I am a grown woman; even though sometimes I don't act like a complete grown up, I am. What is annoying is being told how to do something or decide on something after the act or the decision has already been done. An example is the furnace. About a month or so ago, it got cold enough to turn it on. And then it got warm enough to turn it off. When I turned it off, the fan never seemed to shut off. I tried everything - making sure that the fan was on auto; making sure that the lever was on off (not heat and not cool); and then I even changed the batteries.
After all that, the fan just kept running. I searched the Internet for an answer and then I called my dad to ask him about it, but he told me to do the things I had already done. Then I called a guy friend, then my brother in-law, and finally I broke down and called my sons' dad. All of them told me to do the same things I had already done. For someone who LOOKS not so handy, I am actually very handy. Finally, my brother in-law gave me the name of his heating/cooling guy and I was lucky to get him to stop by the next evening. It was going to be cold and he was able to fix it for a very reasonable fee ($50).
He ended up replacing a relay on the control board, but there were some things that were not so good. Things like a burner had been shut off, the damper door had a rock wedged to keep the door open, and one of the safety mechanisms was disabled. Turns out that we needed a new furnace and I confirmed this with my sons' father. He never told me that this was the case, so I was a bit upset when I found out that this was the case. Turns out that since the fan issue was resolved and the heat was turning on and off properly, I could have gone the entire winter with the furnace that I have. But, I didn't want to press my luck - the furnace going out in the middle of winter would be a disaster.
I decided to replace the furnace but not until I got a second opinion. Both opinions were to replace it. Fine - I decided I needed a new one, but now I needed information on cost. I got three price quotes and decided not only to go with the middle of the road one but I also decided on the person who came to fix the fan issue in the first place. The furnace has been replaced and it keeps everyone in the house warm. It's also a 95% efficient furnace which means less money on gas.
So after all this, I mentioned to someone that I was getting the furnace replaced. That piece of news was met with all the questions one would ask a child. Questions like "are you sure?" and "how do you know you need one" and "did you do price comparisons" and "what kind is it" and "are you sure it's the right one because you know I think ....." The MOST annoying question was, "how did you pay for it?" It's really annoying especially when this type of unnecessary advice comes from the person who knew all along that we needed a new furnace but did not tell me. Seriously, I am fine without any of your so called help. Just keep your opinions and advice to yourself and we'll all be much, MUCH better off!
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