Oh my. After 3 days with no hot water, numerous complaints to my complex management, and finally getting some work done by calling the corporate office, I just had my first hot shower since Monday. Dang. Such a simple thing, but you don’t realize how nice it feels until you don’t have it.
Of course, I was feeling so good when I got out, that I promptly put my underwear on backwards.
We had a leak in our apartment building that cut off our hot water for 2 weeks. (leak turned out to directly under our living room floor, which they had to demolish to fix)
I really, really, really appreciate hot water now.
January, 1994. A tuesday morning. Clog Boy is on the phone with landlord regarding the boiler (hot water device that supplies the 6 people student house with water AND heating) that has broken down. Again. For the 6th time in 3 weeks. And kicking it doesn’t help any more.
CB: “Hey, it’s Clog Boy here. The boiler’s gone down again, and there’s no way to start it up. My coffee just froze over, we all haven’t showered, and there’s a stack of dishes on the kitchen sink the size of Luxembourg. Could you send a repair team?”
LL: “Yeah, it’s time we get that thing checked out. I’ll call my guy and send him over friday.”
CB: “Friday?? My behind. It’s mid winter, dude. That thing is getting fixed TODAY.”
LL: “Sorry, my guy can’t make it sooner than friday.”
CB: “Listen, you <insert long string of insults containing farm animals, deprived sexual acts, nuns, kitchen appliances, and medieval war instruments>. I pay enough rent for this piece of junk you call a room. I’m calling the most expensive and qualified company in the Yellow Pages at 13:00 today, and will have them send the bill for an entire new heating system to YOU. Unless you come up with a solution first. How’sat?”
LL: "<long string of insults containing references to my age, province of birth, alleged arrogance, etc.> I’ll see what I can do.
The repairmen showed up at 10:30 am.
That night, I took a hot shower for at least an hour.
I live in a house built on property that has been in my husband’s family for over 50 years. It is located about 5 miles outside the city limits
For a long time it was used as regular farm, you know garden, pastures, horses, cows, pigs and such.
In the 60’s when city water was ran, my father in law had them tap into the water main and run a line over the creek up the hill to our place, about 300 feet from the road.
Now the creek that runs beside the road in front of our house is solid limestone so the actual pipe is just laid on top of the stone in a natural groove that was there. It is then covered with sheathing then covered with gravel and rocks. The reason for these details will be obvious shortly.
We built our house in 1993 and were able to use the existing water connection thereby saving us $10,000.
Apparently to tap in now costs $1,000 an acre.
Well in Oct 99, we sprang a leak in the line somewhere up the bank. When we attempted to hire a plumber to fix it we were told that if a licensed plumber made the repairs, it would need to be brought up to code. This meant the pipe would have to be buried to a depth of 40 inches. In solid limestone. For a length of about 40 feet. But the good news was that under the grandfather clause, we as homeowners were allowed to make the repairs ourselve, we just couldn’t hire anyone to do it.
For 3 weeks my husband and myself shoveled, scraped, cussed and slithered on our bellies in the mud like salamanders but we finally uncovered the leak and replaced all the pipe from the tap in to the other side of the creek which BTW had about 4-6 inches of water in it at the time. About 60 feet in all. Then we discovered another leak about 10 more feet into the hill on the other side of the creek. We fixed that too.
All in all we were without water for 3 1/2 weeks, bathing at family’s houses and at work. Doing laundry at the landromat (gasp) Either eating out or using paper plates whenever possible.
AHHH hot water, don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.
I know it takes about 30-40 seconds for hot water to start coming out of my tap when I turn it on. It has done this since I moved here last year. So why do I still, after about 5 seconds, stick my fingers under the stream prematurely and twiddle the water until it warms up? What a moron I am.
Our complex was doing some construction and hit the water main. No hot water, no cold water, no water period. This happened on the Saturday morning before Easter. They couldn’t get anyone from the city to come out and repair it for 3 days. My lord, I would do without just about any utility before I would ever go without water again.
Had to go to my grandparents to shower. Can’t flush the toilet without water. Can’t brush your teeth. Can’t wash clothes, dishes, the car, or your body without it.
I’ve been without power for 5 days straight, without the phone for 2 days, and without cable multiple times. None of these even came close to not having water.
I do that too. I think it has something to do with humans natural impatience.
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