Plumb Luck

Praise God from whom all blessings ‘flow’! The leak is fixed and water is flowing in its appointed courses. The experience also shows the church in action. I emailed my pastor and some friends last night with the situation asking if anyone knew a plumber or if one was in the church. My pastor replied this morning that there was a plumber in the church, but he was on his way back from Colorado. I called him and he referred me to another company who came within just a few hours.

Turns out, modern plumbing involves a plastic pipe with brass compression couplings. At the time my house was built about five years ago, an earlier generation of this (requiring special tools) was used and has since been abandoned. These plumbers didn’t have those tools and couldn’t fix the problem—the coupling between the faucet and pipe had popped out. They referred me to the company that actually installed the original plumbing on the house, only charging me a minimum fee.

The second company showed up within a couple of hours and was able to fix the problem within minutes. As it happens, the crimp on that particular connection was bad and so a failure was inevitable, sooner or later. The plumber put better insulation on the new pipe and there were no new leaks when the water was turned back on. Hallelujah.

Total bill for plumbing:  just under $150, a bargain compared to what it could have been. I still need to repair the interior wall, but I can do that myself and it is near the bottom of my pantry, so doesn’t need to be pretty. The carpet still needs to have a little padding replaced and then re-tacked. But it could have been much worse.

I learned that only drip indoor faucets, not outdoor faucets. I had a number of friends from church and work call or email with support and help, and I am deeply grateful. Most of all, thank you to my folks, who were available for consultation at the late hours at which things developed.

This episode reminds me of one of God’s highest desires for us—to love one another in healthy interdependence. When one member suffers, the rest support them. I am grateful beyond belief that my suffering has been little more than an inconvenience, but there was still some uncertainty as to the severity while I waited—was it a simple inexpensive job, or would my slab be compromised and remodeling necessary? How long would I be without water, and would I need to go to a friend’s or get a hotel? Knowing there were resources available because people cared with actions, not just words, helped give a peace to the waiting. Thank you to all involved.

Truly,

SDG