The Hot Water Tank

Some of you, via social media or our email update, may have heard about our recent adventures with the hot water tank.

I got up one morning and found water simply pouring out of the bottom of the tank. As you can see, the tank didn’t really owe us anything. In fact, from what the plumber told me later, it probably lasted a lot longer than any tank has a right to.

Anyway, as you guessed from the above paragraph, we called the plumber. Being an expert, he noticed that something was probably not right, and so we went to a local store to pick up a new tank – basically a newer model of the same thing. Apparently, prices on tanks have skyrocketed the last few years. But what prices haven’t?

So, by the end of the day, a new tank was installed.

But we soon noticed that there was a menacing drip coming from the bottom of the tank. Not from any connection to the pipes, just from the bottom of the tank itself. So, we called the plumber again. An internal leak, he said. So, back to the store we went.

The store doesn’t take returns, but told us to call the manufacturer. I had all the phone numbers on the original documentation, so I contacted them. They said they would send out a technician, but it was a long weekend, so it would be the following Tuesday.

Tuesday morning I contacted them again, and was told that the tech would be around between 3 and 6pm. I believe it was closer t 8:30pm when he actually came, so he looked over the tank with much difficultly in the dark, and came to his expert conclusion. An internal leak.

So he gave us the official documentation so that we could bring it back to the store and have it replaced.

So that’s week #1. Just so you know, the new tank was still connected all this time, and so yes, we did have hot water. We just had to keep emptying the bucket from the leak.

We had guests over the weekend, so it was actually the end of week #2 when I contacted the plumber again.

Beginning of week #3, I was waiting for the plumber. The appointment was 10am. Then along came 11am, 12pm… you still coming? Yes, he came, late afternoon. He was backlogged, I think, because of car trouble. So he arrived on his bike, and removed the old new tank, and we went together to the store.

I talked to the clerk, and I was told to talk to customer service. I went around the the side of the store, and was told that customer service was on its way. So we waited, and waited, and finally the security guard went to find someone.

Finally someone came – the same person I had talked to last time. Except I’m pretty sure his hair was now a different colour. Anyway, same guy – that’s a good sign. Well, maybe not. I was reminded that they don’t take returns. I was supposed to call the manufacturer.

I had! Showed him the paperwork. Hmmmmm…. hawwwwwww….. I don’t think we can take returns. Let me see the tank. Hmmmm… looks like it was “maltreated”. (Actually, it was in good shape, but dirty on the top because it was installed where it’s semi-outdoors, and it had experienced a heavy rain or two. But wait – apparently the company was paying for this replacement, and it was already approved, so who cares if it’s dusty on top anyway?)

So he went to talk to someone. It was good that the plumber was there… not just to back me up, but also to roll his eyes with me. I taught him the English saying “like pulling teeth”.

After some time of discussion and negotiation, they agreed to replace the tank. But they scribbled a name (“Juan Luis”) and a phone number on a piece of paper – this is the person you should really call if you have problems again. (Never mind calling the actual company number on the official guarantee. Who in the world is Juan Luis anyway??)

So, to make a short story long, or to end a long story quickly, at the beginning of week #3 the plumber installed the new new tank, and we have hot water, and no leak. Well, yeah we have leaks, but not from the hot water tank.