Hard disagree here. Velcro ties are way better for cable management because you can actually reuse them when you need to move things around. Once you clip a zip tie, that's it - you're cutting it off and starting over. A buddy of mine used zip ties on a home lab setup and ended up scratching a patch cable's jacket with the sharp nub he left behind. For a few extra bucks, the velcro strips save you the hassle of redoing runs every time something needs to be swapped out.

Three pumps in 8 months and you still didn't check the screen until the third one? That sounds like you were throwing parts at it hoping for a miracle. A lot of guys just swap the pump and call it done, but if you'd actually tested the old pump on a bench you'd see most of them are fine. The IPR screen clogs because the system is already contaminated, usually from something else like a worn HPOP or failing injectors. So cleaning that screen just hides the real problem until the new pump eats the same debris. I've seen guys do the screen trick and still lose pressure a month later when the actual failure is the pump itself. You might save $400 now but you're gambling on a bandaid fix that won't hold.

...I mean it's drywall mud, not a firstborn child. I get being proud of a clean finish, but almost crying? That seems like a lot for something that's gonna get sanded down and painted over anyway. How bad was your mud game before this that a smooth bucket of all-purpose joint compound has you emotional?

Got my first real half-sheet pan three years ago from a friend who worked in a bakery. He told me to just get the cheapest bare aluminum one from a restaurant supply store, not the fancy coated stuff. First batch of chocolate chip cookies I made on it, they actually came out all the same color instead of some being burnt and some being raw dough. Then I started noticing my sheet pans were doing that weird curling thing where they lift off the oven rack and all your bacon grease slides to one side. Those cheap nonstick pans from the supermarket, they're basically just flimsy metal with a coating that's gonna peel off in a year anyway. I still use my old bent pans for stuff like catching drips under pies but everything I actually care about goes on the aluminum half-sheet now.

Yo that REAL bummer man. I've been there with a bench that started wobbling after a wet season and it's a heartbreaker for sure. @williams.luna is right that cedar's soft spots just get worse once moisture seeps in, but I've had some luck digging out the rotted wood around the screw holes with a small chisel, then packing in waterproof wood filler and letting it cure for a full day before redrilling. I also use stainless steel exterior screws with a thick coat of exterior glue on them before driving in, and that held my leg joints steady for another year before I finally gave up and rebuilt. The angled pilot hole trick works okay but you're basically gambling on how deep the rot goes, so check the wood around each hole by poking it with a nail first.