Changing the balance of quality of life and financial independence

[Want2retire]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

Took 1700lbs of tile, concrete and drywall to the dump today. Alleve is the best stuff ever invented, aside from booze.

Oh my, take care and don't hurt yourself! That sounds like quite a job, unless you are the bodybuilder type.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Eh, it counts as my workout for the day.

I'm still pretty impressed that I got a box filled with water to catch on fire.

[Sandy]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

Took 1700lbs of tile, concrete and drywall to the dump today.

Retired? At your age? But what do you do all day

[Nords]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

I'm still pretty impressed that I got a box filled with water to catch on fire.

Eh, either it's a GE dishwasher or you had help from these guys:

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml07/07094.html

We have one of the recall models but we just don't use the rinse-aid dispenser...

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Its 17 years old and I pushed the 'heated dry' button, probably for the first time...

Might have just been that it hadnt been turned on in about 8 months after being so old, some seal somewhere dried out and some water got into it.

I'd heard about the maytags having problems with internal fires...too bad maytag sank so low quality wise...hopefully whirlpool will straighten them out.

Funny thing is, the home warranty company wanted to put in a GE unit. I dont THINK so!

[Nords]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

Its 17 years old and I pushed the 'heated dry' button, probably for the first time...

Heh, sounds like it delivered exactly what you asked for!

Reminds me of the urban legends of dishwasher drain traps drying out and filling the cabinet with methane gas until someone causes a spark with the "Start" button...

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Shoot, wish you'd mentioned that one earlier, it'd have made for a more colorful story for the home warranty company.

Tore up the lino in the laundry room to find that the washing machine valves been leaking since they disconnected the washer...bad seal/washer that was used to being left open and didnt like being closed.

Oh well, we were redoing the floor anyhow, and another call to the home warranty company got me a couple of new valves!

Methinks those guys are going to be sorry they issued a warranty on this place. I just found out that the wall oven/microwave combos are no longer made in the size of the one thats built into the cabinets, so I either need to cut a few inches and lose a drawer to install a new one, put in a double oven and cover about 5" of open cabinet since those are smaller top to bottom, or put in a regular wall oven and build out a shelf to put a regular microwave on.

I am now developing a chant that will hopefully cause the water heater, furnace and that wall oven/microwave unit to fail.

[Nords]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

Oh well, we were redoing the floor anyhow, and another call to the home warranty company got me a couple of new valves!

Let me know if you get one of these!
http://www.watts.com/pro/divisions/w...ntelliflow.asp

They're still a bit difficult to obtain around here and I'm wondering if it's better to wait a year (until they start showing up in the bigbox stores) or if I should do something else.

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

I just found out that the wall oven/microwave combos are no longer made in the size of the one thats built into the cabinets, so I either need to cut a few inches and lose a drawer to install a new one, put in a double oven and cover about 5" of open cabinet since those are smaller top to bottom, or put in a regular wall oven and build out a shelf to put a regular microwave on.

I think it's a clear sign that you need to upgrade to a convection/microwave with a cooktop grill and an industrial-strength exhaust hood... can you get a smoker and a dehydrator with that warranty, too?

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I already have an in-counter smoker, unfortunately its mesquite-burning plastic flavored :P

[cute fuzzy bunny]

We're nearing the end of the first half of this odyssey...our tile work, bathroom remodel, carpeting, painting and assorted other fun and games are done. Our new major appliances and furniture get delivered sometime in the next hour or two (yeah sure...). I've hauled more than half of our total stuff to the new house.

Later this afternoon we pack up our last load and start living in the new place effective tonight!

Now I just need to finish cleaning up, painting, recarpeting and otherwise preparing our old place to put it up for sale.

Most fun part should be heading back up to the old place tomorrow to try to coax Jake into the car again. I caught him by surprise the last time, and it was only a 15 minute ride at night. We'll see how he likes a 90 minute drive during the daytime. Of course, i'll have to chase him all over the yard and then haul his 100-something pound butt to the car. Probably from the furthest possible part of the yard from the garage.

Wish me luck with that... :P

Although the dishwasher is still the biggest pain in the butt, but in a sort of good way. Home warranty company offered to pony up $300 towards any dishwasher I wanted, plus free delivery and installation. Then whirpool couldnt deliver the model I wanted in a timely manner, so they upgraded me for free to the next model up, which shows up on tuesday.

[wabmester]

Let's see the remodeling pics!

One of the best things we did in our last remodel was to gut the bathroom, and put in a large mudded-up shower instead of those prefab'd fiberglass jobs.

[laurence]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

Then whirpool couldnt deliver the model I wanted in a timely manner, so they upgraded me for free to the next model up, which shows up on tuesday.

Now this is one of the smarter corporate moves I've seen. Had it happen once to me. They get one very happy customer for what probably is not much off their bottom line. We ordered a bed for our guestroom and they delivered a set two grades above the one we paid for. When we called, concerned we would get in some sort of trouble later, they said, " we apologize for the mix up, if you are o.k. with it you can keep it for no extra charge.". Probably cheaper than paying the moving guys to replace it, but I still think it was pretty classy.

[samclem]

Originally Posted by Cute Fuzzy Bunny

Tore up the lino in the laundry room to find that the washing machine valves been leaking since they disconnected the washer...bad seal/washer that was used to being left open and didnt like being closed.

The gate valves that used to be universally used in almost all home faucets/taps are terrible for not opening or closing after awhile. The newer quarter-turn ball valves valves are only a few bucks more and definitely worth the money whenever you get a chance to replace one of the old style gate or globe valves. Better flow rate, reliable opening and closing, etc. I've put them everywhere--shutoffs to the sinks and toilets, washer, hose bib, etc.

[haha]

Originally Posted by samclem

The gate valves that used to be universally used in almost all home faucets/taps are terrible for not opening or closing after awhile. The newer quarter-turn ball valves valves are only a few bucks more and definitely worth the money whenever you get a chance to replace one of the old style gate or globe valves. Better flow rate, reliable opening and closing, etc. I've put them everywhere--shutoffs to the sinks and toilets, washer, hose bib, etc.

How can I differentiate these to be sure I am getting the quarter turn ball valve? I sure agree with you that the gate valves suck- esp. if as I do you have lots of sand and debris in your water.

ha

[samclem]

They'll be called a "ball valve" on the label. Also, the handle (generally) only turns 90 degrees from stop to stop. Also, look in the end--you should just see a round ball inside. As you tirn the handle, a fole in the ball lines up with the in/out path.

[haha]

Thanks samclem.

Ha

[Nords]

Originally Posted by samclem

The gate valves that used to be universally used in almost all home faucets/taps are terrible for not opening or closing after awhile. The newer quarter-turn ball valves valves are only a few bucks more and definitely worth the money whenever you get a chance to replace one of the old style gate or globe valves. Better flow rate, reliable opening and closing, etc. I've put them everywhere--shutoffs to the sinks and toilets, washer, hose bib, etc.

Each valve is designed for a different purpose, and each has its advantages & drawbacks.

When an old gate valve (or throttle valve) is replaced by a new ball valve, the "new" feature (especially materials) is probably more significant than the type of valve. But that doesn't necessarily mean that it's better (or will last longer) than the valve it replaced.

Ball valves & gate valves can leak across their seats much more easily than throttle valves. (Admittedly leaking into the washing machine is a lot better than leaking on the floor.) When a throttle valve starts leaking, you have several options for tightening/torquing its parts to keep things under control until you can get a new one... not so many options with ball or gave valves. With some faucets I'd rather replace seats & gaskets any day than have to rip out the old valve and put in a new one.

Ball valves & gate valves are absolutely destroyed by grit & abrasives. If it's just open then it's no problem. If it's shut then deposits build up on the face exposed to the fluid, and when it's opened those deposits are dragged across the seats. A few cycles of this will score the seats and it's time to get a new valve. There's nothing that can be tweaked or sealed.

Ball valves & gage valves aren't expected to throttle, so they're not designed for it. Using them as a throttle valve requires a lot of adjusting during operation but the problem is that the sharp edges of the ball valve's opening are dragged across the seats, wearing them out more quickly. A gate valve is a little better but is much more susecptible to leakage up the stem & bonnet while it's between "open" and "shut".

Throttle valves are great at flushing grit & abrasives through their parts with no damage, and their very rugged construction makes them tolerate a lot of operating use. They're a lot easier to adjust and repair as their parts wear out, while gate & ball valves tend to "break" without graceful degradation.

So... buy the valve that's designed for its intended purpose. If you're going to be operating it a lot and it needs to adjust the rate of flow, buy a throttle valve. (It usually has a rubber seat to seal the flow path.) If you're going to be turning something "on" or "off" once in a while, no throttling required but "no leakage" is important, then I'm biased toward gate valves. If you're going to operate something very infrequently or if you need something that quickly slams shut, then use a ball valve.

Washing machine valves with automatic leak-detector shutoffs, rarely operated-- ball valves.
Washing machines valves manually but rarely operated-- gate valves.
Washing machine valves open/shut manually & frequently-- gate valves or throttle valves. Gate valves can be cheaper by the unit but wear out faster.
Sink faucets-- rotary throttle valves.

Anything else... more expensive and more repairs. Admittedly the former isn't very important at today's home plumbing prices but if you don't enjoy rebuilding ball valves then don't buy those single-lever kitchen-sink faucet controls-- or make the person who thinks they're so cool be responsible for fixing them.

Submarines use all those types of valves (and a whole lot more) for air, water, hydraulics, and other assorted fluids.

Throttle valves are very popular because they have a lot of repair options before they have to be replaced. The average U.S. submarine probably has thousands of them and there are probably hundreds of designs. But they add flow resistance to any piping network.

Gate valves can isolate with zero leakage but when open have nearly unrestricted (low-friction) flow-- like the isolation valves in reactor coolant loops. They take a long time to shut and even when they're shut they can leak. But they're easier to design for rugged operations (especially across high differential pressures) and nasty environments. There aren't very many of them on submarines but they're used for critical applications and remote operation.

Ball valves exist for one purpose-- quick operation for fast isolation. That quarter-turn shut has saved a lot of lives when gate valves would still be cranking through 10-20 revolutions. Every seawater system has two ball valves at the hull openings for rapid shutoff. Just about every submarine ball valve I can think of was connected to a powered (electric-hydraulic) operator.

But after a couple decades' experience with them, I must admit that ball valves suck. They're probably the biggest hassle in extended repair periods, and off the top of my head I can't think of a single ball valve in any reactor primary or secondary piping systems-- just saltwater. Entire shipyard departments are devoted to ball valve repairs & replacement. The valves don't last anywhere near as long as their counterparts-- unless they stay open forever and are only shut once or twice a year for less than a day or two.

However they look cool and they're (mostly) really cheap.