The energy used heating water for a shower typically is the second biggest energy expenditure in the average home. And most of that heat goes right down the drain. That’s a monumental waste of juice. But there’s a new device on the market that could help to recapture some of that wasted energy. It’s called EcoDrain, and it’s a heat exchanger that preheats the incoming cold water that goes to the water heater or a fixture. They claim that just one EcoDrain heat exchanger can recover as much as 45% of the waste heat from your shower drain. They’re currently selling units at a base price of $440, which is a bit on the spendy side. But this could be a worthwhile investment in the long term if you use a lot of hot water.
Every year cars are becoming more like rolling computers. And therefore, the concept of 4 wheeled cyber security is gathering attention. Organizers of the SyScan conference in Beijing are offering 10 Grand to the person who hacks a Tesla first. The Model S was chosen not just because of its techie cred, but also because Tesla actually invested real resources in digital security. In fact, Tesla hired “hacker princess” Kristen Paget away from Apple. The carmaker isn’t very happy about the contest, mainly because they aren’t involved. And any contest winner isn’t obligated to share their findings with Tesla programmers. And if someone does successfully hack a Tesla, we wouldn’t be surprised if the carmaker pays considerably more than 10 grand for the hacking details.
