Cabbage

We put out three cabbages for decorative effect. They are doing quite well.

Water Leak Event

Saturday, I was going to investigate a job I had in mind. I wanted to rework the connection for the water line for the refrigerator. The access was rather "rigged" and was located in a closet behind a panel. When I cleared out the closet I noticed wetness. When I took the panel off, there was a drip at one of the fittings, and a split in one of the lines. It was spewing out water. I got a towel and covered the spew and went to shut off the supply line. Next, I called a plumber. I called the guy that did our water heater. He came out and replaced the bad parts. This polybutylene is about 35 years old and is starting to fail throughout the neighborhood. So, I made an appointment with him to come back Thursday and replace all the polybutylene in the house.

Here is the finished job. The new material is what is called PEX.  PEX tubing is made from crosslinked HDPE (high density polyethylene) polymer. It has been used in Europe since 1970 and was introduced to the US in 1980s. It has several advantages over metal pipe (copper, iron, lead) or rigid plastic pipe (PVC, CPVC, ABS) systems. It is flexible, resistant to scale and chlorine, doesn't corrode or develop pinholes, is faster to install than metal or rigid plastic, and has fewer connections and fittings.

Now we are working with insurance and Servicemaster to abate the water/mold problems.

Wednesday, September 10
The adjuster (Foremost, a division of Farmers) and Servicemaster came today. Servicemaster has removed all damaged materials and contained the area. They have put in air scrubbers and a dehumidifier. These all need to run for 3-5 days. Then we will be able to rebuild. Looks like we will be getting a new floor for the kitchen/laundry room area, too.

removing damaged wall board

refrigerator relocated to in front of stove

microwave relocated to sink counter

The cabinets were sealed with tape and the room
was sealed off to create a negative pressure area.

A little moisture in the corner of the study. Closet
sealed off to create a negative pressure area.

Heater, air blower, dehumidifiers in closet.

Drying time 3-5 days.

After drying.

This is the left wall in the closet. The old plumbing has been

 removed, and they installed a new line for the ice maker.

This is the door wall. I removed all the drywall and put in new.

That is the back side of the ice maker box.

New dry wall.

September 23 Update:
Today the installers arrived to install our new kitchen floor. I had moved out the washer, dryer, stove, and refrigerator the night before. We decided to put it on the existing floor. They mixed up a special mix and spread it over the floor to fill in any indentations and make it smooth.

The are bringing in the flooring and laying it out

on one end of the kitchen.

They make sure that it fits this half of the kitchen.

They rolled it back and applied adhesive and let it dry.

They did it again for the back half.

The floor is done, I installed base, and moved

all the appliances back in.

Marcia did an excellent job picking out the flooring.

The installers did an excellent job installing.

It took them about 3 hours. I did an excellent

job installing the base.

September 27 Update:

I finished the closet. I painted the walls and the 

ceiling. Made a new shelf and hanger. I used left

over vynl for the floor, put down new shoe mold

and a transition.

October 4 Update:

We put all the stuff back in the closet thus

reclaiming our office room. It is nice to have

everything back to normal.

Just inside the closet is where I keep my ready tools. Tools

I can get to without having to go outside or get into my tool

box.

Fungus Gnat Larvae

Marcia found this colony of fungus gnat larvae on the move on our car port this morning. At first she thought it was a leaf and then maybe a snake skin. Then, it was moving from left to right. It is like there was a leader, and they were all following him. She called a pest control company, and I took pictures and emailed them over. They had never seen anything like it. She emailed her friend in TR, and she got on the Internet and found pictures that looked exactly like these. Here is the What's That Bug page has about them. Here is the Google link for images of the fungus gnat larvae.

Tomatoes, 7 weeks

These pictures were taken 7 weeks and 2 days after initial plantings.

cherry tomatoes

yellow tomatoes

big boys

big boys, upside down

Fathers Day Gifts

I got gift cards from two sons, Phil and Tim, and got the following items.

Mitchell's Wool Fat soaps were first produced in the early 1930's by Bradford chemist Fred Mitchell who realized that the natural lanolin content of wool fat, which kept the hands of local sheep shearers and wool sorters so exceptionally soft, could also be beneficial to delicate complexions and sensitive skins. Mitchell's Wool Fat Soaps are still made to Mr. Mitchell's original formula, based on a recipe from the turn of the century and incorporating lanolin from the wool fat as the key ingredient.  The soaps are a simple and natural product with a delicate scent and are very popular among avid wet shavers.

Mitchell's Wool Fat in Ceramic Bowl.

Also in the shaving mode, I ordered 30 Astra Superior Platinum blades. They are double edged razor blades made by Gillette from Russia. I had gotten a pack in a PIF and found that I like them.

I also ordered a replacement set of dog tags from my army days. I have always wished that I had my original tags, but they got turned in when I separated from service. These are supposed to be era correct, 1967. At that time we still had "service numbers." Mine was a palindrome. RA 15 844 851. 

Tomatoes, 5 weeks

This is what our tomatoes look like after 5 weeks. I suspect we will be eating some tomatoes in June. I don't know how long they will produce, but I will keep track here, Lord willing. Click on the pictures to make bigger.

Upside down, big boy

Big boy

Tomato patch

Yellow tomato

Cherry tomato

Upside down, big boy