Thursday, April 26, 2012

Simplehuman Trashcan Repair

You would think I could spend my time on better things than fixing a busted trashcan. But, this is one of those nice 'Superhuman' brands with the foot pedal that when you step on it the top flips open. Today is the second and hopefully the last time I have to get my tools out on this thing. There is a major flaw in the design but like most things today, it aint supposed to last. I priced these cans and they are not cheap. Looks like $39.99 at BedBath&Beyond. Wow, they sure have an assortment too. Check this link out. http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/search/search.aspx/_/N-1z14140?sstr=simplehuman&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=superhuman%20trash%20can&creative=11596909598&adpos=1t1&gclid=CNS3tYGU068CFcfb4Aoddy1Ydg"> Okay, back to the story today. I should have taken pictures of the whole process of taking it apart and cutting the stainless screws with my Dremel grinder but I didn't even think about it until I was finished with the whole mess. I sound a little frustrated as I was. There is always frustration when you first take something apart. It's like a puzzle and you just don't know how things go together or come apart. I start with the simplest and most obvious of course, the screws. But, then you got a genuius who likes puzzle pieces and they will sneak one in on you. Now for some pics to show you what I've spent over an hour on just a little bit ago. My back is still aching and bending over on the kitchen floor to work on this has made new pains for me. Oh well, I'll heal.
That's the can. I'll explain more as I go.
The brand name label.
I like the 'lift' handle in the back. I only found this one day after tugging and pulling the can around to set it in place so many times for so many months.
Okay, here's where the fun begins. The bottom is where you take a screw out and a pin that holds the foot lever.
That first time taking this apart really had me thinking. There is a flat piece of spring stainless steel underneath that foot lever that gives it the spring action. I didn't take a pic of the inner workings, sorry. Here's the one screw that you need to take out. This is the flawed design, the foot pedal. What you can't see that is underneath is the cheaply made pedal that will break in half over time. A little more thickness with the plastic and this can might last for a couple generations. I happened to have two large stainless 3/16" screws, nuts and lock washers on hand in my parts bin. I'm not exact on the size of those screws now though but there were large enough that I knew they would support some serious foot pressure. As I said earlier, this is my second repair of this can. The first repair wasn't idiot proof. I hadn't secured the screws tight enough in the first place. Secondly, the middle of the foot lever that was almost broke in half and very weak or fatigued, I was trying to save. It didn't last. Once that weak spot broke in half the foot lever and the screws flopped around for many months until I decided I had enough. Today was the day to end this nonsense.
This shouldn't have taken me so long today to fix this once and for all. The problem was that the screws or bolts that I had used were about three inches long. They were interferring with placing the foot lever back in place over that stainless spring. That's where the Dremel tool with the cutoff wheel came into good use. I've used the Dremel on cutting stainless bolts before on a boat trailer. Talk about taking a long time, it's gets overwhelming holding the tool just so that you don't break the fragile grinding or cutoff wheel. They are thin disks and one slight wrong move and they shatter. Each bolt today probably took me about fifteen minutes each holding it fast by hand and slowly getting the feel of the cutting. I had to increase the speed one notch as the steel was not cutting well. When you see a steady stream of sparks and the Dremel motor doesn't sound like it's being taxed to heavily, you've got a perfect combination for cutting. Just remember to let off now and then to allow some cooling of the disk. Here's the last picture of the foot lever or pedal. It now stands tall, way off the floor. Where before it flopped about just about an inch off the floor and when you stepped on it, the lid didn't come up all the way. Now, take a step on it and the top flips up and salutes you. The wife will be surprised when she comes home later and goes to throw something away. Okay, I now need to think about mowing the yard again... Update: 8/20/2012 - I want to take pictures of the stainless bolts in place just to show you. I just have to get in the mood to take this can apart again. Keep checking back.

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