Less sparky fun
Today was round 2 of electrical works at Sector 7, and I'll try to remember all the relevant details, although right now I'm exhausted.
First, the good news.The meter box had a spare something or other in it which meant Matt (my electrician du jour) didn't have to replace the whole thing after all, but could shuffle some things around, upgrade bits, and count the whole thing as a package deal with the two smoke alarms we were getting done. This worked out several hundred dollars cheaper than quoted. This was made possible because he didn't have to drill any holes - the meter box is lined with asbestos and such things are frowned upon. I shall have to cancel my plans to stick my head in there and breathe deeply whilst wielding a cheese grater. Isn't it a pest how Life gets in the way of plans?
The two mains-powered smoke detectors were installed without incident, and survived me grilling some fish this afternoon without goig off, so that's a promising start. They have large friendly Shut The F*ck Up buttons should there be a false alarm. I am assured that they are much more resistant to false alarms than others.
The lounge oyster light came off, and the entry hall light came off. Like the outdoor lights the entry hall light was also not earthed *sigh*. Although in this case an earth wire was available, it just hadn't been connected. Argh. Ex-lounge oyster light now fitted to entry hall. I had thought to try to sell The World's Ugliest Light Fitting on eBay (it's a classic, man) but Matt put it in the bin and I'm not inclined to go diving after it.
The fan/light was installed in the lounge, but made a disturbing amount of noise when it was turned on. Some of the noise caused by the globes vibrating against the less-than-precisely-aligned fittings. With a bit of tinkering and repositioning of the lights with no regard as to their usefulness as lights, he made that noise go away, which left the fan motor humming loudly. Maybe it only made that noise going at full bore, we thought. Yes and No, was the answer. Yes, it was going at theoretical full bore, but theoretical full bore was not remotely like anything Matt would classify as acceptable full bore.
After some tinkering, the discovery that the motor was horribly hot after only a few minutes of operation on a cold day, and much discussion, Matt declared the unit faulty. He had much to say about the evils of lighting shops. Light fittings are not something one tends to buy very often, but I think I've finally learned my lesson there. He recommended a wholesale electrical supplier for indoor fittings, and Bunnings of all places for a fan and outdoor lights. Go figure.
So, I now have paperwork declaring the unit to be faulty and I'll be going back to the shop to seek a refund. Won't That Be Fun. Matt also encouraged me to seek a refund for the labour costs involved thus far, and he wrote them up separately for me. Won't That Be Even More Fun. I have little faith that I'll see that money again, and I expect the shop will try to force me to accept a replacement unit or even a shop credit rather than repay me in full. I'm not sure what the legality is there, so I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. I might need to consult with consumer protection superstar anysia :-)
The new plan is then to get a more robust (shouldn't be tricky) fan from somewhere else, and add two new light fittings either side. We curently have a bare halogen bulb in a basic fitting, and frankly it's the best light we've ever had in this room. My favourite lights in the house are the halogen downlights in the kitchen, and so I may have to release my inner eco-terrorist and use them in the lounge room from now on too. I've never liked the fluoros, and I don't think I can afford to continue with extra niggling irritation in my life, particularly as I know for a fact I'm sensitive to light conditions.
Right now I am incredibly tired. This morning I had to get up, shower, and dress, for a start. I then collapsed for a nap with the phone by my side, confident that this time I'd get the warning call so I could hastily put out dust sheets and so on. Well, I got the warning call because I slept through the doorbell - the 30 minute warning call came from my driveway which didn't give me a whole lot of prep time. Matt was here for several hours, and I couldn't rest, so I pottered about, and perhaps foolishly spent much longer doing a particular task. With the power off I didn't really know what the time was and didn't stop to eat, after having not felt like breakfast again. After he left I collapsed for an emergency nap but was so cold I couldn't stop shivering no matter how many layers I added. I had something warm to eat, then fell into bed for a really solid 2 hour sleep. That was no nap.
I am soooooo going to pay for all this. Good job universe - I hope this has kept you distracted from redbraidsfor the whole day :-).
But right now we have safe lighting and fire protection, and that's not a bad thing. And Pumpkin had a whale of a time poking amongst the wires and packaging scattered about the place. Rather to my surprise Cally and Princess slept through most of it and didn't seem unduely traumatised. So that's good too.
First, the good news.The meter box had a spare something or other in it which meant Matt (my electrician du jour) didn't have to replace the whole thing after all, but could shuffle some things around, upgrade bits, and count the whole thing as a package deal with the two smoke alarms we were getting done. This worked out several hundred dollars cheaper than quoted. This was made possible because he didn't have to drill any holes - the meter box is lined with asbestos and such things are frowned upon. I shall have to cancel my plans to stick my head in there and breathe deeply whilst wielding a cheese grater. Isn't it a pest how Life gets in the way of plans?
The two mains-powered smoke detectors were installed without incident, and survived me grilling some fish this afternoon without goig off, so that's a promising start. They have large friendly Shut The F*ck Up buttons should there be a false alarm. I am assured that they are much more resistant to false alarms than others.
The lounge oyster light came off, and the entry hall light came off. Like the outdoor lights the entry hall light was also not earthed *sigh*. Although in this case an earth wire was available, it just hadn't been connected. Argh. Ex-lounge oyster light now fitted to entry hall. I had thought to try to sell The World's Ugliest Light Fitting on eBay (it's a classic, man) but Matt put it in the bin and I'm not inclined to go diving after it.
The fan/light was installed in the lounge, but made a disturbing amount of noise when it was turned on. Some of the noise caused by the globes vibrating against the less-than-precisely-aligned fittings. With a bit of tinkering and repositioning of the lights with no regard as to their usefulness as lights, he made that noise go away, which left the fan motor humming loudly. Maybe it only made that noise going at full bore, we thought. Yes and No, was the answer. Yes, it was going at theoretical full bore, but theoretical full bore was not remotely like anything Matt would classify as acceptable full bore.
After some tinkering, the discovery that the motor was horribly hot after only a few minutes of operation on a cold day, and much discussion, Matt declared the unit faulty. He had much to say about the evils of lighting shops. Light fittings are not something one tends to buy very often, but I think I've finally learned my lesson there. He recommended a wholesale electrical supplier for indoor fittings, and Bunnings of all places for a fan and outdoor lights. Go figure.
So, I now have paperwork declaring the unit to be faulty and I'll be going back to the shop to seek a refund. Won't That Be Fun. Matt also encouraged me to seek a refund for the labour costs involved thus far, and he wrote them up separately for me. Won't That Be Even More Fun. I have little faith that I'll see that money again, and I expect the shop will try to force me to accept a replacement unit or even a shop credit rather than repay me in full. I'm not sure what the legality is there, so I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. I might need to consult with consumer protection superstar anysia :-)
The new plan is then to get a more robust (shouldn't be tricky) fan from somewhere else, and add two new light fittings either side. We curently have a bare halogen bulb in a basic fitting, and frankly it's the best light we've ever had in this room. My favourite lights in the house are the halogen downlights in the kitchen, and so I may have to release my inner eco-terrorist and use them in the lounge room from now on too. I've never liked the fluoros, and I don't think I can afford to continue with extra niggling irritation in my life, particularly as I know for a fact I'm sensitive to light conditions.
Right now I am incredibly tired. This morning I had to get up, shower, and dress, for a start. I then collapsed for a nap with the phone by my side, confident that this time I'd get the warning call so I could hastily put out dust sheets and so on. Well, I got the warning call because I slept through the doorbell - the 30 minute warning call came from my driveway which didn't give me a whole lot of prep time. Matt was here for several hours, and I couldn't rest, so I pottered about, and perhaps foolishly spent much longer doing a particular task. With the power off I didn't really know what the time was and didn't stop to eat, after having not felt like breakfast again. After he left I collapsed for an emergency nap but was so cold I couldn't stop shivering no matter how many layers I added. I had something warm to eat, then fell into bed for a really solid 2 hour sleep. That was no nap.
I am soooooo going to pay for all this. Good job universe - I hope this has kept you distracted from redbraidsfor the whole day :-).
But right now we have safe lighting and fire protection, and that's not a bad thing. And Pumpkin had a whale of a time poking amongst the wires and packaging scattered about the place. Rather to my surprise Cally and Princess slept through most of it and didn't seem unduely traumatised. So that's good too.