Today was the first day we’ve seen the sun since New Years Day and the temperature got to almost 60 degrees F and melted the last remaining mounds of snow. It was a nice day to go out into the sun and enjoy the holiday at a park or to just walk around downtown OKC. But, considering the path to the workshop now resembled the Okeefenokee Swamp we figured we had to do something about the “minor” water problem. So, Nana put on her lady-bug boots and I my Real Ranch (or Ranger Rick) work boots and together we sallied forth with shovels and a pick to do battle against the elements and to stem the rising flood waters.
I’m not going to bore you with the finer details about the dig. Let it suffice that we found the water line about two feet down. But, much to our surprise, the line was technically not broken, it had merely separated from the hydrant. And of course, the hydrant was embedded within a concrete pad – apparently to stabilize and guard it against the type of breaks we were now engaged in repairing.
Obviously, the situation called for some finesse and nuanced technique. After careful deliberation and consultation with each other, it was decided to use a sledge hammer to attempt to gently remove the concrete so as to reuse it. (Hey, you heard of all this environmental stuff, haven’t you? You should recycle EVERYTHING to save the whales.)
Well, after a few attempts to dislodge the concrete pad intact, Nana said, “Whales be damned,” and took the sledge hammer and virtually disintegrated the concrete pad in seconds. I just hope some environmentalist nut job doesn’t come in the middle of the night for retribution – Nana is increasingly getting in the mood to not take any crap from anyone and has gained confidence using her AR-15, so I do worry about the safety of late-night intruders.
But, I digress.
We exhumed the water line and hydrant, shut off the water, and bailed out the hole. We used sandpaper to clean and smooth the existing fittings on the hydrant and the existing line. Having bought some PVC and the appropriate connector, we cut the correct replacement length and used PVC cement to weld the pieces together and slipped the hydrant into place. All told, the entire job cost us about 15 dollars for the PVC (and a tool I didn’t have), and took about two hours, including filling in the hole.
Not too bad at all. We’ve done far worse jobs than this one – after all, we have been the parents of teenagers.
Later that day we replaced an electrical outlet in the living room. This past Christmas, we noticed some Christmas tree lights didn’t work and found the outlet had an intermittent connection. This concerned us, and we decided not to use that outlet until it was repaired. To make a long story short, we replaced the outlet without serious mishap. See pictures.
The first picture is the “before” and the second of course is the “after”. Yes, I know they look alike, but whadd’ya expect? An outlet’s an outlet, for pete’s sake.
In case you like the “before” and “after” motif, here’s Nana “before” the job,
and here is Nana “after” the job.
Note the handy phone – her task was to ensure Fire Engine Number 36 responded in case there was an inadvertent electrical short through my body.
Since you’re in the mood to see other things we’ve done lately, here are some pictures of our new “adult” furniture in the bedroom.
I also finished the TV cabinet and we will install that Tuesday, January 19. The TV will be powered by the newly repaired electrical outlet.
And now, for something completely different:
HOSTAGE UPDATE, Monday, January 18, 2010:
“Please help – we’re being held captive against our will and are forced to sit on this shelf and listen to disgusting noises emanating from the nearby bathroom.”
