DIY Life

It's late at night and you're ready for bed. You go out to the washing machine to put the clothes in the dryer before you snooze. All of a sudden you notice water on the floor and a mysterious wet spot on the drywall behind the washer. Doesn't look good.

Do you call a plumber and shell out the big bucks for a night call? Heck no! The first thing to do is cut away the drywall where the wet spot is. And there you see it - the water supply pipe has a leak and is spraying a mist out. The next step is to grab the sacrificial garden hose and cut off a piece - just about six inches long.

Now, slice it down one side and place it over the supply pipe where the leak is. To stop the leak you'll need to snug it up. To do this, use a minimum of three hose clamps; put one right over the leak and the other two on either side of it. Presto! Now you can go catch some zzz's!

Recently I had occasion, courtesy of my spouse, to change out the trim on the shower valve in our kids' bathroom. The project went very smoothly until I pulled the trim plate from around the single handle valve control. For some reason it had been caulked into place. Usually the trim plate is help in place by screws that attach to the valve body. I removed the old plate, old caulking, and re-installed the new plate. After finishing the whole assembly I discovered the reason for all the caulking on the old one.

Apparently the one-armed, special-ed, blind contractor (no offense) who had originally installed the valve assembly did not secure the pipes to a stud as required. Whenever I pulled on the handle to open the flow of water, the whole valve body (trim plate included) would pull out and create a gap between the plate and the shower wall. AAAUUUGGHHH!!!! Why do plumbing projects always turn into these kinds of nightmares? Is it just me?

So now I was faced with either using 18 gallons of caulk to hold the plate in place, or cut a huge hole in the wall to be able to reach and secure the pipes to a stud mechanically, or figuring out a different way to secure the pipes.

Have you ever had one of those "uh-oh" moments where you realize that something small and expensive (think wedding ring) is suddenly missing? Did it fall into the engine block you were just assembling? Did it fall down the sink as you washed your hands? Did junior try to see if it would fit down the shower drain? All of these scenarios have one thing in common (besides divorce papers): You have no way of checking unless you spend some time taking things apart. Rigid has come to the rescue to save you from having to do any unnecessary disassembly.

Enter the SeeSnake Micro. It has a 2.4" color LCD screen that receives its signal via a 3' cable with built in LED lights and camera. It is a hand held, cordless unit that lets everyone get into tight, dark, messy places to find out what went where or what went wrong. It also includes attachments for item retrieval so you may just avoid having to disassemble anything at all. (I know that taking things apart is half the fun, but, really? drain pipes... yechh) If the 3' cable isn't long enough for you Rigid will let you extend it to a total of 30' with the purchase of additional cable.

PVC pipe. It's affordable, easy to work with, durable. Not, it's not very pretty, but let me say again: it's affordable! PVC is sort of a wonder-plastic and can be used creatively in many a DIY project. (That is, if you're willing to overlook the fact that it's highly toxic and, therefore, not exactly a green choice.) Like this one, for example: build a bike rack using PVC pipe. I found this one on Instructables, offered up for public consumption by user "imarunner2."

This is a nice 'n' easy little project. If you have a halfway decent saw, you can make this. You will need a length of three-quarter-inch PVC pipe and a bunch of connecting joints -- six t-joints and six elbow joints. All the pieces are glued together using PVC cement. One Instructables reader tried it out and found himself out-of-pocket by a mere $5. Peanuts!

Interested in bigger, more elaborate models? Take a look at some of the pics people have uploaded to Flickr. You've got your king-size garage versions, and then you've got your mondo versions, too. That last one must've been a fun weekend project. Not.

Liking the DIY-with-PVC concept? Check out Gary's post on a DIY vehicle shelter made from PVC pipes.

Slow drains are annoying, but they are also a sign of a bigger problem. If you have something clogging your drain it will only build up and become a bigger problem over time. Here are 5 ways to avoid clogging your drains:

1. Use a drain screen
   Hair and soap scum are major culprits in clogging bath and shower drains. Use a drain screen to catch the debris and clean the screen regularly.
   
   
2. Don't pour grease down the drain
   When you finish cooking, let the grease harden and scoop out as much as you can into the garbage. If you pour grease down the drain it will harden in your pipes.
   
   
3. Don't pour anything else down the drain
   Avoid putting any other chemicals down the drain. Even in a laundry room sink, you'll clog the pipes. Chemical drain cleaners can even erode pipes, so use them sparingly.
   
   
4. Clean your sink stoppers
   Pop-up stoppers can accumulate build-up and should be cleaned regularly.
   
   
5. Pour boiling water down the drain
   Pour boiling water down your drains once a week. Make this a regular part of your cleaning routine to clear the pipes of any scum and build-up.
   

If your drain does get clogged, try Heather's vinegar solution. If that doesn't work, you may have to go in to find the offender and tackle it with a plunger.