Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Washing Machine Niagara


Have I mentioned our leaky washing machine?

A week or two ago, while doing laundry, I heard the conspicuous sound of water running. It seemed louder than it should have been, but I didn't see any problems and I just kept washing. After two loads in a row, though, I found water on the kitchen floor, spreading from beneath the machine. Not good!

I sent up an SOS and the management company sent a repairman who showed me how water practically poured out of a pipe joint behind the machine as it emptied. That was the sound I heard -- a hidden Niagara in our kitchen. He dismantled the pipes in the back and found them stuffed full of crud. (Not all our crud -- he said this had been "going on for a while.") He cleaned them out and went on his way.

Well, two more loads of laundry and there was more water on the floor. Following my mom's dictum that Everything Needs to be Done Twice, I called the repairman back. After putting us off for a few days -- during which I held off doing any laundry at all -- he appeared yesterday afternoon and cleaned out more blocked pipes in the kitchen. (Apparently all those pipes are connected somehow.)

I did laundry last night and for the first load there was no problem. After the second load -- during which I was also running the dishwasher -- there was a bit of water on the floor behind the machine, but nothing like before. So I'd say our pipes may still be a bit backed up, but I'll just avoid running both machines at once, and running concurrent loads, and we should be fine.

Wasn't that exciting? Don't you wish you were me?

An unfortunate side effect of the leak is that the kitchen floorboards -- which were already warped -- are now slightly more warped. If it were my floor I'd take up that wood and put down tile.


Remember I mentioned my friend Susi visiting on Sunday to take pictures of Olga? Well, here's one of her shots. I especially like this one. Olga would not face the camera, so Dave and I had to physically turn her and distract her with her (soon to be stolen!) Kong.

Some of Susi's other shots of Olga can be seen on her Flickr photostream here.

(Top photo: The Baker Street tube station. See the Sherlock Holmes tiles? His office was on Baker Street in the Arthur Conan Doyle novels, and the tube station is all Sherlock, all the time. Oh, and that wall really IS curved. It's not lens distortion.)

11 comments:

37paddington said...

How does water pour out of a pipe that is connected, even if backed up? Hmm. And your mother sounds pragmatic.
Love that family photo. How did you and Dave first meet?

Marty said...

I love your mom's philosophy on life - she's absolutely correct.
And I feel your pain - sometimes it seems as though our houses are out to get us.

ellen abbott said...

never had the washing machine leak but had toilets overflow. and gushing water from a tank which is my next post.

Steve Reed said...

37P: It's a strange pipe joint. I don't even know if it's properly called a joint. The hose from the machine is inserted into a pipe fixed to the wall, so the water exits the hose deep inside the pipe. But if the pipe is blocked up, the water backs up and overflows the place where the hose goes in. Can you picture that? (It's probably not worth trying -- ha!)

Ms. Moon said...

I can imagine it only too well.
I love that photo of you and Dave and Olga. I swear, it could have been taken in Florida.
And the Sherlock Holmes prints? Wow!
Washing machine woes. It's not "if," it's "when."

Sharon said...

I recognized the Baker Street Tube station immediately. I love those tiles.
I really do hate problems like you described. It's why I now rent. It was a never ending stream of fixes and refurbishment. It got to be too much. Now I live in a place with a full time, on duty maintenance man. So far, it's perfect.

Sharon said...

I forgot to mention that I love that photo with you and Dave and the other photos on the Flickr site.

e said...

Wow, something else to worry about now...Nice photo of you and your family. Is Olga happy with her new kong?

37paddington said...

Steve, good description, I can picture that very well!

John Going Gently said...

Shes a powerful dog
Dave's knuckles are white

The Bug said...

Love that picture :)