An Expensive Way to Settle an Argument...

[redneckgaijin]

So we have to replace the hot water heater.

My grandmother asked me to shop around by phone and compare electric to propane at the various places in Livingston. Unfortunately, despite her objections- "I have NOT made up my mind!"- she'd already decided not only to go back to propane, but to get the tank at the most expensive place in town.

Her reasons:

(1) With gas we could have hot water by noon Saturday. (True- the only point in her favor.)

(2) An electric one won't fit in the trailer house cubbyhole. (False- she didn't know for certain. For that matter, we eventually had to drive into town today anyhow to measure, because we didn't know what the actual dimensions were on the things we had.)

(3) We'd have to dig ditches for buried water and electrical lines to put in an electrical heater. (What?? Only if we put the new heater somewhere else, and even then digging ditches is not an issue with electrics.)

(4) It'll cost $1,000 or more to have a 220 line put in. (Even after I got a rough ballpark quote of $250 from an electrician, she persisted in this because, despite all evidence to the contrary, she thought that figure did not include wire, new breakers, conduit, plugs, hookups, etc. etc. etc. etc. Eventually she began making equipment up to explain her costs.)

(5) Electric is more expensive. (Bullshit. The electric tanks run between $100 and $150 less than propane, and the electricity the tank runs off of is cheaper than the propane is, -and- the water heater is the only thing left in the house that uses propane.)

Finally, to at least stop the argument for now, I bought a cheap electric water heater with my own money. ($250 with delivery. OUCH. But it arrives tomorrow.) Electrician comes to look things over and refine the estimate; installation may be expected Monday. Tomorrow we take the old heater out and put a new floor into the rotted-out soaked-down heater room, and then hook up the pipes to the new water heater.

Yes sir, this is precisely what I needed- long shouting arguments with an 89-year-old woman in full martyr mode, punctuated by a purchase I really couldn't afford to make, but had to to save -her- from spending about $200 more. Yrgh.

Comments

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

Possibly dumb question: why did you feel you had to save her from the consequences of her own bad decision? In that situation, I'd have said, "Okay, it's your money," and let her spring for what she wanted. I don't think the difference is worth $250 of money YOU don't have, plus $200 of your peace of mind after arguing about it for hours. Is there some underlying issue of control going on here?

[redneckgaijin.livejournal.com]

The biggest reason I fought her over this is that she really does not have any money to spare, after the past three months of minor and major disasters. She's driving herself mad worrying about how to make ends meet with nothing left from what was once a tidy retirement nest egg but her base Social Security income. A substantial portion of those expenses constitute my electric and phone usage, plus food. (Although she'd buy and waste just as much food with or without me; she's a compulsive food-hoarder.) Also, she's loaned me the money for certain parts vital to the Exploder's future operation; I feel obligated to find -some- way to ease her burden.

There's also the fact that I have to live with the consequences of her decisions; if we'd gone with the gas, I would have heard her complaints about the expense and trouble over, over, over and over again.

(Incidentally, the money may end up back in my pocket; she's offered to cancel out up to that $250 from whatever I end up owing her buying car parts. I bought it not knowing or expecting her to do that, though- and I would have missed the money, but not really regretted spending it.)