My Support Forums - View Single Post - They always think they know what's best for us

eskielover · Mar 02, 2009, 11:27 AM

I have been so frustrated with the shower head in my bathroom. The stupid thing is one of those scald proof knobs & there big thing is that is keeps water from changing temp in your shower if cold or hot is being used somewhere else in the house.....lol....I'm the only one in the house & my dogs don't flush toilets or wash my dishes while I am taking a shower.

When I had my propane water heater, I just turned up the temp on the water heater, but with my new electric water heater, I don't really want to turn up the temp.....want to be somewhat energy effeciant.....but these warm showers were getting to me. I would stand in the shower forcing the faucet toward the hot to just get a little more hot water out as long as I was forcing the faucet.

I had looked at the shower head & there was no way to remove the scald proof block...which was why I just turned up the temp of the propane water heater. Because there was no easy way to remove the scale proof block, I decided to go ahead & turn up the temp by 5F on the new water heater....that should make enough difference in the water temp, since I could get a nice feeling temp water by standing there pushing hard on the shower handle.

So I get to the water heater in my basement....have to take off 2 covers as there are 2 thermostats...bottom & top of the tank. I get my screwdriver & can't get the stupid screws out of the tank....somehow, they get caught on the tank & won't let go....tried pushing them around, working at them with pliers.....got so frustrated....all 4 screws (both top & bottom plates were put together that way). I finally got the top panel off & the temp adjusted on it, but no way to get the bottom screws out. Pliers trying to move the screw around to get it uncaught....I tried everything I could do including trying to shame it by telling it that a new hot water heater shouldn't be messed up like this. I spent an hour trying to get out 2 stupid little screws without any success.....until I felt my frustration build to the point I wanted to BREAK the DANG thing!!!! So...called GE to have a service person come out.....just to get 2 stupid screws out & fix if so it's easer to access in the future....so they give me a plumber to fix the screws...lol....oh well, it's under warantee...GE is paying for it....but not before telling me that keeping one thermostat at 125F & the other at the 120F settings would mess up the water heater. I figured it would just help warm up the water just a little bit more & it would be ok????? NOPE!!!!!!

I decided to go ahead & look at the shower knob again.....turned off the water to the house & took the stupid thing completely off the shower. There is a stupid piece of plastic that is a solid part of the unit & no way to adjust for any more hot water. I got so angry, I found a little saw I had (after looking for the stupid little saw for 20 minutes) & cut the stupid plastic block completely off the unit....reinsalled the knob & sure enough, I could now take a nice extra warm, or Duke hot shower. It felt so wonderful....just wanted to stand under the shower all day.....but ended up running out of hot water because of the long shower...lol.

My hot showers are the only thing what washes away my anxiety attacks. Since I don't have any meds that have ever worked or that aren't way to strong to take living alone.....the anxiety attacks have been building up since the ice storm when I had no electricity & my propane ran out day 3 of the ice storm.

Still going to have the repair people come out & fix the panel on the water heater because I know in the future I will want to adjust the temp down if I am ever traveling back to CA to finish my move.....so will need to access the thermostat & besides, it's just not right & it should be......so THEY WILL FIX IT!!!!

Everyone seems to have to make their products to protect us consumers & all they end up doing is making things so we have to break them to get them to work the way they are supposed to.

Debbie