California 2 Puerto Rico

I think I may need to purchase a Hazmat Suit to cook. Last night, I was defrosting a bunch of chicken breasts in the microwave, and the weirdest thing happened. I opened the door to check on the chicken and the microwave didn’t turn off! It didn’t really hit me at first, but when I realized the microwave was still cookin’ (may hand was getting hot) I shut the door and hit the clear/off button. The light in the microwave was off, but the cooker was still going. I was just about to unplug it when it turned off (I was turning everything on and off and hitting the clear button repeatedly).

So, here is the skinny. Summer and I bought a very nice set of matching Kenmore Elite Appliances from Sears in Mayaguez back in July. So, in less than 10 months, our microwave is trying to transform me from Bruce Banner to The Incredible Hulk! I am going to call Sears today and see what’s up. My concern with all this (aside from turning green when I get angry) is that we built custom cabinets over the stove to fit the Kenmore Elite Microwave / Exhaust Fan. Considering our experience trying to get doors, appliances and furniture on the island, waiting for a replacement microwave MAY yield us a new Kenmore elite microwave EVENTUALLY, but I would be more inclined to think that they are going to try to replace it with a different model (hopefully the microwave convection combo model is the same size and in stock).

Popularity: 25% [?]

My dad hooked up the tankless hot water heater he brought down and it is SO nice to have a hot shower again! It’s easy to think, “Why do you even need hot water? Puerto Rico is already so hot, it probably is nice to take a cold shower!” Well, cold showers got old real quick. Our showers had pretty much come down to this:

Jump in shower. Turn on water. EEEEKKKKK. Scrubscrubscrubscrub. Jump out of shower. Sigh.

The tankless water heater is pretty cool from what I’ve experianced so far. Plus, you never run out of hot water since it’s heated on demand. The only thing that is slightly negative is that I love to take SCALDING hot showers and while the on demand tankless water heater does heat up the water to a nice hot temp, it’s not scalding enough for me at times :D.

When my dad built the piping, etc. for the hot water heater, I learned how to turn off the hot water to the house, where the hot and cold water bibs are and I learned about P/T valves (pressure/temperature values). Essentually a P/T value will release the water if it gets too much pressure or heat. So we can go away and not worry about the house exploding (at least not due to the hot water).

Popularity: 41% [?]

Summer and I bought all of our appliances at Sears. They offered a great discount for first time Sears Credit Card holders (24% APR) along with a preexisting sale so we pulled the trigger on everything we needed; washer, dryer, refrigerator, oven, dishwasher, exhaust van and microwave.

Everything we ordered we had delivered…all of which came in on different dates. Before delivering, Sears has an automated messaging system call you and tell you the delivery date about 3 days away from delivery. The day before delivery, the same automated messaging service calls back and gives you a three hour window of delivery along with a number to call if you have any conflicts with the delivery time.

All of the deliveries have been pretty accurate until this last one. The delivery of the dryer never showed up on Monday between 12:00 and 3:00pm and I have not heard anything from Sears. I am going to have to make time today and get them on the phone….”Where’s our dryer!”

Popularity: 22% [?]

Theoretically, it seems more logical to me to spend money on energy efficient and gas powered appliances now rather than have astronomical electric bills down the line once we are settled in. Every appliance we have purchased has either been an energy efficient appliance or an appliance powered by propane.

I really wanted to have tank less propane hot water heater but don’t know too much about them. I have been doing research and reading customer reviews of On Demand Hot Water Heaters and think I found the one we are going to purchase. If any of you know anything about Propane On Demand Tankless Heaters….please speak now before we make this big purchase!

Rheem Tankless Water Heater RTG-74PVP-1, Indoor Use
Rheem tankless water heaters combine new technology and functionality in an innovative way to heat water. The result - you now have a greater choice of award-winning Rheem products designed to give you comfort. Our tankless water heaters are designed to enhance your lifestyle, utilize advanced technology for energy efficiency, and supply a continuous flow of low cost hot water whenever and wherever you need it.

Rheem Tankless Water Heater RTG-74PVP-1, Indoor Use Features:
• UMC-117 remote control is included and can be set from the out-of-the-box 120 degrees - up to 140 degree maximum
• EZ-Link™ cable connects two tankless units or operate as one - now available for high demand applications
• Guardian SBT™ sensing burner technology
• Gardian OFW™ overheat film wrap
• Two high-altitude options - up to 6, 560 or 9, 840 ft. elevations above sea level
• All Rheem tankless models are third-party certified by GAMA
• All Rheem tankless models qualify for up to a $300 federal energy tax credit
• All Rheem models can be linked in up to 20 unite manifold installations by using the optional MIC-180 and MICS-180 manifold control assembly
• Continuous hot water
• Energy saving design
• Compact design saves space.
• Intelligent electronic controls designed to increase energy efficiency and safety.
• Self diagnostic program
• Built-in electric blower
• Uses Catagory III stainless steel vents and vent horizontally or vertically
• Supplied with a 120 volt power cord
• Enviornmentally friendly Low NOx burner meets SCAQMD rule 1146 requirements
• Digital display shows temperature setting and maintenance codes
• 10-Year Limited Warranty on Heat Exchanger, 3-Year Limited Warranty on Parts
• Optional additional remote controls are available

Rheem Tankless Water Heater RTG-74PVP-1, Indoor Use Specifications:
• Uses Propane
• Type - Indoor
• Gas Input BTU/HR - 19,000 - 199,900
• Temp. Range - 100° to 140°
• GPM @ 77° Rise MAX - 4.3
• GPM @ 45° Rise MAX - 7.4
• Connection - Water 3/4″, Gas 3/4″
• Height - 25-3/8″
• Width - 14-7/8″
• Depth - 11-1/8″
• Vent Diameter - 4″

Proper gas pressure must be ensured to supply tankless gas water heaters - up to 118,000 BTU for RTG2-42 models, up to 145,000 BTU for RTG-53 models, and up to 199,900 BTU for RTG-74 models. (Consult your gas supplier)

Popularity: 16% [?]

Today Stefan and I went to Sears and picked out our appliances for the kitchen. We went with the Kenmore Elite line in stainless steel and bought our refridgerator, stove, microwave/hood and dishwasher.

We really were trying to NOT go with stainless steel, but the only stove that Stefan wanted only came in stainless, sooooooo….Cie la vie.

I feel poor now :). Appliances are quite expensive, but Sears was having a 20% cash back deal, if you bought 3 appliances priced over $399. So we bought the stove, microwave/hood, refridgerator, dishwasher, washing machine, dryer and an airconditoner. We spent $7500, but we get $1500 cash back. So, $6000 for (fairly) top of the line appliances, isn’t too bad.

Popularity: 24% [?]

Today, Gino was going to finish up the tile work in the guest bath. Unfortunately, when the drywall was put in around the sink area, instead of moving one of the pipes…the guys just screwed the greenboard in over the pipe causing it to bubble out. If we had done regular tile instead of butt joints, Gino would have been able to lay the tile over the bow and it wouldn’t have been a big deal but since all of the tiles are “butted up tight” against one another…it would have made for a bad tile job..so Gino spent a couple of hours chipping away at the greenboard and evening out the area with grout and didn’t have time to finish. So…still no toilet for us to use and no pictures for you to see. Once it is done, I’ll post the pictures so you can see how rad the travertine looks.

We bought all of our appliances at Sears today (summer is going to post pictures later) and met with our cabinet maker to tie him down to a price and time frame. More to come….

Popularity: 29% [?]