In 1976, while attending an American Legion Convention at the Bellevue Stratford Hotel, 211 people became ill and 34 of them died from what was thought to be a previously unknown type of bacterial pneumonia. 

This past week, I experienced my first virtual doctor’s visit. First time for everything, right? 

My dear, sweet 95-year-old mother-in-law fell and cracked several vertebrae last year. A few days later, she was having extreme pain and her doctor told us we should take her to the ER at one of our two local hospitals. 

I was intrigued by a post on Facebook from Jason Barrett. 

Let’s turn back the hands of time to the 1970s, and gather round you youngsters born after 1980 because you’re not going to believe what mechanical contractors faced while fighting to keep their vehicles gassed up and on the road to service customer’s needs. 

Suppose I was to tell you there exists a tankless water heater you could install on the hardest of hard water that would never, ever have to be descaled and that its heat exchanger’s water pathways would look almost as clean as the day it was born. 

"All I ever do is staple-up."

That was my friend and competitor’s response after he asked me to determine why a recent radiant heating installation was not working satisfactorily because the owners were ticked off. 

Forty-eight years ago, I learned a valuable lesson as a plumbing apprentice.

For you younger tradesfolk who have entered into a mechanical career within the past 20 years, you may never have encountered PB (polybutylene) tubing and fittings.