Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Hail hail the gang's all here




Just as I walked back into the stall where Hank and his herd were waiting out the storm, 
lightning struck the ground somewhere in the vicinity of the front gate. 
We all jumped pretty high. Torn between wanting to run for their lives and not wanting to be
 pummeled by hail, the herd elected to stampede in place. It was tense but nobody got hurt.

I hadn't seen any flames or sparks, so I was pretty sure the lightning hadn't hit the power pole 
or the electric lines. But the second I walked into the house, I wasn't so sure ... 
I smelled fried wiring. I went from room to room, trying to identify the source of the smell. 
The power was still on and most things electrical still worked...how bad could it be? 
What I couldn't figure out was why the electricity worked in some rooms and not others. 
Then I remembered my dad talking about GFI outlets – maybe I should check those? 
Sure enough, they had all tripped and needed to be reset.

So now we're about an hour post-lightning strike. Everything works except 
the garage door opener, the washer, the dryer, and three outlets in the kitchen. 
And I still smelled fried wiring. But there wasn't any smoke...how bad could it be?

It was a tense weekend, waiting for the fried wiring smell to get worse or go away. 
I'm happy to report it went away. Based on where the smell was the strongest, I'm guessing 
it's related to the three outlets that aren't working. The electrician who wired the house originally 
is coming out later in the week to investigate.

Professor Google told me that garage door openers are usually the first things to fry 
in a "proximity lightning strike," and the Genie man confirmed that when I called him on Monday. 
A new circuit board is on its way.

The appliance repairman will be here Wednesday to diagnose the washer and dryer. 
I've got enough clean underwear to get me through the week. Not a problem.

I filed a claim with my insurance company – with any luck, all of these repair bills
will be covered. Even if they're not, I consider myself lucky. 
Nobody got hurt, the house is still standing, and best of all – it rained!










22 comments:

  1. I'm happy to read all is well at the 7MSN. Phew, close call!

    I absolutely love your blog!

    ReplyDelete
  2. No camera??? Aaaarrgh! I wanted to see what stampeding in place looks like! Enormously glad you are all ok, house & wiring included. Scary experience for everyone. Hugs to all!

    ReplyDelete
  3. So glad everyone is OK! We see spring house fires in our area from just that issue. After two fried garage door openers of our own, we put a surge protector on that outlet now ...and it is a GFI. For a little place we have in Kentucky, the power company put a surge protector on the house at the meter. Might be worth checking with your power company to see if they offer anything like that. Lisa G in TN

    ReplyDelete
  4. wow on the sound of that hail... so glad you are all safe and that it was part of your electric and not all..

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yikes! New Mexico lightning is a terror to behold. Aunt Jean

    ReplyDelete
  6. Lightning is scary stuff. So glad everybody is ok.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Holy shit...sorry. So glad everyone is okay, poor kids.
    2nd most important...enough undies

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wow! Scary! I'm glad you're all ok and the house didn't catch fire.

    ReplyDelete
  9. How scary! Electrical fires are so sneaky, smolder for hours. I'm sure that's what had you worried. I'm glad everyone was okay and that the original wiring guy is coming out.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ahhh! The sound of hail on a metal roof, brings back memories. Very glad everyone (and the house) is ok.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Glad everyone okay. If you don't already have them, you might want to have lighting rods installed on your house and barn.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm glad you were with the herd when the hail came. I'm sure they would have been in more of a panic if you weren't there. And you would have been in somewhat of a panic worrying about them if you were in the house. Good luck with the electrical issues. We rely so much on electricity; we aren't able to do much of anything without it. I hope your fried wires can be replaced easily and no more damage is found.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Sounds like you might think about a lightening rod to avert this kind of thing happening again.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I am glad everything is fine.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I'm sorry you have this to blog about. I bet it was a very scary (sleepless) few days waiting for the smell to disappear. Dang lightning has an entire desert and it chooses your house. Take care and good luck.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Holy crap! That makes for an entertaining afternoon. One everyone could have done without. Glad it wasn't worse.

    ReplyDelete
  17. that was a hell of a day! hope these guys will fix everything and you can then catch on sleep and peace. I guess/hope Johnny and the hens were safe and dry

    ReplyDelete
  18. I would have to be sedated....if I had to go through something like that. I am not a lightening kind of gal....and then to wonder if all the wiring was going to fry up the entire house. Uggh. Where do you keep the box of wine?
    Glad everyone is okay!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Happy to hear everyone and house and barns are safe except for some electrical repairs, but I cannot stop laughing over the phrase (and mental image) "stampede in place." (I'm sure it was NOT funny.)

    ReplyDelete
  20. I'm glad that all fine. And that you have enought clean underwear :) Our house is last of electric lines and thunder can be very scary. Sometimes blue fire came out of electrical socket. Checking home after thunder is always frightening, especially if you smell something burning.

    ReplyDelete
  21. An American in Tokyo5/6/15, 7:36 PM

    Glad to hear that you and everyone is safe!! That's the most important thing!! =)

    ReplyDelete