Home Repair Lessons Learned (or not)

1. If you rent a jackhammer to make holes in your yard, you will work your souls soles off.

And your backyard will look like a mole had a heyday. (The holes are for deck posts and trees, by the way.)

2. Cupcakes are good anytime. (Although I have to admit, I am not impressed with homemade cupcakes. The frosting was good, the cakes just so-so. Vanilla, schmanilla.)

3. If you mess with the plumbing, more problems will inevitably arise. Last weekend, the neighbor came over to help Mr. Burli move a cold water pipe. The pipe was on the outside of our house and supplied the sink in the tiny second bathroom. Why was it on the outside? Who knows!

So after the fix, the boys turned the water back on, and ...schwoop. A new leak was discovered. Actually not a new leak. The cold water pipe in the shower was leaking and must have been leaking for a while. So, the following weekend the neighbor returned and Mr. Burli played destructo-man again, and while the neighbor soldered a new pipe in, Mr. Burli went to three plumbing supply stores to look for a union valve to replace the 6 inch one we had (since one faucet was leaking and the union valve was maybe from 1950), only to find out that they no longer make them in 6 inches. So, we could put in an 8 inch valve  or put in a modern mixer, but either way we would have some extra holes in the tile and would have to buy new faucets, which aren't cheap. So, we attempted to repair the union valve, replaced it, and will glue the one handle of the faucet on (it is missing a specialty nut, also from 1950 or there abouts).

So, with the shower pipe repaired, the boys again turned on the water, and ... schwoop! Another leak. So the neighbor got to come over again the next day and replace a section of pipe. He also had to use some bread in the pipes because they were dripping, and of course, you can't solder with water present. So after he left and Mr. Burli turned on the kitchen faucet, no water came out. Today the water is flowing again, so the bread must have completely dissolved. 

Oh, and while Mr. Burli was testing the shower pipes for leaks by running the shower with our new eco-shower head (because, saving water is classier than the fancy waterfall showerhead that was in there - must have been added to make the house more saleable - you know we bought it just for that feature), he saw a waterfall under the house. Um, yes. About that. The tile job in that shower was poorly done, and there is quite a bit of mortar missing. So, hello caulk gun next week when it is all dried out. (Luckily, I had Mr. Burli caulk up the other shower shortly after moving in, because it had the same problem.) So now I think that the temporary bathroom renovation that wasn't really planned (because I want to redo both bathrooms, just NOT RIGHT NOW) is almost done. Oh, but Mr. Burli still wants to move the drain pipe for the sink in that same bathroom so he can install a pedestal sink. At the moment, the drain goes into the wall to the left of the sink and hooks up to a small opiece of cast iron pipe. One day, our neighbor will return and we will get rid of that piece and recoonect the drain so that is centered under the sink. So at the moment the sink is not hooked up (why bother when we will just have to change it?)... Sigh.

4. Due to the above plumbing issues, we missed our appointment at the lumber place to check out their Brazilian hardwoods for the deck. I am thinking ipe. But redwood would be more cost-efficient...