flemmings | (no subject)

Not quite the way I expected to spend my 72nd birthday- dead furnace just as a polar vortex is scheduled to move in. But I lucked out with the company that I googled, closed my eyes and pointed to (well, it was rated at 5 stars). 'We have a window between 12 and 4 for the inspection': inspector shows up at 11:45. The part that's died is, of course, no longer kept in stock, will take six weeks to get a hold of, and, he says, will cost nearly as much as a new furnace. This is what lines of credit are for so I give him my card for $5000 and change as a 50% deposit (a bit more than the $3,000 plus the part will cost but shou ga nai). Workers will come either later today or first thing tomorrow, and appear at 2:30. Done four hours later, and the total cost is $5000 plus. High efficiency heats the house to nearly uncomforable levels. Am the winner on the deal all round except for minor details like the new furnace smell that didn't happen with the old furnace because that one got ordered in late spring or possibly early summer. More disconcerting is the absence of the whoosh noise that the old furnace used to make when turning on, which was how I knew it was working. This one is silent as the grave and gives no indication of function until the heat rises from the vents. I'll get used to it, eventually.

Brother and s-i-l came by to calm my tizzies, though not specifically for that purpose, and bro was here and answered the door when the workmen arrived, which is always useful because workmen in general have this preference for dealing with Other Men. And then I went out with my staff to give SND her wine and could actually walk with just the staff, and could climb SND's narrow front steps, so that was happy-making. So a not unsatisfactory birthday.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Usually it's caused by someone leaving a window open when it's still below freezing. That's how our bedroom was flooded in March. The upstairs neighbour had a window open and their radiator pipe burst.

VERY wise about one bathroom per person.

It's.... Alberta. It's colder than any invidious comparison you care to make. Who opens windows in an Albertan winter?

Radiators? Like water heated radiators? In a modern condo? How retro.

I might be using the wrong word when I say 'radiator'. Baseboard heating? It's not forced air. I also want to know who the heck opens a window in an Albertan winter!