Furnace just died

[pmac]

Yup, looks like the furnace just got the old PR 0. Stuff like this never happens at a convenient time. Noooooooo, it has to happen when the guys that fix this type of stuff charge quadruple time-and-a-half. Super Bowl Sunday at that. I bet I couldn't find a sober furnace repair guy if I tried. Having said that, it's -29c with the wind chill, my furnace just died, and the first thing I did was crack a cold one. :::sigh:::
</end of rant>

Heading to the garage to get some wood

[Brett_Tabke]

Oh wow. It's always nice to be married at these times. hehe

That would be tough to deal with at those temps. I had it happen a couple years ago myself. Only had a gas log that would barely keep your hands warm.

[mivox]

How's the furnace doing? Everytime we have trouble with our heating system (power outage, forgot to fill the fuel tank, whatever) I ask myself why I don't have a woodstove yet.... then I look around and remember I don't have room. ;)

I'm seriously thinking of getting a kerosene heater or something like that... somwthing I could store in the garage when I wasn't using it.

[weblamer2]

Heh, the house I live in has no heat at all.

Since I live in florida, its no big deal. When it gets a little chilly i just plug in a little ceramic box heater and turn the electric blanket on.

Now, living in a house with no A/C.. that's just madness.

[mayor]

Well, folks, my thermometer just passed though the 5 degree F mark on its way down and my central heater hasn't come on for hours. Why not you ask? Because I've got three kerosene heater running, that's why. Two small ones and a big one. The whole house is warm as toast. Can't beat the kero heaters. If you maintain them a little, they burn very clean and very odorless and at about half the cost of electric heat while keeping you much warmer. Also, you can move them around as your needs require. But if you're careless and accident prone better not mess with them. Greatest hazard: putting gasoline in the kerosene fuel container, then into your heater. Second greatest hazard: filling a burning heater against all warnings and spilling the fuel.

[mivox]

Hey, thanks for the recommendation mayor! My big reservations about kerosene heaters were the fumes & possible soot. Right now, we're running a diesel furnace, and I'm about ready to start figuring out how to cook up my own vegetable oil fuel... darn thing is so smelly and expensive as it is up here.

But kerosene at least sounds like a viable back-up option until I can build my dream home with multiple fireplaces and a russian-style masonry wood stove. ;)

[mayor]

You should have neither fumes nor soot if you follow a couple simple rules:

1) use the high quality K-1 kerosene. Don't use heating oil, diesel fuel, etc.

2) let the wick soak up kerosene for about 15 minutes before lighting it, if it has been allowed to run dry.

3) The wick will build up a hard shellac-like substance after a few weeks of use and the heater will not work as good as it should, and may be hard to light. So one time when it's about burned out all the kerosene, take it outside and let it burn completely out. Once all the kerosene has burned the deposits will burn away and you'll have a brand new wick again. But do take it outside, because that stuff will stink when it burns.

4) It's probably a good idea to change the wick every year if you use the heater a lot, but I don't do it that often.

5) you're much better off with two small heaters than one big one because you can distribute them around the house that way. I highly recommend the Corona portable model that has a fuel tank that you can just lift up out of the heater and go out in the garage and refill it, rather than having to bring the fuel to the heater to fill it.

Finally, if you've got one of those high-BTU units suitable for Alaskan winters, and a tightly closed abode, you man want to crack open a window for some extra fresh air, because these things will hog the oxygen from an enclosed area. Normally it's not a problem, but I do notice it when running the high BTU one. I prefer not to be in the same room with it, because it does get stuffy breathing too much carbon dioxide. The small ones are no problem, like the Corona portable mentioned above.

[Liane]

Brrrrr ... just thinking about the cold gives me shivers! Its been so cold here the last couple of nights I actually had to sleep under my top sheet and turn the fan off! :)

Now, living in a house with no A/C.. that's just madness.

Guess I'm mad then! Fans only for me thanks. I like to leave my windows open and have the sea breeze (and fans) keep me comfy. ;)

[mayor]

I am really jealous, Liane. Surely the trade winds must leave you with windburn!

[pmac]

We are back up and running. Brrrrr.......that was not very nice. I dragged a futon mattress up from the basement and tossed it on the floor in front of the fireplace. The fire was able to radiate heat about 8 feet into the room, so if you were brave enough to venture from the futon for a trip to the loo, it would be a frosty trip.

My wife and daughter slept right through, while I pulled an all-nighter, feeding the fire and watching the most horrible late night television one could imagine. ( You know you are tired when you start to clap along with the infomercial audience)

The morning came, and it was bitterly cold, so I spent the entire day on the futon, napping, reading, and watching TV. The Furnace guy showed up around 5pm, and by 7 we were toasty warm.