We had a close call at home last week, and it’s a good reminder that I shouldn’t be messing around with certain things.
Ever since I got laid off I have been doing more chores around the house. I handle the laundry and the dishes, the shopping, as well as all the yard work and handyman type jobs. I like to think I am more handy than I actually am, and this can get me into trouble. Case in point, last week when I messed around with the electrical system and caused an issue with the HVAC system. I cut a wire, which fell against the side of some ductwork, and that in turn shorted out the entire system in dramatic fashion. I myself had been touching part of the air duct, which was made of metal, and got a nasty jolt. I might have been electrocuted if the grid hadn’t fried and shut down all the power. Replacing the circuits and fuzes was easy, but after the power was restored we found that the HVAC system was dead. That power surge through the ductwork had gotten into the main components of the HVAC system and fried them, only these were fuses I could not replace myself. After getting badly shocked I realized I was in over my head and contacted a local HVAC contractor to come inspect my system. The results were ugly, and expensive, but I have no choice other than trusting the HVAC contractor and letting him do his work. We all see what happened when I tried to handle it myself!