Z V wall of shame. J,C.A.

J.C.A._3

Came across this nightmare today. Tried to repair it and haven't got an unskined knuckle on my hand. According to my old boss, "if you leave blood , everything will be fine".

For the fine folks at Taco, it was leaking from the "bellows" on the actuator. I've never seen it before and hope I never see it again! Chris.

J.C.A._3

What a cluster ....

Came across this nightmare today. Tried to repair it and haven't got an unskined knuckle on my hand. According to my old boss, "if you leave blood , everything will be fine".

For the fine folks at Taco, it was leaking from the "bellows" on the actuator. I've never seen it before and hope I never see it again! Chris.

J.C.A._3

What a cluster ....

Came across this nightmare today. Tried to repair it and haven't got an unskined knuckle on my hand. According to my old boss, "if you leave blood , everything will be fine".

For the fine folks at Taco, it was leaking from the "bellows" on the actuator. I've never seen it before and hope I never see it again! Chris.

J.C.A._3

What a cluster ....

Came across this nightmare today. Tried to repair it and haven't got an unskined knuckle on my hand. According to my old boss, "if you leave blood , everything will be fine".

For the fine folks at Taco, it was leaking from the "bellows" on the actuator. I've never seen it before and hope I never see it again! Chris.

Weezbo

What a Mind.........

What is that doing there any way? who thinks these locations out? id call that a "designe feature" in the mans system:)))) learned that from inter net."designe feature" or what we would call a complete cluster.....

jim lockard

is that

not cute, a nice little place just for the zone valve. You got to love it.

ScottMP

Come On Chris

I still don't understand why you could'net change that.

Do I have to send Dude down there for this job !!

I know, you could'nt get the ProPress jaws in there .

Oh well we'll let this one slip by.

Thanks for ALL THE GREAT WORK YOU DO !!

Thanks for helping to Raise the bar here !!

Scott



To Learn More About This Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Professional"

jerry scharf_2

yikes

Chris,

I guess the installer didn't learn any of that "design for servicability" stuff. How do you even find this valve?

Like the late 60's Olds Tornado that you had to unbolt the engine mounts to replace one spark plug...

jerry

jim murtaugh

I have a chainsaw and a sawzall that would make that easy to work on

Constantin

Sawzall it will be...

... if the lifebreath 300TRV system in our laundry ever gives out, that will be the only way to remove it. When the installers measured the bay it is installed in for proper sizing, they didn't account for the ductwork snaking around the thing... d'Oh!

Ah, the joys of home ownership...

EJW

ZV

Makes you wonder where that wash machine drain hose is going!?!? EJW

Firedragon_4

Hey Chris,

where's that job???

I use to work for an idiot who used to hide stuff like that. When I took him on about it, he threatened to fire me, so I quit the next day. I guess it's a morality thing.

He's now a consultant and is making a living by going in and showing you where he hid it. Maybe I shouldn't have called him an idiot, he's making more money than I am.

John Conway

design features

So, what's the problem? At least there's light in the room....

You should see a few of the features in my house, like the steam trap accessible by crawling 45' on your belly through a space about 16" wide and 12" high over & under the steam pipes, water pipes and electric lines. Though, to be truthful, it opens up after about 35' & the asbestos isn't too bad after that point....

This brings to mind a question - what are the weirdest/coolest/whatever discoveries you've made while working under houses or buildings? I'm sure you try to mind your own business, but surely you've got some good stories that can bear the light of the Wall.

I've found various cool artifacts under my house - old tin toys from the twenties or thirties, cast-iron bits of old stoves, ancient Budweiser cans (empty). I gave the cans to a local restaurant owner who decorated his place with his beer can & bottle collection. He gave me lots of free beers over the next years. I guess the things were valuable, but I prefer emptying the cans myself versus finding pre-emptied beers.

On a more bittersweet note, an elderly lady asked me to value her late husband's wine-making equipment. (I used to own a beer & wine-making hobby shop.) The stuff was essentially worthless, but she was a sweet woman and her husband had spent a lot of time in my shop telling great stories; I owed her whatever time she wanted. We sifted through some of the stuff in the basement before she went upstairs to make tea. Perhaps the memories stirred were too much for her. I continued sorting & sifting. In one of the cabinets, mixed in with wine labels, corks, cages, etc. I found several unmarked boxes. Opening one, I discovered dozens (scores?) of silver dollars. Pounds of them. She had been unaware of her husband's collection. I never did hear how valuable the coins were - none of my business, really - but I was relieved I had uncovered them, rather than someone who might have stolen from such a sweet and trusting soul.

Steve_OH

Strange discoveries

I wasn't working, just roaming, but one night many years ago while wandering the steam tunnels at the university I attended I came upon a 50-pound bag of Purina Trout Chow.

There was a koi pond on campus, so I figured that that was what it was for.

-Steve

J.C.A._3

George,

This job would be in "Outer Magnolia". The house built in the area AFTER the great divide of the eighties.

All other features of the heating system are the same "SURPRIZE" finds. Basement was finished after the building was built and they really did some neat stuff.(why DO they call them "buildings", when they're already built?)

EJW raised a good point. I didn't even think about where that washer drain goes, but will bet my bottom dollar that if the garage door is left open accidentally, it will be a river flowing down the driveway in short order.Thats allright, theres a river in the yard anyway flowing 300 yards to the ocean.

The guy may be making more money than you,idiot or not.... but I bet you have less enemies and hatemail! Happy Holidays Mr. Dragon! Chris

John Conway

I wonder

if that was only the bait for what lives down there....

Can't explain the brain, but a news item came to mind. Here's the link to National Public Radio's story from back in September:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3925259

LIBOB

Sometimes

you just have to stand back and laugh. After you get done with that zone valve they can get those cabinets refaced.

J.C.A._3

Bob,

Remember when Helen Hunt hosted Satuday Night Live quite a few years back and did the stewardess (flight attendant) skit with the famous words...BUH-BYE ?

Forget the refacing, this is a total case of Buh-BYE. Chris

John Conway

An apology

Upon reflection, I believe I owe an apology here. By taking this thread off topic, my posts were irrelevant. And the direction in which I went can be seen as voyeuristic and unprofessional. That wasn't my intent - I meant only to commiserate, grouse about the state of my basement/crawlspace, and perhaps spark a bit of light-hearted chat. Mea culpa! I learn more with the mouth shut & the ears open.

I’d attach the New Yorker cartoon I keep on the basement door, but that would probably be a copyright infringement. I’d attribute the cartoonist’s work if I could read his signature. Anyway, a hairy guy in rags sits at a fancy bar next to a well-dressed business man; the caption reads “I don’t get out much – I’m usually locked in a cellar.”

Peace

Joe Mattiello

What was leaking from the bellows? The bellows is located in the actuator where there is no way the system water can be leaking from that. It is possible for a ruptured bellows to leak out, but you would replace the actuator only, with a quarter turn avoiding the entire knuckle bruise problem. Additionally, the valve seat assembly is also replaceable with 4 screws avoiding changing out the entire valve. That would have been a wise alternative to resweating another valve in a small envelope like that.

Taco, Inc.
Joe Mattiello
Technical Service Technician
joemat@taco-hvac.com
401-942-8000 X 484
www.taco-hvac.com

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Opossum skeleton in a kitchen drawer! In same house the sewage "system" was a pipe leading to a shallow hole in the crawlspace!