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Step 5Now we're ready to start building.
First things first. Decide what your going to build it out of. If your going to use wood be sure to paint the inside to help seal it from getting moisture build up. Again, This is a safety precaution, Though it's not likely that it will get wet, I take this step just to be sure it doesn't become dangerous. At least not as bad as it could get without doing this. I don't know if you've ever touched a hot wire while in contact with wet wood or not. I have. Luckily it was just an electric fence. It hurt pretty bad but luckily it wasn't harmful. It sure felt worse than it was. That is to say that water and electricity don't mix well whereas human contact is concerned.
That said PLEASE, DO NOT use this around water or liquids of any kind. That means you don't use it for the bathroom heater GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter) outlet or not. It's not safe to use this around sinks or bathtubs so don't do it. If you use this in a wet environment and get hurt, remember I warned you about that. So people PLEASE be careful.
Now that the safety stuff is out of the way let's get on with it shall we? Regardless as to what your using for your materials, your going to have to make holes in it for the outlets. We can do this one of several ways. The first way which is what I did, is to use our Dremel and a cut-off wheel. It makes pretty quick work of metal or the type of board that I used for the front panel. They also work pretty well on plastics. The only concern there is that the plastic tends to melt with the friction which can send chunks flying towards your eyes and face. This would be a really good time to don those safety glasses. Trips to the hospital should be social visits, not necessary emergencies.
What ever material you use make sure you don't over work your Dremel. You want to put just enough pressure to keep it cutting but not enough that you might break the disk. If you do break one chock it up to a learning experience and be glad it scratched the safety glasses instead of your eye. You could also use a router for this. Another good set of tools would be a drill and a jigsaw. If you use standard household outlets you could even use a hole saw. Whatever your method be sure to mark and cut very carefully. Remember, you can always take more material off. If you cut to much it's gonna look sloppy. That's not to mention that things won't fit quite right. This is why I suggested standard outlets. They can be mounted in wall boxes which makes them a lot safer than most other types of power outlet.
As a matter of fact you could use the inlet from an old computer power supply to give your project power. It would make it more portable because the cord could then come off. I have no idea why it would need to be that portable as I've never had to take mine anywhere or had a reason to. It's just a thought I had one day while I was moving into a new house and tripping on the cord. See? Safety. Not the best idea if you plan to use it to limit the on-time of a heater or large halogen sun lamp (good timer for a home made tanning station.) Just be careful not to overload the cord or relays. Why yes, this is the reason for the master kill switch. Thank you for asking.
That said PLEASE, DO NOT use this around water or liquids of any kind. That means you don't use it for the bathroom heater GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter) outlet or not. It's not safe to use this around sinks or bathtubs so don't do it. If you use this in a wet environment and get hurt, remember I warned you about that. So people PLEASE be careful.
Now that the safety stuff is out of the way let's get on with it shall we? Regardless as to what your using for your materials, your going to have to make holes in it for the outlets. We can do this one of several ways. The first way which is what I did, is to use our Dremel and a cut-off wheel. It makes pretty quick work of metal or the type of board that I used for the front panel. They also work pretty well on plastics. The only concern there is that the plastic tends to melt with the friction which can send chunks flying towards your eyes and face. This would be a really good time to don those safety glasses. Trips to the hospital should be social visits, not necessary emergencies.
What ever material you use make sure you don't over work your Dremel. You want to put just enough pressure to keep it cutting but not enough that you might break the disk. If you do break one chock it up to a learning experience and be glad it scratched the safety glasses instead of your eye. You could also use a router for this. Another good set of tools would be a drill and a jigsaw. If you use standard household outlets you could even use a hole saw. Whatever your method be sure to mark and cut very carefully. Remember, you can always take more material off. If you cut to much it's gonna look sloppy. That's not to mention that things won't fit quite right. This is why I suggested standard outlets. They can be mounted in wall boxes which makes them a lot safer than most other types of power outlet.
As a matter of fact you could use the inlet from an old computer power supply to give your project power. It would make it more portable because the cord could then come off. I have no idea why it would need to be that portable as I've never had to take mine anywhere or had a reason to. It's just a thought I had one day while I was moving into a new house and tripping on the cord. See? Safety. Not the best idea if you plan to use it to limit the on-time of a heater or large halogen sun lamp (good timer for a home made tanning station.) Just be careful not to overload the cord or relays. Why yes, this is the reason for the master kill switch. Thank you for asking.
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