There are a few electricians in my family and I wouldn't touch that shit on my own either.
A year or so after we bought our house in Saskatoon, we got it rewired because it was still knob and tube. Not dangerous, my dad said, but something to be replaced. So the electricians were doing their thing and one day one of them calls me over and says, "Take a look at this." Inside one of the walls, someone had strung together some extension cords to act as the wiring. I asked him not to share any more of those discoveries with us.
Furnace guy came around today and diagnosed the problem immediately: defective solenoid in the humidifier. The part is covered (tho has to be ordered in still) but we’re paying for the labour (a five-minute job that costs the full hour). But he knew exactly what it was from my description, tho he was a bit confused why sometimes it worked properly. And the reason why I could hear the noise in the water heater was connected pipes.
Nice. So, does the furnace guy also do work on humidifiers?
Yup. All part of the same system.
I had a problem with my clothes dryer a year or two ago. Turned out I needed a new starter switch or something like that (forget exactly what it was called). I managed to do it myself, using google as my repair manual. $100 part, plus a $10 circuit tester, and it took me a week to diagnose the problem and order the part, but it probably would have been at least $300 if I had a repairman do it.
I wish I had that aptitude but I'm really inept with that stuff and just get frustrated and self-loathing (more so than usual) when I try.
The older I get, the more I take most repairs as a challenge. Rather than pay a repairman $300, I probably would have bought a new dryer (mine is 15-20 years old). I’d never done dryer repairs before (except maybe a fuse or something), but a google search with the model number made it pretty easy to troubleshoot. I still occasionally fear electrocuting myself, but it is very satisfying when I get it right and cheat the repairman/death one more time. I figure as long as I remember to unplug the fucking thing before I go nosing around, I'm probably safe. The $10 circuit tester, which I bought for the job and am happy to now have in my toolkit, allowed me to check a half dozen parts before I nailed down the problem, and then it was as easy as playing with Legos.
And that right there is the key to success when working with electricity - open the breaker / unplug / use a voltmeter.
God, what a mess, on the ladder of success
Where you take one step and miss the whole first rung
...
And that right there is the key to success when working with electricity - open the breaker / unplug / use a voltmeter.
I have a buddy who is an electrician and I see him do some basic shit live. And while I get that provided you dont give a path for current to flow through your body you'll be fine, I dont trust that I wouldn't do something stupid in a reactive way. Similar to trying to catch a sharp knife as its falling. If you have time to think you wont do it but sometimes your reactions override you.
...
And that right there is the key to success when working with electricity - open the breaker / unplug / use a voltmeter.
I have a buddy who is an electrician and I see him do some basic shit live. And while I get that provided you dont give a path for current to flow through your body you'll be fine, I dont trust that I wouldn't do something stupid in a reactive way. Similar to trying to catch a sharp knife as its falling. If you have time to think you wont do it but sometimes your reactions override you.
I get complacent (lazy?) and change outlets, switches and light fixtures while energized most of the time, but I always tell family and friends to just open the breaker, resetting your clocks isn't that big a deal. Low voltage (120/240) will kill you just fine, if you're not careful.
God, what a mess, on the ladder of success
Where you take one step and miss the whole first rung
...
And that right there is the key to success when working with electricity - open the breaker / unplug / use a voltmeter.
I have a buddy who is an electrician and I see him do some basic shit live. And while I get that provided you dont give a path for current to flow through your body you'll be fine, I dont trust that I wouldn't do something stupid in a reactive way. Similar to trying to catch a sharp knife as its falling. If you have time to think you wont do it but sometimes your reactions override you.
I get complacent (lazy?) and change outlets, switches and light fixtures while energized most of the time, but I always tell family and friends to just open the breaker, resetting your clocks isn't that big a deal. Low voltage (120/240) will kill you just fine, if you're not careful.
Yeah if it was something I was doing on a regular basis I probably would too. I was putting in a new switch recently (motion sensor one because my son never turns off the light in the laundry room). I found that the white wire was the engized one. I didn't even think to check until it didn't work. So yeah this is why some people shouldn't be doing electrical work, if you cant get the basic shit right don't do it.
And the humidifier has been fixed. Five-minute job. I stayed and watched and chatted while it was done—I wasn’t pushy, the guy asked if I wanted to see how basic it was. He’s been here before for a duct cleaning. He bears more than a passing resemblance to Silent Majority here (has an Irish name to boot).
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft
And the humidifier has been fixed. Five-minute job. I stayed and watched and chatted while it was done—I wasn’t pushy, the guy asked if I wanted to see how basic it was. He’s been here before for a duct cleaning. He bears more than a passing resemblance to Silent Majority here (has an Irish name to boot).
If this were a TV show he would played by James with a fake beard and Canadian accent.
And the humidifier has been fixed. Five-minute job. I stayed and watched and chatted while it was done—I wasn’t pushy, the guy asked if I wanted to see how basic it was. He’s been here before for a duct cleaning. He bears more than a passing resemblance to Silent Majority here (has an Irish name to boot).
If this were a TV show he would played by James with a fake beard and Canadian accent.
I would love to hear James try his hand at a Canadian accent, the more over the top the better.
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft
The stereotypes are there for a reason. This summer, we had a guy in to make a fix to our fridge—strong Slavic accent. This morning, someone to fix the washing machine—a guy named Sergei, also with a very noticeable Eastern European accent. Love those kinds of central-casting moments.
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft
And the humidifier has been fixed. Five-minute job. I stayed and watched and chatted while it was done—I wasn’t pushy, the guy asked if I wanted to see how basic it was. He’s been here before for a duct cleaning. He bears more than a passing resemblance to Silent Majority here (has an Irish name to boot).
If this were a TV show he would played by James with a fake beard and Canadian accent.
I would love to hear James try his hand at a Canadian accent, the more over the top the better.
And the humidifier has been fixed. Five-minute job. I stayed and watched and chatted while it was done—I wasn’t pushy, the guy asked if I wanted to see how basic it was. He’s been here before for a duct cleaning. He bears more than a passing resemblance to Silent Majority here (has an Irish name to boot).
If this were a TV show he would played by James with a fake beard and Canadian accent.
I would love to hear James try his hand at a Canadian accent, the more over the top the better.
Recording 165842-011223.mp3
I can hear some Midwestern/Plains nasal in there. Probably not enough to escape being beaten up for being a foreigner, but getting there!
"Grab some wood, bub.'" - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft