Failing the Water Pressure Achievement Test

Regular readers of this blog know that I have had more than my share of water-related household troubles. My troubles have always involved excessive water in places where water was unwelcome. But my most recent water troubles did not involve excessive water. Instead, it was a problem of no water.

On Saturday, as I stood under the shower in my bathroom, it seemed as if there was no water pressure. The shower head is pretty old and could use a good cleaning, but this was a problem well beyond that. When I first moved in three years ago, the house inspector had issued all sorts of dire warnings about the galvanized pipes in the upstairs bathroom. As I tried in vain to rinse the soap from my hair I began to panic: pipe replacement in an 80 year old bathroom costs a serious chunk of change.

By the time I finished the shower, I was in full panic mode. Then I checked out the other sources of water in the house and discovered that no faucet in the house had much water pressure. From the basement to the second floor there was trouble. A quick check in the neighborhood revealed that we were all low achievers in water pressure. But there was water flowing in the street ---- a water main had broken.

By the early evening, we'd gone from low water pressure to no running water at all. Down the street were a dozen workers and a big hole in the ground. Reports were that they hoped to have the water back on by midnight. And, in fact, the indoor plumbing was up and running by 11 pm.

Too bad that JT missed the fun. He is always on the look out for a reason to pee outside. When the toilets have no water and can't be flushed, your only option is to commune with nature. He would have been delighted at such an opportunity.