KNOWING HOW TO DO IT…

The Old Rusty Nail

AN E-JOURNAL FOR OLD PEOPLE

Russell Burton, an Old Person

I just finished having installed new granite countertops in my kitchen.  In the process the plumbing had to be disconnected from the old countertops.  Of course this meant that when the next countertops were in place the plumbing had to be reconnected. 

Now this activity did not appear to be much of a challenge for me because I know a considerable amount about plumbing in fact I installed the existing plumbing.  Oh I forgot, I installed those fixtures about ten years ago when I was a young 72.

Well disconnecting the plumbing from the old countertops was not that difficult ten years ago.  You know getting down on my knees and then lying face up with my head under the sink. Now that has become much less easy at my age of 82.  Still throwing caution to the wind, I was able to disconnect the PVC plumbing from the garbage disposal and the other sink drain.  Of course the water lines which would be reused for the new faucets were disconnected to find one leaked so that had to be replaced.

 So, off to the Home Depot to get a new cut off valve where I was told you might need a new compression attachment which meant cutting off the old one from the copper tubing.  Nothing ain’t easy but the new valve did not leak and without all of that major surgery I had what was to become the easiest part of this job.

The countertop guys arrived asking if the stuff was disconnected.  A resounding ‘YES’ put smiles on their faces for I guess sometimes they have to wait while the work is done.  And, like all capitalists say ‘time is money’.  And, these guys work for a no none sense entrepreneur which of course is a small business capitalist who does and must watch every penny. I know for I was one once.

It wasn’t long and they had ripped out the old countertops laying bare the collapsed plumbing.  I had to add a couple of wooden support wall boards for the new tops but that was not difficult because I didn’t have to get back down on my hands and knees.

The next day the owner arrived to measure for the new countertop template. Of course this activity is a very important step in the process of building a countertop out of

3 inch - thick granite which is going to fit.  Especially critical is the opening for the double stainless steel sink.

I had elected to use my old sink as a new one would cost me $200.  Now that does not sound like much when the new tops cost about $4000 but you know every penny or rather every two-hundred dollars count.  I should not have been surprised when he said these old sinks will not work.

I frowned when I asked “Why not?”  Well he explained that the granite will be much thicker than the old countertop. So instead of the sink lip sitting on top of the counter top it would have to be placed and attached under the top.  And my old sink was not designed for that kind of installation. After a one-sided discussion it was agreed that I will buy a new sink – one of course which can be attached under the granite. 

So, there goes my $200 down the drain ‘no pun intended’.  After he left I had to go ‘online’ to their specified supplier to pick out the sink I wanted.  This e-stuff always worries me for many times I fail but this time it did work and I picked out the double sink which I wanted.  Well, I didn’t really want it but I had to have it. The new sink like the old is a deep one with a larger sink on the left.  Not much different than my old one which I liked so I was pleased at my selection.

In four days as promised the owner and his crew of two husky men arrived unannounced at 8:30 in the morning with the new granite countertop and sink.  They liked my support wood work which made me proud.  So, they began with the owner measuring, etc. to be sure it would fit.  I asked for the sinks to be taken out of the truck so that I could install the drains before they were put in place.  

Now this idea allowed me to simply attach the plumbing to the new drains without having to do so standing on my head under the sink.  A very clever ploy, I must admit. After about an hour he, the owner said goodbye that the tops fit perfectly and his crew would finish the job.

Early afternoon they left with some instructions on what I had to do like put in place a couple of screws to the dishwasher and of course seal the granite with some liquid I could get at Home Depot.  So, down to my Home Depot I drove and bought a small can of the stuff for $22! 

After carefully applying the liquid as noted on the label, I proceeded to work the plumbing.  I was confident that I could get this done in an hour or so, but I first had to wait while the glue which held the sink in place had dried.  So as instructed after twenty-four hours, the next afternoon I began to replace the plumbing.

First was the garbage disposal which is a large one and very heavy and cumbersome.  Cumbersome because this all takes place on my back looking upward trying to juggle the heavy thing in place so the metal ring can be slid into the sink drain. I had a friend over to help with this installation for it is a two person job.  The idea of course is that I lift and the other person slips the ring into place.

Well this was much easier said than done for it is a very heavy and large garbage disposal. In fact, it was so heavy that lying on my back I could not lift it into place.  I was able to get it on top of a plastic cake cover so that it was within one inch of the drain.  We pried it up the rest of the way with wooden stakes.  But, it had to fit just right or the circular metal lever would not do its job.  With the wooden stakes it was levered into place and it fit!  The circular lever was pushed into place and the garbage disposal was attached to the sink!

Like my Christian helper screamed, “Halleluiah, it’s a miracle”.  I will argue that it was not a miracle but hard work with some luck.  I guess some people will argue that it was not luck but God’s will.  Whatever…

After some consternation the facets were in place and fastened to the counter top.  I was tired and my friend had to get home to care for her dog.  Still I was pleased with our progress and looking forward to an hour of work the next day connecting the PVC pipe to the tub drains.  What could go wrong?  I had detached them in a few minutes so reattaching them would not take that much longer.  Right?  No, Wrong!

Of course it would take longer because I had new sinks with drains located differently to each other.  Simply the PVC pipes and P-trap would not fit the new drain locations.  I knew I could make it fit but it would take a great deal of time and several trips to my Home Depot.  Now I understand why professional plumbers come to the job with a big truck full of plumbing fixtures, PVC pipe, and lots of tools. 

By six thirty that evening I had finally bought and cut the needed plumbing supplies so I was able to attach it all to the two drains.  It fit and didn’t leak nor did the water lines to the faucets leak. Very tired and frustrated I had a drink, light dinner and went to bed more tired than I had been in a long time.

The next morning with my aching body all I had to do to complete the job was to put liquid soap into the container I had fitted to the counter top.  But, the pump did not work!  I tried everything but still I could not get soap to come out of the small tube sticking out of the metal pump head.  Very frustrated, I phoned the faucet company for help.  The answer was “Oh they don’t work sometimes, so we will send you a new better one and without charge.”  Wow how lucky can I be.

My point of course is these kinds of home jobs always take more time and effort than planned.  But, with age my frustrations grow much more rapidly and so do the aches and pains.  I can not count the numbers of times I got up and down with great caution holding on to the edge of the counter top to help me stand. 

Yes, I knew how to do it but the time is coming when that will not be enough.  I will not be physically able to do it anymore.  Simply, I will need to hire someone to do something which I know how to do.  That time will be very difficult for me to accept.  But, I know that day is coming.

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