Reminds me of all the computer manuals from the 80s that would say something like "YOU CANNOT HURT THE COMPUTER BY USING IT - if you get confused, turn it off and back on".

Except with a gasoline-powered generator you can do some serious damage if you're not careful. Gasoline is no joke.

Could take a finger off with a snowblower too, I get nervous when I change out shear pins even with the starter key in my hand. You gotta have a sense of yourself obviously.

Disconnect the spark plug, it should be easy to access.

That way you can be 100% sure it’s fine if you’re concerned.

To paraphrase my father-in-law: paper is flammable, gas is combustible; most people don't figure out that difference until too late...

It’s no joke, but it’s also not a big risk if you have some common sense and work in a well ventilated space.

We really shouldn’t discourage people from trying to fix thins because of fear.

I don't disagree with your overall sentiment, but working safely with gasoline requires a lot more than just ventilation. In my case, I was fixing a fuel valve, which turns out to be fraught with all manner of peril. I was very lucky in that I had a neighbor who has experience working with ICEs looking over my shoulder. Without that it would have been very dicey.

I mean generally in that case I would simply drain the tank into a gas can, pinching off the line if I had to while disconnecting it from the carburetor. After that it would be pretty trivial.

If you need to try a repair again checkout YouTube, the small engine guys on there are really, really good. They've got tricks even I'd never heard of before.

Yes, of course. But that's because you know what you're doing. Someone who didn't know what they were doing could end up with a puddle of gas on the floor, which could then turn into a cloud of gasoline vapor, which could then turn into a bomb if they dropped a wrench the wrong way.

You are really determined to make the point that caution is warranted, but shouldn't all adults know that?

They should. But look up "accidentally igniting gasoline" on YouTube some time.

That’s an extremely contrived scenario that has never happened in real life. I’m proud of you for fixing your engine, but let’s not pretend it was dangerous.

I refuse to believe someone who is attempting to repair an internal combustion engine does not know that gasoline is flammable and the working area should be ventilated (or outside), particularly if they’re working on the fuel system.

> That’s an extremely contrived scenario

Sure. But people do occasionally ignite gasoline by accident. It's uncommon, but the consequences can be very severe.

Omg, I am reminded about daily that there are buttons all over every UI that you absolutely do not want to push. We're constantly three wrong clicks from completely ruining an app/your data/the entire OS/your entire disk. And it seems like UIs are constantly violating this:

https://www.nngroup.com/articles/proximity-consequential-opt...

Just this weekend, I ran into a different situation. I've owned battery powered equipment for 5 or 6 years now using the original batteries. They are interchangeable, and have served me well...until this weekend. The battery will no longer hold a charge and the charger light blinking pattern indicates there are problems with the battery. How do you self-repair that?

Funny thing, the replacement batteries are much larger in capacity now, but the price of a single replacement battery is the same cost of a new powered tool. So, I wound up getting a new tool that I didn't have with a new battery. I have a few LiPo batteries for my cinema camera gear that have died as well. I'm going to try to find someone that can just replace the batteries packs inside the custom housing.

Take the battery case apart and see which cell is tripping the protection circuit?

working with LiPo battery packs just isn't my thing though. I've taken apart the camera battery and can clearly see the type of batteries in it, but they are all glued together in the shape to fit the case. Maybe I'm a just a wuss, but trying to disassemble the pack without piercing a cell is a bit more than I am willing to risk at this time. I'm hoping paying someone with that skill to make the replacement will still be cheaper than buying new. ~$400 for a 14.8V 98Wh 12A max battery.

Corded tools, my friend. Corded tools, a few good extension cords (and a pluggable reel), good hand tools, small/dumb tools with AA/AAA rechargeable batteries.

Very few exceptions to this rule for me, and I generally avoid anything with a Micro-USB charger like the plague if I can, as I can't help but see it becoming e-Waste in 3-5 years.

Corded tools? You must be a city dweller

:-)