Monday, December 15, 2025

The Leak, The Fix, and The Quest for the Perfect Water Dispenser


If you’ve been feeling a persistent itch to talk about water dispensers, today's your lucky day. Picture this: My trusty Novita has been keeping me hydrated for a solid five years. That is until it decided to remodel itself through extensive water leakage. The price of maintenance seemed more like a gentle reminder of poor financial planning rather than a DIY hobby. Let's break it down: two replaceable parts, a couple hundred in costs, and my bank account whimpering for mercy.

As a loyal customer who's faithful to their water filters, I pondered whether Novita’s rep would frown upon my notion of waiving the repair fees. Spoiler alert: they politely listened, smiled, and assured me they'd pass my feedback along heaven-to-Hades.

Two months later, the leaky revue was back. The Novita team dropped by, tightened some mystical bolts, waved their hands, and pronounced, "Wear and tear, my friend!" On the silver lining side, they did couple this second visit with a freebie—no repair fee.

But the realization was clear as spring water: It was time for a change. I sought a new dispenser that wouldn’t financially nibble at my savings or cause unexpected leaks while I’m trying to work from home. So, my friend, here's what I'm hunting for and probably that will also help you in your next purchase:

  1. Water Cost-Awareness: That annual filter replacement should be gentle on the wallet. Why pay $380 when $200 from other competitors does the job elsewhere?
  2. Versatile Temperament: A good water dispenser should straddle the line between a home sauna and icewall exposure gracefully.
  3. Maintenance-Friendly: I’m not signing up for a second job here. Minimal repair costs and headaches. We're all friends, not foes.
  4. Space & Connectivity: It’s got to be cozy enough to fit in my small kitchen and not need Oscar-worthy electrical tricks for operation.
  5. Efficiency: I’m all for hydration on the go, not watching my coffee get lukewarm while I wait for water.
  6. Inlets and Outlets: Does it requires outlet? If yes, ensure how you will plan to discard those water!


During my pursuit, I encountered the Byeol, a model that seemed as slim as a gymnast on paper. But trust me, pictures can be deceiving. They’re quite deep in reality, so take my advice: go see it in person to truly get the dimensions.


Meanwhile, I also chose a dispenser from another brand, one whose website showcased it from every conceivable angle. Remember that photo we discussed? It showed how elegantly compact this model was. To my delight, it lived up to its slim and short description when it arrived!




After I changed my dispenser, I did a check on the wattage used as you can see here. I replaced my water dispenser in October. So, September was the Novita Water Dispenser, consuming 16.27 kWh, whereas November was the Unikul using 13.69 kWh. Initially, the difference seemed negligible.

This got me pondering: Do tank and tankless dispensers really offer significant efficiency differences? At this point, the verdict seems to be that they might not—yet. Perhaps with a few more months of observation, more answers will emerge.

In the meantime, let's celebrate the snippet-sized savings and improved kitchen aesthetics. After all, every little wattage win is a step toward a more sustainable (and less appliance-disaster-prone) home.

In the end, finding the right dispenser isn’t just about smart shopping; it’s a quest for liquid efficiency without sacrificing sanity or savings. Let’s hope my new companion won't have a Midlife Crisis five years down the road!

Monday, December 1, 2025

Home Server which known as HomeLabs for hobbyist

My Journey into Home Servers and Unraid

My 1st Server

I remember when I first set up my home server back in 2011. What was my objective? Why did it come about? Initially, my plan was simple: to store files, music, and documents using Windows OS as a basic file server. Those were the days when digital media was becoming increasingly popular.


It was a very tight casing

As a geeky person, I wanted more. I began exploring ways to set up a NAS or more advanced file server. That’s when I discovered Windows Home Server—which, by the way, has since reached end-of-life (EOL), as Microsoft discontinued it due to limited market demand. I used it until around 2013, then transitioned to Windows Server 2013 Essentials. Eventually, I discovered Unraid—and fell in love with it.


My 2nd Server become bigger


Why Unraid?

Unraid is a flexible Linux-based operating system packed with powerful features:

  • 🗄️ NAS storage capabilities
  • 🐳 Docker support
  • 🖥️ Ability to host multiple virtual machines (VMs)
  • 🌐 Web-based management interface
  • 👥 Strong community support
  • ⚡ Energy efficiency, with control over hard disk spin-up and redundancy

Over the years, Unraid has evolved into what many now call a "HomeLab"—a personal tech playground built with affordable hardware and accessible software, often deployed via Docker containers.


My 3rd server and even bigger than before

It’s like having your own mini server setup, where you can tinker with technology in a sandbox environment and experiment with new software without disrupting your main services. You could call it tech DIY for grown-ups 😄.


Building My Network

When I first started, I wanted all services to run from a single server. I bought a gigabit Ethernet 4-port NIC and set up an enterprise-grade software router using pfSense. The performance was unmatched, especially with ad-blocking plugins.

However, there was one major issue: whenever my Unraid server went down, my entire local network went down with it. Not ideal—especially when you’re sharing a household!

Eventually, I separated the router component and replaced it with a lightweight but powerful hardware router running OpenWRT. This way, even if I need to restart Unraid, my network stays up. I’m pretty happy with this setup—it only consumes about 5 watts via USB-A and runs AdGuard for ad blocking.


Current Setup

Instead of running a reverse proxy server, I now use:

  • 🌐 Cloudflare Tunnel for apps that needs to exposure to public
  • 🔒 Tailscale for apps that I will only use internally and not exposing to public

My Unraid server has grown into a multi-purpose powerhouse:

  • 🎮 Game server
  • 🎬 Media server
  • 📦 App server
  • 🏠 Smart home server
  • 🤖 AI-related services

Looking Ahead

AI technology has been exploding lately. New tools and frameworks are making it easier than ever to integrate AI into everyday workflows. I’ve started experimenting with automation using platforms like n8n and MCP. I just wish I had more time to dive deeper!

In future articles, I plan to share more about the specific tools and setups I use with my Unraid server. Stay tuned!