Stuff is breaking down..... :(

Damn.... Ever get into a slump where you feel that everything you touch just turns to crap?

Well, that's where I am at now. An air conditioning tech just left after checking out our home system. It's been tough for the unit to drive the temps below 82 degrees in the house during the hot part of the day, so I thought for certain the freon was low. Had the same thing happen last year, or the year before. And yeah, sure enough... The guy said he could just recharge the freon for $285 or do the same thing and ad some UV die and come back later on to try to locate the leak so it could be fixed. For $485. Well, the unit is a good 20 years old, so I figured maybe I should just get the compressor unit outside replaced.

But no can do. The new outside units are not compatible with the old inside air handlers. So the darn entire system needs to be replaced. $$$ Well, at least the new unit should be a lot more efficient than that older unit, so probably in the long run it would pay for itself. Maybe.... Things like that never seem to work out for me in life as they appear on paper. Still, it's going to take a chunk out of the retirement fund budget for this year..... At least there is a federal tax credit that will help out when I file taxes next April.

And the refrigerator decided to go on the blink. The first clue was that it stopped being able to freeze ice cream. Then ice cubes just became cold water in a tray. Right now we have stuff that is normally in the refrigerator part sitting in the freezer part just to keep the stuff cold enough to keep from going bad. A new refrigerator will be delivered on Friday, so we just have to hold on till then. Wish we had bought ice cream so we would HAVE to eat it quickly... In the meantime, we also bought a small refrigerator that I needed to the former reptile building anyway, to keep more stuff cold enough to keep from going bad.

Also, my networked hard drive that I use to transfer files among my computers died yesterday as well. I noticed that it took a long time to shut off one night, and the following morning it just wouldn't wake up. Not a big deal, but dammit.....

Oh yeah, the light switch for the hallway fell apart. It's one of those dimmer types, so we had to run out to the hardware store to get a replacement. This is the kind of switch that works from both ends of the hallway, so I found a replacement unit that was needed. A notice on the packaging stated that it is designed to cut the electric bill by 15 percent. Cool! So I shut off the breaker for that circuit and installed the new switch. Even worked the first time I put power to it, and although the switch next to it was still live because it was off of a different circuit, I didn't get my fingers nipped by the electricity viper that usually nails me when I do stuff like this. And as for the 15 percent savings, I can see it already. Yep, what they did was to cut down the peak current you can apply to the lights, so that 15 percent "savings" is because the lights are now 15 percent DIMMER than they were before. Not cool....

So now it has me thinking about that new air conditioning system. The tech was saying that my old unit was probably a 10 seer rated model and the new one will be 15 seer. Power savings will be around 35 to 40 percent. So don't tell me, let me guess. I can expect the house to be 35 to 40 percent WARMER in the summer and 35 to 40 percent COLDER in the Winter, right?

Anyway, I'm now afraid to touch anything else for fear that it will also turn to crap. But darn my head itches and I really want to scratch it......

I can totally relate to what you are going through Rich. I was very proud of myself for holding on to part of my tax return this year and was "bragging" about it last week. Of course, then my washing machine broke and I had to get a new one - and yesterday our AC decided to quit working again as well (we just had it repaired a month ago). So there went another chunk of the change I had been saving!
Always seems like when one thing goes, multiple other items follow right behind!

I know how you feel, Rich. Last year was the Year of the Refrigerator for me. Did you know the average lifespan of a refrigerator is seven years?? And the lawnmower, which I thought I had fixed myself for $15 until the part melted like the original had, and I decided I was over my head.

The heat pump/AC has been nickel and diming me (more like $300-$600ing me) for the last several years. I inquired at a Home Show about the replacement deal they had going. It had a no repairs for ten years guarantee. When the guy came out, the estimate was a LOT more than I had anticipated, but it included cleaning and sealing the ducts, and I could get financing at 6%. I went for it.

Rich- I am so happy I did. My old unit struggled to keep the house at 84-86, even heading up to 90 on the worst days. I was running a supplemental portable unit just to keep the snakes from broiling. It would kick on at 11 AM and run through the afternoon and evening, without stopping EVER.

So now I have the new one. I haven't tried setting it lower than 78 because I just don't like it that cold, but set at 78 or 80 it turns on, runs a bit, turns off. Like it's supposed to! So I don't know how much more energy efficient it is, but if it's only running even half as much, that has to help! So far, it hasn't gotten hot enough that the AC is unable to keep the temp I set. The best thing is I don't have the fear of coming home on a 95F day and finding my snakes all cooked. I don't have that fear of a break-down, winter or summer, always in the back of my mind. I'm _sure_ you will be so relieved that your old system is replaced, once it's over and done with.

But that's not all! The other day the shower was dripping and I turned off the cold water a _little_ too hard. That ended up costing $700...Because it can't be just the faucet, it has to be the whole fixture, and the sand filter, and the main shut-off valve. Virtually every place water comes out in my house has a problem, and from what I can tell from the shower experience, everything a plumber touches costs a minimum of $300.

So- I feel for you. But I think you'll love the new AC so much it will be worth the cost.

AHHHH retirement life...........













lol just kidding!

Rich, troubles always come in clusters. First it's the roof, then it's the furnace or the AC... And if it's not that, first you sprain your ankle, then you get bronchitis, then...

Rest assured, the cluster of troubles always ends, even when it looks like it never will! Of course, it usually ends when the savings are depleted or the tax refund is gone, but it does end. Hang in there!

The year of bad AC...mine went out last week!

Yep, that's how it goes. The house, cars, and appliances KNOW when you are broke.

At least there is one thing you will never have to experience... usually these are the things that happen to me right after Serpenco offers some kind of amazing 50% off deal.

I just replaced my outside compressor. I heard the same stuff about the new units. But my AC guy who I've been knowing for decades said that the warehouses are full of the older style but brand new compressors and he put one in for me. Said it would prolly last ten years. Heck, I may not last ten years.

Yeah the new ones are more energy efficient but it just wasn't worth the upfront cost to get everything replaced.

I thought you were talking about you. I know I'm breaking down. Knees, you name it, it is going out and it ain't under warranty

Welcome to my world Rich.. I know some people have the midas touch, I don't, I have that black cloud of doom and dustruction following me around... I might blurt out a few things here and there, but I can relate Rich..

Originally Posted by Lucille

I thought you were talking about you. I know I'm breaking down. Knees, you name it, it is going out and it ain't under warranty

Actually, I'm feeling pretty good. Spending more time outside and getting real exercise instead of cascaded repetitive strain injuries. Truth be know, I've now lived in Florida for about 19 years and this is the FIRST time I have had a suntan. Had plenty of sunburns because I was at some sort of event that I spent all day outside for that one day and my skin was just not prepared for it. But this is the first time I have had a REAL suntan from multiple days of short period exposures to generate a tan that didn't result from skin recovering from a burn.

BTW, I hate to admit it, but Connie and I are directly responsible for that oil mess in the Gulf of Mexico. We had finally decided to have a REAL vacation after all these years, and decided to rent a beach house for a month on Sanibel Island. Well, unless I am mistaken, the day I gave the rental place my credit card number for a deposit was the very same day that the oil rig exploded. Obviously Murphy's Law is still with me, even without the corn snakes............ So now Connie and I will be worrying for a few months about whether or not we will have wasted our money on the beach house because the beach there is oil soaked and not fit to walk on, much less swim in the Gulf. Yeah, we could cancel out, but we REALLY got the house for a steal, considering where it is, but I know darn right well that if we do, some miracle will take place and that section of beach will be completely spared the oil related damage. And we will have lost several hundred dollars from money forfeited from our deposit.

I know without a doubt that on the wall in "Murphy's" office, there is a plaque that says in bold letters "DAMNED IF YOU DO, AND DAMNED IF YOU DON'T".