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[–] [S] 18 points 4 days ago (5 children)

Well, plastic, but at least the blocks are re-usable, she did get them second hand, and allegedly found a new home for them after she moved out.

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  • [–] 10 points 4 days ago (4 children)

    Website says the small 50 block kit is $300. I don’t think she actually saved any money. They are recyclable polypropylene, which is something at least.

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  • [–] [S] 7 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (3 children)

    The article says: "the secondhand EverBlocks cost her about $700" however many she got, but there seemed to be enough.

    New blocks are super expensive though.

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  • [–] 3 points 3 days ago (2 children)

    Maybe she got them from a distributor that charges less than the EverBlocks website 🤷‍♂️?

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  • [–] 13 points 3 days ago

    The restrictions were especially frustrating because she felt that management should have disclosed that information during the apartment tour before she signed her lease.

    The restriction is most likely in the lease itself. It may also be a fire code violation if the apartment has fire sprinklers.

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  • [–] 9 points 3 days ago

    Her mother immediately began searching Facebook Marketplace for room partitions with doors and ended up finding a family on Manhattan’s Upper West Side selling EverBlocks — reusable, oversized plastic building blocks they used to create a room for their young son.

    The set included a door, and Barre realized that combining the blocks with IKEA wardrobes would give her both privacy and storage.

    The price, however, made the idea even more appealing. While the traditional flex wall she inquired about had been quoted at $1,975 plus tax, the secondhand EverBlocks cost her about $700.

    I feel that, if people.com has received compensation for this article from everblocksystems.com, they should be legally required to prominently disclose that fact.

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  • [–] 6 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

    The website of the product feels like a fever dream. Thank you for sharing it with us OP.

    I'm going to trigger some existential crises in my friends with these photos lol

    It looks like the strip with the outlet isn't part of the kit?

    I'm getting major commercializing-undergraduate-thesis-project vibes with some of the wording but I don't even think I care because I want these to be real and good so badly lol

    Eta: okay I'm sorry I'm not trying to be a party pooper but they say

    EverBlock passes a UL94HB Fire Test. This signifies that EverBlock material has a slow burn rate of 2” per minute for a 2” wide by 0.5” in thickness test sample. Furthermore, UL94HB signifies that the material will not flare up when exposed to an open flame.

    UL94 is the Standard for Safety of Flammability of Plastic Materials for Parts in Devices and Appliances testing.

    Oooooof I can only imagine the building code nerds writing angry emails after seeing this article.

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  • [–] 9 points 3 days ago (3 children)

    “It was like a math problem from high school that I couldn’t figure out on paper, so it was really just trial and error.”

    But most engineering problems are "just trial and error." Well done!

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  • [–] 7 points 3 days ago (2 children)

    The difference between building and engineering is what stage of the project you figure out if it'll work.

    It's a great learning opportunity to do it by trial and error, but it's not engineering.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 days ago

    I bought thick foam insulation sheets (like 4-5cm) and attached them at the walls (and I think maybe the ceiling beams; it's been 20something years). I cut out a door, slapped on some zip-tie hinges, and carved my own little part of a basement out.

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  • Hard to tell if there is a second door there from the photos, but looks like she spent the same amount on the blocks.

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