Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Air Conditioning Hell

Was I imagining things... or is summer already here?  It isn't even May yet!  I suppose it is still DC spring... but still, I was hoping that I had at least another month before I was sweating so much I felt like I was at summer camp.

Maybe I am particularly cranky because my air conditioner doesn't work.  Not only does it not work, but it is literally falling out of my ceiling(if anyone knows of someone good to replace it, please let me know).  My air conditioning hell begins with the age of my condo.  It is over 40 years old and "looks" in good shape, yet there are things that lurk behind corners that sneak out to bite me.
  1. The Windows - The windows are single paned and drafty (in the winter... burr).  They also like to randomly open. And by random, I mean a ghost floats through a wall and opens them.  This is usually not a problem, until it happens during the day when it is 15 degrees out and I come home to find my dog sleeping under the covers because it is literally freezing in there (man he is smart). 
  2. The Water Heater - The previous owners, in an attempt to sell the house, re-did the kitchen.  In doing so, they put in new cabinets and counters.  They did this over a water-heater from the 1980's. Seriously folks!  My water heater is not only small, it is inefficient, and it is old.  I can barely get a shower in when it is cold outside before the water turns frigid (let alone if my brother is staying with me).  This will have to be addressed, but not until winter. For now (because it is so freakin' hot), I'll be relegated to taking cold showers... which are kind of refreshing (just trying to look on the bright side).
  3. The Air Conditioner - Let's face it... when it leaks dirty brown water all over your kitchen and is falling out of the ceiling... it is time to get a new one.  I get it. Unfortunately it is VERY VERY VERY expensive to do it in Washington.
The moral of the story - owning a home is great, but comes with unexpected surprises. Not to worry friends, I am having someone give me an estimate on my air conditioner on Friday and promise that it will be fixed soon. In the meantime, I will continue to sweat it out (think Bikram Yoga) and pretend that I'm somewhere exotic int he jungle instead of a DC swampland.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hate it when our air conditioner doesn't work. I can feel every drip of sweat that I release, especially during the summer. After taking a bath I can feel that I'm sweat profusely and it's so annoying! Opening the windows don't give enough air to cool me down, so I never turn off my AC during the summer. Mignon Her

Unknown said...

@Mignon : What else can I say, when it's hot, it is really HOT! If only we give our AC's their much deserved maintenance, then untimely inconveniences could've avoided. We couldn't risk having no air conditioner especially on summer. I wish you fixed this already!

-Launce Newlove

Darryl Iorio said...

Hi, Amy! Buying a new air conditioner is definitely impractical. But you shouldn't be hesitant on purchasing such worthy appliance. You can just imagine the time and money you waste on costly repairs. Rather than trying to fix it over and over again, it's much better to invest on a new one.

Darryl Iorio@Milani.ca