It was into the negative double digits the other night, which I know places like WI experience all the time (one of the reasons I no longer live there), but are rather unheard of in these parts. So, I was worried the unusual cold might burst a pipe or two. Of course, on that very day my heating system decides to get wonky. It would stop heating at 64 degrees no matter what the thermostat was set to (and the thermostat was only a month old...I replaced the old one because it was giving me this exact same problem, but it also had error messages on it...the new thermostat showed no such indication of a problem). While 64 was fine by me, it made really worry about my pipes. So, I stacked a bunch of stuff by the thermostat and made a little mini-Arctic environment with some ice packs and Tupperware.
It worked like a charm. (I put a towel over the entire thing to further insulate it after taking the photo.) And, miraculously, by morning the heating system was working fine.
The only problem with the situation was that 70 degrees is a little warm for me at night...but I'd rather be hot than have burst pipes. Gonna put the heat up to 70 for the night right now as negative double digits are expected again. I've been around along time, and even without seeing scientific evidence, this old body says there is climate change.
What a great fix! While definitely not of professional quality, if it works, don’t change it. I’ve had a similar issue with my thermostat before, but it was in the summer and I was able to last a few days with the windows open while my thermostat was replaced. I know it’s different in the winter, but you should replace that broken unit as soon as you can!
ReplyDeleteWilfred Andrews @ LB Plumbing and Heating