Back in Ohio, my hot water heater was a large cylindrical tank that took up a closet in the hallway. Here in Mexico, my apartment's hot water heater, often referred to as "el boiler" is smaller and hangs on the wall of the laundry room.
The pilot light on my heater in Ohio was always on. In Mexico, the flame would be ignited only when I turned on the hot water in one of the sinks or showers.
A couple weeks ago we noticed that the "boiler" was dripping water... not much, just a very slow drip. We put a plastic container under it to catch the water until we could contact a plumber. I had the phone number of a plumber that had done a repair quite a few years ago when I was still renting the apartment. I searched and searched but I could not find the number. Last Wednesday I finally asked the doorman if he knew a plumber that he could recommend. He did, and he contacted him. The plumber was scheduled to come on Friday.
Wednesday evening, while I was washing dishes, I noticed that there was no hot water. I kept the water running and went to the laundry room. There was no flame. The "boiler" appeared to be dead.
The weather continues to be quite chilly here, and I was not about to take a cold shower. So for the following days I heated a large bowl of water in the microwave and washed myself a bit.
Alejandro was hopeful that the water heater could be repaired. (It is a typical Mexican attitude, and not a bad one, that it is better to repair something if possible, rather than buying new.) However, the "boiler" was seventeen years old, and I was of the opinion that we should buy a new one. When the plumber arrived on Friday, he looked at the water heater, and he said that they do not make parts for that model any more.
He asked me how many bathrooms are in the apartment. I said two. He asked if we usually use both showers at the same time, and I said no. In that case, he said that a smaller "boiler" would be appropriate. He would go out and buy one and the necessary materials that day, and he would return on the next day to install it.
He arrived promptly on Saturday. Even though he was here for two or three hours, his labor charge was only 800 pesos, the equivalent of $45 U.S.!
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