2025 Piece Of Fucking Shit Award

It’s been a while since I’ve done this. And to make it worse I have tried real hard to behave in a manner in which would make me and others around me proud. But every once in a while you need to call out a POS. So before the year ends I aim to award the coveted John’s Tech Blog Piece Of Fucking Shit Award to the biggest POS out there.

This year it goes to a company called Sidio or SidioCrate. They can’t really make up their mind what they are called.

I’d love to tell you the stackable crate I ordered was a POS however I don’t have it yet despite the fact that I ordered it on Nov 29th. They made a label on the 8th but it didn’t actually show up to a shipping point and actually move for a few days after that.

Allow me to clarify: IT TOOK THEM 10 DAYS JUST TO MAKE A SHIPPING LABEL.

Oh, and I forgot the fact that I paid $7.99 for that shipping.

Sainlogic Hydroponic Kit Review

This is going to be one of my favorite blogs ever. Sainlogic reached out to me and asked me to review their Sainlogic Hydroponic Kit. ($54.99 currently).

Let me provide a little background here before I take on the kit review. Growing up in Indiana my mother could grow anything. Green thumb.

That gene skipped a generation though.

I semi pleaded with Sainlogic NOT TO SEND ME the kit and told them that anything I try to grow dies. They assured me that I would be okay. Actually, I did fail with my very first attempt. I bought some bargain seeds at a local store and they were way old and super cheap. After planting them it was sort of apparent that my seeds were old and moldy.

I’ll just say this now. Your success relies on the quality of the seeds you use. Go to a decent lawn center and buy some good quality seed.

XMCOSY+ Smart Solar Lights

I was provided the opportunity to test the 6 pack of XMCOSY Smart Solar Lights which are currently on sale for $151.99 which is 24% off the regular price during Amazon Prime Day. The time to buy is NOW!

Included are 6 lights, poles, and stake fittings. Additionally a Wi-Fi Bridge is included to control the lights via an application. Also, paper manuals and a USB cable are included.

The lights are solar powered and have motion detectors in which the sensitivity is adjustable to account for pets and small animals. Or you can control the lights manually. Additionally, the lights can be removed from their bases and charged via the provided USB Cable in no light, or low light situations.

Maglula UpLULA Magazine Loader

Magula UpLULA Magazine Loader

Anyone that has ever loaded a magazine will tell you that the last few rounds are almost impossible to push in due to spring tension.   I have cut enough fingers and gotten enough bruises that I finally broke down and bought a Maglula UpLULA.  The cost was approximately $28 or so.

What an amazing tool that I should have gotten ages ago.  My 9mm magazine was darn near impossible to push the last couple of rounds in.

So much so that I generally didn’t fully load the mag.

This will be an amazingly short blog as the device is just plain simple.

Loading

I took a quick but not entirely inclusive video showing how the loader works.  There are much better videos out there but this does show the ease of loading.

[kad_youtube url=”https://youtu.be/F3q8yZek59I?si=hbw2JGMr69JYvLlQ” ]

It would appear that I will never wreck my fingers again loading rounds again.

Should You Buy a Maglula UpLULA

If you’ve hurt your hands loading then the answer is a simple, YES.  Get a Maglula UpLULA just as quick as you can.   Ttttthhhhhhhheeeeee that’s all folks!

Ergonomic Chair SIHOO Doro C300

SIHOO Doro C300

I get to review a lot of cool things here at my Tech Blog.  I was ecstatic when the Marketing folks at SIHOO offered to provide me an Ergonomic Chair to review.  The model they provided is the SIHOO Doro C300 ($299).   To sweeten the pot SIHOO currently has a “Buy One, Get Two” hidden promotion.  That is an amazing deal!

Why was I so excited?  The timing of receiving this chair was exquisite.  After about 50 years of sitting on a wallet my back developed a visible knot in the lower area which sometimes HURTS.  For about 2 years now I have been getting deep tissue massages.  Lo and behold the knot has seemingly gone away just recently.  I have no desire for it to return.  An ergonomic chair is EXACTLY what I needed in my office.

I currently have a garden variety black leather office chair with wooden arms.  It is a nice chair, certainly attractive, however it kills that spot on my back.  So much so that I bought a standing desk.
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Dyson V10 Trigger Replacement

Dyson V10 Trigger Replacement

This blog is going to be a little less on the technical side and a little more on the “Right To Repair” side.  I can’t find a receipt for when I bought this Dyson V10 vacuum.  But I did find an email stating my warranty was expiring in May 2023.  I bought it refurbished and I think I paid about $350 for it.  So my best guess is I got it in May or November of 2022.  Let’s call it just over 2 years old.

A couple of weeks ago my wife brought me the vacuum and told me it was broken.   A cursory inspection let me know right away that the trigger was not rebounding. Additionally, it remained in the fully depressed position.

As soon as I went to Google I learned a few things:

1. The trigger on the Dyson V10, V11 and other models is a HIGH FAILURE RATE ITEM.
2. Dyson won’t sell you a trigger.
3. 3rd party vendors sell REINFORCED triggers.
4. Replacing the trigger requires COMPLETELY disassembling the Dyson vacuum.
5. A Torx #8 screwdriver is required for assembly / disassembly.

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ARS Rescue Rooter HVAC Review POFS Award Winner

ARS RESCUE ROOTER EARNS TOP PIECE OF FUCKING SHIT AWARD.

I usually reserve my coveted “Piece Of Fucking Shit” Award for tech components.  Today however, we are breaking new ground and awarding it to an HVAC service.  ARS Rescue Rooter.

When your furnace or air conditioning goes out, the customer expectation is to show up within 5 minutes of calling and fix it within 10 minutes.  ARS response time is actually very good,  But let me spin my yarn.

It is 2 or 3 days before Christmas. I’m at the sink and the vent that usually blows hot air starts blowing ice cold air on my feet.  I go outside where the furnace is and it “STINKS”.  There is clearly something wrong with the combustion on the furnace.

I go flip the breaker and restart.  It blows hot air for about an hour and then turns cold again.  When I go outside again, it stinks even worse.

I call ARS and they actually show up in less than an hour.  The Tech was kind and went right to work.  When he opened the furnace panel it was obvious the burners were not blowing tight, blue jets of flame.  It was mostly orange and it wasn’t a compressed jet.  It was clearly dangerous.

Tech tells me I need new burners and it will cost $570 to install them.

While he is talking I notice a red light blinking on the Ignition Control Board.  I ask him about it. He has no manual, says that doesn’t know what the code means but says that we’ll change the burners and go from there.

The blink code 7 times was a Flame Rollout Switch trip.  That means the burner flames are rolling back inside.  The switch is a thermal switch that chops the flow of gas to prevent a build up of heat, flame, CO², and prevent a fire.

Hey, he’s the HVAC pro.
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