Our smoke alarms are hard-wired to the house electrical system, but each also has a battery backup for those times when electricity goes out. We live in Florida, a state that has electrical outages from hurricanes, tropical storms and thunderstorms. As with all battery-using devices, the smoke alarms draw enough power from the batteries to take the batteries into low charge. That occurred five days ago, and the alarm began chirping, loudly, every 10 seconds: “Change me! I require replacement! Change me!”
My wife and
I have the necessary equipment -- spare batteries and a good step ladder. What we
do not have is climbing ability and balance. My wife has balance, but she
cannot climb. I can climb – slowly and with some effort – but if I were to turn
my head to see the battery slot, I would fall from the ladder. That would not
be good for a 76-year-old man who already has a couple of head injuries. This
morning, our daughter replaced the recalcitrant battery. The device continued
to chirp its message. My wife put the device in a box and took the box to the
garage where, she said, “It can chirp its little heart out.”
She also
said, “I am going to take it to the fire department and ask what is wrong with
it.” Sounds like a plan.
We have a
salt water swimming pool. One of the devices went out, precluding the action of
changing NaCl into Cl-. I think that is what happens. Water in the pool is
green. Mossy-looking stuff sits on the bottom of the pool. My wife has not been
able to get in contact with the pool guy. When she does, we will probably have to pay
some money to get the device changed.
Once a year
our air conditioner goes out, from a clogged drain. We paid a plumbing company
to fix the initial problem and then contracted with the company for an
on-demand fix. The air conditioner went out this morning. My wife called the
plumbing company. The representative said “We no longer do that work.” My wife mentioned
our contract, only to be told, “We are not doing those contracts any more.”
So. First
World problems, yes. And examples of those things that led to eventual over-settlement
of most of the Southeast and Southwest.
Uncomfortable,
but bearable.
Take the plumbing company to court...
ReplyDeleteI thought about court, but decided the problem was not worth the hassle. The contract was summer-summer, so the time is too close for a serious suit. My wife called a couple of companies, and a fixer came out around 7 p.m. We have cool. My wife also bought pool chemicals, which will be added tomorrow morning. Things turned out not as bad as I first thought, but we were in some ways lucky. Our first encounters with Florida efficiency were not positive, but things have become better.
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