Hi, group,
After being out of commission for several months, from photography and life,
due to being sidelined by a broken foot, I am slowly coming back to life to
tackle the piles of overwhelm that have accumulated during my incapacitation. I
have two issues in my darkroom, one brand-new and one not as new, that are
bedevilling me. Our 1949 money pit continues to wreak havoc on my art and my
life, 10 years on...
Issue 1: The other day I had our neighborhood handyman/renovator over for a
toilet issue on the 3rd floor. He asked about the main waste stack, which of
course is in my basement darkroom - in a corner behind the sink. When I had the
darkroom built about 8 years ago, I painted everything, including the ugly
chipped-paint waste stack (original to the house), to make it all look clean
and new. Everything was (I thought) fine, until the other day when I took my
renovator down there, to discover a huge brown drip (now dried), which began at
the place where the (sic) lug nut is, and extending down past the point of the
sink top, where I can't see how far down the drip extends. It looks more like
rust rather than anything else, but the fact that any liquid at all came out of
there is worrisome to me - since it means total dismantling of the sink and its
plumbing and all the chemistry etc. stored below...let's just say after 10
years of incessant home repair issues, I have dug in my heels against the
life-disruption of any more except those which cannot be avoided. I prefer to
do my art in a house that is an eyesore, than to give up doing the things I
love and have my time stolen from me, in service to any more of this unending
nonsense.
My renovator friend tried to tighten this huge lug nut thing, to no avail. He
told me I could "fix" this by cleaning up the rusty drip if I was bothered by
it, and then running a bead of silicone caulk around where the drip emanated
(which he said is merely screw threads so it's not a huge surprise that
something leaked). But I am nervous about this as a solution, since it has
never leaked before. He also said he could remove that whole section of the
waste stack, and replace it with newer material.
Issue 2: For about 6 months, I have noticed that replacing the water filters,
results in them getting rusty/filthy VERY quickly, even though I only use the
darkroom sporadically. The hot filter is much worse than the cold, although I
noticed the other day when I was in there with my renovator, that the cold is
also affected over the past few months of my not being able to get in there.
This is has happened a number of times - to the point where I have taken to
buying water filters in groups of 6 and replacing them nearly every time I use
the darkroom, which is a ridiculous remedy and does not solve the issue. It
seems to have gotten worse after I was compelled to have my friend replace some
of the metal plumbing connectors which were actually corroding since they were
not meant to be wet, and leaching small chunks of metal into the water (why the
original builder of the darkroom would use such connectors in the first place
is beyond my comprehension...)
I have read that nearby excavations can cause excess rust in water coming in to
a house - and there is a TON of excavation going on all over the neighborhood,
for new construction, new roads, etc. But I'm not sure if this is the cause of
this (rust?) building up in the filters or not.
So I thought I would ask all of you, fount (font?) of collective knowledge and
experience, if anyone may have dealt with either of these issues, and might
have some insight.
With thanks,Adrienne
Adrienne Moumin
Handmade B&W photographs and photo collages: http://picturexhibit.comNYC and
Silver Spring, MD212-602-1809
