Heat

I awoke yesterday morning and, of course, walked straight to the kitchen for that first cup of stimulus called coffee. The initial sip of that hot libation always makes me sigh. Every day it invokes the same response from me. I taste, my eyes involuntarily close, I sigh. Aaaahhhh.

However, my bliss didn't last long. As I toured the house, making my morning survey of what must be done, I noted how chilly each room was. I was sure it was just that it was extra cold outside and the arctic air was making its way in through our old single pane windows. So, I decided to start the fireplace, turn up the thermostat, and enjoy the quiet morning. Well, what a surprise I had when I reached the thermostat and noticed the temperature was only 60 even though it should have been 69. I quickly put my hand in front of a vent and felt cold air blowing. Oh, no! I turned off the system at the thermostat, BUT, the cold air kept blowing! I was afraid that our HVAC system's name might be HAL (a reference to the computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey for you younger people.)

Ok, I'll spare you all the details of an hour of trying to get the heater to quit blowing cold air and just leap to the end of the story. After several phone calls, none were able to travel to me and aid me in my distress, I decided I would just have to help myself. (Dad was iced in, Husband in Europe, and HVAC guy in Dallas.)

I climbed into the attic, found the on/off switch for the entire HVAC system and turned it off. YES! The cold air quit blowing. Now, how can I get the warm air to return to the leggy vent system that delivers warmth and comfort to our living quarters? In short, I rebooted the system by turning it back on. Miraculously, the heat began to blow.

Why comment on my pedestrian experience with my heater? Because these are the types of experiences that I would choose not to deal with, which is why I called others for answers before I began to really search for a solution myself. But, having been forced to do it myself, I know that sometimes my own ideas are worth trying and may be the solution I need. Maybe next time I will try to fix it myself first, before I send out distress calls, literally, around the world.