i hate getting ripped off

my furnace went out on friday. it's february in minnesota. brrr.

i thought it may be the thermocouple, so i went to white bear heating and cooling, where i had purchased a thermocouple before. the door was locked. it was lunchtime. i called the number on the van, and voice mail said they were closed until monday. damn. i went to ace hardware, found the part, replaced it, relit the pilot. goody.

a few hours later, the furnace went out again.

repeat this over the weekend so i don't have to pay a ton of money for an emergency service call.

monday morning comes, i call wbh&c. someone comes out and cleans stuff out. the furnace is now again working. cost: $155.00

overnight, the furnace went out again.

this morning i call wbh&c again. this time the guy replaces the gas valve. the furnace works. currently, anyway. cost: $50 for time, no trip charge, and $265 for part #36C03-300, for a total of $315.00.

$265 seemed high. so looked up on the internet, and found the "list price" to be $82.80, and found it to be on sale for $69.

f*ckers.