So *somebody* who shall remIn unnamed (though she is short, sweet, and mischievous) dropped my wedding ring down the heater vent while I was in ths shower today. Doesn't it just FIGURE that the ONE time I leave it on my dresser instead of the bathroom counter, *somebody* will come into my room and decide it would look great on a lotion bottle, then drop it when I came out because she knew she wasn't supposed to touch it? Lol.
The problem is that our heater vent is very narrow, and doesn't have a flat bottom. (Because that would make too much sense...) it angles down, levels out a bit, then drops off into unknown space. I reached in as far as I could, and while I found quite a bit if dust and dead bug bits (ew) my ring had rolled too far.
I tried to stick my vacuum cleaner's hose down, hoping that I could vaccum it into a piece of nylon... But it doesn't fit.
I don't know what else to try. :( I'm thinking I might see if I can find a more flexible hose of some sort to tape to the vaccum, and see if that will work... If that doesn't, then our next step will be to call the landlord and seek their advice... Unless any of you lovely ladies (or gents) can give me a brilliant idea as to how to fish the darn thing out, when I have no way of knowing where it is (or how far the vent even goes.)
I'm so sad. :'(
It's white gold, so a magnet won't stick to it. That was my husband's idea too.
We couldn't see it, and none of us had anything we could use to see where it actually was (no flash on our phones...) Hubby's plumber friend came over to visit, and we explained our dilemma to him and he was able to use some tools from his truck to fish a snake with a camera attached to it and saw where the rig was... From there they were able to use a wire to fish it out.
YAYI I'm so happy! I got my ring back, and all it cost me was the price of a freezer pizza. :)
Marda... We used a wire to fish it out after we found it on camera.
Maybe fashion a wire hanger into a loop. Try fastening a bit of nylon or pantyhose over it an try scooping and dragging.
Good luck!
after SWH: Yeah! I was wondering if you got it out! And for the price of a freezer pizza! I just got an older plumber to give me a diagnosis on a leak and he did it for the price of a cup of coffee! Yea, plumbers!
I would call the landlord and/or someone that fixes furnaces or what ever type of heating system you have. I am sure they can get into the vent and get the ring out.
You don't want anything (like tape, cell phone, etc.) to get stuck in there as well that could block the vent and start a fire.
IF you can see it, you can get it. There is a tool that has a button you can push on one end and two wires that extend from the other end. The entire device is 18" to 24" long. When you push the button, the two wires extend from the tip and separate. When you release the button the wires return into the small tube they are in.
I have used this to pick up all kinds of things out of inaccessible places, even down heater vents. To find one go to the tool section of something like the 99 cent store or to harbor freight. I've seen it at both places.
Good luck to you and yours.
First, are you certain, without a doubt it's in there? Did you see/ hear it fall? Because I know our certain "Somebody" has been certain that she dropped or put something somewhere, only for it to be found elsewhere.
I don't know if it will work, but it might be worth a shot. We have a snake for drains. I stick that in there and slowly slide it until I heard the ring. I'd push the ring over to one side and slowly pull it in...hoping it gets caught on the spiral at the end of the snake. It would take forever, but it may work.
Can you go under the house and remove the piping from the vent? I know it isn't the easiest of solutions, but it may be worth a shot.
The longer the hose the weaker the suction. I would not try poking anything down the vent because it's likely you'll push it further away. I would call duct cleaning services and ask or a furnace repair shop and ask for advice.
My duct work is in sections. If yours is similar the landlord may be willing to take a section out making it easier to see and reach for the ring with your hand.
After SWH: so how did you get it out?
i was going to say a magnet, but then i saw where you stated it was white gold. maybe you can stick something long down in the vent with heavy duty duct tape, and pray it sticks to it.
I'd think anyone with a snake could try and find it but I bet it goes to the basement so the dust can be cleaned out of it.
You might be able to find some semi small tubing at the hardware store.
Or a short piece of garden hose (don't know if it would be too stiff or not).
Use duct tape to connect it to your vacuum hose then see if you can suck it up that way.
tie a small magnet to a string and fish it down there?
maybe something like this?
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_4?url=search-ali...
There are a couple different kinds ... you can probably get clear plastic tubing that would fit and is longer at a hardware store pretty cheap if the tubing that comes with the kits isn't long enough.
Good luck.
Okay, here is a totally hillbilly (no offense to hillbillies) idea using things you might have around the house. Duct tape a flashlight and iPhone or digital small camera to a slinky. Turn on the flashlight and turn on the video recorder. Push it down into the vent as far as it will go. When you pull it up, check the video to see if you can actually see the ring in the vent.
Or skip the camera and flashlight, and put a wad of duct tape on the slinky (or just some kind of rope) and maybe the ring will stick to it? Good luck! I think plumbers have small flexible cameras that can see into even small pipes. That would be an expensive house call, but it could be an option if the landlord can't help you.
ETA: Disregard my suggestion. I didn't realize it was a vertical drop. I thought it just angled downward and was a long distance from the actual vent. You should just stick with calling the landlord :-)
I would just call a heating/furnace company and let them take part of the
duct work off & replace it.
You'll have to pay for it yourself but it will be worth it. I would leave it up to
the professionals.
Maybe try a dryer cleaning kit. It is a narrow thing that fits on your vacuum cleaner. It has a long hose to reach all the way into the back of a dryer. I think if you put your hosiery onto it, it may work. I bought one for $9.95 at CVS. Not sure if they still have them.
Flylady.net sells a dryer cleaning kit that has a hose that hooks to your vacuum that has a flat part that is designed to go into the part in your dryer that you pull the lint trapper out of. It might not be flat enough, but there may be something similar at a local hardware store:
