Friday 13 May 2016

Perplexing plumbing

Bit of an inauspicious start to the day. Getting ready for the new dishwasher to be installed this morning, so I clean out the bin area under the sink so that it doesn't look like a slum when they connect the pipes, and the water is draining through the plumbing joints onto the floor. This has happened intermittently for the last 34 years, so why am I surprised? As the resident jack-of-all-trades (you might have thought He Who Can Fix Anything would be coming to the rescue - excuse me while I have a little chuckle), I duly cleared the cupboard out and spent the next 30 minutes testing the stages of draining at which the leak began. The problem is the original shoddy workmanship when the house was built, which has revealed itself regularly over the years when bits and pieces have been repaired. The person who did my plumbing must have been practising on my house, as was the builder, and the pipe has a gentle upward slope before exiting the building. Surely the most basic rule of plumbing is that everything must go downhill? Anyway, over the years, various wooden blocks and bottles have held everything in place with only a slip from time to time when they are inadvertently knocked out of position.
Things seem to be holding together for the moment, and having hauled myself out of the bottom of the cupboard, I am now enjoying my first cup of coffee of the day - running about three behind by now. The sun is not yet up.
I can see what the problem is, and it is possible that some silicone or duct tape will sort it out, but it is Friday the 13th and, while I am not in the least superstitious, perhaps I won't court further disaster just yet. I will have another Nespresso and wait for the sunrise.

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