There was a death in the family yesterday; someone who for the last 33 years has been an integral part of making sure anyone who walked through our front door felt comfortable and at home. Our geothermal unit died. I was upstairs on the phone on hold with AT & T while horrifically obnoxious music blared in my ear when I heard an even stranger noise from the basement. At first, I thought it was my dad coming in for a visit. But why through the basement door, I wondered. Then the noise became eerie and whining, and I thought, “Oh no!” See, we’ve known the “old girl” couldn’t last much longer. She’d given more than most, and it was time. But no one ever wants it to be “time.” I ran downstairs and was happy to hear our huge (the unit is not unlike the first computer in that it takes up a good portion of the basement space) furnace humming along. While standing there it tripped off like always; like she’s done for more than 50,000 hours (her timer says so) and I happily went back upstairs to work. And then it became cold. Hmmm… I went to the thermostat and cranked it up hoping my “best buddy” would kick on. Nothing. I went back down to the basement and checked the breaker box. Sure enough, she had shut herself down. I immediately called her biggest fan; our geothermal repair guy. He adores my geothermal heating unit. Marvels at her tenacity. Brags about her to anyone he sees. Has lovingly cared for her over the years. When I told him the scenario, he said he would be there in half an hour. Yep, sounds serious. Arriving right on time, the repair guy headed to the basement and after what seemed like way too long, he came up the stairs, shaking his head, looked me in the eye and said, “She’s gone.” Yes, I am a bit chilly, but just as I knew she would, the old girl picked a pretty decent time to depart. I can maintain some semblance of warmth using a couple ceramic heaters and by keeping the wood burner going. She waited until after Thanksgiving, too, bless her heart. But that’s how she was – always thinking of others. Coming to grips with the cost of replacing her is tough. I loved that big old clunky novelty that was our home’s conversation starter. We were the first in the area to put in a geothermal unit back in 1982. My entire electric home’s electric bill averages around $140 a month – and that is even with the coldest and yes, hottest (she was pretty decent air conditioner as well) of days. She was a wonder. So, it is with a heavy heart that I am currently waiting for the phone to ring with a replacement estimate. I’m sure my new geothermal heat pump and I will get along just fine. Still, I will never forget my first, and will always be thankful for the history we created together.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 13:26:07 +0000
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