Our New High Tech Door, Worth The Money

When we renovated our kitchen last summer, we also decided to change the door going to the mirpeset, balcony/terrace.

It was wood with a glass window, and after over thirty years being exposed to the worst of the wind, rain and strong sun, the time had come to replace it. Draughts and rain snuck through, and if I tried to clean the window panes, it was clear that they were very loose.

A few years ago, when I had first been concerned that the lower section was about to separate forever, my son-in-law insisted he could fix/replace that part. That repair didn't solve all the problems, just one. But when the door became so warped that the lock mechanism was misaligned, and keys broke, I lost all patience with it.

The time had arrived to get a new door, something that would upgrade our home. My daughter highly recommended in internal blind, inside the double panes of special insulating glass. Considering how much we were spending on the kitchen, I didn't think it was wise to go "cheap" on the door.

For years I'd been drooling over a door of new, modern materials, neither wood nor aluminum. I wanted top notch insulation. It has always been important to me. I had planned and built the house according to the principles of passive solar heating, and it is as well insulated as was possible to build at that time.

Basically, we had a choice between ordering from an American company via a friend of ours, who is their agent here, or buying from a more local company headquartered in nearby Sha'ar Binyamin. And we know the owners of that company, also. The deciding point was that the American company didn't have a possibility for internal blinds. So, I called Chaim Briskin of Hi-Tech Windows in Sha'ar Binyamin, 02-656-5575, email info@pvcwindows.co.il.

I chose what I wanted when visiting their showroom factory, and then later on, they came to my house to measure and take a look at the doorway. Not only did we get a door with a large glass window that has the inner blinds, but we also ordered a simple screen door. By having a screen door, we figured that we can save money in the summer, especially in the evenings, by being able to keep the door open and the screen closed. That way we wouldn't need to use the airconditioner for cooling all that much.


Since the door didn't arrive until the weather had cooled, we can't say how much it will help in the summer. But we're overjoyed at how the door is increasing our winter quality of life. No longer are we suffering from the cold draughts that had plagued our dining area.

It's also a great savings in heating costs. The heater goes off frequently, since heat isn't being lost. During the previous winter, the heater never seemed to go off.

When we built the house, custom designed and built, we ordered double windows. The inner window frames are wood, and the outer ones are aluminum. The planning was rather primitive by today's standards, but despite the numerous imperfections cold stays out.

I firmly believe that it's worth investing in the best possible insulated doors and windows, and today you can get top notch doors and windows from Hi-Tech Windows. I recommend them for all of your window and door needs. You'll save on heating and cooling, especially if you don't skimp on screens. They work all over the country, not just around here.

AC Care Tips for Dummies Like Us

I still have no doubt that we're among the very last in Israel's cold mountainous region to have gone modern and gotten an airconditioner for heating. Since we never replace anything while they still function, even poorly, it took us a pretty long time to make the splurge. This is the first full winter we've had it.

On the whole I really love heating the livingroom, plus kitchen and dining area with this airconditioner. The big bonus is that I can set up the folding clothes driers and get the clothes perfectly dry, too.

We hardly used it in the summer for cooling. One reason is that the heat doesn't bother me all that much, and the other is that we renovated the kitchen and had the fridge plugged into that socket, while the work was done.

We've tried to remember to clean the filters, though it's hard to know just how often...

A few weeks ago, I began to notice that periodically the AC would stop, and the little screen would say "HI." After it didn't go back on, within what I considered soon enough, I did an "experiment." I pulled out the plug and then after a couple of minutes, plugged it in and it worked. Then that happened on Shabbat when it's forbidden to play with the plug. So, I waited and eventually it went back on.

So, on the other day, in the midst of the cold stormy weather, when my husband reported that it had stopped and showed "HI," I told him not to worry, even though the AC had been making lots of noise, sounding like a hovering helicopter. Then he reported that only cold air was coming out. So I told him to pull the plug, and he turned it off. A bit later, we cleaned the filter. It was the filthiest I had ever found it. Actually, for the first time it really looked like it needed a cleaning. But I was afraid to turn the AC back on.

The following morning, since we had paid for extra  service, I called Tadiran and told the woman who answered about what had transpired.

"Did you clean the filter?"
"Yes, we just did."
"So, turn it on."
"Really? I had been afraid to."
"No need to be afraid. Tell me if it heats up. It may take a few minutes. And don't worry about the HI. It just means that the AC is defrosting itself."

That's it, thank Gd. Now I know two new things about our AC.

1. HI means the air-conditioner's defrosting, so allow it to continue.
2. If the motor begins making a lot of noise, turn it off and clean the filter.

I hope that helps others. I'd hate to think that we're the dumbest of all.

Enjoying The AC/Heater

It's almost a year since we got a couple of AC/Heaters installed in the house. We're about the very last people to get them. One big advantage is that they aren't on the floor. Another is that they both heat and cool, although we rarely need them in the summer, especially the one in the bedroom. 

Unlike previous years, our house is rarely cold. I haven't let it get to that super-freezing state which made me suffer terribly. As long as there's electricity, bli eyin haraa, I can turn the AC/Heater on. It has a thermostat, of course, which keeps the temperature even and turns it "off" when necessary. Most of the house is now much warmer than it had ever been in the winter because of the AC/Heater. I still have a small heater going on in the den.

As you can see in the photo, I can also hang laundry in the living room on rainy days or overnight. It dries pretty quickly. Yes, I understand that's a sign of very dry air. We drink water, besides coffee. 

I'm very happy we finally have the AC/Heater. Better late than never. Life has sure changed, thank Gd.

Heater/Cooler Update

The other day I posted that I feared we bought "a lemon" concerning our new airconditioner/heater. Twice I've had to call for repairs within months. So the technician came yet again and said that the actual machine is great, but the crew that installed it made mistakes. Apparently there have been major leaks with the "gas."

So, the technician told me that he'd "reinstall it," whatever that meant. OK, I didn't have to do anything at all. He didn't even want to cup of coffee or glass of water. I didn't bother him. It's not one of my fields of interest. And as I've written before, we're probably one of the last people in Israel to buy one of these machines that both heat and cool. 

I just hope and pray that the two I bought will work without more than the routine care, cleaning the filter. That we did learn how to do. My husband climbs up to remove it, and I do the "cleaning."

Modernizing can be rather complicated, but our house is now so much more comfortable, thank Gd, bli eyin haraa-don't tempt the evil eye.

Airconditioner Blues, Did We Get A "Lemon?"

It wasn't that long ago when I, in the voice of Baile Rochel, joyfully reported that we had gone modern and gotten those air-conditioner/heaters.

I just hope that ours isn't a "lemon." A few months ago we had it serviced, since water was coming down onto the couch. And now I called the agent I had used to complain that it's not heating up.

Grrr... I'm not a happy camper. Bli eyin haraa, the smaller bedroom one is doing its job. I started turning it on for an hour or so before going to bed, so the room will heat up a bit. I hardly used it in the summer, since my bedroom is pretty cool and shaded, especially since the neighbors put up an industrial kitchen next door that blocks the sun.

Winter has arrived, thank Gd, and the rest of the house needs to be heated. So, I'm waiting to hear from the guy who has promised to "take care of it."

Report on the New Heater/Cooler Airconditioner

• I absolutely adore the new feel of the house.
• I love coming in on a cold day and actually feeling warmer inside than I had been outside all bundled up. 
• It's so nice that our rather small living-room and even smaller bedroom no longer has to be cluttered by a radiator.

Everyone keeps asking:

"Aren't you sorry you didn't get them ten (or more) years ago?"

Well, in all honesty, maybe not ten or more years ago, but certainly five or so when prices began to drop drastically. I remember that the earlier ones, which we would have certainly been replaced a couple of times by now, weren't a fraction as good as today's standard models. It's sort of like the "advantage" of a baby walking a bit "late" and saving her/his parents money on shoes, since those early walkers need more pairs of the more expensive ones.

Today's models also have better motors and thermostats, so they go off a lot, and the house stays comfortable.

Our neighbors had a very early model, and everytime it went on our lights dimmed, because the neighborhood electricity supply was connected and insufficient. I'm not the type to keep berating myself for something in the past that can't be reversed. Let's just enjoy what we have today.