I'm a nice guy

[hornadylnl]

Started a new 12 hour work schedule so I'm off today and tomorrow. I had a new house built in 2010 and am having some issues. Today, a couple of the sub contractors came up to look things over. Apparently the HVAC guy that did my house is no longer used by the general contractor and it was a new guy here today. They looked things over and left. A few minutes later, the HVAC guy knocked on the door and asked if I had jumper cables.

We tried jumping the truck but just a click. I crawled under his truck and could feel the solenoid kicking in but the starter motor wasn't moving at all. I saw that he had a volt gauge in the dash and it was over 14v so I knew it had to be a bad connection or a bad starter. The wires were tight so I pulled the starter. We energized the solenoid and metered the 2 big terminals and the continuity was all over the place. The other contractor had left so this guy is 70 miles from home and 15 miles from the nearest auto parts store and doesn't have a clue how to work on vehicles. He asked if I'd run him to town to get a starter.

I called Autozone and they had one so off we went. He offered to buy me lunch wherever I wanted so I hit him up for a angus mushroom and swiss from McD's. Got back home and installed the starter for him and she started right up. He told me that if he had any cash on him, he'd give it to me and told me that if I have any HVAC issues, to give him a call.

Got me out of the house and something to do for the day. Sometimes it just feels good to do something like that for others. He could have easily faced a $500 charge for towing, repair, etc. Instead, he was out $165 for the starter and $6 for a lunch.

 

[Joshnbb]

You are a nice guy.. Say it wasnt my father-in-law was it. sounds like his luck.

 

[phylodog]

You are a nice guy, I'll attest to that. You saved me a chunk of change a little over a year ago installing a 220V circuit in my garage.

 

[PriestEG]

good stuff. i believe Karma reflects on those who do things such as you did for this stranger in need!

 

[hornadylnl]

You are a nice guy.. Say it wasnt my father-in-law was it. sounds like his luck.

No, this guy is only 33. Actually, I feel kind of bad for him. These last 2 winters, the trusses in my attic are lifting causing cracks in the ceiling to interior wall drywall. They were here to measure the humidity throughout the house and attic. We're thinking that the humidity change from summer to winter is causing the trusses to raise up and down.

None of this is any of this new HVAC guy's problem but he's the new sub for my general contractor so he was here to help out. He did a test of my geo to make sure it's working correctly as well. Knowing my general contractor, he won't give much of anything to this new guy for this job. This is all still warranty work.

He's 33 with his own small HVAC business. I wouldn't want his headaches with trying to keep a business afloat. You never expect to show up to a job and have a breakdown that could possibly cost you hundreds of dollars.

I took him up on the lunch offer as I was just starting to make my grilled cheese sandwich and soup lunch when he asked for the jumper cables.

 

[iChokePeople]

On your death bed, you will receive total consciousness.

 

[hornadylnl]

I thought about dragging his truck into my barn with the gator instead of doing it on the stone driveway. But his truck was low enough that I wouldn't be able to get my creeper under it. I'm still wanting to get a car lift for my barn. I'm getting too old to be crawling around on the stone driveway.

 

[Hondo]

Good for you to help out someone in need.....not enough of that happens anymore.

On a side note re:your house......we had similar issues a few years ago when we built a house with foggy windows and high humidity, part of it was a result of the excess mosisture from the drywall mud etc. and the house not able to dry out. It seems that many new homes are built so "tight" that they don't get enough fresh air exchange needed to dry out.

Our solution was to run a direct air intake duct from the outside to the furnace in order to get sufficient fresh air into the system to dry it out.

good luck with your issues.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

These last 2 winters, the trusses in my attic are lifting causing cracks in the ceiling to interior wall drywall. They were here to measure the humidity throughout the house and attic. We're thinking that the humidity change from summer to winter is causing the trusses to raise up and down.

Don't mean to change the subject, but...

I have a friend who had a problem (in the church were he is an elder) where the trusses were'nt properly braced and they were actually twisting. If memory serves, they first noticed it with cracking drywall, etc.

Congratulations on the good deed, too.

 

[indysims]

That's cool man.

 

[hornadylnl]

Good for you to help out someone in need.....not enough of that happens anymore.

On a side note re:your house......we had similar issues a few years ago when we built a house with foggy windows and high humidity, part of it was a result of the excess mosisture from the drywall mud etc. and the house not able to dry out. It seems that many new homes are built so "tight" that they don't get enough fresh air exchange needed to dry out.

Our solution was to run a direct air intake duct from the outside to the furnace in order to get sufficient fresh air into the system to dry it out.

good luck with your issues.

We actually do have an external air duct to the outside. Today, the attic humidity was around 35 and the first and second floor was around 45. The basement is around 45 as well. This last summer, my basement was around 70 so I had to add dehumidifiers. I'm guessing the attic humidity goes upa good ways in the summer and is what's causing the fluctuating trusses. I imagine we'll have to add a dehumidifier to the attic and then fix the drywall cracks to the 35 humidity level.

 

[db1959]

I use some 1" thick flexible foam insulation for when I have to work on cars in the driveway. It serves a dual purpose, comfy place to lay and keeps you warm. I used to have a thinner piece that I kept in the trunk of the car but lost it.

I thought about dragging his truck into my barn with the gator instead of doing it on the stone driveway. But his truck was low enough that I wouldn't be able to get my creeper under it. I'm still wanting to get a car lift for my barn. I'm getting too old to be crawling around on the stone driveway.

 

[Jaredjosh]

+1 to you for helping someone out in need.

 

[smokingman]

Is there a floor in your attic?

 

[Kagnew]

Started a new 12 hour work schedule so I'm off today and tomorrow. I had a new house built in 2010 and am having some issues. Today, a couple of the sub contractors came up to look things over. Apparently the HVAC guy that did my house is no longer used by the general contractor and it was a new guy here today. They looked things over and left. A few minutes later, the HVAC guy knocked on the door and asked if I had jumper cables.

We tried jumping the truck but just a click. I crawled under his truck and could feel the solenoid kicking in but the starter motor wasn't moving at all. I saw that he had a volt gauge in the dash and it was over 14v so I knew it had to be a bad connection or a bad starter. The wires were tight so I pulled the starter. We energized the solenoid and metered the 2 big terminals and the continuity was all over the place. The other contractor had left so this guy is 70 miles from home and 15 miles from the nearest auto parts store and doesn't have a clue how to work on vehicles. He asked if I'd run him to town to get a starter.

I called Autozone and they had one so off we went. He offered to buy me lunch wherever I wanted so I hit him up for a angus mushroom and swiss from McD's. Got back home and installed the starter for him and she started right up. He told me that if he had any cash on him, he'd give it to me and told me that if I have any HVAC issues, to give him a call.

Got me out of the house and something to do for the day. Sometimes it just feels good to do something like that for others. He could have easily faced a $500 charge for towing, repair, etc. Instead, he was out $165 for the starter and $6 for a lunch.

"The deed is everything - the glory is naught." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

 

[hornadylnl]

Is there a floor in your attic?

No, there's actually very little volume to my attic. It's a hip roof. I have spray foam insulation under the roof deck and nothing over the drywall. There's no ductwork blowing in the attic but it's considered a conditioned space. I have no attic venting whatsoever. It's supposed to be the new "smart" way to build.

When I first started looking at the spray foam insulation, I saw that they sprayed the underside of the roof decking instead of the top of the ceiling. I asked what that would do to the shingle life and was told that it would actually improve it. In older style construction, shingles would curl up if the attic wasn't properly vented.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

No, there's actually very little volume to my attic. It's a hip roof. I have spray foam insulation under the roof deck and nothing over the drywall. There's no ductwork blowing in the attic but it's considered a conditioned space. I have no attic venting whatsoever. It's supposed to be the new "smart" way to build.

When I first started looking at the spray foam insulation, I saw that they sprayed the underside of the roof decking instead of the top of the ceiling. I asked what that would do to the shingle life and was told that it would actually improve it. In older style construction, shingles would curl up if the attic wasn't properly vented.

If the attic is conditioned, I'd think the humidity levels should be the same on both sides...don't guess you've got a bathroom exhaust fan dumping up there? If moisture is accumalating enough to cause movement, wouldn't there be mold?

What little I've seen of that closed cell, spray in insulation, they've installed it as you described in your house. It made me wonder about shingle life too...I thought cooling the roof deck was supposed to help...maybe we have a builder amongst us.

 

[hornadylnl]

My attic was 10% dryer than the rest of the house. It's at 35 while everything else is 45. I'm guessing the trusses are where they're supposed to be and in the summer, the attic humidity rises causing them to sag. The house was drywalled in the summer. Where the worst cracking is, there's a truss about 2" from the interior wall so there's just no give in the ceiling drywall.

I was told that roof deck temps were actually cooler with this style of construction than conventional. I was also told that some shingle manufacturers will actually provide a longer warranty with the spray foam.