Engineer's Grimoire

The Smell of Doom: How to Spot Burned Components by Nose Alone | Ep 003

Ever smelled burnt popcorn, melted crayons, or a faint whiff of ghostly seaweed in your workshop? That’s not your imagination—it’s the scent of electronics components meeting their doom. In this episode of Engineer’s Grimoire, we explore the eerie but practical art of identifying overheated ICs, fried voltage regulators, scorched resistors, and burnt PCB traces by nose alone. You’ll learn the chemistry behind those unforgettable smells, how to recognize early warning signs before smoke rises, and what repair or salvage rituals can save your project from the grave. Because in electronics, even the air itself carries warnings… if you dare to breathe them in.

The Blink Spell: Awakening LEDs with Arduino | Ep 002

In this episode of Engineer’s Grimoire, we summon the most ancient of all beginner spells—blinking an LED with Arduino. You’ll learn what an LED really is, how to read its polarity, protect it with a resistor, and wire it to your Arduino Uno without summoning the dreaded magic smoke. Then we walk through the Blink sketch line by line, translating each command into plain language with just the right amount of arcane flair. Whether you're brand new to Arduino or just want to revisit the ritual that started it all, this episode will help you light the way—one blink at a time. What you’ll learn: * How LEDs work (and how not to fry them) * How to use a breadboard to build your circuit * What pinMode, digitalWrite, and delay really do * How to blink your first LED using pin 13 on an Arduino Uno Ready to build? Visit racheldebarros.com for wiring diagrams, code, and beginner-friendly build guides from the archives of the Grimoire.

The Power Crystal: Choosing Batteries, Wall Adapters and Regulators for Your Electronics Projects | Ep 001

Before you can bring your electronics to life, you need to feed them power—wisely. In this episode of Engineer’s Grimoire, we dive deep into the essential rituals of choosing and using the right power supply for your Arduino projects, props, and paranormal gadgets. From 9V batteries and USB banks to wall adapters and voltage regulators, host Rachel De Barros guides you through each power source like a true circuit sorcerer. Learn how to avoid common mistakes, safely distribute power to multiple components, and build smarter, safer circuits—without accidentally summoning the magic smoke. You can find all the wiring diagrams, pinouts, code, and extra tools from this episode over at racheldebarros.com.