Electrical Work

The electric radiator in the bathroom of the Red House stopped working a while back. The thermostat ceased to function so the heating was either on or off, giving a temperature of 35°C (on) or 5°C (off). We tried to buy a new one but these simple heating elements no longer seem to be available. The new versions are controlled by an electronic chip, giving a wide range of programming options. However, the simplest option, keep the bathroom at 20°C, didn't seem to be available.
Today I disconnected the old radiator, took it apart and found the pictured thermostat. It seems to work by the shiny metal strip expanding and contracting, which triggers the spring loaded clip to complete or break a circuit, providing the heating element with power, or not.  I played around with it for a bit and realised I could bend the long strip slightly. It sprang back to nearly it's original shape but retained a little of the bend, which meant the thermostat  appeared to start working again.
I warmed it up, cooled it down, adjusted the controls a little and repeated the process. Soon it was clicking on and off beautifully.
I cleaned all the fluff off the wires and out off the interior of the radiator, screwed it back together, wired it in again, and replaced the fuse. Everything seemed to be working. Checking later the bathroom was at 25°C. A little too warm so I adjusted the dial again. Tomorrow I'll check again and find out if my repair really was successful.
As always it felt very satisfying to puzzle away at things, playing physically with the parts until I could see how they all fitted together and how it worked. I'll be very happy if it's working as it should tomorrow!
UPDATE - Checked it the following morning and the bathroom was a nice, steady 23°C so the thermostat definitely seems to be working :-)    I turned it down another smidgin...