Murphy's Law, Done to Perfection

OK!  Enough is enough!  I know, another one for that what doesn't kill you category.

We have guests coming today.  Seem like lovely people.  

On Saturday afternoon, I was on my computer and noticed the power was off in our house.  It was an auspicious time:  4.30.  Since we have owned the house, we have had maybe 20-25 occasions where the electricity has gone out on a sunny summer day at 4.30. The last time was two weeks ago.  Because we have had so many issues with electricity in the main house harking back to the original electrician (remember this post?), we isolated the hot water heater on the circuit breaker a couple of years ago.    And two weeks ago, it was the hot water heater that caused the main circuit to break.

At 4.30.

We had guests then, patient, lovely guests, who did not mind that the hot water was out for the evening.  The electricians and plumber came in the morning, adjusted something, and all seemed well with the world.  Until Saturday afternoon.  

So I called the boys again, and they said they would come up first thing on Monday morning.  I started fretting.  Guests would be arriving on Monday. I called another local B&B and made sure that they have room.  They do.  

Yesterday morning I got up and steeled myself for a cold shower.  I turned the water on.  Nothing.  No hot water, no cold water, no water at all.  I was beginning to get paranoid.  Was someone trying to tell me something?  I got on the phone with AMAG, our local water utility.  They had no calls from anyone having a problem in my neighborhood, but would send someone up.  We scrambled to make sure the last water bill was paid, which it was.  The guy from AMAG arrived, and sure enough, they had gotten some more calls.  It seemed that a 50 year old reservoir had busted and left one entire side Acqui waterless overnight.  They were working on the repair.  We should have water in a few hours.

We waited all day, we waited all night.  Still no water at 6 this morning.  At 7.30 the electricians arrived.  At 10, I started to hear sputtering and air coming through the water pipes.

Verdict on the hot water heater:  the hot water heater is located in a closet behind the house, enclosed with a metal door.  Apparently, when the sun hits it, around 4 pm, it heats up to inferno temperature in there.  This effects the electronics of the water heater, which trip the circuit.  It has taken us five years to figure this out, which is embarrassing.  Well, this time, it was one time too many.  The electronic part has to be replaced.  And we have already installed four inch thick styrofoam insulation inside the door to keep it from heating up in there again.

So it is now 1 pm,  the guests are getting here at 6 or so.  The plumber is going to try to repair it today, but if they have to order the part it will not happen.  I have two options for the guests -- either they stay here and I heat up water for them to wash their hair and pour over themselves or they can stay at the other B&B and use our pool.  More than this I cannot do. 

At least we have water.  Which, at this point, seems to me to be a very big deal.

But another valuable lesson has been learned, and we have resolved a problem which has been dogging us for a long time -- the 4.30 circuit breaker!  Murphy, please go away now.