Post by sandgrounder on Jul 11, 2022 12:33:27 GMT 1
Drip…….drip…....drip…..drip…..drip……drip
Slow at first. One drip every 20 seconds or so. I added it to my ‘to do’ list (below ‘put a new lock on on the shed’ but above ‘oil the gate hinge’.
Drip…..drip….drip….drip….drip
Every 10 seconds now. I placed a plastic measuring jug in the bathroom sink to capture the water droplets. I’ll use it to water the house plants. It was my small contribution to recycling water & saving the planet.
Drip..plop...drip...plop...drip...plop
The measuring jug was making the situation worse. When in bed my head is next to the bathroom wall. I lay wide awake waiting for little ‘plop’. This recycling thing isn’t as self-gratifying as I had hoped. I’ll fix the tap in the morning.
The following day I carried my toolbox up to the bathroom. I use the term ‘toolbox’ loosely. It was a plastic carrier bag with an assortment of rusty broken ironmongery. But I knew what to do, I had Googled it, I was an expert now!
All I had to do was remove the tiny cap covering the grub screw at the back of the tap, insert a small alankey, lift off the top of the tap and replace the washer. It would only cost a maximum of £5. Easy!
I couldn’t remove the cap which meant I couldn’t insert the alankey. Even if I could, there wasn’t enough room between the back of the tap & the bathroom wall to get any leverage. Who designed this bloomin’ bathroom.
Drip…drip...drip...drip...drip Oh shut up!
I would have to remove the tap from the sink by attacking it from below. The nuts holding the 2 screws in place were underneath the sink, at the top of the pedestal. I rummaged through my tool box/plastic bag. I found the correct sized wrench. All I had to do now was lie on my back, dislocate my elbow and turn my wrist so far back that back of my hand was touching my forearm.
I needed a proper plumbers wrench. I wasn’t going to go to a general DIY store I was going to a proper plumbers’ merchant. I had to dress accordingly so they would know what I was talking about and would take me seriously. Scruffy jeans & a blue t-shirt, that would do the trick. (Top tip – wear white if you’re going to a paint store & red (for danger) for electrician store).
I confidently asked the assistant for a flexible wibbly wobbly plumbers wrench for reaching awkward nuts for inconsiderately designed bathroom suites. He gave his colleague a knowing glance. Had he seen through my clever disguise? A bead of sweat formed on my brow. ‘Don’t flinch’ I told myself. He passed me a flexible wibbly wobbly plumbers wrench and nodded his head ever so slightly. I was officially one of the gang & it had only cost me £6.99.
I took the wrench home, lay on the bathroom floor, attached the adjustable claw to the nut and turned. Nothing. I wriggled around a bit, made myself more comfortable. This would need brawn as well a brains. I pulled the wrench with both hands and heard a satisfying ‘Crack!’ The nut had obviously loosened. A couple more turns and I would be able to remove the tap. I sat up. Damn! The crack wasn’t the sound of a nut relinquishing its vice-like grip on the bolt, it was the sound of 3 wall tiles breaking as the sink pulled away from the wall.
Drip..drip..drip..drip..drip
So here we are 6 weeks later having a completely new bathroom fitted at the cost of a few thousand pounds with a professional plumber on site. Fortunately we have a small downstairs toilet & hand basin. Unfortunately it’s underneath the staircase. I’m 6ft 2 and have to stand at a 60 degree angle when I want to pee. Before anyone asks, I flatly refuse to sit down to pee. I’ve only recently succumbed to wearing reading glasses!
Slow at first. One drip every 20 seconds or so. I added it to my ‘to do’ list (below ‘put a new lock on on the shed’ but above ‘oil the gate hinge’.
Drip…..drip….drip….drip….drip
Every 10 seconds now. I placed a plastic measuring jug in the bathroom sink to capture the water droplets. I’ll use it to water the house plants. It was my small contribution to recycling water & saving the planet.
Drip..plop...drip...plop...drip...plop
The measuring jug was making the situation worse. When in bed my head is next to the bathroom wall. I lay wide awake waiting for little ‘plop’. This recycling thing isn’t as self-gratifying as I had hoped. I’ll fix the tap in the morning.
The following day I carried my toolbox up to the bathroom. I use the term ‘toolbox’ loosely. It was a plastic carrier bag with an assortment of rusty broken ironmongery. But I knew what to do, I had Googled it, I was an expert now!
All I had to do was remove the tiny cap covering the grub screw at the back of the tap, insert a small alankey, lift off the top of the tap and replace the washer. It would only cost a maximum of £5. Easy!
I couldn’t remove the cap which meant I couldn’t insert the alankey. Even if I could, there wasn’t enough room between the back of the tap & the bathroom wall to get any leverage. Who designed this bloomin’ bathroom.
Drip…drip...drip...drip...drip Oh shut up!
I would have to remove the tap from the sink by attacking it from below. The nuts holding the 2 screws in place were underneath the sink, at the top of the pedestal. I rummaged through my tool box/plastic bag. I found the correct sized wrench. All I had to do now was lie on my back, dislocate my elbow and turn my wrist so far back that back of my hand was touching my forearm.
I needed a proper plumbers wrench. I wasn’t going to go to a general DIY store I was going to a proper plumbers’ merchant. I had to dress accordingly so they would know what I was talking about and would take me seriously. Scruffy jeans & a blue t-shirt, that would do the trick. (Top tip – wear white if you’re going to a paint store & red (for danger) for electrician store).
I confidently asked the assistant for a flexible wibbly wobbly plumbers wrench for reaching awkward nuts for inconsiderately designed bathroom suites. He gave his colleague a knowing glance. Had he seen through my clever disguise? A bead of sweat formed on my brow. ‘Don’t flinch’ I told myself. He passed me a flexible wibbly wobbly plumbers wrench and nodded his head ever so slightly. I was officially one of the gang & it had only cost me £6.99.
I took the wrench home, lay on the bathroom floor, attached the adjustable claw to the nut and turned. Nothing. I wriggled around a bit, made myself more comfortable. This would need brawn as well a brains. I pulled the wrench with both hands and heard a satisfying ‘Crack!’ The nut had obviously loosened. A couple more turns and I would be able to remove the tap. I sat up. Damn! The crack wasn’t the sound of a nut relinquishing its vice-like grip on the bolt, it was the sound of 3 wall tiles breaking as the sink pulled away from the wall.
Drip..drip..drip..drip..drip
So here we are 6 weeks later having a completely new bathroom fitted at the cost of a few thousand pounds with a professional plumber on site. Fortunately we have a small downstairs toilet & hand basin. Unfortunately it’s underneath the staircase. I’m 6ft 2 and have to stand at a 60 degree angle when I want to pee. Before anyone asks, I flatly refuse to sit down to pee. I’ve only recently succumbed to wearing reading glasses!
