Getting Started with ‘jia lulu’
So, I wanted to share what I’ve been up to lately. I called this little project ‘jia lulu’. It wasn’t anything super complicated, honestly. It started because I kept forgetting to water this one plant I have sitting on the windowsill. You know how it is, life gets busy. I almost killed the poor thing twice.
I thought, okay, I need a simple fix. Nothing fancy, just something to drip a bit of water regularly. I wasn’t about to buy some expensive smart garden thing. I like tinkering, making something work myself, even if it looks a bit rough.
Pulling Things Together
First, I rummaged through my box of old electronics bits and pieces. Found a tiny water pump I bought ages ago for some other forgotten project. Perfect start.
Then, I needed some basics:
- The tiny pump, obviously.
- Some thin plastic tubing. Had some leftover from an old fish tank filter.
- A small plastic container for water. An old food container worked fine after a good wash.
- A simple timer plug. I already had one of those digital ones you use for Christmas lights.
Putting it together was pretty straightforward. I stuck the pump into the water container. Connected one end of the tube to the pump’s outlet. The other end, I just sort of wedged into the soil near the plant’s base. I had to fiddle a bit to make sure it wouldn’t just fall out.
The tricky part was getting the timing right. I plugged the pump into the timer, and the timer into the wall socket. Then I set the timer to switch on for just one minute every morning. My first guess, really.
Testing and Naming It
I filled the container with water and manually switched the timer on. The little pump whirred to life, and water started flowing through the tube. Success! Well, almost. The first time, it squirted water a bit too fast, made a small mess. So, I pinched the tube slightly with a small clip to slow down the flow. Tested again. Much better, just a slow drip.
I watched it for a couple of days. The timer clicked on, the pump ran, the plant got its water. No leaks, the container held enough water for nearly a week. Simple, effective. I was quite pleased with myself, you know? Didn’t cost me anything extra since I used stuff I already had.
That’s when I started calling it ‘jia lulu’. Don’t ask me why, the name just popped into my head. Felt right for this little homemade helper. It’s been running for a few weeks now, and the plant is looking much happier. Sometimes the simplest solutions you rig up yourself are the most satisfying.
