My Family

[Greg]

She is done. She has had enough. Fortunately, the Seattle sister keeps calling direct to Kaiser to get all the facts and yell at the health care professionals. She's been a nurse for a million years so she speaks the lingo and knows when Kaiser obfuscates.

[King Bob]

Dealing with the medical world can be so difficult and tiring.

[Drunk Monk]

So true. 

I was getting all these notifications that I needed a blood test. They all had a button to schedule one, but there was no option on the pull down menu for tests. So annoying. I scheduled a BP check. That’s not done on the same floor as the lab. But I went to the lab and they took me in, after asking if I had an appt.

[thatguy]

So...the hot water heater at my mom's place is old. Not ancient, but not new either. The house has old pipes, and I'm sure, lots of minerals in the water, but in general, the thing is a tank (literally)...but in the last year or so, especially when there's a windy storm, the pilot light blows out. When we determine that that's the case, I go to the water heater closet, relight it and things work again...

But with the storms in the last few weeks, power outages, etc, my mom told me there was no hot water, so went I went to the office on Tuesday two weeks ago, I stopped there first and got it going again...Then more storms...Then, when I was there last week, no hot water. I started the pilot on Tue night. No hot water Wed AM. I restarted the pilot. No hot water, so I restarted it again. 

My mom and I talk about it and agree that if the pilot doesn't stay on this time, she should call PG&E to inspect it. 

I get a call from my mom over the weekend that she called and left a message that she got a plumber and he came and said she needed a whole new water heater. But he's a good plumber because he was the in the SJ Mercury best of the valley recommendations... It was expensive, but she was tired of boiling water. 

I came on Tuesday and she filled me in on the details. She called PG&E, but the wouldn't have been able to get someone out to inspect until Tuesday this week (yesterday) and she really wanted to get it working. Final bill for the deluxe 40gal water heater + manifold and various parts + labor (minus 5% senior discount): $8978.00

...but wait, there's more...

The plumber didn't like the water pressure (said it was low). Came back to inspect, including going under the house. Determined that the combined copper and gavanized pipes are a no-no (which I know is true, but I don't know what's really under there) and it's leaking in various places. Showed my mom pictures to prove it, so she signed up to get all the the house plumbing replaced with copper. Total est: $41,283 (which includes a 5% senior discount). so together with the water heater it's; $50,261. 

She's in a tizzy because she has to move crap so they can get to every plumbing fixture. We spent last night emptying cabinets and filling boxes...

It feels much like the time the Costco blinds scammer tried to soak her for thousands to replace 2 blinds. 

My mom is rationalizing her decision like crazy which is waring. 

I'm frustrated, tired, and busy with work, so I'm letting this go. Just needed to vent.

--tg

[Drunk Monk]

Ouch. That sucks. Sorry tg. I feel ya on this. Maintaining my mom's house has been a chore. The kitchen sink doesn't drain well. I had it cleared professionally last year but it only stayed clear for a short time. The plumber felt that the pipe need replacing (it runs under the house to the street). Copper, galvanized, pvc, terracotta, who knows what kind of pipes that house has?

[Greg]

Holy crap! I should have been a plumber. $50K for a repipe seems really steep. I hope this solves the problem.

[thatguy]

Holy crap! I should have been a plumber. $50K for a repipe seems really steep. I hope this solves the problem.

I hope the problems were real...

--tg

---

On the plus side, the work is warrantied for 40 years so if the house is still standing in the next 4 decades it's "covered"!

--tg

[Drunk Monk]

Is it one of those houses like an eichler where the pipes run through cement foundation? 

Will you get a second quote?

We’ll all be dead in 40 years.

[thatguy]

No second quote (unless I want to bitch more) They already started the work before I got involved. This is not an eichler. Ranch-style house, probably built mid-fifties. My understanding is that it used to sit on the plot where Key Chevrolet wanted to go so they cut the house into 2 parts and moved it here in the sixties...

I did look at some of the openings they've cut in the walls and there is a bunch of galvanized pipe connected to copper pipe, so I feel more confident that this was a big problem. When I owned a house in Santa Cruz, it was a brand new building, but 5 years in, the 6" of galvanized connector pipe between our water heater and the house electolisys-ed a decent hole in itself and was shooting a fountain across the garage. Big, expensive hassle and that was with everything exposed and easily accessible.

--tg

[Greg]

Ugh, no matter how you slice it. But full copper pipe does add to the resale value.

[Drunk Monk]

This is not an eichler. Ranch-style house, probably built mid-fifties. 

Yes I remember. I was there last year after your mom had that fall. I was just wondering if that was an issue because I know a few Eichler owners that have had to deal with it. 

Hope it all gets sorted satisfactorily.

[thatguy]

Ugh, no matter how you slice it. But full copper pipe does add to the resale value.

At least the metal scrappers will be pleased...

--tg

[Greg]

It turns out mother's can be delicate creatures. The Queen is returning to Florida tomorrow to tend to her mother. Her mother is in the hospital with heart problems. She will be having a procedure on Thursday. A-Fib.

[Drunk Monk]

Seeing how mom care was the main topic of my pre-bidet (bday?) gathering, we’re all of that age. Hoping the best for tQ senior.

[Greg]

The Queen mother had her ablation procedure yesterday. She came through fine. They were able to stabilize one rhythm but not another. They will be installing a pacemaker on Friday and released on Saturday. The Queen mother has about six weeks of recovery. At this point, it is unclear how long the Queen Mother will require the Queen's services.