Friday 15 May 2015

2015 Challenge Update #2

When we last left our heroes, construction on the garage was paused while Husband was away for a few weeks. A few days after his return, we had our anatomy ultrasound, where we first learned about the potential placenta issues and need for an early delivery. That prompted Husband to bust out the rest of the floor in the storage space and install installation.



We went away for a long weekend in February and fretted about missing a weekend of productivity, but we soon learned that was only the start of our delays. A trip to the permit office uncovered that we needed to increase the roof venting if we were closing in the ceiling. Adding the extra vents required approval from our HOA, which only meets every other month. Husband had to stalk track down the HOA President to receive emergency authorisation. Finding a roofing contractor was difficult as a late storm had swept through our area. Coordinating with the inspectors was another challenge.

[insert cricket sounds]

Recycling Fees $50
Permit Fees $650
Roofing Work $1,450

Meanwhile, the contents of our garage as well as the storage units, are scattered around our house, which hindered preparations for the nursery. 



Finally, the dry wall work was done.



The morning after the dry wall was finished, I tried to turn on the heat, but it failed to convert. We called a repairman to evaluate our furnace. He speculated that there may be a broken piece, which would cost $300-400 to investigate and repair, but as our furnace is almost 27 years old, it will probably need replacing soon. Although not a good time financially, we decided to bite the bullet, as we wouldn't want the furnace to konk out after the baby's arrival. The next morning, I made the unpleasant discovery that we didn't have any hot water. It appeared that our hot water heater (which was replaced last year) was also out of commission. We paid extra for an after hours service call from our plumber, who couldn't figure out what was wrong. It was another day and another cold shower, and a visit from the water tank repairman, who also couldn't find the problem, but suggested contacting our energy company. Husband placed a call to PG&E, and after listening to Husband go into detail on how every appliance was breaking down, the representative had one suggestion, "have you checked your earthquake shut-off valve?" Five minutes later, our gas line was back on after Husband realised it had been shut off. We're not sure if it was triggered during the dry wall work or by a local 3.6 earthquake. Nonetheless, we decided to proceed with replacing the furnace. At this point, what's one more unexpected expense?

Dry Wall Work $2,800
Plumber After Hours Call $110
Hot Water Repairman Service Call $65
New Furnace $3,150 

Total to Date: $10,425

6 comments:

  1. Why is it that unexpected expenses seem to happen all around the same time?

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  2. Why is it that unexpected expenses seem to happen all around the same time?

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  3. Yikes! That's a lot happening at once, and frustrating that it turned out to be such an easy fix! Sounds like things are moving along though!

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  4. It seems like everything is at a busy state right now. How are things going with the construction nowadays? Those things could get really expensive, especially that furnace issue. However, I think that's one thing that you shouldn't really miss, since it will be very helpful when the construction is done. In any way, thanks for sharing that! All the best!



    Brett Rogers @ Flame Furnace

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  5. Seems like you're in the middle of a major housework there. I guess it made a lot more sense to buy a new furnace, since the one you had was around 27 years old. That's a lot of new feature and perks missed, along with its accumulated damages over the years. Maybe you can have that working nominally, but it is better that you have your furnace function at an optimal level. Anyway, I hope you’re quite satisfied with your new furnace. Cheers!

    Henrietta Fuller @ Bri-Tech HVAC

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  6. Yikes! It seems like you had a very unfortunate situation regarding your furnace and heater. Speaking of which, I think it would have been better if you had replaced the furnace soon after, but since financial issues got in the way, it was only right of you to have it fixed. Anyway, I hope you’re no longer experiencing any problems with that. All the best!


    Andy Jones @ Air Quality Services

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