*****

I finally have gotten this propane water heater to heat water, stay lit, and not leak for about a week now.  The whole project was a giant pain in the butt.  I feel that Eccotemp could provide this kind of information with the owner's manual rather than force every customer to figure this stuff out himself.  I wasted HOURS of my time trying to solve the leakage and shutoff problems. 

I never was able to get this question answered:

Does Flojet turn off if it gets too hot?

If the propane water heater's flame gets blown out, why does the Flojet pump get hot as a result?  What is causing it to work so hard?  In normal operation, the Flojet pump gets warm, but not hot, even after 40 minutes of pumping hot spa water. 

As a note, for our 250-gallon hot tub, the propane water heater heats the spa up by about 18 degrees every 60 minutes.  That's amazing!