Still a Few Surprises

Most time when a house surprises you, it's not good. Bad wiring, a busted pipe, etc. And after living here 6 years now, there are not too many surprises left. But recently, we found one.

For all this time, going up and down the basement stairs several times a week at least - to clean the kitty litter, do laundry, run on the treadmill, etc. - we blindly assumed that this was an AC vent. It looks like an AC vent, and was not in a completely illogical spot, given that our upstairs intake is on the wall on the stairwell.

But when we worked with the HVAC company this summer to optimize our new AC, we realized that it was not hooked up to the house's ventilation at all.

We finally popped off the vent. And found a lightbulb socket! Pop in a new bulb and...

Ta-dah! Operated on the same switch that turns on the overhead light in the stairwell:

Minor, true. But still a fun little surprise. The toddler now claims it is "sunny" when she climbs up and down the stairs.