Author: Ross Rubin

Categories
Camping

Propane Porter keeps grill masters safely fueled while camping

Getting a propane tank from store to home is one thing. Transporting it to one’s favorite campsite is quite another. Propane Porter is designed to help those who love grilling and camping to transport this important item safely, and with some added organization conveniences for good measure. The product will be made of a double walled, polyethylene plastic, with two notches (an upper and lower) for appropriate restraining devices. It will be sturdy enough to use as a stool when flipped over, able to be used as a cooler, and there will be a spot for storing and toting cooking utensils for the grill.

This seems like a product that will work well. It will especially have great appeal to outdoor enthusiasts. And when it comes time to hook that tank up to the grill, backers might also appreciate having Loopy on hand. Other potentially useful items at the campsite include TrackBelt360, Ulta-Mitt and POD tents. This campaign seeks to raise $47,000 on Kickstarter. Backers get one product for $35, with an expected delivery of October 2015.

Categories
Home

MagBlind uses magnets to pick up the slats when they all fall down

Those PVC vertical plastic blinds that come in many apartments or “value” priced newer homes are a great inexpensive way to protect one’s privacy. But if one has pets or small children, it doesn’t take long for a slat or two or more to break. There are very few ways to fix these blinds outside of replacing them – until MagBlind.

The simple, but effective repair kit includes two magnets that attach to the top of the broken slat with 3M tape. Then the metal stem gets inserted into the blinds and the slat stays attached via magnetization. MagBlind is detachable, so one can take it along if moving into a new home with vertical slat blinds.

This seems like an excellent idea and quality product that fixes a very common problem that comes with these blinds. Backers looking for a way to automate these blinds might want to check out EZ Wand, and Tilt My Blinds. This campaign seeks to raise $500 by February 20, 2015. For $2, backers get one repair kit with an expected delivery of March 2015.

Categories
Tools

T-Rex tool changes the bar, makes it easier to pry stuff loose

Tearing up flooring can be one of the most time-consuming tasks when it comes to home repairs. If staples were used as a part of laying flooring, it can mean spending hours using a screwdriver to pry them out.

patent-claimedT-Rex is touted as taking those hours and reducing them to minutes. Three groves in this pry bar allow the user to pull out not only a standard nail, but also staples, pin nails, and framing nails. The rounded teeth simplify the task of getting under stubborn staples and getting leverage to pull them out. A dimple near the top allows the pry bar to have a tri-pod type of shape, which helps keep it from bending out of shape or warping over time.

T-Rex is a nifty little house tool, great for those DIYers who own homes. Interested backers might also like to check out TrackBelt360, CaulkKnocker, and Hangman, This campaign seeks to raise $50,000 on Kickstarter. For $10, backers get one nine inch ripper with an expected delivery of March 2015.

Categories
Home

Shower Shimmy makes cleaning less irritating both for mind and body

Cleaning the shower is one of those tasks that ranks right up there with washing the dishes by hand.  So Shower Shimmy was created to not only make that mundane task easier, but also diminish the awful fumes that often come with using cleaning supplies.

At the push of a button, the built-in dispenser releases cleaning solution to the sponge and the user can then wipe soap scum, grime, and hard water deposits off of the shower walls and floor. But this cleaning solution doesn’t irritate the user’s eyes, skin or respiratory system, so ventilation and rubber gloves aren’t necessary.

It’s questionable if such a solution would truly be effective, but the video claims that testing was done to compare Shower Shimmy’s solution and the leading cleaning solution in the US and Canada, and the Shower Shimmy claims that its cleaning solution scored equally well. Plus, it’s still as safe as soap or shampoo around small children. As for where to store the scrubber, it easily hangs on the shower wall. This campaign seeks to raise $5,000 by February 17, 2015. Backers get one product for $23 with an expected delivery of April 2015.

Categories
Furniture Tech Accessories

Curvilux hangs out in your bedroom to keep gadgets charged while you snooze

Where to store electronic gadgets at night has become its own 21st century conundrum. Smartphones and tablets and other devices need to be charged so that they are ready to go and last all the way through the following day.

Curvilux is a new type of bedside table that includes built in USB charging ports, or items can be charged wirelessly. It also has a built-in audio system that syncs with Bluetooth so a person can even awake to their favorite tunes, and includes an NFC connector. The built-in lighting unit allows for two options: a bright light for bedside reading, or a floor light if one finds that they need to get up at night. The nightstand includes attachable legs for a freestanding unit, or wall attachments if preferred.

This seems like a very quality product with a lot of great features that people can really use. Many desks focus on tech convenience, but few nightstands ever have. The design isn’t bad either. Backers might also like to check out Z-charge. This campaign seeks to raise $50,000 on Indiegogo. For $100, backers get one product with an expected delivery of December 2015.

Categories
Home

Flood Covers help protect your water heater, furnace when flood waters rise

One of the most devastating natural disasters that a family can endure is flood. The expense that comes with the loss is often not nearly as tragic as the loss of many of the precious memories attached to personal belongings. To add salt to the wound, families are often left without a furnace, water heater, and other important big ticket items after the tragedy.

Flood Covers were created by someone who has personally experienced such losses on more than one occasion. He decided that it’s time someone invented something that could prevent others from having to experience that. The huge water-resistant bag extends over furnaces, water heaters, and boilers up to four feet. It’s fire and safety code compliant in all 50 states. While it does have to be installed prior to the installation of a water heater, furnace or boiler, once it is installed it can be easily cleaned, and if necessary, reused.

Seems like a quality product that may be worth checking into further. However, few people ever really see the installation of furnaces and the like, so it’s pretty unlikely that most will even be able to use this product. Interested backers might also like to check out Water Hero and Hydroguard. This campaign seeks to raise $27,000 on Kickstarter. For $250, backers get one product with an expected delivery of June 2015.

Categories
Kids/Babies

Phillup color-coded kids cups cut down on waste

It’s amazing how a cup collection seems to grow in each child’s room like a massive weed, and how that seems to sprawl into many others rooms in the house. Phillup was created to help control the outrageous number of cups that get used by kids on a daily basis and cut down on the frequency of washing them.

The hangable kid cup consists of a cup with a loop that can be hung on a matching hook. The cups come in several colors, so they can be color-coded and each child assigned a color. Then they can just reuse their cup throughout the day when drinking water. The cups are also BPA-free and dishwasher safe.

This does seem to offer a solution to a pretty common problem, though there is also the option of just buying plastic cups and writing each child’s name on it with a permanent marker. Backers with little ones might also like to check out WetHeads and Puggle. This campaign seeks to raise $30,000 on Kickstarter. Backers get one product for $8, with an expected delivery of May 2015.

Categories
Home

Phillow lets you hide important stuff right under your own nose

Finding just the right pillow is important for getting a good night’s sleep. But sleeping means that one is unable to pay attention to the environment around them and, in some cases, important items could end up missing.

Phillow is a unique pillow that offers the user a potential hiding place for valuables and important items that one doesn’t want to keep laying around in the open or in predictable places such as a dresser or desk drawer. The product is hypoallergenic, king-sized and has a deep pocket in the middle where various items can be hidden.

It’s unclear how big the pocket is or how much it can store, but it will at least hold a small tablet. Backers interested in some one-of-a-kind fun bedding might also like to check out Pizza Bed. This campaign seeks to raise $36,000 on Kickstarter. For $136, backers get one Phillow with an expected delivery of May 2015.

Categories
Automotive

Smart Lite enhances truck safety, does so with mirrors

Big rigs have lots of mirrors to help reduce blind spots, but the one area that isn’t covered is in between the door and front bumper. This means that cars and motorcyclists in that area are invisible to them. So Smart Lite was created to enhance road safety.

The description regarding how this works isn’t entirely clear, but as best as can be deciphered, the driver replaces the original backup light with a Smart Lite. This includes a convex mirror on the opposite side. When the driver looks into the truck’s side mirrors, any object in the area of the front bumper blind spot is then visible in the side mirrors because of the product’s backup light or turn signal on one side and convex mirror on the other.

The product seems like it may have potential, but when it comes to safety, one always wants to be sure. Backers interested in the trucking industry might also want to check out Dudad, Cargo Net Tie-Down, and U-Wake. This campaign seeks to raise $60,000 CAD (~$48,300 USD) on Kickstarter. For $200 CAD (~$161 USD) backers get a set of Smart Lites with an expected delivery of April 2015.

Categories
Camping

Mini-E camping stove folds up, out into different shapes

Creating a campfire and cooking hotdogs or a meal can be a great deal of fun, especially when one has the right equipment. A good camping stove makes mealtime easy and inspires enjoyable conversation. TATO Gear Mini-E is a type of camping stove that is certainly easy to bring on a camping trip.

The titanium firebox weighs about 2.6 ounces and folds up to fit in a backpack compartment or pocket. It can be formed into several shapes, depending on one’s needs at the time of usage, including expanding large enough to support a full size skillet or stew pot to cook a meal.  The stove can be fueled with wood or even alcohol.

TATO seems like a very convenient item to have on hand for cooking meals when camping, though it doesn’t seem suitable if more than two people were going to need to be fed. Camping and hiking loving backers might also want to check out CampCaddy and GrillOven.  This campaign seeks to raise a modest $1,000 on Kickstarter. For $40, backers get one stove with an expected delivery of April 2015.