Oh Linnell I am so sorry...such an unwelcome surprise. I feel your pain, went in for a routine dental cleaning came out with $3500 estimate to replace old crowns and it can't wait....sad. I am so sorry about the furnace. I was afraid to tell DH ..like you said this too shall pass. (((Hugs)))

Ouch!
My DH was worried that we wouldn't have enough $$ for a new furnace as the kitchen is over budget(what else is new).
I put him on a strict budget a couple months ago and then handed him a check for $5000. He looked puzzled - I said it is for the new furnace. Then asked - where did it come from - and responded that is what we saved through our budget process. Now he is happy and not bugging me about the kitchen. As long as he has a spot for his coffee pot - I can do almost anything to the kitchen.

Oh, I've been there. Feels like spending $4,000 on utilitarian underwear... You need it, but it's not fun, and it's not a 'seeable' purchase. But heat is nice.

gr8day, I've been there with new crowns needing to be replaced. Sorry you're going through it. It's one of the reasons I visit the dentist 3 times a year instead of 2. (((hugs))) to you too.

a2gemini, not only a new furnace, but you come away looking like a rock star. Way to go!!!

rhome410, exactly. Granny underwear that I can't even show off. At least a digital thermostat with a blue light. Really living large.

I hear 'ya! [pointing finger in the air]
2 years ago I had a year of unexpected expense trauma:
some gasket thing blue in the washer and it never stopped draining and putting rust on my clothes.
my freezer quit and I lost a minimum of $500's worth of frozen food stock.
I discovered a crappy plumbing job by my STBX left me with 6 leaks in the crawlspace.
Discovered my barn was listing hard due to water and termites. Major, major termites.
The same day the guy came for the estimate to fumigate the barn, as he left, termites swarmed in my house mudroom.
Discovered the tin barn roof was leaking & had to be replaced.

Ironically, rebuilding the barn was almost the least expensive!

This year? Just as I was getting the $$ together to finish the siding on my house (the back is bare plywood) my truck needs $2K of work.

I think we all need to remember the blessing that somehow, thru careful planning, good budgeting, or just blessings, we've had the means or wherewithal to pay for these crazy things. And I do mean blessings, being a yoga teacher and waitress! :)

We all have those times, though, don't we? Now, linelle, you can get a really energy efficient heater and save yourself some $$.

Okey doke.

Christine, that's a heap of unexpected expense trauma. Puts my new heater into perspective. And yes, not only is it more energy efficient, but I won't have to mod the filters (total PITA) and scare myself every time I had to go into contortions to replace them. So, small mercies.

When I got up this morning and found I had no heat AGAIN, I got my coffee and went to the computer to research new heaters and new companies. Oh, but wait, this morning was also the time for a bad port on a single DSL aggregation router in my provider's system. No heater and no internet. FML. Fortunately I found a phone book and let my fingers do the walking. Sometimes old school is the only way to go.

And you're quite right, thanks to budgeting and keeping a rainy day fund, I can pay for this.

We are in the first home we've ever owned, and this thread made me want to ask-- how do you know when you're likely to have to redo your roof? I think they're even scarier than furnaces.

waterdamage, don't have that answer for you. My guess is when you find a leak or someone outside says, OMG your roof's about to fail! A modest segment of my monthly budget goes into an account just for this type of thing: new heater, new roof. I know a new roof costs a lot more than a new heater.

I'd tend to say you need a new roof when you notice dampness around the ceiling, drips down the drywall, the ceiling bowing, or you can visibly see the shingles flying off the roof.

Since those are my only experiences? I have no idea.

linelle? Please don't ever let the words "what's next!?!" cross your lips. God always has "what's next" in the works.

waterdamage - I knew we needed a new roof when I was packing to go to the Boston marathon and realized the water on the carpet wasn't the water I was drinking! Yelled to my DH, we have a problem and bring and awl. Poked some holes and left town!
My DH got even and asked me to pick out the color of the roof from Boston while he dealt with hiring the roofer from home!
Gr8day and Linelle - yup those teeth cost a fortune. In the middle of a tooth implant and insurance covers squat!
And on top of the kitchen remodel.

a2gemini, a tooth implant! Tell us how that goes.

The furnace guy offered to demo the new thermostat yesterday. Me, being a know-it-all who could program any VCR with my eyes closed, said no thanks, I'll be fine. I futzed around with it and this morning all I got was unheated air blowing through my house, The thermostat is diabolical and the manual that came with it is useless. Of course, it's Saturday and the heating store is closed and no way was I going to call it an emergency. Fortunately, I located a better manual online and discovered I wasn't holding the Menu button long enough to enter the secret garden of the codes. I started setting everything back to its default setting and suddenly the air changed from Arctic to Saharan. I *still* want to get in there and futz around, but I'm forcing myself to not touch it till Monday.

Oh linelle

Totally bummer. The last thing you need in the middle
of a reno.

I however do not have your talents in programming. If DH
is out of town I have no idea how to turn on the heat. I
have been known to take tv controllers and crush them
with frustration. Thank the heavens for Teenagers who
know how to turn stuff on for me.

My kids say I am techno-Amish. (no offense to anyone amish)
~boxer

My sympathies. We did a semi-prophylactic HVAC replacement last summer (one reason the kitchen is still waiting). Our system wasn't as old as yours, but it was getting up there and the writing was on the wall, so I hope that is one less surprise to hit us once we do start the kitchen. I expect there will still be something, though.

p.s. I haven't even tried to mess with the new thermostat. haha. It blows out cold air in the summer and warm in the winter, so I am content.

I don't have A/C. I'm one of those people who is cold all the time and enjoys the heat of summer. Since I was getting a new heater, I figured, maybe I should add A/C, just to be all grown up. It would have been twice the cost of the heater alone, so I didn't spend any time dithering over my answer. Just give me a ceiling fan, a movable floor fan, and a cold beer, and I'll be fine.

Yesterday I had one set of guys installing a new furnace in the garage, and another set trying to figure out which cabinet door went where and would the hinges they had work (no, they needed different ones, of course). When the door installer put the wrong panel next to two of the right ones, he said, "Well, that looks funky!" I turned to both of them, including my GC, and said, "This is MY kitchen. I don't want to hear you calling it funky. Keep it to yourself." Grrrrr.

Linelle - tooth out, implant in and now have to wait 2 more months for the bone to heal before the crown is installed. I think it is a racket -
Pay to remove the tooth
Pay for the implant and then
Pay for the crown!
As far as programing the controllers - I make my DH do that - not that I can't, but he doesn't cook - only orders pizza!
The trick is that I have to give him input or the house is freezing year round! Fortunately, the temp over ride cures my problems!
PS - Posted our kitchen plans yesterday (very creative name - Our kitchen) if you want to see what we are planning. Also posted in the lighting forum on lighting issues - again creative name - Kitchen lighting!
Take care and let us know your final outcomes!

Ouch, Linelle. It just doesn't seem to matter how long you wait, or how well you plan...something will jump up and bite you. For us, it was realizing recently that what DH refers to as a bit of dampness in the basement... actually water on a ledge/dirt floor... was going to need some heavy-duty attention NOW. So this week, we're having the whole thing cleaned out, leveled, bigger sump and then wrapped across floors and up the walls. All for the tidy sum of $8500:-(

I absolutely refused to put off the kitchen one more time... demo starts in three weeks... so we've just had to really dig deep AND remove a warming drawer and new DW from the plan.

Oh and implants?? Got such a bad infection from step one last fall, the dentist wouldn't even consider step two until after six months. Ugh.

So here's to all of you facing whatever comes with a few tears, a shrug... and a bottle of wine!

kay161, your ouch is more painful than mine! I agree, you just have to cut your losses, make adjustments and do what you can.

Today I was telling a friend about my busted heater *plus* no internet. She asked me if I cried. I didn't. I was too cold and too pi$$ed to cry. And besides, nobody was there to go, there, there, poor baby. Tears work magic sometimes, but I needed my wits about me.

Kay
Yup, the superbugs are nasty!!!
So far, staying clean, so hope to get final stage with crown in 2 months.
In any case, comes from a different pot of $$, so the kitchen goes forward!!
My friends were heckling me that we couldn't afford to go on a bike trip cause of budget - they thought we should go on the trip and delay the kitchen.
Different budgets, different pots of dollars - Go forward with the kitchen :-)