Brrrrr....
Woke up this morning to find it decidedly chilly in my little apartment. So the first thing I did after getting my fuzzy bathrobe and slippers on to keep me from freezing was go to turn up the heat in the bedroom. And curiously, it was already set to 3 (my heat is via baseboard heaters, which have four heat levels), but was still cold. So I turned it up toward 4, expecting to hear it click as it turned on... nothing.
Very strange... I went into the bathroom and checked the heater there. It was cold too. I turned it right up to the maximum. No click. Usually it clicks when it hits a level where it needs to come on, which varies depending on the temperature around and how recently it's been on. Checked the living room and stairway heaters: same thing.
Could my electricity have been shut off? I thought I'd paid my Hydro bill... But no, the electricity's fine. Computer is on, clock is on, lights work. Blew a circuit breaker? No, I checked, and they're all in the "on" position. It's a mystery.
And the plot thickens. I put some leftovers on the stove to heat up for breakfast while I was checking all this out. Went back to check on them - still cold. Took the pan off the burner and put my hand over it (not touching the element, of course). Didn't feel any heat except right near the point where the power comes into the element. Turned the heat up higher. Checked again after a few minutes - no noticeable change. Even put my hand right on the element - faintly warm, but not hot. About the temperature the countertop might be if a hot teapot had been sitting on it for a few minutes. In a way, that's even more puzzling than if it didn't work at all - it must be getting some power... I'll try a different element and see if any of them work.
This is all highly weird. What could make all my baseboard heaters stop working at the same time, and the stove only work marginally, while the rest of the electrical supply is fine and no circuit breaker has flipped? My heat is not subject to any kind of control from outside my apartment that I know of... I've never before in nearly six years of living here had a heater fail to go on when I turned it on, even in early fall or late spring when people with central heating don't always have it because their landlords haven't turned it on. As far as I know, my heaters work independently. They're basically just electrical appliances. So how could they all fail at once? And what's with the stove?
I should ask my landlady, but she's at work and won't be home for a few hours yet. In the meantime, I am confused. And getting cold...
Very strange... I went into the bathroom and checked the heater there. It was cold too. I turned it right up to the maximum. No click. Usually it clicks when it hits a level where it needs to come on, which varies depending on the temperature around and how recently it's been on. Checked the living room and stairway heaters: same thing.
Could my electricity have been shut off? I thought I'd paid my Hydro bill... But no, the electricity's fine. Computer is on, clock is on, lights work. Blew a circuit breaker? No, I checked, and they're all in the "on" position. It's a mystery.
And the plot thickens. I put some leftovers on the stove to heat up for breakfast while I was checking all this out. Went back to check on them - still cold. Took the pan off the burner and put my hand over it (not touching the element, of course). Didn't feel any heat except right near the point where the power comes into the element. Turned the heat up higher. Checked again after a few minutes - no noticeable change. Even put my hand right on the element - faintly warm, but not hot. About the temperature the countertop might be if a hot teapot had been sitting on it for a few minutes. In a way, that's even more puzzling than if it didn't work at all - it must be getting some power... I'll try a different element and see if any of them work.
This is all highly weird. What could make all my baseboard heaters stop working at the same time, and the stove only work marginally, while the rest of the electrical supply is fine and no circuit breaker has flipped? My heat is not subject to any kind of control from outside my apartment that I know of... I've never before in nearly six years of living here had a heater fail to go on when I turned it on, even in early fall or late spring when people with central heating don't always have it because their landlords haven't turned it on. As far as I know, my heaters work independently. They're basically just electrical appliances. So how could they all fail at once? And what's with the stove?
I should ask my landlady, but she's at work and won't be home for a few hours yet. In the meantime, I am confused. And getting cold...