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MacGyver Online Forums > MacGyvering Your Life > What have you MacGyvered lately?

Posted by: Scorpion Regent 1 February 2020 - 03:36 PM

Please share your latest experience using good old ingenuity to overcome a challenge.

Last week I fixed a loose door hinge.
The hinge was loose because the screw holes in the door frame were stripped out. The store bought fix is to take the door off it's hinges, remove the wall half of the hinge, install molly anchors in the door frame and put it all back together. I wanted something that would take less time and not cost any money.
The MacGyver solution is to removed one screw at a time, pack the holes with something that will fill the extra space allowing the screw to work. Replace the screw, repeat the process with each screw till the hinge is tight. Traditionally tooth picks, wooden kitchen matches, kabob skewers or twigs are used to take up the space. I could have done a classic Mac and used a paperclip, but I had a better option.
First a bit of back story. That morning I had used some zip ties to bundle household wiring. I had the wrapped the ties twice around to get a better effect, but I still had to trim the tails. I carelessly stuck the tails in my pocket to be thrown away at the end of the day. I used the zip tie tails to fill the gaps. Plastic is far too easily discarded and is an environmental nightmare, so if it isn't going to break down it might as well get used in a way that takes advantage of it's longevity. The fix will likely outlast the house.
Almost forgot, I used my SAK to work the screws.

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 1 February 2020 - 05:03 PM

Good re-use of plastic!

I recently used an old 1kg Milo can lid to make a new shower drain cover.

The proper cover has started air locking and stopping the water from draining out of the shower so I've drilled a small hole in the middle of the can lid, found a bolt slightly smaller than the original. Put a couple of extra nuts on it to allow and air gap so the water can flow under it and all working fine again.

Posted by: Scorpion Regent 7 February 2020 - 12:12 PM

QUOTE (MacGyverOnline @ 1 February 2020 - 05:03 PM)

I recently used an old 1kg Milo can lid to make a new shower drain cover.

I had to look up Milo to see what sort of can you were using a lid from. All I can say is, "Wow you drank a kilo of that stuff?!

Hopefully not all in one sitting.

Posted by: Scorpion Regent 7 February 2020 - 12:13 PM

Anybody else out there? MacGyvering isn't just watching TV, you have to live it.

Posted by: MacGyverGod 17 February 2020 - 07:13 AM

Place is kind of dead around here. Always has been a little bit.

Anyway, as I said in the gaming topic my PS3 is acting up and I'm thinking of opening it to clean it out from the inside. Except I've never done something like that before. With a good video and tools, I might be able to do so.

Posted by: MacGirl 4 July 2020 - 07:08 PM

I know I haven't been here in a long time, but I just had to share this one. Not sure it really counts as a MacGyverism, but it's a neat little hack.

I like to cook, but I hate the cleanup afterward, especially when it involves greasy pans. Here's where the hack comes in. I let the pan cool, then spray the greasy pan with kitchen cleaning spray- one that's formulated to cut grease. (In the U.S., that would be something like Fantastik or Lysol kitchen cleaning spray.) I let it sit for a minute, then wipe out the pan with a paper towel- the grease will come right off. Sometimes I have to do it a second time if the pan is really greasy. Then I just wash the pan with dish soap and water, or stick it in the dishwasher.

Not only does this make cleanup a LOT easier, it also helps keep grease out of the drain.

Posted by: Scorpion Regent 5 July 2020 - 02:55 PM

QUOTE

I let the pan cool, then spray the greasy pan with kitchen cleaning spray- one that's formulated to cut grease. (In the U.S., that would be something like Fantastik or Lysol kitchen cleaning spray.) I let it sit for a minute, then wipe out the pan with a paper towel- the grease will come right off. Sometimes I have to do it a second time if the pan is really greasy. Then I just wash the pan with dish soap and water, or stick it in the dishwasher.

It sounds like it works, be mindful that some pans are porous and can absorb said cleaning chemicals. What's good for cleaning isn't good for eating. Pouring cleaning chemicals down the drain can get expensive and be harsh on the pipes and the environment.

I just put some soapy water in the pot or pan, put it back on the stove, let in come close to boiling, let it simmer, then scrub and rinse. Of course the rules are different if it's cast iron.

Posted by: MacGirl 6 July 2020 - 04:26 PM

I always wipe out the pan with a wet paper towel before I rinse it in the sink, for just that reason.

Posted by: Arron53 23 July 2021 - 07:28 PM

My shower's valve handle broke off and the screw it was attached to was nearly impossible to turn with bare hands because of how thin and small it was. I decided I'm getting my hot shower anyway so here's what I did:

1. Get a towel, preferably the furry/velcro-y ones for maximum friction
2. Fold it twice or thrice and wrap it around the faucet screw
3. Get a nutcracker and place it over the area you've wrapped the towel around
4. Rotate the nutcracker clockwise or counterclockwise to open or close the valve

What I've done here essentially is using the towel to increase the area and friction that the nutcracker is grasping. So, using the nutcracker is like using a wrench to turn the valve on or off. I think it is quite the quick-fix if you find your valve handles breaking off.

Posted by: Agent MacGyver! 7 August 2023 - 02:57 PM

This might be a little silly but for a work project I had to hang a sign to present to a client- but I couldn't make any holes in the sign since it was the final draft - so I used two binder clips as makeshift hooks to hold the sign in place. I attached an image of my macgyverism.

I now even have a folder on my phone for "macgyverism" pictures that I might come across!

Posted by: Barry Rowland 17 September 2023 - 04:57 PM