No, not the TV show. Me. I'm a survivor!
Last Friday the boiler that heats my home and provides domestic hot water flat quit. The front panel indicated the gas valve was bad.
A certified plumber looked at it, trouble-shot a bunch of other possibilities and agreed that the gas valve needed to be replaced.
The company that made the unit has been out of business for years. The part in question is no longer available.
Add to that, the temperatures were around 22 below zero. Frozen plumbing pipes were a real possibility.
I "slept" on the couch in the living room so I could get up every couple of hours and stuff the woodstove full of firewood. I plugged in a couple electric space heaters to keep the garage and boiler room from freezing solid. Needless to say, I haven't gotten much sleep in the last week and I am exhausted.
There's a lot more to this story, such as why the boiler suddenly started working yesterday evening for no understandable reason after we had tried umpteen times during the week. Nonetheless, when the domestic water was hot enough I took a shower, ran a load of dishes, and and did a load of laundry.
Today, the plumbers installed a brand new, highly efficient, on-demand unit that quickly warmed up my house to a nice temperature.
Why didn't I keep using the old one instead of spending $$$$ for a new unit? I don't trust it to get me through the winter. Parts are hard to find. And, the new unit has up-to-date technology that should show a saving in propane costs, which are horrifying right now.
Hopefully, I can get back to the 2021 Africa Journals soon. Right now, I need a nap.
Begone, old boiler. My house is warm now.
Sounds like a great decision to UPGRADE to the latest, most up to date technology, with the availability of parts a given. Man O Manischewitz the STRESS when you weren't sure whether or not the water pipes were going to freeze solid and probably break in some places. All's well that ends so very well. As usual we enjoyed your story. Cap and Patti
ReplyDeleteIt looks like a nice, clean, and neat install. Let's hope it keeps working and you happy. It's such a pain when you have no heat and the service companies don't feel the urgency.
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