Water, here we go again
It’s interesting that a newspaper report said the yUK could run out of water in so many years on the same day that our house sprung a leak or three. There was a workman downstairs on Monday as there often is, though I have no idea what they do part from bang about and heave themselves at the door to open it because it sticks. Yesterday, after he’d gone, I noticed our water pump was running continuously. The downstairs flat (unoccupied) runs from the same tank and pump as us up here, and none of our taps or pipes were leaking, so I went below to investigate…
I found he’d left the flat wide open, windows, doors and shutters but was not around, so I went in. The flood advancing towards me along the corridor was reminiscent of a scene from Titanic, but I waded in, in my slippers, to discover the kitchen flooded thanks to both pipes to the sink spurting water, and the shower was also running, and I was unable to turn it off. I don’t think he left it like that, it must have just happened on its own. Still, it was draining our limited supply of water from our temporary 500-litre tank, and all I could do was turn the pump off, meaning no water for either property….
Shutters finally open after the winter
I popped over the road and rang the landlord’s bell and then banged on his door, as is the custom. When he appeared, he found his door stuck much like the one downstairs, and he pulled while I put my shoulder to it, and eventually we were in the same room. I tried to explain what was going on but he looked like he’d just woken up, and neither of us speaks each other’s language well enough to discuss the finer points of plumbing. In the end, I called the ever-reliable Symi Property Services, and Nick came up within the hour, took a look, diagnosed what needed doing (which he can’t do as it’s not our property), but he was able to isolate the downstairs water feeds. The workman didn’t return to close up until about nine at night by which time it was too late to go and explain what we’d done, so I am waiting for him to return, discover he has no water, and then I’ll phone SPS and pass the workman my phone for a properly translated explanation. All fun and games here! The upside of this temporary tank is that it automatically fills itself from the mains and shuts off, so we don’t have to remember to open the mains on water days. The downside is, it’s small and connected to the flat beneath. Ah well, such is Symi life (sometimes).
A walk in the hills, the perfect way to relax (and stay dry)
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