DiaperBot began its life as a serviceable-but-boring Diaper Champ diaper pail that I bought for $3 at a garage sale. I didn’t like the way it looked in my son’s retro space-theme nursery, and wondered what I could do to make it blend in. I remembered the basic rule of science fiction set design: anything can look futuristic and space-y if you paint it silver. Even a diaper pail? I had to try. Rustoleum Universal was the right paint for the job, since the diaper pail is made of plastic. I painted it Titanium Silver. I dug through my junk drawer, the plumbing department of the hardware store, and various odds and ends, until I had a big box of potential robot parts. They were made of all different materials, but I knew my paint could handle it. I spread all the pieces out and sprayed them silver. I was able to get great coverage in all the nicks and crannies because I could spray from any angle. The parts are mostly attached nuts and bolts, plus some epoxy. The arms are mounted to the body via lids from cans of Rustoleum spray paint glued inside the arms. The pieces I used include galvanized metal mending plates, a tire gauge, a plastic ballpoint pen, old-style fuses, a pipe flange, faucet handles, parts from a flashlight, bicycle reflectors, dryer venting, and sippy cup lids. Now the DiaperBot is the best part of the room!
