Splashy McSplash Face

 

This is my kitchen sink. I have been told it is a farm sink because it is one giant piece of porcelain. This sink must have been here for a long time because the porcelain has worn away near the drain and that spot is black instead of white. When I looked at this apartment, the farm sink called to me. After a year or so of doing dishes in this farm sink, the sparkle was gone. Here you see my sink full of dirty dishes. I made homemade pizza with cauliflower crust for supper. The dishes are clean and drying on the left side of the farm sink now. The sparkle in this sink left because the sink is so shallow I splash myself all the time. I splash my shoes. I splash on the floor. I splash on my clothes. I splash myself and the cabinet. So I named the sink Splashy McSplash Face so that I would remember to be careful. In August I had to call maintenance because the faucet was dripping. The faucet dripped intermittently and I put up with it for longer than I should have. The maintenance man came and put new washers in the faucet. This sink has no shut off valves under it. This sink is hard plumbed right into the wall. Replacing the sink would be a big job. The sink didn't drip for a full month after he put in the new washers but lately it started dripping again. Last weekend the farm sink dripped for 72 hours until I finally got it to quit dripping again. By that point I was so frustrated I quit using the sink faucet and brought hot and cold water to the kitchen from the bathroom. Yesterday the same maintenance man came again. He is a funny young man and he enjoys explaining things. I like to have things explained so we get along just fine. The poor guy had to walk 3 stories down to the basement 3 times before he got the water shut off to my sink. As it turns out the manifold that is supposed to turn off my water does turn off the cold water but not the  hot water. The manifold that is supposed to turn off the downstairs apartment water turns off their cold water and my hot water. Something is screwy in the plumbing of this old house. The nice people downstairs are paying for my hot water and I am paying for their hot water. I suppose it doesn't matter too much. He guessed the owner didn't want to pay the plumbing bill to have the two water systems completely separate. I asked him why I can get hot water in the kitchen in 10 seconds but have to wait 180 seconds to get hot water in the bathroom. This guy gets all excited. He walked to the kitchen.

He says, "Say your water heater is here." He walks ten feet west. "Now the pipe tees off to another appliance." He turns and walks five feet south. "Now the pipe tees off to another appliance and another appliance." He walks 15 feet east. "The pipe tees off to the washing machine and another appliance and another appliance and then it tees off to your bathroom."

I tell him he is very good at explaining things. He said my hot water faucet was dripping because the gasket had sharp copper filings in it. Splinters of copper ruined the seal. I know that when I have my hair in my swimming goggles the goggles fill with water so I imagine it's the same idea with faucet washers. He could flush the metal filings out of the plumbing system but that would be hard because I have no shut off valves under the kitchen sink. He does not know how long this gasket will last because he doesn't know how many more filings are in the pipes.

He left. My sink works again and does not drip like a water torture during a drought. Suddenly Splashy McSplash Face is back in my favor again.