If I Didn't Have...

...bad luck I wouldn't any luck at all!

But all's well that ends well...or so they say.

Everything in the previous post was wrong.

1. The gas was off for almost 24 hours...no hot water, no stove, no furnace on the last cold-ish night of the season (I hope).

2. I DID need a meter upgrade, but the Gas Company doesn't charge for that unless you have to upgrade the pipes, too. I didn't need that.

Here's the story.  After the gas man put in the connections to the generator, no problem there, he smelled gas. Went to all the outlets but could discover no leaks. So, he turned off the gas! And LEFT!

He left a few numbers of plumbers I could call, most were 50 to 100 miles away, though. I got online and started compiling more numbers for plumbers nearer, but it was already after 5pm and everybody was closed until the next day.

Seq way to a different issue: The kitchen sink drain was backing up. I called Mark, he came over but after an hour of snaking, climbing on the roof, blasting with the hose, he had no luck clearing the drain he gave up. He left a bucket under the sink to catch the drip he left and called a plumber he thought could clear the drain. He would come the next day at noon.

So, the next day was very busy!

Third call to plumbers who advertised they do gas work  (1. "We only do new construction work", 2. "We can send someone out tomorrow afternoon.") was to George Gas Repair and, surprise, he said he'd come right out. Had two jobs to do, but he'd look at my problem and see if he could figure it out first.

George, first said, "You need a new meter." He showed me that the generator manual said it needed 308 cf at full load and I'd need that to kick everything on. It would fall after every thing was up and running, but I needed the ability to hit full load. Our meter was rated at 175 cf max! Also, the meter was put in in 1957...62 years ago!...as was the regulator, so it was way, WAY, over due for replacement. He found the leak, yes there was a leak, but it was -at the meter- on the gas company side. So...

George said "call the gas company and tell them you have a new generator and need them to look at your very, very, old meter. Don't need to even mention the 'leak' they'll find and fix it. Turn the gas back on before you call, too. They'll probably do it today, and there isn't likely to be a charge, so don't worry about that." He was right! I called, there was guy out within the hour who agreed with everything George had said about needing a new meter and the switch leaking a little due to age...and a crew was there a couple hours later to do the whole job. No cost, no hassle, no fuss.

In the mean time, Richard the Drain man showed up. He was to be here at noon and he knocked on the door at precisely noon. Richard has to be 80 if he's a day and said almost nothing. He looked at the drain, got his equipment, got me to run our hose in to him and turn on the water when he had it connected to his nozzle. Within 30 minutes he had the drain clear and the pipes connected back with NO DRIPS. Yes, he charged $139, but he got the job done fast.

BTW, only when he was done and noticed our dog food and water bowls did he start to talk. He and I talked about pets for a few minutes, about losing our dog family members over the years, and stopped to pet and talk to our cat before going on his way. Seemed like a nice guy, but very focused when on the job.

Okay, so we had a clear drain and gas back on...hot water! All was good...until the water was cold the next day. The pilot light had gone back out. I called the gas company and they sent a guy out to relight it. No idea on either side as to why it went out after they turned it on the previous day. I just hope it doesn't happen again. I know how to relight it, but I just couldn't get it to light. The little piezoelectric thingy just wouldn't spark for me.

Okay, I'm not done! That night, sitting in my chair eating some Cheetos, my right lower molar shattered!  I felt a crunch and those large pieces in my mouth weren't cheese puffs they were pebbles! I got them out and had a couple of big hunks of crown in my hand.

Next morning early I call my dentist, he can't get me in until the next day (Thursday) at 1pm. Of course, I say yes and spend an hour there getting the broken crown out and a temp put in. I'll go back for the permanent one in a month. My insurance paid (or is estimated to pay) about half the cost, so I'm going to pay north of $800 for this replacement. Bummer!

Look, I'm going to be honest, I truly think it's clamping my jaws shut and grinding my teeth while trying to keep Mom from scratching her arms bloody that did this! I'm sure all the other "stuff" that's been going on hasn't helped with my frustration..and jaw clamping/teeth grinding...either.

On the up side, the inspector came Thursday before I went to the dentist and okay-ed the generator install, so Ronco will be out...next week?...to turn everything on. Oh, and we have clear drains and hot water, so that's good, too! :)