ughhh, the furnace went out

[DrPizza]

If you search for threads posted by me, about a month ago, at roughly 3:30pm, I posted something about the only really expensive thing that could hit me as far as renting a house goes is if the furnace were to die. Well, almost exactly 1 hour later, the phone rang... the furnace had died.

So, I troubleshot the furnace - an older model. A couple hours later, it was up and running again, with an intermittant problem. 2 days later, I lubricated a sticking gas valve, hoping for the best. Well, that lasted a week or so. Yesterday, it died. There was no getting it started. So, after 8 hours of running new gas lines, I installed a ventless heater, hoping my tenants could get through the rest of the winter. Nope; the house had dropped to 50 degrees before I was done installing it, and with 9 degree temps outside, it just couldn't get the house to recover.

So, today, I had to bite the bullet and purchase a new forced air furnace. It was surprisingly easy to install and build new ductwork for. It took a couple hours to dismantle the old furnace without destroying the existing ducts though. So, if anyone needs tips on installing a new furnace, I guess I'm one of the guys who can help

Regardless, darn it all! I jinxed myself a couple weeks ago. On the positive side, at least now with a newer furnace, I can combine my home insurance with my car insurance and get a lower rate (my car insurer wouldn't insure the house because the furnace was >20 years old.) Plus (knock on wood), what could possibly go wrong now?

 

[IronWing]

How's the water heater doing?

 

[KLin]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
If you search for threads posted by me, about a month ago, at roughly 3:30pm, I posted something about the only really expensive thing that could hit me as far as renting a house goes is if the furnace were to die. Well, almost exactly 1 hour later, the phone rang... the furnace had died.

So, I troubleshot the furnace - an older model. A couple hours later, it was up and running again, with an intermittant problem. 2 days later, I lubricated a sticking gas valve, hoping for the best. Well, that lasted a week or so. Yesterday, it died. There was no getting it started. So, after 8 hours of running new gas lines, I installed a ventless heater, hoping my tenants could get through the rest of the winter. Nope; the house had dropped to 50 degrees before I was done installing it, and with 9 degree temps outside, it just couldn't get the house to recover.

So, today, I had to bite the bullet and purchase a new forced air furnace. It was surprisingly easy to install and build new ductwork for. It took a couple hours to dismantle the old furnace without destroying the existing ducts though. So, if anyone needs tips on installing a new furnace, I guess I'm one of the guys who can help

Regardless, darn it all! I jinxed myself a couple weeks ago. On the positive side, at least now with a newer furnace, I can combine my home insurance with my car insurance and get a lower rate (my car insurer wouldn't insure the house because the furnace was >20 years old.) Plus (knock on wood), what could possibly go wrong now?

You installed the furnace wrong, causing the house to burn down and kill the tenants? I'm just playing Devil's Advocate here.

 

[IronWing]

Originally posted by: KLin

Originally posted by: DrPizza
If you search for threads posted by me, about a month ago, at roughly 3:30pm, I posted something about the only really expensive thing that could hit me as far as renting a house goes is if the furnace were to die. Well, almost exactly 1 hour later, the phone rang... the furnace had died.

So, I troubleshot the furnace - an older model. A couple hours later, it was up and running again, with an intermittant problem. 2 days later, I lubricated a sticking gas valve, hoping for the best. Well, that lasted a week or so. Yesterday, it died. There was no getting it started. So, after 8 hours of running new gas lines, I installed a ventless heater, hoping my tenants could get through the rest of the winter. Nope; the house had dropped to 50 degrees before I was done installing it, and with 9 degree temps outside, it just couldn't get the house to recover.

So, today, I had to bite the bullet and purchase a new forced air furnace. It was surprisingly easy to install and build new ductwork for. It took a couple hours to dismantle the old furnace without destroying the existing ducts though. So, if anyone needs tips on installing a new furnace, I guess I'm one of the guys who can help

Regardless, darn it all! I jinxed myself a couple weeks ago. On the positive side, at least now with a newer furnace, I can combine my home insurance with my car insurance and get a lower rate (my car insurer wouldn't insure the house because the furnace was >20 years old.) Plus (knock on wood), what could possibly go wrong now?

You installed the furnace wrong, causing the house to burn down and kill the tenants? I'm just playing Devil's Advocate here.

Maiming the tenents, much more expensive than killing them.

 

[KLin]

Originally posted by: ironwing

Originally posted by: KLin

Originally posted by: DrPizza
If you search for threads posted by me, about a month ago, at roughly 3:30pm, I posted something about the only really expensive thing that could hit me as far as renting a house goes is if the furnace were to die. Well, almost exactly 1 hour later, the phone rang... the furnace had died.

So, I troubleshot the furnace - an older model. A couple hours later, it was up and running again, with an intermittant problem. 2 days later, I lubricated a sticking gas valve, hoping for the best. Well, that lasted a week or so. Yesterday, it died. There was no getting it started. So, after 8 hours of running new gas lines, I installed a ventless heater, hoping my tenants could get through the rest of the winter. Nope; the house had dropped to 50 degrees before I was done installing it, and with 9 degree temps outside, it just couldn't get the house to recover.

So, today, I had to bite the bullet and purchase a new forced air furnace. It was surprisingly easy to install and build new ductwork for. It took a couple hours to dismantle the old furnace without destroying the existing ducts though. So, if anyone needs tips on installing a new furnace, I guess I'm one of the guys who can help

Regardless, darn it all! I jinxed myself a couple weeks ago. On the positive side, at least now with a newer furnace, I can combine my home insurance with my car insurance and get a lower rate (my car insurer wouldn't insure the house because the furnace was >20 years old.) Plus (knock on wood), what could possibly go wrong now?

You installed the furnace wrong, causing the house to burn down and kill the tenants? I'm just playing Devil's Advocate here.

Maiming the tenents, much more expensive than killing them.

Nah, I'd say wrongful death suits could be very expensive. Just ask OJ Simpson.

 

[imported_weadjust]

Carbon monoxide posioning.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: ironwing
How's the water heater doing?

The water heater died about a year ago; the first year we rented the house out. Then, a month later, the new one died and had to have its controls replaced (under warranty). It should be good for quite a few years.


Here's the kicker - we put in the new furnace because the space heater wasn't enough. When I finished putting in the new electrical switch, I flipped the breaker on, then the switch and the gas on. We trouble-shot the furnace for about 5 minutes trying to figure out what was wrong. Went upstairs to check the thermostat, and the house was up to 74 degrees, thanks to the 30,000 btu ventless heater. UGGGHHH! I'm kicking myself for getting that heater; by the time I ran black pipe across the basement, going up and over and around vent pipes, I had over $400 wasted.

 

[DainBramaged]

Originally posted by: KLin

Originally posted by: DrPizza
If you search for threads posted by me, about a month ago, at roughly 3:30pm, I posted something about the only really expensive thing that could hit me as far as renting a house goes is if the furnace were to die. Well, almost exactly 1 hour later, the phone rang... the furnace had died.

So, I troubleshot the furnace - an older model. A couple hours later, it was up and running again, with an intermittant problem. 2 days later, I lubricated a sticking gas valve, hoping for the best. Well, that lasted a week or so. Yesterday, it died. There was no getting it started. So, after 8 hours of running new gas lines, I installed a ventless heater, hoping my tenants could get through the rest of the winter. Nope; the house had dropped to 50 degrees before I was done installing it, and with 9 degree temps outside, it just couldn't get the house to recover.

So, today, I had to bite the bullet and purchase a new forced air furnace. It was surprisingly easy to install and build new ductwork for. It took a couple hours to dismantle the old furnace without destroying the existing ducts though. So, if anyone needs tips on installing a new furnace, I guess I'm one of the guys who can help

Regardless, darn it all! I jinxed myself a couple weeks ago. On the positive side, at least now with a newer furnace, I can combine my home insurance with my car insurance and get a lower rate (my car insurer wouldn't insure the house because the furnace was >20 years old.) Plus (knock on wood), what could possibly go wrong now?

You installed the furnace wrong, causing the house to burn down and kill the tenants? I'm just playing Devil's Advocate here.

lmao...that was literally my exact thoughts.

 

[DrPizza]

Well, as far as your suggestions of worse things to come, I winced at the price, but agreed to $100 for the regular installer at the place I purchased it through to come out and inspect it - that was the only way my warranty was going to be valid. The price sounded steep, but it was an emergency, and most of the places that sell furnaces around here will only do so to contractors. (or rather, when my wife called the supplier directly, the price they gave her was $300 more than what we paid for the furnace when it was picked up from the exact same supplier under the name of one of the contractors who does a lot of business with them.)

 

[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
(or rather, when my wife called the supplier directly, the price they gave her was $300 more than what we paid for the furnace when it was picked up from the exact same supplier under the name of one of the contractors who does a lot of business with them.)

when my dad owned a used car business, we just mentioned the name if we needed parts from a dealership and got a 10 or 15% discount. no paperwork, no proof, nobody cared what car it was going in....we just mentioned the business and got the discount.

 

[DrPizza]

Hmmmm, come to think of it, we never did check the gas line for leaks.

The fun part was "stealing" a valve from the middle of one of the gas line runs; there were two about 4 feet apart - and replacing that valve with a nipple, without shutting off the gas (I hate lighting pilot lights.) The old furnace had the shutoff valve inside of it, rather than beside the appliance, and I didn't want to make a trip to the store for another valve.

 

[ultimatebob]

I'm curious... Where were the tenants staying during this time? I had the misfortune of being on the other end of a story like this last year, where the furnace went out and the landlord took almost a week to fix it while it was the middle of Winter and freezing outside.

At least I had some space heaters of my own to keep warm, or that place would have been completely unlivable.

 

[xgsound]

After a furnace replacement, a water heater change won't be any problem.

It sure gets you more for your money when you do it yourself.


Jim

 

[WoodButcher]

I did this same thing but over the course of 2 winters, played nursemaid the first year and the second bought a new furnace, $560.oo.
The day I pick it up I also go to the auto parts to replace my cat converter and the five oxygen sensors on my van exaust system.
$1120.oo !!!!!!!
Exactly twice what the furnace cost me. When I mentioned this at the counter the guy says "Yep, sounds about right, but what I sell ya will fit UNDER the truck"

 

[flamingelephant]

Dude... I hope you have a gas fitters license or something, cause most states/provinces you have to be licensed to mess around with that stuff so you don't blow people up if it leaks.

 

[aidanjm]

karma. don't kill turkeys.

 

[crypticlogin]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
If you search for threads posted by me, about a month ago, at roughly 3:30pm, I posted something about the only really expensive thing that could hit me as far as renting a house goes is if the furnace were to die. Well, almost exactly 1 hour later, the phone rang... the furnace had died.

While you're hot, you might as well start a thread about how the only thing keeping you from going to work Monday is somebody dropping off a winning lottery ticket...

 

[Jeff7]

So if posting about a problem jinxes the poster, I figure that with all the YAGT's that show up here, we're all screwed. Metaphorically, of course.

 

[AaronB]

Originally posted by: xSauronx

Originally posted by: DrPizza
(or rather, when my wife called the supplier directly, the price they gave her was $300 more than what we paid for the furnace when it was picked up from the exact same supplier under the name of one of the contractors who does a lot of business with them.)

when my dad owned a used car business, we just mentioned the name if we needed parts from a dealership and got a 10 or 15% discount. no paperwork, no proof, nobody cared what car it was going in....we just mentioned the business and got the discount.

Works at the parts dept of most dealerships. Just mention that you are picking up the parts for "Fred Jones Auto Repair" (or make up your own name) and you get a discount.

I have no idea why this is so universal or why they never ask for documentation but it is and they don't.

 

[BoomerD]

Since no one has mentioned it...Thankd for being a responsible landlord and taking care of it fairly quickly...many wouldn't...and their tenants suffer.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
Since no one has mentioned it...Thankd for being a responsible landlord and taking care of it fairly quickly...many wouldn't...and their tenants suffer.

Thanks. I treat most problems as emergencies. Most are pretty simple to fix.

re: gas fitters license someone mentioned above... It's pretty silly how people are scared about doing routine maintenance things, or simple tasks like putting in a new gas line. Heck, there are some places that require you to hire an electrician to replace a wall switch. Absolutely ridiculous. When we requested the gas company move the meter to outside the house, they informed us that we'd have to hire a local plumber to put in all the new lines inside the house. I asked why I couldn't do it myself: "well, if it leaks,... pressure test..."
The day they installed the new meter and switched over to the new lines, the guy commented, "I see you were smart and hired a contractor to do the work. He did a really good job, better than most. Who'd you hire?" I told him the reason it was done really well is that I did it. It's my home and I care about the quality of work that's done; I don't care about how quickly I can do it so I can move on to another job.

Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I think that before leaving the home, every kid should know how to:
replace an outlet
replace a switch
replace a water tank
repair a leaky faucet
change their tires
replace their brakes
do other routine maintenance on their car.

It's kinda ironic that the kids in high school deemed "not smart enough" for college are the ones who learn those exact skills; while a lot of the "smart kids" tremble at the thought that they might have to repair their own leaky faucet some day.

 

[WoodButcher]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
Thanks. I treat most problems as emergencies. Most are pretty simple to fix.

re: gas fitters license someone mentioned above... It's pretty silly how people are scared about doing routine maintenance things, or simple tasks like putting in a new gas line. Heck, there are some places that require you to hire an electrician to replace a wall switch. Absolutely ridiculous. When we requested the gas company move the meter to outside the house, they informed us that we'd have to hire a local plumber to put in all the new lines inside the house. I asked why I couldn't do it myself: "well, if it leaks,... pressure test..."
The day they installed the new meter and switched over to the new lines, the guy commented, "I see you were smart and hired a contractor to do the work. He did a really good job, better than most. Who'd you hire?" I told him the reason it was done really well is that I did it. It's my home and I care about the quality of work that's done; I don't care about how quickly I can do it so I can move on to another job.

Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I think that before leaving the home, every kid should know how to:
replace an outlet
replace a switch
replace a water tank
repair a leaky faucet
change their tires
replace their brakes
do other routine maintenance on their car.

It's kinda ironic that the kids in high school deemed "not smart enough" for college are the ones who learn those exact skills; while a lot of the "smart kids" tremble at the thought that they might have to repair their own leaky faucet some day.

Too true!,
Architect and engineers should have a mandatory 2 yrs field work before graduation. Having a degree or license does not mean that a person payed attention in class!
I'm capable of installing, repairing, modding every facet of my life. If I haven't got the knowledge to do the job I'll learn. Some cases like internal engine repair are out of my realm or desire to learn but I know where to go or who to hire to do the job.
I dropped out of school and was working before I was legally able to do so. I got my GED when my class graduated but have never had the need to use it, ie; job applications or higher education but I do have it never the less. I've been in construction all my life and more than one plumber and electrician that have pulled permits for me so I can do the work in remodeling / renovations in the winter when I want to work indoors.