What's that dripping sound?

You know how hard it is to come back from a vacation and go to work? Well, when you are still working on a remodel that was supposed to be done by Halloween (ahh...the visions of cute refreshments and fall leaves are still dancing in my head) and it's the dead of winter and there is 6" of snow on the ground...well, I find that nearly impossible!

Jeff and I have worked our way to the kitchen...the mother of all remodeling rooms because there is electricity, plumbing, trim, windows, etc. and doubly so because we are working on the half-bath at the same time.

Just about the time we start making progress the "gremlins" come out and start wreaking havoc. We'll be buzzing along and then it seems that all hell breaks loose and we have trip after trip to Home Depot.

We got new valves for the kitchen sink and for the 1/2 bath. Jeff was having trouble putting in the valve for the kitchen and I was downstairs turning the main off and on. Well, the valve was leaking so Jeff had me turn off the water.

As I'm coming up the stairs I distinctly heard a "drip, drip, drip" sound. I went to the sound of the water and heard it dripping through the laundry chute. I thought it was the sink downstairs that I had turned on to lower the house water pressure but when I got downstairs I heard it in the laundry room. Water was everywhere on the floor and dripping from the ceiling. I went upstairs and opened my new vanity cabinet and found a huge puddle of water.

We had removed the shredded handle of the valve to try and see if it could be replaced, the valve was still opened (by the gremlins of course) so when I turned on the water there was a literal cascade in the cabinet and it made it down the wall and under the cabinet itself. Bad gremlins! I wonder if a feng shui space clearing would get rid of gremlins?

I also had a bad case of the gremlins when I wired a hot white (not marked by the electrician who wired the place...must be part gremlin) to a neutral white and got a lovely "pop" sound right before the circuit "broke". Luckily it didn't blow the whole house like last time. Anyway...we have 3-way light in the dining area thanks to the Orem Library...again.

Lessons learned:

"Drip, drip, drip" is never a good sound when you are remodeling....NEVER! It either means paint, water or stain is ruining something.

MARK YOUR HOT WHITES! PLEASE! For the sake of all amature electricians who follow in your footsteps.

Gremlins eat money.