Top 5 Summer Hacks

As engineers, we love to tinker! When we're not taking things apart to see how they work, we’re modifying them to make them better. Summer offers plenty of opportunities to use our skills, including over-engineering things just for fun.

1. Test the temperature of your BBQ with Fluke

It's amazing what you can do with a Thermal Imaging Camera. One of our bloggers Andrew Back found some fun and practical uses that you can read about in his blog here, This got me thinking about that old summer problem... are the sausages on the BBQ really cooked through, or are they still pink in the middle!?

Food thermometers are pretty low tech and leave holes all over your food, and it could be a lot of work to test each individual sausage and burger if you have a particularly large family gathering! With a Fluke thermal imaging camera (760-0385)  your problems are solved - simply point at the food and see if it's properly cooked! (No prizes for noticing that whilst they are still cooking on the BBQ the reading will be less accurate) :-)

2. Water cool your Raspberry Pi

I have my Raspberry Pi 3 (896-8660) set up as a Touch Media Centre, which we created with a Bare Conductive Touch Board, some Bare Conductive Paint, a Raspberry Pi with an Amplifier HAT (To drive some speakers) and a Power Supply Unit. You can read about this project on the Bare Conductive blog here.

With this media centre providing the ability to create the soundtrack to any summer BBQ it is vital that the Raspberry Pi doesn’t overheat in the midday sun. One way of ensuring this is by creating a DIY water cooling system (you could even borrow the water cooler from the office).

If you want to know how to water cool your Raspberry Pi 3 using a pump, tube and sealant then check out Novaspirit Tech’s YouTube video here.

3. 3D Printing Sunglasses and a Straw Cup

So the food is cooking nicely (and evenly) on the BBQ and you have your favourite summer tunes playing through your Media Centre, but you can’t find your sunglasses anywhere and have just had a call from Dave to say he is bringing his new girlfriend Carol to the BBQ with him! That leaves quite a dilemma, as you no longer have enough cups for the fruit punch that you’ve spent the morning preparing!

Luckily it’s RS Components to the rescue with both problems! Using the free DesignSpark Mechanical software (obviously!) you can design or import that extra cup and print it on your RS Pro 3D Printer (828-6356) . You can even print some shades that are both practical and stylish!

4. Make Your Own Air-Con Unit

So you’re finally enjoying yourself in the garden, but you could use a nice breeze to cool off after eating too much food. The problem is that you don’t have an extension cable long enough to bring your fan outside.

The only thing you can find in your shed is an ebm-papst fan (760-4801) that you ordered from RS Components last week, a 9V battery and a switch. Luckily you’re a tinkerer and using an empty drinks can and these few parts this YouTube video makes it possible to turn them into a working air conditioning unit to keep cool.

Alternatively you could try this variation on the design to create a can fan instead.

5. Bare Conductive Postcard

That BBQ was hard work, so it’s time to head off for an exotic holiday. 2 weeks of sun and relaxation on the beach. And what better way to send Dave and Carol a wish you were here greeting this summer than a personal message on a postcard using a Visaton miniature speaker (716-6453) .

With some Bare Conductive paint (835-2699) and some LED’s (877-6916) they will even gain a small glimpse of the glorious sunshine that they’re missing.

Here's 10 other things you can do with Bare Conductive Paint.

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RS Pro Fan – How Would You Power It?

So… you’re on the beach and have an RS Pro industrial fan (700-1439) to stay cool. But with no plug socket, how could you use the resources around you or any products from the RS Components range to power it? Let us know your best ideas in the comments area below. Our favourite and most innovative suggestions will receive a free DesignSpark t-shirt.