D.I.Y. Feline Snack Machine

A kitty adapted to living indoors tends to become relatively lazy and fat which presents a food management challenge for the caring owner. I have found that Buffy the Cat is content to eat less overall if food is provided in small amounts throughout the day. So I provide a morning meal, an evening meal, two others provided by a timer. One occurs around 3pm when I am not an home. Another occurs at 4am while I am sleeping. This routine is satisfactory for Buffy the Cat. The details for constructing a timer kibble dispenser are provided here (removed)

Wind Chime 1.0

Make magazine suggests turning the platters from dead hard disk drives into wind chimes. A quick test with two platters tied to a coat hanger with dental floss verifies the idea.

They make a pleasant sound when touched lightly together. And on sunny days, the platters rotate slowly from gentle convection air currents near the window causing a sunbeam to move across the wall for the amusement of Brownie the Cat.

Kitty Activates Air Filter

Having two kitty-kats hanging around is a great pleasure. The downside is cat dander and litter dust everywhere. Fortunately, this can be managed with the use of good quality air cleaner such as the Honeywell model 50100 which has a two-stage HEPA filter.

I installed the 50100 in the laundry room where the litter boxes are located. It sucks in plenty of dust. But since it runs 24-7, it contributes to my electricity bill. Also, they have to shovel in more coal down at the power plant. Well, there is no need to run this filter while cats are sleeping, so filter automation is the next step.

Photos with explanation can be viewed on the (removed) Feline Motion Sensor.page.

Magazine for McGuyvers

Make magazine is a wonderful resource for McGuyver wanna-bees and budding artists. If you cannot find a copy at your local bookstore, you can visit the website:- Here.

Issue 12 has has CandyFab - a 3D freeform sugar printer, infrared photography with a cheap digital camera, and ladies shoes with video player and alarm in the heel. But there are many more cool projects.