Apply Masking Tape to Prevent Paint Can Lids from Sticking [Clever Uses]

By Melanie Pinola Oct 18, 2011 6:30 AM 7,735 8

If you find your paint cans are always a mess after you're done painting and hard to open again the next time you need to use them, try this preventative trick for your next painting job: apply masking tape first.

After opening a can of paint, apply the tape (you could use transparent or painter's tape too) around the entire rim, and then pour it into the tray or use your brushes as usual. When you're done painting, remove the tape and the rim should be clean.

While you're at it hacking away at your paint can, you can alsoadd some plastic wrap to prevent dried paint "skin" from forming. Photo by Image After. [via Household Magic Daily Tips email newsletter]

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Volume Concierge Controls Your PC's Volume on a Schedule to Prevent Those Loud Surprises [Windows Downloads]

By Whitson Gordon Oct 14, 2011 3:00 PM 9,412 19

If you've ever turned on your music in the morning only to be jolted awake by volume set to 11, Volume Concierge can save you by automatically setting your volume to different levels at a certain time of day.

Volume Concierge is simple: just give it a rule or set of rules that tell it what time to change the volume, and where to set it. Now you can keep it quiet in the morning or remind yourself to stop playing video games at 2 AM. It'll automatically start with your machine, and you can turn the rules off at any time (or create new ones).

Note that to turn your rules on, you need to give it an email address so it can update spam you with info about other software, but with a service like previously mentioned Trashmail, this is hardly a barrier to using it.

Volume Concierge is a free download for Windows only.

Volume Concierge | via AddictiveTips

You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.
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