"Phones and water never mix well."
Yeah, learned that lesson myself after dropping mine into a half-filled bathtub while trying to snap a quick reference pic of a faucet connection. Now I always use a waterproof pouch or at least keep it far away from any open plumbing lines. Personally, Dropbox feels quicker for me—just drag, drop, and done—but Google Drive's search function is way better when I'm hunting down older pics. Still torn between convenience and organization...
"Still torn between convenience and organization..."
Yeah, I hear you—it's always a trade-off. Honestly, I've found that taking a quick sec to rename the photos right after snapping them saves me headaches down the line. Tedious at first, but totally worth it later.
Totally get the struggle you're describing...I mean, who hasn't stood there staring at a jumble of plumbing pics wondering "wait, what was this one again?" Renaming photos right away sounds smart, but honestly, I always end up skipping it because I'm usually elbow-deep in some leak or mess and just wanna get things done. Later though, yep, regret hits hard when I'm scrolling through endless IMG_1234s trying to figure out which valve connects where.
One thing that's kinda worked for me (and it's definitely not perfect) is just snapping a wider shot first, then zooming in on the details. At least then I have some context when I look back later. Still a pain sometimes, but slightly less confusing. Anyway, hang in there—you're definitely not alone in finding this stuff frustrating.
"Renaming photos right away sounds smart, but honestly, I always end up skipping it because I'm usually elbow-deep in some leak or mess and just wanna get things done."
Yeah, same here. Good intentions, but reality kicks in fast when water's spraying everywhere. The wide shot first is decent advice, but honestly, even then I've found myself squinting at photos later thinking, "Was this before or after I swapped that valve?"
One thing I've tried—skeptically at first—is just scribbling quick notes on masking tape and sticking it near the connections before snapping pics. Sounds tedious, I know, but it's saved me from a few headaches. Still not foolproof though...especially when the tape gets wet or falls off halfway through. Plumbing documentation is just one of those things that's always gonna be a bit messy, literally and figuratively.
I've tried the masking tape trick too, but yeah, water and tape aren't exactly best friends. Ever tried using a grease pencil or wax crayon directly on the pipes? I stumbled onto this by accident once when my kid left crayons lying around. Surprisingly holds up better than tape when things get wet. Still doesn't solve the photo confusion entirely, but at least I'm not squinting quite as hard later wondering what I was thinking...
