LESLIE: Alright, now we’re going to head over to Indiana and chat with Cassandra about a pilot light that keeps going out. Tell us about the situation.
CASSANDRA: Yes, hello. We have a manufactured home and we’ve only been in here about 11 months but every time the wind gets really strong it blows out our pilot light on our water heater.
TOM: Oh, that’s annoying.
CASSANDRA: And my husband goes to work and then I’m here all day with no hot water because I don’t know how to turn it back on.
TOM: (chuckling) OK.
CASSANDRA: (chuckles) And we were wondering if there’s a way we can just prevent that from happening.
TOM: OK. Well, perhaps some water heater pilot-lighting training is in order for you (Cassandra chuckles) so at least you can have the warm water without waiting for your husband. But I suspect what’s happening here, Cassandra, is that the pilot light is weak. Might be dirty, it might be obstructed and it’s not strong enough; so that’s why when you get a little bit of wind down in the vent pipe it blows out. So I think that this can be corrected with some service of that pilot line.
CASSANDRA: OK. And we would just need a new pilot line? Who would we call for that? Do you …?
TOM: The next time you’re going to have your heating system serviced, I would have them replace the pilot line at the same time.
CASSANDRA: OK.
TOM: Alright? Shouldn’t be very expensive.
CASSANDRA: OK, wonderful. Thank you so much.
TOM: You’re welcome. Cassandra, thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. And get your husband to show you how to light that pilot, will you? (Leslie chuckles) Not that hard.
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