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Sh!t.
We've been working so hard the past 3 years to be in a good, comfortable place financially before having kids. We've done great. We've been paying down debt aggressively and were meeting or exceeding all of our goals.
But our boiler just broke. It's only 8 years old. First order of magnitude guess out of the guy was $8k. 
I wish we didn't buy a new fridge this year. I wish we didn't just replace the porch decking, even though it needed to be done. I wish we didn't just finish paying off DH's truck years early. I wish we hadn't been paying extra to the principle of the mortgage. I was feeling SO good about things, and now... I will be very nervous until I get back to work after maternity leave and we get our tax refund. We should still have enough money for everything, and we might end up having financing options for the boiler... but now we will be cutting it close instead of sitting on thousands of dollars of cushion. And I have regrets now instead of successes.
Sorry, just had to vent.
Re: Sh!t.
Oh, I'm so sorry. It's awful when things break like that. If you need the # of a good HVAC guy, I highly recommend mine. We just replaced our boiler last year.
Mike LaChance, LaChance HVAC -- http://lachancehvac.com/
"It's not a sprint, it's a marathon." - Alex & Ani bracelet
My blog: Dodging Acorns
Thanks, ladies. Feeling better about it today. After all, this is the reason we have money in savings. It will definitely change how we spend in the next year or so, but I know we will be ok. Thanks again for letting me vent... it helped to let it out.
And Alicia, I'll give that info to DH. He's been handling getting quotes since he's more familiar with the system and what has been replaced recently.
It shouldn't be breaking, but unfortunately the company (Burnham) outsourced casting of the blocks in our model and 1 other model of boilers. They are cracking much sooner than they should, and Burnham has since brought casting back in-house to prevent the issue. DH did some more digging and we might get a rebate or % off if we buy another Burnham unit, so there is some hope there.
And, the first official estimate is in and it's on the order of $5k and not 8. Still not a pretty number, but it makes me less queasy.
We also have a Burnham boiler. After we bought the house DH found out that the firebox was cracked but still functioning. He actually just replaced the firebox himself for about $200. I don't know if this is the same problem you are having but if so I think it was an easy fix. Not sure how handy your DH is but mine was able to do all the work himself. Let me know if you need anymore info. I know for us, replacing the whole boiler was a huge expense(like you said 5-8k) and this was a much cheaper option that will hopefully get us another 3-5 years out of the boiler.
Good Luck!!!
Do you know if the guy doing yours does oil in addition to gas? DH is having a hard time finding HVAC people that do oil burners. (Feel free to PM me his info and we can check ourselves, too - just wondering if you happened to know already).
Right now we're not sure what part is leaking - our oil company just immediately said replace the whole thing. DH did more research and it could be 1 of 2 chambers, or a leak in the connection between them, so we need to figure that out to know if a repair is possible at all. We've got another guy coming tonight to look at it. It's encouraging that your DH replaced the firebox, though!
My DH is really handy, but I know he hates dealing with plumbing. I'm not sure if he'd attempt this particular repair himself, but if we pinpoint the problem then we are more than happy to pay someone to fix it for less $$ than a replacement.
P.S. - your son is adorable!
Thanks!!! Your little guy is super cute as well!!
Yeah we were thinking that we would have to replace the whole thing and unfortunately we don't have the money for a brand new boiler. When DH said he could replace the firebox for a couple hundred dollars, we both knew that was our best option. He did it right before we had to turn the heat on so there wasn't any oil in the boiler at that point. He also did a ton of research and originally ordered one that didn't fit but then found one that he could build to fit in our boiler.
Hopefully you can get it repaired for cheaper than the cost of a brand new boiler.
Amy, I'm not sure if he does oil as well. I will PM you his information though. He's great at getting back via email (which is my preferred communication) and also on the phone when I have called.