CDPunt(igam) Writes

We got a new car this last week. My old beloved 2014 VW Jetta Diesel had a could be problem. What’s a could be problem? It could be this could be that, no direct answer to the issue of it stalling and going into limp mode with no codes. With the money we’ve spent on it the last year for definite issues we were not going to spend an unknown dollar amount chasing it down. Luckily, someone in our hood was up for the mystery. Even with repeated explanations of it’s busted, they bought the car and drove it away.

On Saturday, my husband went out to breakfast with the guys. I went to our detached garage while he was out to put some stuff in my car and the garage was open! Sometimes this happens because little vines grow and block the sensors. I hit the button. It went down and cane back up. The opener and I did this dance a few times. I disconnected the door, it was unexpectedly heavy. Reconnected it and it didn’t open up all the way. I disconnected and closed it.

Texted the amazing husband, updated him on my escapades. When he came home he sent a simple “I’m here.” We did some more investigations and he happened to look up and said “there’s your problem.” One of the two high tension springs had broke.

As you may know, I love to fix stuff. I have a whole host of things I’ve repaired at our house including a washer, a fridge, a dishwasher, an oven, and a lawnmower engine. The dishwasher is one of those pet projects that has a repeating problem every few years. It’s a simple fix but it does take a special socket head. I know that it needs to be done when the dishwasher starts leaking in the midst of its midnight cycles. The oven has been fixed a few times over the years with the same part. It will just stop heating the oven properly and I have to get a new ignitor thingy and put that in. The washer I am happy to say finally died and became cheaper to replace than fix. I love my new washer and dryer set. They’re the best. The lawn mower was changing out some small piece, it helped us get through the summer. In fact, I think we sold it and it’s probably still cutting grass in the hood somewhere. Oh and can’t forget the fridge.

We have the worlds smallest full size fridge. A while back things weren’t as cold as they should be. Like not completely busted but not as cold as they could be. Did some sleuthing and discovered that the fan in the freezer that moves the air was out. Ordered the part and installed it. Works like a charm. Though the ice maker in the freezer was making hollow cubes and I never quite figured out why. We removed it and bought a countertop nugget ice maker. That’s been life changing. Not just because of the fun ice but because of the amount of space we gained in our freezer removing it. I mean we can buy extra stuff and not have to play expert level Tetris to get it stored. We get to play basic level Tetris instead. But that high tension spring in the garage scares me.

In my mind, it is more dangerous than a live electric wire when you’re replacing a switch. And I’ve done that before! It’s funny when you’re wiring the switch and you hear the ceiling fan turn on. Somehow the ceiling fan and the outdoor light that used the same switch box and the same multi switch were not on the same breaker. Maybe that’s a good thing? Those springs though, they have so much tension built up in them that it’s not for the faint of heart to be messing with. So I’m farming it out. the whole thing is so funny to me. The fact that we just this summer made the room to fit both cars in. Both cars lived in it for a month and then we got that new car and the garage said no thanks. Or maybe the garage really said, it’s time for me to update, too.