Product review: Adjustable Small Base Quad Cane

I purchased a small base quad cane after back surgery to help me walk up the stairs. If you need a cane for walking up the stairs it is very important to get the cane with a small base so all four legs will fit onto a step.

I was taught how to use this cane in a rehabilitation facility. The cane is unstable if you use it the wrong way. The four leg base is not symmetrical. On one side two legs are spaced a little closer together, on the other side a little more wide apart. It is very important to have the wide part AWAY from the body. The base can be switched based on whether you want to use right handed or left handed. This positioning makes a huge difference.

When the cane came from the factory it was set for the wrong hand, and if I did not have my lesson on stability I probably would have used it as is and would have been unhappy with stability of the cane. I hope this helps someone else!

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.


Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Non-OEM Laser Toner Refill, Compatible for Toner Cartridge for Samsung ML 2010, 2510, 2570, 2571N - ML2010D3

In March of 2012 I purchased a compatible toner cartridge for my Samsung ML laser printer. It was the first time I purchased a compatible toner rather then the OEM cartridge. I received the replacement toner cartridge in different box than the stock photo shows. It was extremely well packaged in good bubble wrap. It was packaged more securely than the OEM replacement toner cartridges that I have purchased in the past. Please see photo labeled #1.

The cartridge was clean with no toner residue in the bag. It looked very similar to the original OEM cartridge just did not have the Samsung logo on the cartridge itself. See photo labeled #2, the original cartridge is on the left, this compatible cartridge is on the right.

The installation instruction were a little confusing. The image in photo labeled #3 shows the confusing step. The instruction calls to remove the seal from the cartridge and the image shows like you have to remove some small part on the right hand side of the toner. In fact what they mean is to slide out a large piece of paper laying in a crease of the toner.

The cartridge easily inserted into the printer, and printed flawlessly. The ink was dark and even. There were no streaks on the front or the back of the paper. I rubbed my finger over it and it did not smudge. So far so good.

I had my Samsung ML2010 for a number of years, I have purchased two OEM laser cartridges during its life time in addition to the starter cartridge that came with the printer. I keep track of my laser cartridges in a spreadsheet. I paid $70 and $74 respectively for each cartridge and got a total 46 months of use out of the two cartridges. The average cost of use for the OEM Samsung laser cartridges has been $3.13 per month.

I paid $15.25 for this compatible cartridge, if it lasts more than 5 months I will be saving money. So far, after 4.5 months of use, it is still going strong: the color is dark and even.

So far so good! A 5 star rating. Time will tell how long it will last and how much of a bargain this toner is. I will update this review to indicate how it is doing in 5 months.

Updated 12/12/2012 (9 months later): The toner is still working, dark print, no streaks.  This was a good purchase!

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.


Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Korky 818BP Korky QuietFill Fill Valve, Installation tips

I have a Korky Fill Valve in my house that operated smoothly for 12 years, so when my elderly mother called me to complain about her constantly running toilet I had no hesitation of what fill valve to buy to fix her toilet. I normally prefer to buy things on Amazon but with a toilet emergency there is no time to waste and I headed to my local home improvement store. To my surprise a price there was actually a few dollars cheaper.

I am not a very handy person, yet Korky valve was fairly easy to replace. There was only step that took a bit of effort. I including a collage of two photos  which I will be referencing in this review.

1. Started by turning off the water supply (turning the valve clockwise).

2. I put a small plastic bin under the toilet to catch water coming out of supply hose

3. I disconnected the supply hose, it held about a cup of water that spilled into the bin

4. I flushed the toilet and using some old rags mopped up the water that still remained in the tank

5. The next step was to remove the old valve: I removed the overflow tube for the valve and the flapper. The final step in removing the old valve was to remove the nut holding the valve to the tank from below. This was the most difficult step of the entire process. I used large wise grips and turn the nut clockwise. This took quite a bit of effort. The nut is plastic so I had to be careful not to strip it.

6. The next step was to set the new valve to the right height. This is the most important step for proper operation of the valve. I inserted the valve in the tank, unlocked it by turn counter-clock wise, lined up the bottom of the white cap of the valve with the top of the overflow pipe, and then locked it by turning clock-wise. Then I carefully removed the valved from the tank and inserted a provided plastic pin to hold the valve at the proper height for my tank. The trick to having the pin stay in place is aligning the bumps on the stem of the valve with the holes on the pin. You can see the bumps and the holes in photo#1 (I put red squares over the hole and bumps in the photo so you can find them easily).

Note: The first time I turned on the water for the test, the clip holding the right height for the valve got dislodged and this would have caused the continuously running toilet. After I disassembled the valve and made sure that bumps on the stem went into the holes on the clip, the clip held the valve securely.

7. Once the height of the valve was set correctly, I inserted the valve, but did not tighten it fully yet.

8. The next step was to position and shorten the overflow tube. This black tube is long so it would fit different toilets. It should be just long enough to empty into the overflow pipe. I changed the angle of the valve in such a way that the black tube was aimed into the overflow pipe and had no kinks. I shortened it to end just above the overflow pipe and then used the provided pin to attach it to the overflow pipe. You can see the pipe position in Photo #2.

9. At this point I was almost done and hand-tightened the nut that holds the valve to the toilet. I used a rag to get a good grip on the nut, and turned it as far by hand as I could.

10. Next it was time for a test. I turned on the water just a little bit to see if anything leaks and works properly. When everything worked well, I turned on the water at full force.

If you also changed the overflow pipe in the toilet make sure that the level of the flush lever opening is above the overfill pipe in the the tank. Otherwise the tank will fill to level opening and will leak through that opening to the floor. The top of overflow pipe should be 3/4" or more below flush lever opening.

The installation took me about 30 minutes. Everything has been working smoothly and quietly. Both my mother and I are very pleased! I hope she gets as many as years out of her Korky as I got from mine.

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Kindle book review: Quilts Their Story and How to Make Them

I am an experienced quilter, who enjoys creating quilts and is interested in the history of quilt making. This book contains no illustrations or instructions on making quilts. However, it contains a very detailed and interesting history of quilts and quilt making. I learned a lot of small new details that I did not know before and enjoyed reading this book very much.

The book was written n 1915 and starts with a brief explanation of quilt making. Then it starts its journey into the history of quilt making. The roots of quilting and weaving are dated back by their appearance in ancient art work. For example, the images of a loom appear in 2650 B.C. The old piece of patchwork can be found in a Museum of cairo and dates to 960 B.C.

The book traces the appearance of patchwork during Trojan War, Middle Ages, Renaissance. Appliqué makes it appearance in Florence (described as cut work). There a very lengthy chapter on history of quilts in America, which I found very interesting. There is an interesting chapter on quilt block names. I never gave the block names much thought but the author organized them by themes such as political, religion, sky. and it gave me a fresh new way to think about the blocks I know and love.

I found the book educational and enjoyable. Great trip into history!


You can find "Quilts : Their Story and How to Make Them" on Amazon by following this link


Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Instapark® Cervical Neck Traction.

I have a variety of spinal issues, and my neck often hurts when I work long hours in front of the computer. Cervical Neck traction provides a way to stretch your neck and that offers some temporary relief. I found it to be fairly comfortable and it fit me well. I am attaching a collage of 4 photo that I will be referencing in this review.

Cervical Neck Traction has three air chambers that are be filled with air with a provided bulb pump. The chambers go all around your neck. The front of the traction has 2 strong Velcro straps to tighten the device around your neck. It has a lot of flexibility to fit necks of different sizes. Photo #1 and Photo #2 show the closure. The traction device I received is black (not blue like the stock photo) and I prefer the black color.

It is made out of soft velour material that feels nice against your neck. However, as you can see in the photos it attracts a lot of dust. I took the photos after two weeks of using the Instapark neck traction, leaving it in my room without a baggy when not in use. From now on I will be keeping it in a plastic bag. I noticed that some reviews mention bad smell. Luckily, my traction device does not have this problem.

The height of the traction depends on how much air you put in the air chambers. It took me 150 pumps to inflate it to 6" height shown in the photos (Photo#2 and photo#4 have the pillow next to a ruler). This is a fairly low level of stretching. Once you inflate the chambers you need to lock the knob on the pump turning it clockwise. The first time I inflated the device I forgot to do it, and it slowly deflated. Since it takes quite a few pumps to get it to the right inflation level, I do the initial inflation while it is not on my neck (about 150 pumps to the inflation level shown in the photo), then put it on, adjust the Velcro closures, and then pump up more air in switching hands when they get tired from pumping. Neck problems are commonly associated with tingling in the hands/fingers, so consider the need to pump a lot as your determine if this device will work well for your use.

I found Instapack traction device quite comfortable. I am planning to take it on my upcoming air travel. I think it will be much more comfortable than a travel pillow. For use in the airplane I would pump it up less than I do for stretching, but it would provide support in all directions, not just in the back like a travel pillow.


You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★★☆

Product review: Soundfly SD WMA/MP3 Player Car Fm Transmitter for SD Card, USB Stick, Mp3 Players. Audio books in the car

My main use for Soundfly FM Transmitter is to listen to audio books while I drive. Other than the quality of the sound the feature that is most important to me is the ability to restart listening where I left off. This player does an excellent job in this respect with the feature called "bookmark". Soundfly fit my car (Honda CRV) perfectly. The sound quality is excellent.

I am attaching a collage of four photos that I will be referencing in this review.

Soundfly has three options for audio input: USB stick, SD card, and stereo headphone jack to which any device such as phone or MP3 player can be connected. The USB port is located at the bottom of the device, SD card slot and stereo jack ports are located on the sides. In my photos you see the usage of USB stick. Photos #1, #2, #3 show the transmitter working in the side console compartment. Photo #4 show the transmitter in the outlet below the dash. Both positions generated equally good sound. I found the side console more convenient for several reasons: (1) I don't see the USB stick flashing out of the corner of my eye (2) it is out of sight (3) it is always out of the direct sun light.

The remote control is small and thin. I mostly use it to bookmark my place in the book before I turn off the car. Photo #3 shows the screen displaying "SAV" when you hit the bookmark button on the remote. I keep the remote in the cup holder in the central console. I can easily control the transmitter from the sitting position where the transmitter is slightly behind me in the side compartment.

Inserting the plug into the outlet requires a bit of fussing mostly due to the position of the outlets in my car. For that reason I keep the unit plugged in most of the time. It starts playing as soon as I start the car even if I turned off the unit with the remote during the previous ride. When you turn the unit off without unplugging the speakers generate an unpleasant hiss, so I normally switch the radio to another station before I turn off the receiver via remote.

To find vacant FM stations in my area I used a web site "radio-locator (dot) com/cgi-bin/vacant" where you can enter your zip code and get a list of stations to try. This web site ranks vacant stations as "best", "great" and "good". Their suggestions worked well for me, the third station on their best list gave me the best sound quality. You can save vacant stations in the transmitter's memory, and change stations if needed using the remote.

The only minor issue I have with the transmitter is that when I set the volume to its max on the transmitter it is still a bit too low at my regular volume setting on the radio. I need to turn up the sound on the radio to get it to my normal listening range. This means I need to remember to turn the volume down before I switch to the radio options otherwise my ears get blasted.

Overall I am very pleased. This is my second FM transmitter. Years ago I bought a really cheap FM transmitter that would disconnect and start generating hiss on bumps in the road. It was so annoying that dismissed the FM transmitter as a good option for the car. Well, I guess you get what you paid for. This transmitter has not lost the transmission on the same ride that the old transmitter could not handle. I wish this was the unit I tried a few years ago, I would have been enjoying audio books in the car all these years.


You can find it on Amazon by following this link.


Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Sensodyne Toothpaste for Sensitive Teeth / prevent hot and cold sensativity

I never had any issues with my teeth until about 2 months ago I developed sensitivity to hot and cold foods. The teeth on one side of my mouth would hurt when I ate something that was cold or hot. I could not pin point any particular tooth that caused the pain. The pain stopped when I stopped eating. When this sensitivity did not go away in a few weeks I went to see my dentist who probed my teeth with various torture devices and told me that I have no cavities, cracks, or exposed gums. He said that the problem is likely caused by teeth grinding and is often helped by Sensodyne toothpaste. He gave me a sample toothpaste to see if it will help.

My dentist explained that the toothpaste works by filling in dentinal tubules that communicate with nerves in the teeth. When the tubules are exposed they conduct cold or hot temperatures to the nerves and it is perceived as pain by the tooth nerves. The toothpaste temporary fills the tubules and prevents the sensitivity. This process is not immediate, he said it will take approximately 1 to 2 weeks. It is not permanent so if the toothpaste helps one needs to use it every day once a day (he recommended to use before going to sleep at night).

I noticed the sensitivity to hot and cold significantly diminished in about 4 days and ordered this order of Sensodyne toothpaste.

This toothpaste contains Fluoride and tooth whitening. Unfortunately for me it has a strong minty flavor. I don't like mint flavor and has been using a non-mint toothpaste Tom's of Maine Orange Mango but because it really help the sensitivity I now use Sensodyne in the evening, and Orange Mango in the morning. The toothpaste generates a nice foam (not too much and not too little) and has a pleasant feel to it. And if you like mint flavor you will like how it taste, not only what it does.

The price on Amazon is very good, I compared it to Costco for the size price packaging and Amazon price is better. I am attaching the photo which shows the packaging and toothpaste itself on a toothbrush.


You can find it on Amazon by following this link.



Ali Julia review ★★★★★