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Posted to uk.d-i-y
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What's your most stupid DIY cockup?
John Rumm writes:
On 15/05/2013 14:45, wrote:
On Tuesday, May 14, 2013 8:34:43 PM UTC+1, Mentalguy2k8 wrote:
Mine has to be taking the waste pipe off the sink and cleaning it
under running water in the same sink without a plug in. Every
single time.
top... Fortunately I was younger and fitter then (and I had expected
a fair bit to come through, I'd just underestimated), so I got out
just in time, with only a bruise where I'd hit something in my hurry
to get out.
Reminds me of a similar episode at my mum's place... she was
complaining of a blocked drain, so I went round with rods etc to help
clear. We finally established that most of the run down the side of
the house was clear, and so it must be the final few yards to the
manhole. Alas there was what they termed a "weaver" in this drain - a
vented vertical drop tube that intercepts the end of the drain and
drops it about another 3 or 4 feet before it enters the manhole. This
means you can't rod right through from the top, and rodding down the
weaver was not shifting it either. So mother decides we need to go
down the manhole and rod back up the last bit of pipe. I was going to
do the gallant thing, but she insisted on going down since she was
wearing old clothes already (and in those days, enthusiasm often got
the better of her)...
So there she is at the bottom of this probably 10 - 12' deep hole
banging away with a couple of rods against some blockage (I don't
think she had thought this one through to the logical conclusion!)
Then after a moment there was a loud gurgle, and a sound of rushing
water. Realisation rapidly downed that she was about to be in the ****
(literally). There are foot holds set into the wall, but they were not
quick to scale in a panic. There was a scream, and I saw this hand
reach into the air for assistance. So I reached down, grabbed it and
pulled hard. Fortunately the combination of 5' something diddy mother,
and somewhat larger me, meant she came out of the hole like a cork out
of a bottle - with nothing more than slightly damp shoes!
She sounds fun. Swap?
Alex
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