Do I need a repairman to clean stove burners?


Sorry if this is an embarrassingly dumb question. I haven’t bothered with one non-working gas burner on my stove, but I recently have a problem with baking soda spilling on another one and hardening there. I thought wetting it would get it off, but it didn’t. I’m worrying slightly about gas seeping through but not fully lighting when the burner is on. Do I have to spend all that money on an appliance repair guy to clean it? If so, recommendations are welcome.

Categories: Appliances
By FishieFishie | 03/27/2011 1:23 PM | Comment

Puzzling over non-working light fixture


A ceiling light in my living-room, about ten years old, apparently just died. Naturally, I assumed it was the bulb, and tried new ones, to no effect.

Have you ever known a light fixture to simply stop working like that? It’s never happened to me, and I’m debating whether to call an electrian (in which case recommendations are welcome, since mine has disappeared), or whether it’s not worth it.

As it happens, it’s a great pendant light that I’ve loved, because you can pull it down (nice with high ceilings), so I know I’m unlikely to find something affordable that I like as well.

Categories: Lighting
By FishieFishie | 01/12/2011 2:11 PM | Comment

Noise with New Refrigerator


Just bought a new refrigerator (Frigidaire top-freezer), my first purchase of a big appliance, and happy to have it delivered.

However I already called the store (having discovered that Frigidaire doesn’t bother to keep a toll-free customer line) to express concern that the motor/thermostat doesn’t cycle down much. In other words, my past fridges (10-20 years old) were silent most of the time, but then occasionally revved up to keep it cool; this one’s motor seems to be running 80%-90% of the time. They told me that this is the way the newer ones are, but that they use less power in the long run.

But now after a day it also seems somewhat louder than past ones. Not really loud, just loud-ER, noisy enough so that I’m conscious of it.

What should I do? If I have the store come listen, they’d just tell me that it’s normal. And I don’t feel I should have to pay a repairman to come listen.

Any advice would be very welcome.

Categories: Appliances
By FishieFishie | 09/15/2009 10:25 PM | Comment

Refrigerator repair commendation?


I collected suggestions for repair for my refrigerator last year, but I wasn’t too thrilled with the guy I ended up with, so I thought I’d try again.

Anyone you like for appliance repair generally, or refrigerator repair in particular?

Categories: Appliances
By FishieFishie | 09/17/2008 12:29 PM | Comment

Hoping for good exterminator recommendation


I’d checked in here a year or two ago in search of exterminator recommendations. Luckily, posters here are generous with their recommendations, but as it turned out, most of the guys didn’t even bother to call back, and I didn’t find any “keepers.” So I thought I’d try again.

Anyone have an exterminator that they consider competent, reliable, and reasonably priced?

Categories: Exterminator
By FishieFishie | 08/08/2008 10:45 AM | Comment

Thanks for the tech help!


Hm – can’t find my past thread. Hope it wasn’t disappeared because it wasn’t home-y enough.

Just wanted to thank you guys for the input on my ailing computer. I know it’s either the hard drive or the hard drive controller, but in some mysterious way, it’s not being accessed the way it’s expected to – like it’s tied to the original computer box. And it’s impossible for a layman to tell whether someone else could be doing a better job of solving the problem. And I’m left wondering if the old WP5.1 makes it harder – or more of a specialized skill – to extract or copy.

Anyway, I’m trying to call Brookyn Geek (although since the computer is in Manhattan, I’m still hoping for a solution there), but the number I have is disconnected, so I’ll look again. Oddly, they have no internet presence. Thanks for the suggestion.

Crossing my fingers…

Categories: Appliances
By FishieFishie | 06/30/2008 12:21 PM | Comment

Stove repair place…or electrician?


Unsettling problem with a stove, which is giving off an occasional spark by the knobs when turned on, and it’s blowing fuses intermittently, even though it’s a gas stove and only using minimal electricity. This seems to me that it’d be a stove repair problem, but the handyman maintains it’s an electrical problem.

I’m trying to decide which, since both are expensive – and there’s no guarantee that the stove will exhibit the problem when the repair man shows up – and I’ve love any suggestions for either one: competent affordable stove repair or licensed electrician.

Any suggestions? I’ve called some of the stove repair place mentioned here in the past and haven’t been too impressed so far.

By FishieFishie | 01/22/2008 11:18 AM | Comment