What Irked You Today?

[rattle can man]

It was one that they extended the warranty on for a couple of years around 2014. They built them for several years with bad piston rings. The ring coating would break down, causing excessive wear and oil consumption. The oil on her car was low 2 quarts by 4000 miles after an oil change, but they wouldn't replace the engine because it had to happen in the first 2000 miles. If I recall correctly, the system only held 4.5 qts. They still wanted her to change oil every 7K.

[Ace-Garageguy]

23 hours ago, peteski said:

I believe in Ace's case (lost common neutral), certain circuits in is house ended up with 240V instead of 120V. 

It's considerably more complex than that.

When the neutral is lost, the two hot legs of the system effectively become a series circuit with the loads acting as resistors. If the loads are balanced, the voltage distribution might appear normal...which it did on some circuits, causing me to think the problem was inside the house. However, with unbalanced loads, the voltage will shift, potentially delivering too much voltage to some devices and not enough to others. 

The most immediate consequence of an uneven distribution of voltage across the loads is that some devices may receive significantly more or less voltage than their rated value. Lights may flicker, or devices and appliances behave oddly.

High voltage can damage or destroy sensitive electronics, while low voltage can cause motors to overheat and fail. 

A lost neutral outside can cause the neutral wires inside to carry voltage, potentially energizing grounded surfaces like appliance casings, creating a shock hazard. Many common appliances are not grounded, and in an old house like mine, ground circuits may not be adequate anyway...so there is a very real electrocution risk.

Lights may flicker or dim as other loads are switched on or off...even on entirely different house circuits. 

Appliances may operate erratically, with some working faster or slower than normal due to voltage variations. Or they may not work at all.

In extreme cases, a lost neutral can lead to overheating and potentially cause a fire. I did have one circuit overheat badly, and had there been flammable material adjacent to it, there would have been a fire.

The neutral connection at the pole had apparently been "hanging by a thread" for a few days, and as more and more strands of the multi-conductor failed, problems inside the house became more noticeable.

When the last one parted, I just happened to be under the computer desk checking connections, as my internet, having just been repaired by a tech from my ISP, began cycling on and off, and I noticed the power light on the router varying in brightness, which it had never done previously.

While I was checking connections at the power strip, I heard a pop-sizzle across the room, assumed it had to do with something I'd done under the desk, smelled electrical burning, and ran to pull the main breaker.

As I'd been aware in the back of my mind that interrupted or fluctuating supply voltage or a failed neutral connection from the pole could do strange things, I went outside and looked at the line coming to the meter.

It was hanging low, barely high enough to walk under, and I immediately called the power company.

There's more, but I'll leave it at that. 

EDIT: This vid may be a little confusing to people who have no AC house-power knowledge, but it's a reasonably good illustration of what happens.

NOTE THE VOLTMETER READINGS ON THE LIGHT BOARD

 

Edited Tuesday at 02:37 PM by Ace-Garageguy

[peteski]

6 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

When the neutral is lost, the two hot legs of the system effectively become a series circuit with the loads acting as resistors. If the loads are balanced, the voltage distribution might appear normal...which it did on some circuits, causing me to think the problem was inside the house. However, with unbalanced loads, the voltage will shift, potentially delivering too much voltage to some devices and not enough to others. 

I get it Bill - I had same thing happen to me when I had my house upgraded to  a 200A service and the electrician miswired couple of circuits. The bottom line is that there is up to 240V present where it should be 120.  Yes, if you have some high wattage (read: low internal resistance) series connected to some low wattage (read: high internal resistance) appliance, the low wattage appliance will see most of the voltage across its power leads. If the low-wattage item  designed to only work in 120V, it will fry, while the high wattage item will survive.

[espo]

I always check with and reread the owners manuals in all of our vehicles for suggested maintains. I'm not a beliver in 100k transmission fluid changes either.  

[rattle can man]

agreed Espo. What I really don't like is that you cannot check the transmission fluid anymore. I do everything before the recommended intervals.

[John M.]

I got a summons this past weekend to report for jury duty on the 28th of this month. That's also the first day of the school that I do my runs out of. However, the GM has my run covered. 

[Mark]

I guess it varies by state and even county, but you get summoned to come in?  I'm used to getting a letter with a phone number, and calling it every evening Sunday through Thursday.  The letter would be numbered, with a range of about 200-250 people told to report the following day.  Most times the same number of people were summoned, so you could tell with some accuracy whether your number would come up.  If you made it five days without being summoned, they released you on the fifth day.

The time before last, I got two notices for the same week (one for a grand jury).  The grand jury one came after the other one.  At first they wanted me to check up on both of them, but later relented and dismissed me from the grand jury one.  I was released from the other one when my number was outside the first five days' number of people they summoned.

I have been required to go in twice, once sitting for a trial for a week.  

[Ace-Garageguy]

2 hours ago, John M. said:

I got a summons this past weekend to report for jury duty on the 28th of this month. 

 

52 minutes ago, Mark said:

I guess it varies by state and even county, but you get summoned to come in? 

I'm old enough so they don't bother me anymore. Can't have geezers croaking in the jury box.

[espo]

18 hours ago, rattle can man said:

agreed Espo. What I really don't like is that you cannot check the transmission fluid anymore. I do everything before the recommended intervals.

Sounds like you may also have a Chrysler product. Our last two Dodge Chargers don't even have a transmission dip stick. Bought a so called universal flexible dip stick that came with an instruction booklet that listed what the readings should be depending on the vehicle and which model transmission it was equipped with. I was surprised at the large number of both domestic and imported cars listed. How much money could these manufacturers really be saving by leaving out a dip stick? Rather than allowing someone spending a considerable amount of their earnings buying their product to check their own oil if they desire and instead you go to a dealership and have one of the lowest paid members of their service department do it. They can't even change the engine oil and filter with out dribbling oil all over the engine cover and not even try and wipe it off.  

[rattle can man]

I believe they say they are protecting us. You might put washer fluid in the transmission.