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The Epic Battle
Aug. 19th, 2005 04:11 amFor the last two years, our bathroom sink hasn't really drained properly. The stopper's always been loose; sometimes it goes down and stays down, sometimes it's up far too high. But the real problem is the pipes, apparently, or so you'd think. We've poured numerous bottles of Dran-O and Dran-O-like substances down there. Periodically I take the plunger out and, usually with a Q-tip, scrape out the accumulated...let's call it "gunk" and move on.
Of course, the plunger properly speaking connects to a small metal rod halfway down the pipe, which enters through a hole in the back, which, well, is a little loose. So sometimes the water drains through that, and thus out of the pipe. We've got a bucket under there, but, ew.
So tonight, I armed myself with a newly-bought Vise-Grip and removed the thing covering that hole. And took out the metal piece, and the stopper, and started in.
I had no plumber's snake. I did, however, have wire cutters and a wire hanger. I bent a small loop in the hanger and used it to scrape out Even More Gunk. Trust me, ew. Meanwhile, I'm leaning over this sink, flashlight resting on the tap and pointed down, my forehead resting on the back of the flashlight so I can see in there. And I say to myself, what's that green plastic thing?
Fishing for it doesn't help. More loop-bending, and I've got something of a larger hole, which I slip over the end of the thing, and pull it up...now, I'm not going to say that I've never seen that toothbrush before, because that wouldn't really cover it. I've never seen that model of toothbrush before. It's got a flat handle of lime green plastic, marked "Supreme", curved and tapering in a kind of 1950s aesthetic...and I don't think I want to know exactly how long it's been down there.
Finally the water is draining normally. More wire-twisting to fashion something to hold the newly-reattached stopper-and-rod mechanism to the long piece of metal that connects the rod to the thingie that controls the stopper. After an hour, it's all finally finished.
Even so, I'm not quitting my day job.
Of course, the plunger properly speaking connects to a small metal rod halfway down the pipe, which enters through a hole in the back, which, well, is a little loose. So sometimes the water drains through that, and thus out of the pipe. We've got a bucket under there, but, ew.
So tonight, I armed myself with a newly-bought Vise-Grip and removed the thing covering that hole. And took out the metal piece, and the stopper, and started in.
I had no plumber's snake. I did, however, have wire cutters and a wire hanger. I bent a small loop in the hanger and used it to scrape out Even More Gunk. Trust me, ew. Meanwhile, I'm leaning over this sink, flashlight resting on the tap and pointed down, my forehead resting on the back of the flashlight so I can see in there. And I say to myself, what's that green plastic thing?
Fishing for it doesn't help. More loop-bending, and I've got something of a larger hole, which I slip over the end of the thing, and pull it up...now, I'm not going to say that I've never seen that toothbrush before, because that wouldn't really cover it. I've never seen that model of toothbrush before. It's got a flat handle of lime green plastic, marked "Supreme", curved and tapering in a kind of 1950s aesthetic...and I don't think I want to know exactly how long it's been down there.
Finally the water is draining normally. More wire-twisting to fashion something to hold the newly-reattached stopper-and-rod mechanism to the long piece of metal that connects the rod to the thingie that controls the stopper. After an hour, it's all finally finished.
Even so, I'm not quitting my day job.