Refrigerator Troubles

You may recall I was planning to have a new refrigerator delivered tomorrow.   The deal was that I would have the new one in the kitchen, the old one moved to the basement, and the ancient basement one removed.  

The new one comes with an ice-maker (not-optional).  That seemed OK.  I use more ice than I used to (I've become fond of cocktails).  But that required a water-line tapped from the basement to the kitchen spot.

There is a cold water pipe in the basement directly below the kitchen refrigerator.  So, the plumber would have to cut the pipe, add a "TEE", drill one hole through the floor, add 4' of pipe and a shut-off valve at the top.  No big deal.  I guessed $300.

Well, apparently I am bad at estimating.  The plumber did some work on his office calculator app and announced $1,175!  I couldn't believe it.  I asked what special problem he saw.  "None".  Is the job going to take hours?  "About 2-3".  Are the parts expensive?  "Not really".  

So what was it?  "The company charges by the job, not hours.  That's what the office app says to charge".  My job was simple, but the company averages the total cost of similar jobs.  He suggested calling another company, one that charges per hour plus parts instead.  I thanked him for the estimate, paid the $60 visit fee and he left.  We were friendly about it; the charges aren't up to him.

I called a company with just hourly rates.  $150 per hour, which includes travel time.  So maybe that would have been $750.

I don't want an ice-maker THAT much!  I can make ice on my own for the rest of my life for less than that.   About 5 minutes per week... WOW!  Fortunately, the ice-maker doesn't HAVE to be hooked up.

But that's not the end of it.  I always thought all refrigerators were the same height.  Well, there is always a standard shaped space for them with a cabinet above.  So I had checked the width (which DOES vary) and had an inch to spare.  But I looked at the dimensions again and noticed the height.  I measured the space again.  The new refrigerator is a 1/2" too tall!

I could fix that.  The cabinet above has a 1" (unnecessary) bottom front frame.  I could remove the cabinet, cut off the 1", reinstall it, and the new refrigerator would fit.  I have the equipment to do a clean job of it.  But it would be a few hours of work.  And I'm old enough that when I start twisting and turning while removing screws  at the back and sides, I get some serious muscle cramps.  I could hire a carpenter to do it, but I bet that would end up costing the same as the plumber.

So I rethought the situation.  The whole purpose was to get rid of the small ancient basement refrigerator (37 years old).  It is so old, it must cost $300/year to run (modern ones are about $50).  It is SO bad, I have to chip off 2" of ice in the fridge section every few months!  But it has one thing I like in a BASEMENT refrigerator; a top-freezer.  I use it for long-term storage of meats and bags of frozen veggies.  

The basement fridge part is really more of a root-cellar.  I store bulk veggies (potatoes, onions, carrots, etc), fruits, my garden seeds, and some odd stuff that wants "cool but not necessarily cold" (like bird suet packs).

So I cancelled the new refrigerator order.  The Home Depot store was very nice about that.  Their website says cancellations require 72 hours notice and I was giving only 36, but they allowed a full refund.  I was expected some charge for that.

The current kitchen refrigerator works just fine.  I just automatically thought I should move the current one to the basement.  And I like the bottom freezer in the kitchen.  I am in and out of the fridge part a lot more than the bottom freezer part.  But I am in and out of the top freezer of the basement fridge more often.  So why not just buy a modern energy-efficient top freezer fridge for the basement?

Cheaper and a lot less movement of appliances.  And the store wants $50 to haul the ancient one away.  Guess what?  My electric company will PAY me $50 to have them haul it away!  So THERE is $100 in savings.  

So I went to the Consumer Reports website, found the top-rated top freezer model.  More energy-efficient, larger freezer section, and less-complicated delivery (straight through garage into the basement).  And no concerns about it fitting into a space.  

All in all, I think buying a new top freezer model for the basement is actually a better decision.  I really should have thought it through more carefully.  But I think it will all work out better.

I would post pictures, but I'm pretty sure everyone knows what a standard refrigerator looks like.  LOL!

A Surprise

Remember the "stick war" that seemed to be starting with a neighbor?  They aren't those original neighbors.  I looked up the property and it was sold 4 years ago to new people.  I got fooled because the guy looked the same (tall, skinny, beard).  The woman was different, but people change spouses, ya know?

They probably don't know they have any responsibility for the drainage easement and storm drain.  So I'm just going to quietly pick up the branches for now.  When I get a chance to meet them, I'll mention it and see how they react. 

I hate being wrong...

The New TV

I'll admit it, I made a serious mistake buying a Sharp 80" LCD/LED TV.  I don't want to insult anyone who likes LCD TVs or large ones.  I'll just say the appearance and color didn't satisfy MY eyes in MY TV room.  People have different things they value in TV viewing.  But I'm not used to making decisions I regret. 

So it was some humility I went back to the store  and asked what it would cost to get a different TV.  Their answer was that they would take back the TV at no cost other than a new deliver fee BUT it had to be an exchange. 

That sure seemed fair!  It was a slight dilemma that I wanted a Panasonic Viera 65" plasma (like the old one but slightly larger).  Panasonic (I was told in two places) was getting out of the plasma business.  Maintenence might get tricky.  But they DID have the 2nd highest rated (and highest rated Plasma set) by Consumer Reports).     Sort of.  Not the exact model,  but a newer one (5500 series old and 8500 series newer).  And it was a 60" vs a 64" 8500.  Well how different can the be? 

I looked at it for a long time.  Actually, I looked at some "4K" sets too.  The picture was astonishing.  But I don't like being the first user of a technology.  That got me a Beta Max once and I learned a lesson there. 

So today, they delivered a Samung" 60" plasma in exchange for the Sharp 80" LCD/LED set. 

In came the new.

Out went the (sort of) old.

I was thrilled the instant the Samung plasma was turned on.  I had to adjust the colors a bit, but it was PERFECT real fast.  And it was the right size for the room too. 

Here's the 80".  That is REALLY too big!  I couldn't even see the whole screen from my chair.  Bigger is not always better.

And here is the 60".  

Never mind the scarcity of stuff around the TV., I pulled stuff away for installation safety.  I will move the stereo cabinet with the multimedia controls and the great DCM speakers to the left and right to connect it to the TV for better sound, but not tonight.  One thing one day at a time.  Do one useful thing every day and you're never unhappy.

Tonight, I'm just enjoying the outrageously "OMG" great  picture...

Not accepting my initial poor decision was the best choice in the past year.  Sometimes, you just have to admit mistakes and pay what it costs to correct them.  In this case. it was an extra $200 delivery fee.  And it could have been worse.  I was prepared for "worse".

I think I will write a nice "thank you" email to HHGREGG.