Shit happens. Here’s a story about shit and the happening thereof.
The oven broke. Don’t fret deducing the cause. Sometimes shit happens. I bought it 20+ years ago and it’s the cheapest electric oven on the market. Be reminded that the appliances of yore, which would last generations, are long gone. In 2025, an appliance kicking off for no good reason despite being merely 2 decades old is pretty common.
Mrs. Curmudgeon announced the oven wasn’t getting hot. I was sicker than a dog. I lumbered into the kitchen, pressed the same damn buttons she had and got the same results. “Yep, broke.” I went back to bed.
The next day I tried to crawl around the oven and deduce what might have caused the situation. I figured I had about a 20% chance of fixing the thing. Odds were that it was something buried in an integrated circuit board that would be unavailable, soldered on, cost so much it was pointless… or all three. But I always give it a shot.
Except this time I was super sick. I got dizzy trying to poke around in the beast. I called it a day.
Weeks passed and I haven’t died so I guess I’m getting better. This weekend I poked around the device again. I finally extracted the heating element and (after considerable consternation) the thermostat. I was still pretty weak. I moved a lot slower than I normally would.
Then, because these things happen, a bit of the sheet metal housing slipped and cut a considerable divot out of my thumb. This is where men and women are different. I was like “damn this is going to slow me up”. Mrs. Curmudgeon was like “he’s lost a fuckin’ finger!”
I administered first aid and assessed the situation. I still had a bit of a cold and now my thumb hurt. I decided I didn’t care about ovens anymore.
The decision tree of “do I go to the ER or not” is a drag. Like most men, I won’t go to the ER if I can possibly find any excuse to avoid it. If I’ve lost at least 50% of my body weight in an explosion or a live crocodile bit off my leg at the knee… I’ll consider it. Even then I’d rather try gauze and tape to patch a missing femur than fill out paperwork at an ER.
I recognize this and I recognize it’s stupid. I do a lot of stuff solo and because of that I’ve “trained” my inner lunkhead to avoid letting my stupid attitude get the best of me. I’ve created heuristics that I’ve beaten into my head. When shit gets serious and the wolves are circling I remind myself to stick with the heuristics.
If I seriously think I might need the ER I’ll go the ER immediately. I’m probably damn near dead! If someone else sees my wound and passes out, that’s another red flag. OK fine I’ll go to the ER. And, most importantly, if Mrs. Curmudgeon wants me to go to the ER I’ll go. I’ll even try to go without complaining.
We’ve been married forever. She’s the love of my life. She has my best interest at heart. Men will childishly bleed out bitching about a $50 insurance co-pay. There’s a time to listen to women.
We found ourselves en route to the ER. Not the medical monopoly at the nearest city. Around the time Obamacare took over, a heartless corporate monolith bought every hospital for miles and subsequently reduced the quality of service until it’s abysmal. It went from “modern well delivered medicine” to “pretty OK for Pakistan” so fast it’ll spin your head. Last time I was there (for a very serious emergency) I asked for pain meds, was given an Rx for pain meds, was billed for pain meds, and suffered needlessly as the pain meds mysteriously vanished (presumably to be sold in a parking lot somewhere). A place that’ll let you suffer to make a few bucks on the street is a place to avoid.
Since my thumb was pretty well taped up I was in no hurry. We drove the opposite direction to a rural ER. I didn’t have a serious injury so there’s no advantage to a city hospital (and many drawbacks)? A small town rural ER can put in a few stitches much faster and easier than the big city ER which will infect me with something exotic while overbilling me.
I checked in. Someone else in the tiny hospital was having a bad day. The staff was busy. I apologized for adding to their burden and said I was more than willing to be patient. I’d brought a book! Then I stretched out on the bed and happily fell deep asleep. Like I said, I’ve been sick lately. I’m low on energy down to the molecular level. Even with the hustle and bustle all around me, I slept like a baby.
In the middle of a long period of waiting I heard some nurses talking.
“No, take that to #1.”
“Then who’s in #2?”
“Some farmer. Probably nicked his finger on barbed wire. Dude’s got zero fucks to give and is taking a nap. He can wait until we’ve got #1 handled.”
Indeed I could. I drifted off again wondering how “sheet metal oven” turned into “barbed wire”. I was pleased they assumed I’m a farmer. I’ll take it as a compliment.
Eventually they got to me. I was patched up in a jiffy with Dermabond. I definitely preferred that to stitches! It worked slick as a mitten. I carry super glue in my first aid kit but I’m thinking of spending $25 a shot for real Dermabond.
There was no avoiding the requisite Tetanus shot. I wasn’t really paying attention. Then I was yoinked back to reality. The fuckin’ shot hurt more than the cut that started all this. I feel like it wiped me out for the rest of the day too!
We went back home to a house without an oven. The next day I crawled all over the infernal thing with my multimeter. I isolated the problem as coming from “that thing there that’s all soldered and shit”.
I’m sure I could go further but I won’t. I’m not going to go overboard trying to rescue a 20 year old bottom of the line appliance. It broke and the fix ain’t obvious. Let it go.
We’ll ride out a bit of time with hot plates and a microwave… it’s really not that big of a deal. Ideally (after we get some ducks in a row) I’ll get Mrs. Curmudgeon a nice gas powered appliance (the delay involves chasing down a LP installation person)*.
That was my weekend. How was yours?
A.C.
*We could replace with electric in a few hours. Gas will take weeks due to retrofitting things. But it’s the plan. Mrs. Curmudgeon watches cooking shows and reads cookbooks. Both things baffle me but to each his or her own. I notice all cooking shows have gas stoves. It’s apparently a thing. We’ve got 220V electric appliances not because they’re superior but because that’s how our shitty house was setup when we bought it. It’s simple to install the next replacement and continue the annoyance (to Mrs. Curmudgeon) of glass topped electric stovetops. This time I want to get her something better. Now is just as convenient as anytime for installing gas. Dropping $600 on a new electric stove in a big rush won’t motivate us to upgrade… ever. I may have to stalk and kidnap an LP technician to get it setup but that’s life. Maybe I’ll finally be able to use my cast iron frying pan in the kitchen too? Who am I kidding? She’ll probably keep chasing me out of the kitchen no matter what gets installed.
Our house didn’t even have a gas meter when we bought it (city house). I’ve always liked cooking on gas way more than electric. It heats faster and you can see the flame and make fine adjustments to get the perfect amount of heat.
Plus when the power goes out, you can still use the burners. They don’t have pilots any more so they need electricity to ignite, but you can always use a match to light the burners.
Anyway, almost a decade ago now, I ran the gas lines under the house from the kitchen to a likely spot in the garage, got it inspected and pressure tested, and had the gas company run a line and put in a meter. It was work, but plumbing gas lines isn’t rocket science.
I used black pipe, but most people now days use PEX, which is dead simple to work with.
Replaced the 1970’s era electric stove with a gas model. That stove was pretty much bulletproof but an oven heating element burned out and the thermostat was getting a bit flaky, which was a good enough excuse to replace it with the gas unit I’d always wanted.
Only running a stove with it, the gas bill is only about 25 bucks a month and most of that is “delivery” and other fees. The gas we use only runs about $7 or $8 a month. I’m not sure how expensive LP gas delivery and tank rental is, but I’d assume it’s comparable to the fees and taxes in getting natural gas piped to the house…and it’s been very affordable for us.
BTW: we don’t buy bread and don’t eat hardly any “prepared” foods. My wife makes pretty much everything from scratch, so we use the stove and particularly the oven a lot more than I think is typical these days.
The plan is to convert the water heater to gas next, but I’m kind of waiting for the old electric one to die first. I’m not the kind of guy who just replaces things because I feel like it. I generally only replace things when they need it.
Anyway, my point is I made the switch from electric to gas stove a while back and I don’t regret it a bit.
I am trying to install a natural gas stove at a small house I own. Shouldn’t be a big problem, but it has turned into one. The problem is I have not been able to find the correct gas fittings. A short flexible gas line, 2 feet long or less, with 2 adaptors to go from pipe thread to flare nut is all that is needed. Apparently nothing is made less than 4 feet long. At least here. So I bought that and today will install such. I hope.
The flex lines come with a fitting that adapts from pipe thread to flare fitting. The big box stores have a rather crappy yellow one that lasts six to eight years, or you can order a stainless Dormont flex connector online that will last the life of the appliance
Just so you can spend more money, the most desirable range is gas for the cook top, and electric for the oven. Highly recommended by “them”.
“f I’ve lost at least 50% of my body weight in an explosion or a live crocodile bit off my leg at the knee… I’ll consider it.”
Consider yourself lucky that you aren’t English. They would say “We’ll have a nice cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit* and then we’ll see to your leg. That’ll be nice, won’t it?” and only after the tea was made, drunk, the weather discussed and several “Mustn’t complain” comments, only then would the medical bit kick in.
My gauge is “have I lost more than half a pint of blood?”. If so, then to the Quacks I go. Anything less is, just like the Black Knight from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, merely a flesh wound.
* The British call cookies biscuits and what Americans call biscuits, the Brits call scones. Two countries divided by a common language, at times.
Phil B
Do you have a natural gas line? If the house came with electric and you are looking at LP, I suspect natural gas is not available. If you are going to use propane, you could just get a propane camping stove and set it up. No technician required.
I’m a long long way from the nearest natural gas pipeline.
I’d love to have a gas stove again, but I already have to fill the propane tank for the central units more often than I like. I can’t afford the extra refills for a stove (and the gas water heater I’d sure as hell put in, as well).
Most new gas appliances come with the orifices for LP in a little bag on the back of the range. Converting an oven was easy, just remove and flip a part, reinstall, then move a shielding piece of metal to close a gap. The stovetop takes a bit more effort but is well within reach of anyone who can read and follow directions.
At the BOL I replaced all the soft copper tube the original owner had already replaced once, with a DIY product that I got at Lowes. It’s a coated corrugated flexible pipe, similar to the yellow flex pipe you use for the final connection. It is sturdier than that flex though. It has it’s own termination system and parts. They aren’t cheap, but there wasn’t anyone besides me available to do the work and I hate black pipe.
The system is supposed to be only installed by pros but they get around that by having the buyer assert they read the training booklet and understand all the calcs involved in sizing. Sign the paper and you’re covered. You run it like pex, off a manifold with valves for the long runs. I did just continue the run from the oven to the cooktop in the kitchen. I added an extra valve for the cooktop, just for convenience.
In Texas, the run from the bottle to the house is recommended to just be buried copper tubing. Or you can run the corrugated stuff in a conduit, or run this yellow plastic stuff (like pex) but there are a lot of details in how you bring the plastic stuff up out of the ground and into the house. It has to transition to something that won’t burn or melt….
On thing I learned the hard way, if you are installing valves at the manifold, you need to stub out from the manifold with pipe first, with different lengths, or the valves will interfere with each other. I’ve got a 6″ nipple, a 4″, a 2″, a “close” nipple, and then back to longer…
All this detail is to say it was straightforward, easy, and I was careful with testing afterward. I’m confident in my work and think it should outlast me. If you are outside of a jurisdiction that has legal requirements for who does the work, you can go the DIY route.
nick
I’d rather avoid it but that’s my new Plan B.
I’d rather avoid it too, but out in the country, as you have mentioned before, getting someone else to do the work to a decent standard can be really difficult.
Around here in Texas, there seems to be one main guy in each special trade that everyone uses by preference. He’s booked up far into the future. Then there’s the alternate guy you call when it’s not a tricky job, he’s the guy that USED to work for the busy guy but said “F you, I can do it on my own.” Sometimes there’s the third guy, who only works when he wants to, but has skills and connections to do a great job. He has to decide to do your job though.
I’ve been lucky to get that third guy for my electrical service, and for my septic system install. I used the second guy for drain cleaning. The first guy was too busy to get to me for a year, but finally did my trees. Since some were against the house it was worth waiting for him.
In the mean time, I did concrete removal, grading, interior electrical, put in pex to replace all the plumbing supply, and did the gas lines. Paint, flooring, drywall repairs and flood remediation were on me and the wife too.
Oh, I forgot about the foundation repair, that was the A team but I had to bring them in from out of town, and I didn’t find them until 4 others bowed out or never called back.
Moral of the story is “If you want a country place, a BOL or rural property, start NOW before you get too old to do all the things.” Even if you have money, there may not be any way to get the work hired out.
nick
(and the rewards are great doing it yourself, knowing it’s right, (or knowing exactly how it’s wrong), and building a legacy and a nest egg, while building your place.)
Last time I got a DTAP shot with my stitches, I lost consciousness for 8 hrs. Started feeling dizzy about 2 hrs after the shot, reached for the nearest chair (adirondack on the front porch), and thought I was going to die. Woke up freezing at 2am, feeling lucky to be alive.
I don’t know what is in that these days, but I’ll take tetanus next time.
I don’t even know what a DTAP is. Is that the “tetanus shot”? My reaction wasn’t that bad but I’m glad I’m set for the next 10 years.
Today’s modern gas appliances, thanks to the feckless twits in California and the Biden regime, are as reliant on electricity to work as an electric stove. Which is a total pain in the ass. Do not assume you’ll be able to cook with gas if the power’s out.
What I’ve found works quite well and is very responsive in cook temperatures are induction cook tops. Only requires having iron or steel bottoms, so old stainless steel pots and pans or cast iron or the new heavy stuff works well.
You can get an electric oven/induction range combo, and you won’t have to have gas of any sorts or deal with those issues.
Induction cookers respond just about as quickly as gas. Waht heat? Just adjust the temp up. Cool off? Turn it down. They respond that quickly.
The stove selection ain’t about me. I’d probably be using charcoal or some primitive shit… or a $10 hot plate. Induction would be fine for me. A Coleman stove on the countertop wouldn’t bother me. But the Mrs. takes cooking seriously and likes cooking shows so I want her to have whatever thing they use.
The only time I really use the appliance hard is when I’m pressure canning and I think anything can handle that. Also, stovetops almost always have 4 burners and I saw several gas tops with 5 or even 6 burners. That seems overkill unless you’re running a pancake factory. How many normal average humans in 2025 have ever had 4 pots going simultaneously?
I bought a house with a rental propane tank on it.
No monthly tank charge, but I had to buy from the tank owner’s company and it was STEEP!
I spent a good chunk of change buying a 1000 gallon tank. But I could buy from any delivery company and the ROI was under 2 years.
The furnace was propane, but all the appliances were electric. I ran propane lines for the stove, water heater and clothes dryer.
It’s not rocket science. Soapy water and a paintbrush will show you leaks.
Or you can pay sumdood to do it.
I’m pretty satisfied with my results.