What cheap tool/gadget do you use that greatly improves your daily life?

Just went down the aliexpress rabbit hole again. Theres really everythinf for some of really niche things that i wouldnt ever buy, but some things really do look appealing. I wonder what do you guys use daily thats worth lets say under $20

A decent headlamp. Flashlights are well and good, and sometimes necessary too. But if you’ve ever had to do something intricate with both hands in the complete dark, a good headlamp can be so much better in those situations

100%. I found one with grooves, so you can tilt and lock on whatever angle you like. Going to use as secondary light soirce on my bike rides and camping trips

I worked with a guy who wore a headlamp nearly all the time. When people would ask about it he would always tell them “There are only two reasons NOT to wear a headlamp. Either you don’t have a head, or you don’t have a headlamp.”

I will never forget this.

Oh phew, one of those reasons applies to me. Guess I don’t need one.

What are you doing in the dark that’s so intricate? Genuine question.

In most places, lights are placed on the ceiling. This is fine for generally lighting a room, but if you need to do something intricate that’s not directly under the ceiling lamp it can be hard to see. Even simple things like plugging in some cables under the desk.

I guess I don’t do anything away from desk lamps. Thanks for the explanation.

I’ve done fibre optic splicing entirely under the light of a headtorch. I don’t think you could get much more intricate than that.

I got a Lightbar brand “lightbar pro”, so good. The only downside to it is that there is a design flaw where there is no strain relief on the main power cable so twisting it will lead to failure. I don’t know if they fixed it since I bought mine, but some glue on the power wire should sort it out.

You get a nice wide diffuse light so you can see all around you and what you are working on. It isn’t the best for distance, but most of the time I am working I need to see my surroundings and what I am working on.

Completely agree on this. For some reason I’ve gone through like four at this point. They seem to break for some reason. Even tried the REI route with the black diamond brand and they don’t seem to last. I need to find a better brand.

Petzl. Had mine for 14 years

Was just using mine earlier!

Great for walking the dog at night, in suburban or rural settings. A phone flashlight is annoying to juggle while also controlling a leash and impossible when I need to scoop poop.

And you can get such small ones now! My spouse has one she keeps in her purse where the strap is just a thin wire that retracts into the unit. It’s not even uncomfortable! Needless to say I’m jealous!

Is it the petzl zipka? Because if it isn’t I’d love to know what it is. I have one, but they’ve apparently stopped making them, and it’s so much better not having an elastic strap.

Knipex adjustable shifter pliers

They adjust and lock to all the metric sizes and in my industry climbing towers and working at heights, having to carry the minimum is amazing.

Great tool but not cheap. Infact you probably couldn’t find a more expensive version. Knipex however is worth it. Generally my advice is to first buy a cheap tool and replace it with more expensive one after it breaks but with pliers it’s pay once, cry once situation. These are truly BIFL tools. The 100mm mini cobra pliers are awesome aswell.

I have the knippex 100mm pliers, they are part of my EDC but they’re not $20.

What do you do that you carry special pliers every day?

Exist. I have kids who constantly break things. I have a house where things often need minor attention. The knippex cobra xs pliers are tiny and weigh less than the pliers on a multitool like a Leatherman.

Faaacts, I have one at work and a personal one. Can one buy tools accidentally? I needed to get a bike head-nut off, all it had were two parallel indents on the perimeter.

Saw this for $50 at Sears, been in love with them ever since. W/o question one of my favorite and most useful tools. Sheesh I sound like such a shill haha

LOL, are you me? I recently put that thing in my backpack, because you never know.

Is there a tower climbers community on Lemmy?

I’m not sure, i climb tower cranes for work

Seriously-- I kinda wanted one for a long time, but I just assumed they were expensive. They are not. You can install it yourself. If you do so, you will never go back, and it will change your life for the better.

Bidet.

I just bought one… you’re personally responsible for my absolute joy…or will receive all of my hate. I’ll update

There’s no question about it. You’ll never want to poop publicly again and scrape poo from your bum with TP like a caveman.

Fair warning: this will (further) ruin public restrooms

100%.

I live in a country where every bathroom has a bidet. Or a bum gun. They are miracles.

Back in time, a long time ago, when I was 19 and spent about a year traveling abroad, I learned that a bidet in the bathroom isn’t a standard everywhere. Couldn’t understand why.

I hate when hotels don’t have bidets, I really wish it was as common as toilets

I think many people assume it’s those seats. Like in Japan… at least I did. But this is not correct, not all of them are. In my country we use these ‘wands’ which work when you turn on the sink faucet. Has a little finger trigger. It’s very convenient, clean. I’ll never go back!!

In a lot of places, a bidet refers to the whole integrated rig, the $30 under the seat things are washlets and the hand sprayer is advertised as a cloth diaper sprayer.

And great for doing dishes and washing vegetables!

rice cooker. i have one that i use like a fancy crockpot so i can leave the house and come home to hot food. mandolin or a food processor is a close second, makes chopping veggies a breeze

My issue with food processors is they take more time to clean than they save.

Which one do you use?

Rinse after use, then its a matter of wiping down in hot soapy water.

Never let the debris dry in the food processor or you’re gonna have a bad time. Same with blenders.

If you can’t reach the crevices you can also run it with warm (not hot) soapy water to clean the crevices.

Yeah, if you can’t soak it, get that food off before it dries. This is why I prefer kitchen tools that you can take apart. I replaced my Foreman grill with a griddle with removable plates and love it, even though the Foreman had a bit more cooking area. Plus I got waffle plates and also got rid of the waffle maker that I rarely used because it was such a pain to clean if you ever overestimated how much batter it needed.

i use a mini kitchenaid i got for $50 a few years ago. its easier to store n clean bc its tiny. it isnt good for big batches but is perfect for a few carrots and onion, or a handful of spinach. then i usually just swish it all with warm water and im good to go. i clean while i cook so its basically all done by the time im eating.

I guess I just don’t find it hard to chop things with a knife, which is very easy to clean. I have a food processor, but getting it out of the cupboard takes almost as much time as dicing an onion with a knife.

A decent reusable steel water bottle. Doesn’t need to cost a lot, and really cuts down on dishes at home

How does it reduce dishes? Water bottles are one of the more annoying things to wash, in my experience, because my hands aren’t small enough to fit anymore.

Edit: Yes, I have a bottle brush. It’s just that it’s a bit of a hassle to soap it from dry and then have to dry it somewhere before storing it again. I wash everything else with a rough sponge normally.

Get a metal one and put it in the dishwasher. Or get a bottle brush.

Also, occasionally filling it with white vinegar and letting it sit overnight can help clean deposits.

ETA: In general putting plastic in the dishwasher is not advised.

I see you’ve never had a partner with ADHD! Going around collecting all the half-drank water glasses in our household used to be a full-time job.

I have not! In fact, I’m usually the one carrying around water glasses because they’re less hassle to drink from and far easier to (visibly) clean than any other vessel is. I try to limit myself to two or three in the house though…

It’s not necessary to wash water bottles.

Reusable steel water bottles should absolutely be washed.

i use almost nothing but stainless steel drinking cups now

For cups (for cool liquids), I use aluminum since it cools my drink down quickly with just a small amount of ice.

I’ve been using my for about 8 years now, still holds up.

Hit up the Goodwill or similar, you can find stainless bottles for dollars.

Local DI (deseret industries-a Mormon goodwill equivalent) has them for $1.50. Pick your lid, thermo flask, size, straw or naw. Get 6 for $9. Or buy 1-2 a bunch of times. My only transportation is cycling (other than busses/trains). Hydration is essential for proper functioning on all of these.

Water is life homie.

Man I hate these. They make water warm up instantly (unless vacuum insulated) and I could just one a single glass the whole day, or multiple days.

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