View Full Version : It never rains...
So then, not only do I have a leaky roof (still - the repairs just moved the leak one foot to the right), but my fridge/freezer has now died into the bargain. I'm not looking forward to whatever is going to be number three. :/
Nothing compared to the troubles of some here, I know, but I wish something would go right for a change. So much for clearing debt. :(
PS - Yes, not having bought new camera equipment would have helped me right now, but what's done is done.
always comes in 3's but not always something that bad so don't worry :)
Hope it all gets sorted, without breaking the bank!!!!
LeperousDust
26-05-2009, 01:29
Haha, i was going to mention the camera :p
Fridge/Freezer if you don't care as long as it "works" just check gumtree lots :)
Going to phone up a local repair place, but I reckon it's the compressor (it's running but only getting down to 0C instead of -22C). I'm a bit picky when it comes to refrigeration so second-hand probably isn't an option (though I'll look).
I suppose the third thing might be the £100-ish of food in there. I've moved fridge stuff into the freezer (since it's about the right temperature in there now) to give me a few days' grace at least.
If necessary, I'll take a break from the mortgage (already checked I can). I was trying to avoid that, but it wouldn't be the end of the world if I had to do it (I'll probably catch back up again next year).
Edit - Checked Gumtree - nothing in the last month, two in the month before (both buyer collects).
LeperousDust
26-05-2009, 02:05
Why are you so picky when it comes to refridgeration? Only worrying fact i can imagine is environmental... There are literally free chest freezers going around usuall, i guess next problem is picking it up but thats a small price to pay in my eyes!
Lets put it this way theres far more to go wrong with a second hand DSLR than a simple fridge or freezer! :p
The problem is space, not reliability :p. I don't have anywhere for a chest freezer, for example, and it wouldn't help anyway as I need to replace both. I need the fridge and freezer the 'right' way around (fridge at the top - fridge at the bottom is a PITA due to my eyesight). Finally I'd rather have a 50/50 split fridge/freezer (size, not capacity) as I tend to fill the freezer far more than I do the fridge, though I'd live with it if I had to. :)
Picking it up is definitely a problem considering I can't drive, let alone have a suitable vehicle. There is the 'man with a van' option of course, but I have no idea how much that would cost.
Not looking for excuses - I just suspect it would prove to be a false economy.
Knipples
26-05-2009, 07:05
I have a Freezer you can buy off me for 20 quid if you wanna get it picked it up.
Wont be available til the first week of July though.
Try emptying it and turning it off for 24 hours. My parents had the same problem about a month ago and called out an engineer. He said that it's quite common for self-defrosting freezers (if that's what yours is). They did what he said and it's fine now.
Yeah, it is one of those. I emptied it, propped the door open and turned it off for four hours yesterday. It had definitely fully defrosted inside. While I was at it I removed various covers to inspect (and found a whole load of dust under one that I have now removed - yes, I was careful not to damage anything).
My plan of attack now is to salvage whatever food I can and then bin the rest and turn it off for a few days. If that recovers it then all well and good. If not, I'll look for a new one because the most likely failure would be the compressor/pipes, which are also likely the most expensive to fix.
Thanks for the offer Knip but my kitchen isn't very big so I'd struggle to fit a separate fridge and freezer in there.
Edit - just checked and it's now showing -8C. So it is - very slowly - getting colder again. Maybe it'll be OK. Fingers crossed. :)
TinkerBell
26-05-2009, 14:52
I think what you need to do is firstly do what Kate suggested, then go for either of those two you found on gumtree, or look around further and either see if any friend's could help with delivery or get a man with a van.
Pretty much. I've cancelled milk and won't be buying anything I can't eat same day, so the plan is to live with it until Sunday night, empty and bin whatever's left then (Monday is bin day), and then switch it off for a few days and see what happens. I'll decide what to do next at that point.
Reading around I'm getting the same symptoms as some others (same model), which in their case was caused by a sensor fault. They reported that the freezer keeps trying to defrost, which fits with what I'm seeing. Going to give someone a call now and see if they can come out to have a look. If it's that, the biggest cost will be labour.
Edit - £60 + parts + VAT. If it's a sensor the parts will be pennies or maybe a few ££ tops. I can live with that.
Knipples
26-05-2009, 17:16
Just to say I have a seperate freezer and fridge, doesnt mean they arent just piled on top of eachother in the kitchen. I just stacked them that way due to space.
True - Grandparents have theirs stacked too but for some odd reason doing that scares me (even though it's an irrational fear).
Going to empty the Freezer early Thursday now. I think I just need to accept that I'm going to have to throw stuff - better that than food poisoning.
Roofer's back Friday too. Going to be a fun day. :)
LeperousDust
26-05-2009, 18:09
Mark, don't you dare waste that food, at worst give it away to neighbours to mind or have. As a student i won't have it, better off risking food poisoning personally, since its actually pretty damn hard to get (as we've found ourselves ;D).
Also my mate had three fridges/freezers stacked at one point, that was quite scary :D
Hah, this happened to me a while ago... the one month I decide to push the boat out and really spoil myself, the boiler screws up and then my car needed some work :(
Did the 24-hour thing. No joy. I did get more confirmation that my diagnostics (that it's constantly defrosting) seem to be spot on, so now it just comes down to what is causing that.
I took Alex's student advice on - I've been through everything that was in the fridge and freezer, thrown out a few bits in truth I'd have probably thrown out anyway, set aside some things from both that either didn't need to be stored cold (e.g. drinks) or that should keep for a few weeks unopened or in airtight containers, eaten much of what was left in the fridge (luckily not much after taking care of the above), and cooked some stuff. That's taken care of about 3/4 (by value) assuming the storage ideas work (won't cause any harm if they don't).
The rest has gone into cool boxes in the coolest part of the house and if the fridge gets fixed tomorrow I'll assess that lot (some will inevitably get chucked sadly but some should be OK).
Don't feel quite so bad now, but that could change tomorrow when I get the bills. :eek:
The freezer is dead, Jim. It's fixable but the cost is a bit of an unknown until they can get a price for the part. Apparently it's quite a rare failure, but one that is also caused by the bane of PC owners the world over - dust ingress and fan failure.
I got charged £69 for the privilege of finding out what the fault was, but that does cover the return visit to fix it as well, so it's only nasty if the part is too expensive to make it economical to fix (doesn't sound like it will be).
PS - Sorry Alex, but some of the food is going in the bin. Mostly Tesco ready meals though so certainly not a disaster. I'll check the insurance policy first however, just in case.
Booooooo :(
I'm in the same boat of how many things can go wrong at once! Although!! It's all very amusing now ;D If there wasn't the poop times, we wouldn't love the awesome times so big hugs and chin chin :)
Balls :( You can get new ones from about £200 ish online as mine is on its last legs as well.
Aye. I'm going looking around the shops tomorrow but I'd like to get this one fixed unless it's impractical (this is a 'made in UK' Hotpoint which are decent quality wise, whereas most of the cheaper new stuff - including Hotpoint - are now made in Poland and it shows).
Most of the food that wasn't previously accounted for is now in the bin. Some of it obviously wasn't fit to eat already so it had to be done. Amount of stuff I've thrown was less than the insurance excess so no point claiming either.
Ours is a Beko which is fine and has been for nearly 3 years. My mum has a Bosch which she's had for well over 15 years, faultless.
Avoid Hotpoint/Indesit
I had both. Trouble is I like the Hotpoint designs. They're quite well designed internally (i.e. lots of space where I want it). Indesit have always been **** but until fairly recently Hotpoint have at least been OK.
Just got the bill for the repair - £68+VAT :/
I've been having a look around at the weekend and there really wasn't much that shouted 'buy me'. Most of what I saw would be a compromise, though of course I could sacrifice and get something that would do.
Since I've paid for half the job already I may as well go ahead with the rest. £150 is half the cost of a new unit but at least I get what I want. Just hope it gives me a few more years service (repair is guaranteed for a year but something else could go).
I keep meaning to save up and get a new kitchen (the one I got 15 years ago was a cheapy 'get me by' B&Q job and it's rather lacking in storage space. Not to mention the whole kitchen needs re-decorating as well. That would probably mean replacing the fridge/freezer anyway.
I can haz refrigeration...
http://www.ouroboros.me.uk/img/09/06/Fridge1.jpg
\o/
This is the part that caused the trouble.
http://www.ouroboros.me.uk/img/09/06/Fridge2.jpg
Evaporator fan motor. I've got a 'flat back' unit, which means the tubing is all boxed in and it needs a fan to cool it. That fan failed and a thermal cut-out prevented the rest from killing itself.
£60 call-out + £68 fan motor + VAT = £147.20 :shocked:
Still, it means I get my old fridge back (which is older than I thought given the date printed on that part). I went shopping at the weekend and wasn't particularly impressed with what I saw. Closest I got was a £500 Samsung. The £400-ish Hotpoints felt horribly cheap and flimsy, and most of them offer less storage space thanks to the environmentalists getting their oar in. :(
And roofer has been too. He's somewhat baffled but is going to go up and lift some more tiles on Saturday (for free) to try and find the problem. If he finds another broken tile I've already got a spare from the first attempt so it'll only cost if the problem is more serious.
He doesn't know this yet but I'll be offering a recommendation on Which? Local when he's done. He deserves it. :)
Dymetrie
04-06-2009, 22:15
Nice one Mark, glad to hear that your 11 year old fridge (:p) is working again and that you have an absolutely ace roofer :D
So what's the third good thing then? :p
I changed my mind, they come in fours. :p
Think my washing machine is going to die imminently. It's even older than the fridge and I'm just going to let it die now. I also had the dreaded desk move at work yesterday. Desk area cut in half. :/
However, I'm 'acquiring' my old desk to replace my current two at home (one of which is a cast-off from the last time the company changed their furniture), and I'm going to meet friends this weekend.
So, we're 4-4. ;D
It's rained again. :/
There was I thinking it was all over and now I've got water in a bucket again. Only about 50ml, but it's enough.
And now I've found out the owners of the property under mine are builders and roofers and would have done the whole lot for cost or less (it's written into our leases that we're jointly responsible for the roof). About £400 wasted all because I'm shy and not prepared to ask questions so took the job on myself. :'(
Still, they think they've spotted two problems that could be the cause of my leak just by looking at the problem from an angle that my roofer never did look from, so they'll probably fix those for free.
I've also got email and phone numbers from them so that this doesn't happen again. :o
Mark what's the issue with the washing machine? Wish I'd have seen this thread earlier and could have possibly advised about the fridge also - give me a nudge on msn and I'll see if I can help you out with anything. :)
Fridge is fixed. It has a cooling fan for the evaporator tubing system and the motor on that had burned out (partly because it was trying to force air through ten years worth of accumulated fluff). As a result a thermal cut-out was triggered as soon as it started to freeze. It cost me what I said above but the fridge/freezer are now running perfectly again and long may that continue. :)
As for the washing machine, it's just old (16 years and counting) and suffering fatigue. When it fails, it fails, and I'll get a new one - it's well beyond economical repair.
PS - the reason I got chatting to my (now) friendly neighbours was that they decided they wanted to have cavity wall insulation done and needed me 'in' to make that happen. So, I got a quote from their contractor. £139. Bargain. I've wanted to have this done for about 10 years but never had the option before (I live upstairs, so I had to wait for downstairs to get theirs done) so that was easy. :)
Not going to be counting any chickens but there's currently a nice pyrotechnic display going on outside, and NO LEAKS inside. The same cannot be said for my workplace, which is leaking like a sieve (to the extent that they've just had to close part of it). Ha!
Edit - There's a bloomin' Monsoon going down outside. I've got a leaky gutter (already knew, poor installation) but still no gardez l'eau inside. :)
Cool :)
The local and recently rebuilt sainsburys with a shiny new roof is leaking big time ;D
And Broomfield Road is suitably flooded too.
Every time I hear something click I go check the bucket. I've even thought I've felt water a few times. Paranoia or what. ;D
Treefrog
17-07-2009, 14:46
Glad it's going well for you Mark, my problem is the reverse - looks like a cracked main in the front garden, so it resembles the Okavango delta atm. According to the Severn Trent engineer who came out to look at it that is. Also, because it appears to be inside my front garden rather than the other side of the wall, they may not fix it, but they will be kind enough to put it a stop tap outside the property to turn off the water before it gets to the leak.
Hope the Okavango delta is a little less wet now. :)
Well, still no roof leaks, so the toilet decided to leak instead. No idea how long it's been doing that but thank heavens I don't have a water meter. As soon as I found out I broke out the tools and had at what I think is the problem with a spanner. Not sure who will be learning who, but there hasn't been an impromptu geyser yet, so I may be safe.
Oh, and a workman kindly turned my walls into swiss cheese this morning. Not to worry though - he filled all the holes afterwards and hopefully my heating bills will go down this winter. Just got the internal clean-up to do now as I currently can't find my bed. :(
As soon as I found out I broke out the tools and had at what I think is the problem with a spanner.
God help us.
It'll be fine. All I did was lower the ball valve a little so it cuts off before reaching the overflow instead of after. Anything more complicated than that and I'd have called a professional. I know my limits. ;D
Uh oh! :shocked: :p
AARRGGHH!!
Car's just come out the garage, new front discs and pads. "Only" £99.97 (I let him keep the 3p as a tip)
The TV is on the way out, picture looks like an over-exposed photo, whites look pink and it doesn't matter what input you use (Hannspree had better warranty replace it). Just in time for my blu-ray player to arrive. :(
And on the way to Tesco last night the f****** car went on the fritz again. Power steering/brakes went heavy and the battery warning light came on.
And we're supposed to drive down to Havant tomorrow for a wedding.
:angry:
</rant>
I can sympathise! My car is utterly dead, shortly after fixing the last problem we had!
Sounds like a belt has gone Faysh :(
Cars are a pain in the backside.
The Jingo family Clio has it's MOT next week, and it's done ~130k, has dents and rust around the panels (courtesy of previous owner PG's sister), polyfiller'd sunroof, over idling engine, oil burning whatsername, weird electrical issue, keeps blowing different bulbs and is generally not worth much :p
If MOT is cheap then it'll keep running alright, but we're looking for a new motor that is alot more presentable and has ~9-12 months MOT etc.
Found a nice 206 for sale for <£1000, but the seller has 3 people going around tonight and won't hold the car until I visited etc etc...
Everything about cars is stressful, expensive and smelly! :(
Sounds like a belt has gone Faysh :(
That's what my mate Graham said this morning. Are they expensive to replace?
I am now £145 lighter, hiring a Picasso from Saturday morning till Monday morning. :(
Still it'll save me the train fare getting to and from work Sunday night/Monday morning. See silver linings and all that....
Depends on the car :)
The belt itself will probably be relatively cheap, but it might need tensioners doing at the same time, and also depends on what needs doing to get to it...
Finally had a man in to look at the kitchen ceiling (has it really been that long?) and the verdict is it can't be repaired. So, the suggestion is to put new boards over the old and paint those. Seems reasonable - just waiting for the estimate now.
And to add to that, I'm having to have the 'work' done by the cowboys who made the first repair attempt re-done because as I thought, they botched it and it will fail again if I leave it. Thanks a bunch! :/
Mind you, I'm going to have to have the whole roof re-done within the next few years - time to get saving - that's about £5k.
I got carded for *another* leak while away last week. Found it tonight - out the back. Think (hope) it's from downstairs. Right by where the leak was last time.
Had the man around to look at the botched job. Don't think I'm going to like the quote I'll get. He's also reinforced the need to get the roof done (but fortunately agreed that if it isn't leaking, it doesn't have to be done now).
Someone give me £10k, please. Admittedly I have that in savings already, but half of it is already committed to debts and holidays (and wanted to keep the other half for when my job finally goes away). :(
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