Can’t believe I haven’t posted since February. Time flies. Or not. (Stream of consciousness here: Start with nothing to say and end up… in the same place.) But I’ve learned something in the interim: Do what you were born to do and pay someone to do the rest.
A few months back I started having trouble with the radiator on my truck leaking. One of the tanks had a crack which got bigger over time. So I went to a local radiator shop to get the tanks replaced. While I was there they called and told me the water pump was also leaking and needed replacing. Now, I’m not made of money (read: I’m cheap.) so I took the truck home to replace it myself. That turns into two weeks of work during which I manage to crack the thermostat housing and end up replacing it as well. Bad, right?
It gets worse.
A week later the truck quits while I’m going to work. Just dies. My first reaction? Unprintable. My second? Get someone who could actually troubleshoot the system and fix the problem rather than just replace parts.
The vehicle has always had some sort of electrical problem and the way it died suggested something along those lines. So I called some friends around the area and asked where I could take it. If you’re from around the Albany area then you know about a certain Citgo station that is always advertising on the radio. So I take the truck there and sure enough they troubleshoot it, find the problem(s), and fix them. But the price! I have never paid that much for a repair. Especially considering that the only thing they ended up doing was replacing the alternator and a burnt wire. Turns out I had left a wire loose on the alternator (and everything that that implies…)
FYI: There is a reason why businesses advertise. Especially in a business where most shops go on word of mouth and repeat customers. But I also learned that I should have let the radiator place go ahead and replace the water pump in the first place. Don’t be cheap, pay the experts and do what you do best.
Previously, On The A.M. …
Can’t believe I haven’t posted since February. Time flies. Or not. (Stream of consciousness here: Start with nothing to say and end up… in the same place.) But I’ve learned something in the interim: Do what you were born to do and pay someone to do the rest.
A few months back I started having trouble with the radiator on my truck leaking. One of the tanks had a crack which got bigger over time. So I went to a local radiator shop to get the tanks replaced. While I was there they called and told me the water pump was also leaking and needed replacing. Now, I’m not made of money (read: I’m cheap.) so I took the truck home to replace it myself. That turns into two weeks of work during which I manage to crack the thermostat housing and end up replacing it as well. Bad, right?
It gets worse.
A week later the truck quits while I’m going to work. Just dies. My first reaction? Unprintable. My second? Get someone who could actually troubleshoot the system and fix the problem rather than just replace parts.
The vehicle has always had some sort of electrical problem and the way it died suggested something along those lines. So I called some friends around the area and asked where I could take it. If you’re from around the Albany area then you know about a certain Citgo station that is always advertising on the radio. So I take the truck there and sure enough they troubleshoot it, find the problem(s), and fix them. But the price! I have never paid that much for a repair. Especially considering that the only thing they ended up doing was replacing the alternator and a burnt wire. Turns out I had left a wire loose on the alternator (and everything that that implies…)
FYI: There is a reason why businesses advertise. Especially in a business where most shops go on word of mouth and repeat customers. But I also learned that I should have let the radiator place go ahead and replace the water pump in the first place. Don’t be cheap, pay the experts and do what you do best.