649 6th

evaporator fan

After waiting more than month for the refrigerator repair guy to receive the evaporator fan I finally gave up. He said it would take 10 days minimum sometime in later September, and then he disappeared.

On Monday I called Marvel and ordered the part myself. Today it arrived.I have to say I am quite shocked by how small it is. I guess I was expecting something on the scale of the compressor fan, boy was I wrong.

Now that we have the part I'm still planning to call in a repair person for installation. It sits behind the cooling element (evaporating condensation as the name would emply). But, to get at it means dealing with regid copper pipes that I seriuosly don't want to muck up.

I called a new repair company this morning. Hopefully this fresh start (with the part already in hand) will finally expidite the project.

marvel two drawer refrigerator

We installed a two drawer marvel refrigerator in the kitchen. Ergonomically it is fantastic; although there is a bit of hitch. There is a small fan that circulates air around the cooling element in the interior. Somehow that fan has gone bad. At first I thought it was the compressor fan from below that was either 1) rubbing on the housing or 2) had a bad bearing. No. It was this tiny little fan inside the unit that gently distributes the cold air.

"Gently", that little fan screeches like the worst screeching type metaphor you can think of. It's not that the refrigerator doesn't get cool, it's just way to loud to stay in the house. Because the cooling element was on stiff copper pipes I didn't want to muck them up prying to hard to get behind at the noisy culprit. We called in a repairman that has ordered the part, we think. It;s been a few weeks...

Thus far we've been over a month without a refrigerator. We've turned it on for special (loud) occasions, but for the most part we've been without

Something to think about; If you're going to the trouble of getting the exact make and model you want, possibly (as we did) ordering it on line, remember some day you may need parts. Multiply the hassle of finding the appliance by 15 for parts and then start the mantra, "if it were convenient it wouldn't be perfect."

On the up side we still have a freezer in the basement. We've become very fond of the vegetarian (not that we are) Indian frozen dinners. They take about 45 mins to make so they are decidedly not fast food,

kitchen kinetoscope

The kitchen renovation was the first time-lapse series we shot. Now that we found a quick way to make movies out of them, we dipped into the archive and whipped this one up.

the culprit

seems a 3" inch drywall screw lodged in the pump of the washing machine is all it takes to put it out of service-- go figure ;-)

Luckily it didn't burn it out the pump and we're back in business without a lengthy wait for parts to arrive.

Mental note to self: make sure to check the pockets of the filthy work clothes as they go into the laundry.

day 4: shopping

A couple of times I have mentioned the amount of time it takes just shopping for the stuff, let alone the time it actually takes to do the reno work. I think the closer you get to finish work the greater "shopping" time grows exponentially. As I ease into my vacation I'm making it my mandate to try and tick a few of the annoying shopping tasks off the list each day.

I had started out the morning stopping by my local tile store. The funny part about that store is the varying amounts of knowledge and service you get depending on the day you go. Today's help was scant at best. Last time I was there I mentioned I was having a hard time cutting the 12"x24"x1/4" porcelain tiles. The guy said he could have some custom cut for me "no problem" by his "stone guy". Today it was like a totally different store. When I asked the little blondie in charge all she could produce were photo copied business cards of a couple of local contractors and an electrician. A fruitless detour at best in the day.

There were two big ticket items on the docket that have been hovering for a while. I think the main reason I've been avoiding them is the electricity hog. A dryer and a deep freeze. You'll remember a couple of posts back we talked about having "repaired" the dryer. Well...not so much. It seems that the surge took out the mother board on the fancy GE dryer. The guy Michael brought in said it would be over $200 for the part alone, and if it ever went again it would cost the same, again.

Something I've noticed about dryers. On electric ones (yes,  I know gas are more efficient but I'm already set up for 220) I challenge you to find an energy rating on any of them. They just don't do it. My guess is they are such energy hogs that they are "sparing" the consumer.

The second item on the hog list was a freezer. The refrigerator we have in the kitchen is just that; a refrigerator. For a couple of months now we haven't had a freezer. For the most part it hasn't been that bad, but we did want a small chest for the basement.

I started off at Lowe's as they were alleged to have a better appliance selection than the Home Depot. I was quickly frustrated by the lack of service, but did realize they only carry gas models (unclear why). I ended up with a new dremel tool (tile cutting diversion again, more on that later) and I found pulls for the kitchen cabinets, so it wasn't a total bust

After a quick trip home I headed back out to PC Richards. They had exactly what we wanted; a small freezer with a decent energy rating, and a mechanical three setting dryer that we can repair if needed. I think the lesson here is the fancy tricked up "digital" version may not always be the better way to go.

After Michael got home we put up another four pieces of Hardiebacker. Maybe one day soon we'll have that one chipped away too.

dryer repair

We keep saying "this weekend" we jump back into the renovation fray, but the S-days just keep ticking past. Which isn't to house has been neglected. Our dryer died a couple weeks ago. Circuit had been tripped and wouldn't reset, which we intuited meant it needed to be replaced. Yeah, we're that sharp. But replacing circuits (a multi-part saga in itself) didn't do a thing for the dryer. Fortunately the you-fix-it guide has plenty to say about diagnosing and repairing dryers.

Step 1: make sure there's electricity at the outlet. (Told you we were sharp.)
Step 2: remove cover plate where cord enters.

Charred inside of the cover plate and melted terminal block were pretty obvious problem. Remedying that situation was a bit more of challenge. After a couple false starts, I finally found an online supplier of GE dryer parts and ordered the replacement terminal block. Then I got to thinking I should replace the dryer cord too. No sign of damage on the prongs or at the box, but the terminal end was a bit charred. I got a bit turned around testing and retesting current, and I finally decided replacing the cord couldn't hurt. Couldn't find one at the depot, which didn't seem particularly odd; beginning to anticipate what they don't carry. Thought the cord would require another Internet order, but then I chanced into what I think is a new local hardware store (that's oddly right across the street from the established local hardware store) and they had one.

Depot did come through on the large female connectors I needed to complete the new wiring, and deluxe wire cutters came through with a crimper that I'd barely even noticed before. Et voila!

If you're reading this and you have an electric dryer, do yourself a favor and check the screws at the terminal block. My reading on the Internet says this is one the most common dryer problems. When a screw gets loose enough the electricity will arc. Got the impression it's a gradual process where you may smell burning while dryer is running. I don't remember any smell; for all I know it happened all at once. Also can't swear in hindsight whether the terminal connection that melted down was loose. I didn't read about commonality of this problem until after I removed the old terminal. And there was the slag to chip away. And the caution of poking at something that under slightly different circumstances could kill.

Sort of spooky, but also reassuring that various safeties did what they're meant to do.

northstar by elmira

I mentioned yesterday that we had finally installed the hood. Having cooked on the Northstar for a couple of weeks now I'm really starting to know it well. Getting the ventilation going yesterday was a huge leap in performance.

I had been sticking away from anything really hot that would produce a lot of smoke until yesterday. With 780 CFM's to draw on we decided it was time take the kitchen through the test course. (and yes the wine is moving away from the big heat source ASAP)

The kitchen was designed to have three zones; food storage and prep, cooking, and cleaning. It's turning out that there's usually two spots in each of those zones. Meaning: feels more like a professional kitchen than the pin ball machine most NYC residential kitchens tend to be.

We wanted it to function like an industrial kitchen --we didn't necessarily want it to look like one. We wanted the performance of the big brushed metal behemoths (Viking, Wolf, etc.) in a somehow different package. In the end it came down to two choices the "companion" by aga and the Northstar by Elmira. The aga had two small ovens rather than one big one. As a second range (which is what it's designed for) that would be OK, but as a primary the two small ovens limited performance as some things simply need more room. We talked about the Northstar's minty green color before, now I want to talk a little about how it feels.

We were making mini quiches for a dinner party. I prepped a lot of vegatables and then we baked the small pies in about 25mins. The high heat combined with vacumous venting took cooking to a new level. I have never been able to truely stir fry on any range I've had in the 17 years I lived in New York. Now I can. You can get a pan hot and suck a away the smoke just like the takeout guys! The range has four burners with three different heat ranges. From a simmer to a high heat, precisions controls make it easy to use.

On a side note: when we first got the range we thought that the clock was just a design thing and really didn't work as it had no controls. Once we plugged it in we realized that the controls are actually digital and appear (as if by magic) from behind a seamingly opaque surface. Once the clock was digitally set the analog "design" clock scurried around to position where it continues to give a satisfying click 60 times on the hour as it advanaces to the next minute.

The Stove is great the vent is great. I think the only slight down side to the Elmira is aesthetic and not performance. While it makes me happy each and every time I look at its retro styling, polishing the chrome is a full time endeavor. 

Somewhere in the middle of the quiche prep last night it all came together, the savory smell of the baking pie-lettes, the sizzle and smoke of mushrooms in the wok, the satisfying sound of the air handler, the chopping of the vegatables-- It finally felt like all the pieces were in place..

go green

inertia creeps

uh, yeah, well, hi? anyone still out there? time to put our money where our mouth's been. eww...

Marvel's 30" Refrigerated Drawer -- freezer chest in the basement.

Elmira's Northstar Range and Hood -- Mint Green!

Kliptech's Paperstone Certified -- We're thinking lab tables.

Tomorrow we talk to a cabinet maker about our base units and pick out a stainless steel undermount sink and fixtures. Monday we'll go back to Bettencourt Green Product Supplies in Williamsburg to order the Paperstone and look at cork floor tiles. Shame we didn't know about them before we filled the walls with pink stuff; we'd thought about using recycled denim but couldn't find anyone selling at the retail level.

Soon as the Panasonic Whisperline Ventilation Fan arrives we can mount the venting and start closing up those soffits. Yee-haw!

venting

...for those of you expecting to hear recollections of a particularly difficult chore that found Michael and I further refining our "house tension defusing" skills I won't be telling that story. I know titling a post "venting" may be a bit of false advertising, but hey, you take all the purient draws you can get in writing a blog about home renovations...

We vented the dryer today. By removing the piece of plywood you see attached in the photo we were able to work with an existing hole to get the hot moist air out of the basement. It was interesting to pull that piece of plywood off. It had been clevery hidden by a larger outside dresser like thing. I  knew it was back there but had not investigated until today.

The two things of note were:
1) It is inconcievable how many layers of siding have been piled on that addition over the years.

2) We may have found the cash hole that we've been waiting to find. We found a bit of rot on what appears to be the exterior beam. There is a companion beam joined next to it that is fine. However, it won't be many months before we'll be opening that back up to do some repair.