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A newly discovered HVAC tool. My 1950s wall heater went on the fritz and I called my HVAC guy, “Fast Eddie” and He told me to take a plastic hammer and rap on the generator cuz they sometimes get clogged with soot. So I took my small plastic hammer banged on it gently and sure enough it fired up. A great inexpensive HVAC tool. 🙂 Happy New Year evryone.
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Now take out your squirt gun and clean it up!
*Remember when that same bang on it method would fix a TV? The kind with tubes for those of you who were born yesterday. Joe H
*Reminds me of a story, Many years ago, while working one of those get ya through high school type jobs cooking at a restaurant, there was this waitress who's car wouldn't start one night after work. Being the altruistic type that i am, I attempted to jump start it with my own. I soon determined that it was not the battery that was at fault, it was in fact a faulty starter. I thought it was worth a try to just tap on the starter and see it that would jar anything loose so I climed underneath and whacked it with a wrench. Told her to try it and it started right up! I was feeling pretty heroic until the next time it happened, about a week later same circumstances. I decided it probably would be wise to show her how to do this procedure in case I was not there the next time the starter "siezed up". I didn't think she would be very happy about crawling underneath the car so I looked around on the ground and found about a 3 foot long piece of rebar. I showed her how to stick it down along the side of the engine and "tap" on the starter. This again worked like a charm. I then layed the piece of rebar in the channel where the hood shuts so that it would always be there for her. As far as I know, she drove that car for quite a long time after that just occaisionally having to rap on the starter. It's funny now looking back. The lengths we would go to just because we thought we couldn't afford a $50.00 part.
*I keep a couple of coffee cans of misc. stuff (paperclips, washers, metal and plastic rods, etc.) of which 98% will never get used for anything. That other 2% often proves invaluable.This doesnt count the can of misc. screws, nuts and bolts, and the like.
*Mr. Bowles, Years ago, I had the same starter problem with a '56 VW van. The problem with your story is that it takes two people: one to turn the key while the other simultaneously raps the starter with a stick. [1" X 2" x 3' mahagony]. Furthermore, my rent was $50 so that engraved picture of Warren Harding was something to hang on to. -Peter
*Mark,Great story, must have been a Ford. My dad once bought a '63 T-Bird rag top "for" Mom, worked every time. Our starter "tool" was a ball peen hammer, heheheh.Thanks for the grin and memory.....Dano
*Hammers can fix nearly anything. Had a Chevy w/ electric windows. Driver's window stopped in down position at a toll station in MD - in the rain, of course. Went into available dealer, who told me to whap the inside of the door panel over the window motor and it would start. Thereafter, carried a ball pein hammer in front seat.Don
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A newly discovered HVAC tool. My 1950s wall heater went on the fritz and I called my HVAC guy, "Fast Eddie" and He told me to take a plastic hammer and rap on the generator cuz they sometimes get clogged with soot. So I took my small plastic hammer banged on it gently and sure enough it fired up. A great inexpensive HVAC tool. :) Happy New Year evryone.