Yearning for Cozumel weather

[gopbroek]

Yo tambien. My water heater is in the attic. I wish I could find the guy who thought up that ridiculous idea so I could beat the crap out of him. Changing out an attic water heater (I've had to do it) is a major ordeal, and a leak up there (I had that, too)

Their is supposed to be a pan with a dedicated drain line but of course that gets clogged with debris but who the %$#@ remembers to flushes the damn thing. After watching a friends house get damaged I will not own one with an attic water heater. Agreed one of the dumbest ideas in home building

 

[ggunn]

Their is supposed to be a pan with a dedicated drain line but of course that gets clogged with debris but who the %$#@ remembers to flushes the damn thing. After watching a friends house get damaged I will not own one with an attic water heater. Agreed one of the dumbest ideas in home building

You got that right. I have a home studio in my garage and the shelf for my mixing board is directly under where the water heater is in the attic. I could probably stop right there, but I won't because it was 20 years ago and I'm still pissed.

The home builders who installed that cheapass water heater (BTW, see below. The only way they could have installed it was to put it up there before the roof was completely built) put a soft plastic (plastic?!?!) pan under it in the attic in the Texas heat. The house settled a little over 10 years; the heater shifted about 1/4 inch and its legs gouged 1/4 inch ruts all the way though the pan. Then, when the heater catastrophically failed, guess where the water went. I really liked that mixing board.

To replace the heater I had to install a block and tackle under the ridge lumber to haul the new one up into the attic through the dropdown stairway, and I had to remove a rafter to rafter support beam so that the new heater could fit through the opening (see above). I did all this myself so that the plumber I hired to install the new heater would work on it without a pulled permit from the City. If you have ever pulled a building permit from The City of Austin, Texas, you feel my pain. It was a week long ordeal for a job that should have taken about an hour.

Sorry for the somewhat off topic post, but to bring it home, my water heater was making a lot of noise last night because of the air being sucked into the lines from the broken water mains because of the Polar Vortex, and I had to go up into my 19 degree F attic to make sure the damn thing hadn't ruptured. Just thinking about it really makes me yearn for Cozumel weather!

 

[cicopo]

Well Texas made our news twice last night & it wasn't pretty in the main story. It showed several people (justifiedly) ranting after their water pipes burst & flooded their homes or apartments. You've got some major damage to deal with when it comes to frozen pipes. It also had a story on rescuing sea turtles from the fridgid waters. That looks like a major job too and as an endangered species I'm guessing they have some priority even though things are so bad everywhere close by.
(Mod Edit- NO POLITICS!)

 

[DandyDon]

After a week in the deep freeze, the thaw has finally started. Next, problem discoveries.

 

[ggunn]

After a week in the deep freeze, the thaw has finally started. Next, problem discoveries.

View attachment 643079​

Water is definitely a problem here in Austin now that The Big Thaw is underway; there are busted water mains and household pipes all over. I ran my faucets at significantly more than a drip the whole time, so I don't have problems on my property, though I had a couple of pretty impressive ice sculptures. Many people who tried to rely on wrapping alone are screwed; it was too cold for too long for mere insulation to handle.

We are lucky enough to be in the 30% of town that has any running water at all, though the pressure is a bit low and we are under a boil order. It's a mess, but power is back on most places and gas never lapsed. ERCOT announced a while ago that the crisis is past. It could be worse.

 

[ColoDale]

Norte here in Cozumel and probably ending Sunday. Monday as shown by the Cozcharlie forecast map post shows Belize at 0 Kelvin so maybe a little chilly here. (assuming the temps shown were Celcius).

 

[chillyinCanada]

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[DandyDon]

Electric bills are going to explode across the state.

 

[driftwood]

Electric bills are going to explode across the state.

I know mine is and keeping the pipes clear contributes to that. Lot of well water "dripped" over the past week. That being said, I prefer an electric bill to a plumber and to associated damage to burst pipes.

 

[flyboy08]

One women got a $9000 electric bill when her normal billing is $40.00....is that possible!?