September 14

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Here's something else that happened this summer.

Our house was built in 1945-6.  We bought it in 1985.  We're pretty sure the kitchen and 1.5 bathrooms have never been updated.  The tub faucet predated our ownership....

It leaked, and was getting worse and worse.

It would be nice to have a whole new bathroom, and maybe, some decade, we'll tackle that. (I mean -- hire someone else to tackle it....)

In the mean time, we had hoped that a plumber could work a miracle and "just change some washers."

But, as you'd expect, it was all so rotten that taking it apart was the end of it.

Replacing the faucet was a lengthy and nasty job (the plumber said if he never had to mess with one of those old 3-hole faucets again, that would be soon enough!  He also had a few choice words for the person who plumbed the shower.....).

Why anyone ever drywalls over the access to tub faucets, etc, I do not know.  We have a large new hole in the linen cupboard wall......  At least it's inside the linen cupboard, and not right into the hallway!

In addition to the bigger, older opening, that has been covered by a piece of plywood since before we owned the house.  That makes a lot more sense to me than drywall.............

The previous three pics were taken at about 12:40 pm, when the plumber went off to see if the plumbers-supply place had a three-hole faucet.

The next three were taken at 3:46.  Progress.....

This is the one part of what we wanted him to do that we thought was going to be easy and straightforward.  This is the newest faucet in the house.  It started dripping in the last couple of months.  We figured changing the washers in this nearly-new faucet ought to take care of it.

But no.  This faucet was purchased from IKEA along with the sink and the cupboard that supports it.  Apparently the faucet is cochonerie (which, I think, is polite French for "crap") -- and, what a surprise, given that -- no replacement parts are available, and "changing the washers" doesn't work.  So we'll be replacing this faucet, too.  How annoying.  Fie on faucets that don't last 10 years.  Shame on you, IKEA.  Sheesh!

Before we leave the image above, please do admire my hand-chosen Italian cup.  Not only is it an excellent color, but I love the design.  You can't tell from this angle, but it's beautifully and subtly larger at the top than at the bottom.  It makes me happy every time I pay attention to it.  I got it at a "dollar store" ("euro store") in Venice.



The plumber finally left our house at 8:15 pm.  He had left for various periods of time a few times (getting parts, doing something he'd promised long ago to do for someone else), so he wasn't working on our issues the whole time.  But still.

This last image was not taken that night, but afterward, when daylight was available.......  Hooray for faucets that do not leak. 

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