Plumbing Victories

Just so you know, I'm actually a pretty handy guy to have around. I'm not trying to brag, but fixing stuff is just one of those things I have a knack for, (most of the time) and enjoy (all the time).

If there's anything around here that needs fixing, I ususally don't hesitate a minute to tear into it. Car problems? Got it covered. Rewiring? No problem. Termite damage? Lemme at it. Computer crash? Great excuse for an upgrade! Washing machine sound funny? I'll give it a shot. Leaky Faucet? You'd have better luck calling Richard Simmons to come fix it.

Pipes don't like me. That's the conclusion I've come to anyway. I can take something simple like hooking up an ice maker and stretch it over two days easily. I can use all the right parts, follow directions to the letter (directions are for people who don't know what they're doing, that's me) and still have leaks. I always have the oddball faucet cartridge that nobody makes anymore, except for one little factory in the Czech Republic that can have me one in three to thirty weeks. No house I've ever lived in had shutoff valves anywhere except the main supply. The day after we moved into our last house I was digging our new yard up to replace the main sewer line. Five years and another house later, here I am again.

I bought an undersink water filter about three months ago. It's been sitting under the sink right where it was supposed to go. But it was still in the box. I knew it should take about ten, maybe fifteen minutes to hook up. So, about a half-hour before I needed to leave for work yesterday afternoon, I tore into it. I shut the water off, got my tools out cleaned everything out from under the sink, took the necessary fittings loose, and opened the box. The directions were in spanish, no problem, there's pictures.

So, I put it all together and mounted it in about ten, maybe fifteen minutes, right on schedule. Feeling good about completing the project so quickly, I cleaned up my tools and headed to turn the water back on. When I got back to the sink there was so much water spraying under it I couldn't tell where it was coming from. So, being pressed for time, I shut the water off and hooked it all back up the way it was before I started. I turned the water on again, only to discover I had loosened a solder joint on the pipe you see in the picture you see above.

Five minutes and a half a roll of electrical tape later I had the leak temporarily patched. I showed Jenn where to shut off the water and warned her of the dangers of the kitchen becoming a swimming pool. Then, I headed off to work, knowing I shoulda' devoted at least three days to a project of this magnitude.

I woke this morning and headed straight to the hardware store. I was determined to beat this thing. I figured since I was gonna have to cut the pipe, I might as well put in a shut-off valve. I got home with my bag-o-goodies and threw it all together. Woohoo! Filtered Water! And Ice!!

Plumbing demon conquered.

Just a side note: I noticed while taking the picture above that my pipe cutter has a sticker on one side that reads "American Vermont". The other side of the cutter reads "Taiwan".