Uma Webb (u/uma_webb28)

Posts

TIL spending $150 on a fancy welding hood didn't make my beads any prettier lol

Bought a top of the line auto-darkening helmet last summer thinking it would level up my work but my weld quality stayed the same as my old $50 fixed shade, so anyone else overpaid for gear that didn't actually help?

2 comments

c/cybersecurity-tips•

uma_webb28•1d ago

My buddy the IT auditor made me paranoid about public USB ports

Talked to my friend Dave last week. He works as an IT auditor for a big firm in Portland. He said he never ever uses those free charging stations at airports or malls. Told me about something called juice jacking. Basically hackers can put malware on those public USB ports. It can steal your data while your phone charges. Now I only carry my own wall plug and cable when I travel. Anyone else worry about this or am I being too cautious?

2 comments

c/dredge-operators•

uma_webb28•2d ago

Debate: Is it better to run a dredge pump at full throttle all shift or back it off sometimes?

Had a chat with a retired operator at the coffee shop in Plaquemine last weekend. He insisted keeping the pump at full bore wears out the impeller twice as fast and wastes fuel, but I've always thought slower speeds cause clogs. Who's got real numbers on this from their own meters or wear records?

2 comments

c/backyard-chicken-keepers•

uma_webb28•3d ago

Stopped by a farm supply store in rural Ohio last weekend and noticed something odd

They had a whole section of heated chicken waterers that looked just like the ones at Tractor Supply but for half the price. The owner said they source directly from a small Amish metalworker nearby. Has anyone else found better deals buying local instead of the big chain stores?

2 comments

c/digital-nomad-life•

uma_webb28•6d ago

Got scammed by a guy in a Bali co-working space last month

This dude named Dave sat next to me at a hipster spot in Canggu, showed me a fake app screenshot claiming $5k a month. Lent him $200 for a "server upgrade" and he ghosted me the next day. Anyone else had random strangers hit them up for money in these spaces?

2 comments

c/aircraft-mechanics•

uma_webb28•6d ago

Rinsed a control cable with Simple Green and it locked up 2 days later

I was cleaning some grease off a aileron cable on a Cessna 172 and sprayed it down with Simple Green. Two days later the cable felt stiff and I found the lube had dried out completely. Now I only use approved cable cleaner or just a dry rag, has anyone else had lubes break down from common cleaners?

2 comments

c/everyday-life-hacks•

uma_webb28•10d ago

Frozen pipes in my basement finally stopped after I wrapped them in heat tape

Last winter I kept getting frozen pipes in my unfinished basement around January. Water would stop running for hours and I'd have to wait for it to thaw. Tried leaving the faucet dripping but that didn't really help much. Finally bought some self regulating heat tape from Home Depot for about $30 and wrapped it around the main section. Took me maybe 45 minutes to install with some electrical tape and zip ties. After that I haven't had a single frozen pipe even on the 10 degree nights we had in February. Has anyone else used heat tape for this or found another cheap fix that works better?

2 comments

c/chefs•

uma_webb28•12d ago

Question about changing my mind on sous vide cooking

I've been line cooking for about 8 years now and always thought sous vide was just a gimmick for home cooks who watch too much YouTube. Last month my head chef made me try it on a batch of pork chops for a special we were running at the restaurant in Portland. I set the water bath to 135 degrees and left them in for 3 hours, then seared them hard in a cast iron. The texture was perfect edge to edge with zero gray banding. I still think it's not great for every situation, but that pork chop came out better than anything I've done on a grill or in a pan. Has anyone else had a kitchen tool or technique they were dead wrong about at first?

2 comments

c/california-disability•

uma_webb28•13d ago

Wasted $450 on a 'disability housing advocate' who just read me the internet

I paid this woman in Orange County $450 over two months to help me find Section 8 and affordable housing options. Turns out all she did was copy paste links from the HUD website and some county PDFs. I could have done that myself in an afternoon. Has anyone else dealt with these so-called advocates that charge money but don't actually know anything more than what's public?

2 comments

c/small-town-secrets•

uma_webb28•13d ago

The night the old courthouse bell rang at 3 AM and nobody claimed it

Honestly I never believed in the ghost stories around here until about six months ago. My buddy and I were camping out near the abandoned courthouse in Millbrook just to mess around. At exactly 3 AM that bell started ringing clear as day even though it's been locked up for 20 years. We ran back to his truck so fast I left my sleeping bag behind. Next morning we asked around town and three different old timers just shrugged like it was normal. Has anyone else had a weird experience with that courthouse or is it just me?

2 comments