Where There's Smoke

Ms. Angie was hysterical. And I told her so.

My assertion actually quieted her long enough so that I could get one critical sentence in edgewise. "You need to immediately call the fire department if this happens again."

And ladies and gentlemen, that is how my Wednesday started.

In the event you are unaware, landlords do not get calls about toilets overflowing at 2 a.m. They get calls on holiday weekends with some sort of impossible problem that can't be resolved no matter who asks. Our Saviour could come to Earth and try to find a plumber at 5:01 p.m. the Friday of Labor Day weekend and would get an answering service. That's how life works.

It is no different if you have a backed up septic system, no air conditioning, no heat or the hot water heater blows. This is why we have gracious friends with couches.

But, back to Ms. Angie. The trouble started Christmas weekend, with an easy furnace fix on Monday morning. However, the "easy fix" was really masking a much bigger symptom. And, if her heat hadn't gone out a second time this week, we might not have discovered the root of the problem until much, much too late. Apparently there was a smoldering wire in the wall, causing the furnace to short.

Ms. Angie awoke on Wednesday to no heat. Apparently there had also been a "funny smell" for days as well. When she called me at some horrid hour that morning, all she did was mention the heater. The smell didn't really phase her, I'm guessing, because it was colder than the polar North on her side of Birmingham.

With my limited information, I told her to do the sensible thing: call the HVAC guy out there again and have him take a look. It would be a lot quicker than me making the drive to take a look--which I didn't tell her.

When the HVAC guy walked in, he immediately recognized the smell of ozone wafting through the home. I was on the phone with Ms. Angie a second time when this occurred. The HVAC dude had just passed me back to her, right after I directed HVAC dude (who had no reason to help--other than he was just being nice) to break into the wall. He muttered something about "a possible fire" to his counterpart and Ms. Angie rightfully lost it.

It turns out there was a smoldering wire in the wall. And, how it didn't ignite the entire home, I will never know. According to everyone there, it should have.

In the mean-time, Ms. Angie and I had a quick chat. That electrical smell is more important than heating her home. That smell requires a quick call to 911. Only after she has made sure everyone is out of the home, she can then call me. And, after all is said and done, then she can be hysterical.

I know I will be.