So while on hold, I decided to contact Burlington Telecom to establish service with them. My phone currently on hold with Comcast, I emailed BTV Telelcom. Their “Contact Us” links don’t work properly. I either land on a 404 page or, after filling in a form get the message “You must enable referrer logging to use the form.”
What the hell does that mean?

I’d really like to see Burlington Telecom survive, certainly don’t want to see it bought by Comcast. I hope the state, or another local provider like Sovernet call step in if Burlingotn Telecom cannot themselves get out of the mess they are now in. They have lost many subscribers to Comcast recently. However, what with their phone and now email systems, they do not make it easy to become a subscriber.

Come on Burlington Telecom, get your act together.

It was loud, but the pressure assisted toilet worked great. It flushed everything you gave it and roared for more. And it kept itself clean. My Toto Ultramax doesn’t do the job when it comes to cleaning. While it removes solid waste like nobody’s business, it leaves crud at and above the waterline. Until I bought this toilet, I hadn’t considered what other functions a toilet needs to do. I now realize that a toilet needs also  remove all liquid and keep itself clean. The Ultramax has trouble with both of these tasks and as a result, I’m now cleaning my toilet several times a week.

The  big problem is the the low waterline.  Anything on the bowl above the water line just doesn’t get flushed. The Ultramax also doesn’t remove all liquid in a flush so you get staining at the waterline. Only a few days after cleaning the bowl, staining will show at the waterline and crud will accumulate above the water line. I don’t want a toilet that can keeps toilet water cleaner than the toilet bowl.

And the Ultramax toilet is not that much quieter than my other toilet.

The one-piece design reminds me of Europe (by way of reminding me of European toilets, that is. I don’t by any means wish to imply that Europe is like a huge, dirty toilet), and the soft-close seat makes closing the toilet seat fun. You didn’t think one could have fun closing a toilet seat, did you?  But these are not reasons to buy a toilet and this  toilet is expensive. I recommend you buy a cheaper toilet, and treat yourself to a weekend in Montreal for that fun, European (without the “you’re a-peein’”) feel the Ultamax can give you..

A good friend has a  different model Toto toilet–a two piece design. It seems to work better than mine on all points (except the quiet toilet seat). If you need to buy a Toto, buy a two piece model.

I signed up first with Comcast. I had called Burlington Telecom on Wednesday during business hours to order service but was answered by a recorded message requesting that I call back during office hours. They listed the office hours and in so doing, confirmed that I was indeed calling during office hours. These humble beginnings did not bode well for Burlington Telecom. I left a message and called Comcast.

Comcast was open, did answer, and I was able to speak to a live person without too much hassle. I asked if they had a free trial period. Yes they do. I asked if the free trial covered the installation fee. Yes it does. I asked how soon they could establish service. The answer to that was less direct. I’d have to sign up before they could determine a service date. After supplying my name, and phone, and address, I  learned I needed to give Comcast my social security number to sign up over the phone. That wasn’t going to happen. Establishing service via phone was a bust with both service providers.

One point to Comcast for offering a free trial period. One point to Burlington Telecom  for making the failure to sign-up for Internet service via the phone quick and easy.

I established service with Comcast the following day at their S. Burlington office–no social security number needed with a picture ID. (Burlington Telecom returned my call as  I was driving to Comcast. The customer service representative was quite apologetic.  I learned the Burlington Telecom does not offer a free trial period.) Comcast sent out  a tech to connect the service the following morning. The tech was helpful and friendly. I chose the self-install set-up and already own a cable modem so the tech’s roll was limited to making the connection at the pole.

The rest of the Comcast set-up was not as friendly. Comcast just doesn’t let you  logon to the Internet. You first need to install a bunch of unnecessary bloatware onto your computer and initialize an account using the account number on your bill. I just established service, I had no bill. Consequently, I needed to call Comcast for my account number.

I read their Terms of Service. While they do require 30 days notice to change the service terms, they reserve the right to change the End-user license agreement at any time without notification of any kind. They suggest going to their website often and checking for changes. Not a user-friendly way of doing business. 

The next step involved installing software. The requirement that Comcast install  software onto my computer is, I feel, a needless compromise of my privacy.  But it got worse, after installing and retarting my computer, I found that Comcast chose to update my Internet Explorer homepage to their website without my permission. This  is a serious misuse of their services. No company should be making any changes to any item on my computer without my permission.

I’ll test out the Comcast speed, advertised at 6 mps download later this week. But their modifying me IE settings is a deal breaker. I don’t think I’ll continue with their service. Hopefully Burlington Telecom has a less intrusive procedure for establishing service.

A year later I bought a second for the bathroom on the second floor next to the bedrooms and realized how loud they are. I hadn’t really noticed in the first floor bathroom, but yes–loud. The kind of loud you don’t want to hear when you’re half asleep.

14 years later the Sloan air tank on the Gerber Ultra Flush toilet has developed a leak, a small hole on the top of the plastic tank. How, I don’t know. Why, after all this time, I don’t know. It appears, based on my conversation with customer service at Sloan, that leaks are not uncommon. The tank is made of what looks like high density pvc plastic. It doesn’t look like it should develop leaks.

Needless to say the warranty on the Sloan tank has expired. I need a new tank. They cost as much as some of the new toilets, toilets that Consumer Reports give high marks to. So I am buying a new toilet. I generally hate to waste things, and  I don’t like the idea of buying a new toilet when I could repair my current toilet. I like even less the idea of replacing a part that will cost around $100 that has a life of 14 years (Sloan recommend retail price for the tank is $96. My two local plumbing supply houses wanted $130 and $155. I can get it online for $90 plus shipping.) Toilets should last longer, much longer, than 14 years. Now that I’ve had the opportunity to see the full life-cycle of a Gerber Ultra Flush toilet with a Sloan tank, I no longer am starry eyed whenever I flush the toilet. But, then, air travel is not the fun it once was either. I cannot recommend anyone buying a Gerber Ultra Flush toilet with a Sloan tank unless they are ready to purchase a toilet with a low life expectancy. “Flush hard, die young” is not the motto I want for my toilet.

I’ve already replaced the toilet on my second floor with a gravity flush, one piece Toto toilet. I wanted to remain half-asleep when flushing my toilet in the middle of the night.  It is relatively quiet, and does the job in one flush. It works. It should. It cost almost $600. It was a hard purchase when I could have bought a Home Depot toilet for $150, but there are some things I just don’t want to be bothered worrying about; toilets are one of them.

I read in a recent Consumer Reports that there are quite a few new gravity flush toilets that are dependable, quiet, and inexpensive. I’m ready to give one a try. I’ll let you know how it works out in about 14 years.