Sep 15 2010

Cold Showers And Radiators

Category: PersonalChrisM @ 10:26 pm

Irina discovered why we still have no hot water in our flat. Unlike the lack of heating (which would not normally be on yet anyway), the blocks of flats in our area should be getting it turned back on sometime. We do have jumpers a plenty in the cupboard, and we can always borrow the electric fire from Irina’s parents. For a while now we were supposed to be connected to Astana’s city-wide central heating pipes, which would have meant cheaper bills and hopefully less days or weeks with no heating. However this never happened, and now we are looking at another winter where the company that is supposed to supply hot water (for heating, and a separate supply for the taps) will not be. There is talk of a compromise where we will pay the rates that people who are connected to the city-wide system pay, and someone will pay the extra to our company. However, just to add to the mix, we currently have no hot water coming from our taps, as they have run out of diesel to power the big boilers. They can’t buy any more because their bank account has been frozen (make your own pun here) due to some sort of tax issue.
We already had a hot water boiler fitted in our flat, so we have turned a few valves, flicked switches and turned a dial so that the bathroom has hot water. However, for some reason that hot water supply is totally independent of the kitchen hot water supply (separate meters etc.), so washing up requires filling up from the sink in the bathroom. It isn’t too cold yet, and living at the top of our block of flats, when it gets cold, (some of) everybody else’s heat will escape from their flats up into ours, so it should be fine.

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