Tool Blog

Makita has announced that they have added a new 13-inch cordless fan to their ever growing LXT 18V line. The fan has three speed settings and it can even oscillate to cover a larger area. A built-in timer can be used to automatically shut the fan down after 1, 2, or 4 hours. Makita says it can run for up to 4 hours on a single 4.0Ah battery, but the included AC adapter can be used for longer run times.

I wanted to do an update on my Kratky Method inspired Hydro Buckets by addressing some comments and by sharing what I learned along the way. Most importantly I wanted to share my final results on both my hydro bucket Bell Peppers and Tomatoes.

Briggs & Stratton has come out with an all-new 3000 Watt Inverter Generator that they say is the perfect accessory to tailgating. With even more watts in a compact housing that is easy to maneuver around, you can finally keep those power hungry devices running while on the go.

Bosch has expanded their heated work wear line to include a new version of their PSJ120 heated jacket, this time for women. The new Bosch women’s heated jacket has all the great features that can be found in the men’s jacket, but it has a tailored-fit that is contoured to better match a woman’s shape.

It is getting to be that time of the year again, the time when it is best to plant your grass seed. Not too hot that your freshly seeded grass will have a hard time growing, and not too cold that your grass will go dormant and not grow at all. Knowing that it is grass growing season, Lowe’s has a selection of Pennington Smart Seed on sale for 20% off for this week.

Your average infrared thermometer uses only a single laser point to help you determine where it is measuring heat from, but it doesn’t take into account the bigger field of view the thermometer is measuring at longer distances. The new Circular Laser Infrared Thermometers from Thermoworks use a total of 8 laser points to give you a better representation of the area you are actually measuring, even as distances change.

Kitchen science wizard and gadget lover, Alton Brown, shows us why it is ok to mix kitchen tools and power tools. After realizing hand grinding large amounts of black pepper with a standard pepper mill is just too much work, he figures there must be a better way.

Veto Pro Pac has expanded their line of tool bags quite a bit over the last few years by moving into tech bags, pouches, and laptop bags. With their new Model MC tool bag they are taking a step back to their initial contractor series design, but have gone smaller.

Andrey Rudenko, an engineer in Minnesota, has successfully built a large scale castle using a custom designed 3D concrete printer, and that is just the beginning. He started experimenting with 3D printing concrete about 20 years ago and now the technology is here to make full-scale 3D home printing possible.

Makita is continuing to expand their Brushless line of cordless tools, this time with a new 3-speed ½-inch Impact Wrench, model XWT02M. The new impact wrench kit will also include the new Makita 4.0Ah batteries, which have a best-in-class charge time of only 40-minutes.