Man, and Lady's too, I love you all! I truly do. I had no idea I'd get such a response to this question but you have already told me most of what I was wondering about!
If this day gets any better I think I will break down a cry! And I think that is true too!
Yesterday a man called me and ask if I could do plumbing! I still don't have a clue as to where he got my name or phone number from, unless it was an ad I ran last summer in the trading post paper here, but after talking a bit, he said he'd see about it and call me later. Actually he still didn't know my name when we hung up.
Then he pulled up in my driveway this morning and came to the door and told me who he was and he has a sketch of the plumbing he wanted me to do, so we came and stepped into what I call my office, which is really just the computer room and this will be the first piece of business that I ever did in it, but I made us both a cup of coffee and looked at the paper for a bit, and asked him a few questions that I already knew that answer to, and pondered on it a bit!
I am disabled but just as joke, I made a sign that says "Dennis' Office' and below that I put "AID STATION" because that is where I usually take care of whatever!
He said that he didn't remember who gave him my number but he had it written down for me being a carpenter/blockmason/concrete/plumber/electrician/ and welder and he just wanted to meet me!
Well, OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHKay! So I can do all the above, but what gives here, is what I was thinking when my dog started barking to go out!
I told him I'd be right back and went to let Buddy out and when I opened the door I stopped and looked at the laid down Cadillac with the three thousand dollar purple paint job, setting on at least two thousand dollars worth of chrome and rubber!
Now please don't take me as some blood sucker because that isn't me!
I spent a half day freezing once rehanging a front door and installing a new storm door for an older couple and I thought they would have a heart attack when I said they owed me 35 bucks!
As soon as I saw their reaction, I told them to calm down now, I was just joking and I did that for a Christmas present just for them!
What was I to do? What I charged them was already a super fair price, but I could see that it was more than they could afford, so I just gave them a Christmas Present! And it was well worth it to me! heck it was nearly Christmas after all!
But anyway, I could see this man had money, and right or wrong, I figure his car came from drugs, one way or another, and out of nowhere, my mouth took over before the brain engaged and it said "yea, I can do it for $400 but I'll need a little up front to buy torch because my last one grew legs and walked off" ( which was true, as many other tools have) and up out of the chair he came and he pulled his wallet out and handed me two bills, and said there, that is half of it, say 10 in the morning be OK? I'll pick you up so have the tools ready!"
Say What? I am getting tired of saying this but again, if I'd had false teeth they would have hit the floor!
I already had something over a hundred in my pocket, and I do need a torch to finish the AC I am working on, but I wasn't going to spend it now, and surely not on his say so that I could do the job. Been there and done that. thank you very much.
OK, I'd have been happy to make $100 for what he wants done. It should take me tops, four hours tomorrow morning, but the Good lord laid that at my feet this morning!
But he didn't stop there today!
OK, as some of you know, I am working on a water powered Air Conditioner! I have a red neck model keeping it cool down stairs already but I have bought some good solid coils that together will be about 40% more efficient than a water to air heat exchanger from CentralBoiler.com You can pull it up but you'll have to talk to a local dealer to get the price, but they have a 80,000 BTU unit, P/N 109 that sells for $293.71 here! I am sure that other dealers have different prices, but to get to the point, these heat exchangers three rows of tubing down them, they are 12 3/4" x 18" x 4 1/2" thick!
On the other hand, I bought a used A-frame coil from an air conditioner that has two rows of coils on both sides, that I am mating face to face, which will be 14" x 22" and 5" thick and four rows of tubes!
And I only paid $24.00 for the coils and all I need to do is join then with a manifold on both sides but I had spent the better part of two weeks trying to find fitting that I could use on the dada danged 3/8" copper tubes with out any luck!
Well, here comes HST to the rescue! I was about to make a post on another thread when something hit me like a ton of bricks!
I am what I call, either the stupidest smart person, or the smartest stupid person that I have ever seen and I am too stupid to even know which!
I am extremely good at some things but I am a slap idiot when it comes to others and sometimes that includes failing to see what is starring me in the face, and this time it was the fittings for the AC I am building!
I have to go from four 3/8" O.D. copper tubes on both ends of two coils and make up to a 1/2" manifold and regular plumbing fitting won't do it!
yet the same thing in copper that is sized for Air Conditioners cost out the yahoo., and I am not going to pay that ten fold price. It just goes against the grain with me, period!
Well, I was about to make that post, which I never finished, and it hit me! Who said that I had to go copper to copper! Wait a minute here. back up a step and look at it again here!
Hey, 8" of 1" stainless pipe and about a foot of 3/8" stainless tubing, which is 3/8" I. D. and I can weld up a manifold and then sweat that to the copper!
Would someone please wake me up in the morning?
No, today didn't stop there! All of you fine people, and especially you, Elkhound, chimed in and truly made my day!
This type of day hasn't happened to me in a long time but i'll bet ya I have sweet dreams tonight!
But now I have some more questions. What does it take to take pictures and download then on to here! I am sure that many of you would like to see some pictures instead of hearing me run off at the mouth, so help me out here.
I can build a house from the ground up and much more than that, but this thing here, well, we have fights, LOL!
Plus, elkhound, do you live close to Elk Horn Lake? If so you aren't far from me! maybe we can get together some time! PM me if you will.
Godspeed to all
Ranger
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