Sink Battles
Over the past two weeks it became evident that our kitchen sink had a clog and it became my mission to solve it! Growing up in a Mr. Fix-it-Yourself home (and calling someone in is a last resort) I was determined to fix the problem myself! Not to mention the fear of having to deal with a plumber that didn't speak my language was not an enticing alternative.
My biggest fear was taking something apart that I couldn't get back together so I started in stages.
Kelly Vs Kitchen Sink Round 1
I started by taking off the trap under our sink (the white part).
It was rather mucky and had quite a bit of grey gunk so I cleaned it out. Put it all back together; with NO leaks I might add. The water went down a little quicker at first so I felt rather pleased with my accomplishment. However, the next day the problem clearly had not been solved!
Kelly VS Kitchen Sink Round 2
Reading up on home remedies we attempted a few. Vinegar, boiling hot water, and even coca cola, to no avail!
Kelly VS Kitchen Sink Round 3
As my frustration with the problem increased so did my bravery in taking things apart. With the assistance of Skype I had my Mr. Fix-it Dad pay a house call and with his direction I managed to dismantle all the piping under my sink, up to the fitting that went into the wall. After flushing the whole thing out and determining that there was no clog in the pipes under the sink the diagnosis was that the problem was in the pipes in the wall!
SIGH! It seemed that maybe having to get a plumber was going to be inevitable.
Our biggest fears being that our pipes are covered with concrete and what an ordeal it would be to get at them. Not to mention the hassle it would be to get someone to come at a time when one of us could be at home!
Kelly Vs Kitchen Sink Round 4
Last ditch effort my flatmate and I picked up Fredy - (no not a plumber) but rather a brand (loosely translated from Czech) of siphon cleaner. First I passed it by our Czech speaking friends to make sure that the chemical wouldn't eat through our pipes (since it depicted eating through everything else!) Then with thick plastic grocery bags wrapped around my arms (since we don't have rubber gloves, next time will put that on the list) I dumped a cap-full of chemical down the sink, let it sit and then followed it up with a litre of boiling water. I repeated this step 3 times. Followed by many prayers. Alas it all seemed for not and the fears of having to call a plumber loomed!
I resigned that night with a prayer: Lord, Creator of the universe, one who can move mountains, please can you help remove the clog in our drain too! Though my faith behind such prayers are never too strong. Why with all the things going on in the world would a clogged drain matter?
Yet, it matters to me, and my God cares about things that matter to me! So I shouldn't have been so surprised when I came home from work today, sent up a prayer Oh Lord please let it drain, turned on the tap and heard our sink burp and watch the water flow down freely!
Just another one of those reminders that even the little things matter to our Heavenly Father!
For the first 4 days of our Spring break 20 staff members from our school travelled to Kandern, Germany to Black Forest Academy to attend the International Christian Educators Conference. It was a great time of learning, encouragement and inspiration as we got to hear from some great teachers and learn about how God is at work in many different schools around the globe. Once again I will let the pictures do most of the talking!
