On Saturday, Mario and I had of taking the debris from the house to the city dump. We had removed old paneling from the small study and we were anxious to be rid of it. I was so excited to be up and about that day. I was suffering from anemia due to some health struggles and the previous week had been very difficult.
After a typical late morning Saturday, Mario and I went outside, lay the seats down in the car and we proceeded to break up the old paneling so that it would fit in the car. Now, to lay a foundation to this story, Mario has razzed me for years that I need to wear regular tennis shoes instead of my flip flops everywhere, but especially when doing construction work. (I chose to ignore him because my sandals are so much more comfortable.) We broke a couple of panel pieces successfully and we moved on to the third. As I put my foot down, my sandal unexpectedly shifted to the side. What happened next was kind of a blur, probably because I was dizzy. :) A lovely rusty nail went straight into my heel. I started limping back in the house. I will spare you the details, but my anemia returned. The next 3 days I spent lame as a duck and praying that tetanus wouldn't set in. Luckily, on Monday, something happened that completely distracted me (sarcasm ensues).
Mario came to me Monday morning to tell me that the water wasn't heating up. We went downstairs to check it out and smelled gas. We left the house and called the gas company from our neighbors house. When the man from the gas company came, he was able to fix the leak and re-light the water heater. He was then required to check for any other leaks. The end result was that he had to shut the furnace down and put a cute little red tag on it.
Apparently the vent stack that goes from the basement to the roof is too small and there isn't enough ventilation in the basement. The lack of proper ventilation meant that carbon monixide could have built up in the basement at any point and killed us. The most serious issue was that the box built around the air intake for the furnace had been broken when the plumber re-plumbed. The end result was that suction was being created in the basement. That suction is probably what caused the water heater to go out and it meant that carbon monoxide exhaust could have been pulled through our ventilation system at any moment.
Update: We replaced the air intake box and it is sealed properly. Now our only concern in the chimney stack.
I have gone through many emotions as this week has trippingly advanced. I didn't cry at all when I stepped on the nail. Once I laid down in bed I actually started laughing! I was struck by how ridiculous it was that this house could have even more anxiety to dish out. I will admit getting a little aggitated by the heater situations. The most discouraged that I got was that I began praying more fervently that Extreme Makeover: Home Edition would come to our house and rescue us. In the spirit of good humor and trying to find the bright side. . . I know that God will provide what we need. At least we have a roof over our heads and two beautiful children to love.
6/30/13 I have finally found that the only solution to our ventilation problem is to switch back to an electric water heater. We will have to buy a new one and pay for the installation, but I can't pass on a hazardous situation to the next family. I wish the plumber had followed the code like we had paid him to do. I now just pray that we will be able to find the money to replace it before winter comes this year and we have to turn the furnace back on.
After a typical late morning Saturday, Mario and I went outside, lay the seats down in the car and we proceeded to break up the old paneling so that it would fit in the car. Now, to lay a foundation to this story, Mario has razzed me for years that I need to wear regular tennis shoes instead of my flip flops everywhere, but especially when doing construction work. (I chose to ignore him because my sandals are so much more comfortable.) We broke a couple of panel pieces successfully and we moved on to the third. As I put my foot down, my sandal unexpectedly shifted to the side. What happened next was kind of a blur, probably because I was dizzy. :) A lovely rusty nail went straight into my heel. I started limping back in the house. I will spare you the details, but my anemia returned. The next 3 days I spent lame as a duck and praying that tetanus wouldn't set in. Luckily, on Monday, something happened that completely distracted me (sarcasm ensues).
Mario came to me Monday morning to tell me that the water wasn't heating up. We went downstairs to check it out and smelled gas. We left the house and called the gas company from our neighbors house. When the man from the gas company came, he was able to fix the leak and re-light the water heater. He was then required to check for any other leaks. The end result was that he had to shut the furnace down and put a cute little red tag on it.
Apparently the vent stack that goes from the basement to the roof is too small and there isn't enough ventilation in the basement. The lack of proper ventilation meant that carbon monixide could have built up in the basement at any point and killed us. The most serious issue was that the box built around the air intake for the furnace had been broken when the plumber re-plumbed. The end result was that suction was being created in the basement. That suction is probably what caused the water heater to go out and it meant that carbon monoxide exhaust could have been pulled through our ventilation system at any moment.
Update: We replaced the air intake box and it is sealed properly. Now our only concern in the chimney stack.
I have gone through many emotions as this week has trippingly advanced. I didn't cry at all when I stepped on the nail. Once I laid down in bed I actually started laughing! I was struck by how ridiculous it was that this house could have even more anxiety to dish out. I will admit getting a little aggitated by the heater situations. The most discouraged that I got was that I began praying more fervently that Extreme Makeover: Home Edition would come to our house and rescue us. In the spirit of good humor and trying to find the bright side. . . I know that God will provide what we need. At least we have a roof over our heads and two beautiful children to love.
6/30/13 I have finally found that the only solution to our ventilation problem is to switch back to an electric water heater. We will have to buy a new one and pay for the installation, but I can't pass on a hazardous situation to the next family. I wish the plumber had followed the code like we had paid him to do. I now just pray that we will be able to find the money to replace it before winter comes this year and we have to turn the furnace back on.
