https://community.element14.com/members-area/A place for members to hang out!en-USTelligent Community 12https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236314Sat, 04 Jul 2026 22:33:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:7c684515-839d-49a3-833c-c8ce5d0222e4beacon_dave[quote userid="45395" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236313"]The thermochromic fluid has my interest.[/quote] taking you back to the psychedelic 60s [quote userid="45395" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236313"]For as little heat as will be moved, I was way more leaning towards dryer duct, an old computer case fan and a salvaged wall wart.[/quote] I once experimented with a couple of 4" inline duct fans and some 4" flexible vent duct to try and improve air flow through a small office by hooking then up to the existing wall vents but didn't have much success.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236313Sat, 04 Jul 2026 21:58:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:6fb2762a-dbf0-45fe-89c2-57ae30024b49kmikemooThe thermochromic fluid has my interest. For as little heat as will be moved, I was way more leaning towards dryer duct, an old computer case fan and a salvaged wall wart.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236311Sat, 04 Jul 2026 12:51:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:41bd4637-3683-4d27-a07b-4c291906a330beacon_daveThat was what I was getting at with the " Under ceiling to under floor heating system ". Have a serpentine tube over the ceiling to pick up the heat and then another in the cellar (or radiator) to release it. Insulated pipe runs between the two, with a low power pump to circulate the fluid. (Bonus points though if you use thermochromic fluid and transparent tubing, so you get a colour change effect as it warms up and cools down.) However, I suspect that all you really end up doing is heating the source room more, in which case it probably is more efficient just to heat the cellar directly ?https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/56959/are-you-using-ai/236310Sat, 04 Jul 2026 10:14:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:977ab92c-34dc-4b33-a792-e6cda01b2fc2Johan_HaI'm building two busker organs, one working with 3D printed pipes, one working with accordion reeds. The latter one needs an Arduino Uno Q, which runs a Linux system, and is designed to be programmed in Python. I knew nothing about Python, but with the help of an AI assistant, I've learnt a lot. Using Visual Studio Code, I also get a lot of suggestions how to write the code line by line. I read those lines and accept them (or sometimes change them) only after I understand them completely. During the process (which has taken over 2 years by now) I've also written a lot of music for the busker organs. First I had no interest in creating music with the help of AI. What I did instead was I wrote the music by heart (as I always do), but I had AI design a title page image for each tune. That was fun! Although I'd very much like some human artist to do the art work instead. But since I can't pay anyone, and there's no profit prospects in this, I haven't even tried that path yet. Here's some of the AI art: But I am working on AI generated music, too, just to learn how neural networks work. I'm using my 15 original busker organ tunes as training material for a neural network, the task of which will be to produce music that sounds like my tunes. I also tested Suno, just for fun. It was fun, and a bit creepy, how it turned one of my tunes into something different from mine. I fed the beginning of one of my tunes into Suno and the result was so funny, that I might implement a Suno interface into one of my busker organs. Then again, using AI to create images or music tends to be a thing where I am the one, who creates and refines the prompts, then selects the best outcome. And that is kind of a creative process, which is interesting. But I rather spend my creativety on writing the music myself.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236308Fri, 03 Jul 2026 13:46:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:12f8317a-c676-46f8-b7be-c9c1c3cbc91frobogaryHmmm. How about heat exchangers in target areas, run small flexible pipes with fluid rather than bulky air ducts ?https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236304Fri, 03 Jul 2026 02:16:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:c719e070-8929-4831-aab5-edb467036652kmikemooAlas, beacon_dave , neither skill is up to the challenge.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236303Thu, 02 Jul 2026 20:17:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:038d59aa-c5cd-4cfa-9729-d40ff5f39340beacon_dave[quote userid="45395" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236302"]Where I would like to install it, there the little problem of the center I-beam that is the main structural support of the first story.[/quote] how are your welding and gas axe skills coming along ? [quote userid="45395" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236302"]The second part of challenge one is that my wife doesn't want me opening up the walls to install ductwork.[/quote] how are your negotiation skills coming along ?https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236302Thu, 02 Jul 2026 19:53:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:3ff39536-3e9b-4c65-ba98-ab3ce9f08401kmikemoorobogary One challenge is the ductwork to pull it off. Where I would like to install it, there the little problem of the center I-beam that is the main structural support of the first story. The second part of challenge one is that my wife doesn't want me opening up the walls to install ductwork. Someday, she may decide that we need to remodel - maybe an upstairs laundry room. That will be my opportunity.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236301Thu, 02 Jul 2026 18:55:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:be04047c-a49d-4c48-a72f-46815a08590ebeacon_daveWhat's your longest drill bit ? [quote userid="45395" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236285"]My temptation is the opposite - to get the warm ceiling air in the Winter and pipe it down into the basement.[/quote] Under ceiling to under floor heating system ?https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236300Thu, 02 Jul 2026 18:52:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:4f13b802-0277-401f-9f16-dbafb0bcba28beacon_daveMike's going to need a longer drill bit...https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/56959/are-you-using-ai/236297Thu, 02 Jul 2026 03:43:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:4f31cea5-cfbd-455c-a231-6ba2a0c3b8d2ggabeI used Claude alongside KiCad primarily as an engineering assistant for schematic design rather than PCB layout. It was especially useful for automating repetitive schematic tasks. For example, I could ask it to duplicate a level shifter stage around Q1 multiple times, saving me from a lot of manual editing. It also handled large-scale design updates, such as marking every 0402 resistor as DNP across the project. Beyond automation, I used it as a design reviewer. I'd have it inspect the schematics for potential issues like startup conditions, sanity-check enable signal sequencing, and suggest where pull-up or pull-down resistors might be needed on control signals. It was a good second set of eyes for catching things I'd want to verify. I didn't use Claude for PCB routing, though. Routing is the part of board design I genuinely enjoy—it's a creative process where I prefer to stay hands-on.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/56959/are-you-using-ai/236296Thu, 02 Jul 2026 01:56:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:a410cf71-dc0f-4cc2-94c9-a5e6b607f2dcvadimvHow did Claude help you design PCBs? What did it do for you besides research automation etc.?https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/56959/are-you-using-ai/236295Thu, 02 Jul 2026 01:09:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:96c0ef46-e294-48ac-a9c1-8dadae10ae3dggabeI started using Cursor in December 2024, then switched to Roo, and eventually landed on Claude Code. If I have a full day to focus, I'll burn through 300M tokens without thinking twice. These days, Claude has helped me complete several C/C++ MCU projects, design PCBs, select parts, and think through optimization strategies in areas where I had far less experience. It's been like having an expert collaborator, and I can feel how much my own skills have leveled up. More recently, Codex got a Vivado environment running on an unsupported Mac in just a few hours. I can now compile overlays for PYNQ, and all Verilogs are entirely written by Claude. The sky really is the limit. My biggest challenge now isn't tooling—it's being disciplined enough to challenge my own ideas. Nothing feels out of reach anymore. Almost everything seems achievable if I'm willing to put in the time. The real tradeoff is finding that time among everything else life demands.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236293Wed, 01 Jul 2026 19:32:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:385c6648-79ff-4ff3-bbe2-a1aad6e91365robogaryThats what geo-thermal is all about.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236292Wed, 01 Jul 2026 17:59:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:ee5095de-3d93-4aad-b449-b6cf75579508beacon_dave[quote userid="8646" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236288"]It doesn't seem to do much compared to opening some windows.[/quote] If you connect the inputs to the window vents it might Isn't that mode aimed at filtration though ? I thought one of the advantages of those hot air systems beyond low latency heating, was air filtration ? [quote userid="8646" url="~/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236288"]If you still have the ducting and a fan for the system, then it's definitely worth trying to distribute the output of your portable aircon around.[/quote] We do that here at work in the main hall for the Summer graduation ceremonies. Hire in a big aircon unit and pipe the cold air into the hot air heating system. (Just a pity the system it doesn't reach the control room, where we quietly get roasted whilst everyone else complains of being too cold.) It sounds like the e14 house needs a multitude of temperature sensors (indoor and out) that can work out the temperature differences and turn on the appropriate ventilation fans, window openers, shutter/blind closers and aircon units as appropriate. My house is still cooling down from last week. I guess that the bricks are acting like storage heaters. Either that or there is a volcano below me.https://community.element14.com/members-area/support/f/site-announcements-and-status/57079/site-maintenance-7th-july-2026-8am-11am-uk-timeWed, 01 Jul 2026 09:16:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:784f6737-c877-4479-8c2d-cd5455e3348dDudleySite maintenance will be happening on the morning of 7th July from 8AM until 11AM UK Time. We will be doing a full site release of a new codebase. The site will be fully unavailable while we do the release. You will be presented with a maintenance page or the Oops page for all pages during the duration of the release. We expect the site to be available from around 11AM onwards. We hope it will be earlier than 11am. We'll be taking the site down at around 8am to apply the new version of our software. It will be down for about 2 hours and then we'll check everything and run our automated tests for an hour before we bring the site back online. You can read more on what is in the release on Matt 's development blog post here: https://community.element14.com/members-area/support/b/blog/posts/site-maintenance-7th-july-release-2026-4https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236288Wed, 01 Jul 2026 09:08:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:f633da5d-c71f-468f-a97c-b08bfdf9d2e4Fred27It sounds like we all have very similar systems. I can also turn a fan on manually to circulate ambient air around, and the air is pulled in from a couple of internal inputs, so a closed loop system. It doesn't seem to do much compared to opening some windows. stanto If you still have the ducting and a fan for the system, then it's definitely worth trying to distribute the output of your portable aircon around.https://community.element14.com/members-area/f/forum/57067/who-s-in-the-uk-and-has-caved-in-and-bought-air-conditioning/236285Wed, 01 Jul 2026 03:51:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:0c0dea9e-2594-48dc-826a-fc08084a3c9ckmikemooFred27 What you suggest is exactly how my air conditioner works. We have "central forced air" - one furnace and a bunch of ductwork. The air conditioner coils are mounted in the furnace outlet ductwork. The system uses the furnace fan to circulate the air. Our thermostat also allows us to just turn the fan on and circulate air. If you have a cellar, you could draw your intake air from there. You may not get good distribution of the air in the rooms the air is blowing into, but my basement is easily 10 degrees F cooler than upstairs. It could be worth a try. My temptation is the opposite - to get the warm ceiling air in the Winter and pipe it down into the basement.