Yeah, the video trick's decent, but honestly, half the time I can't even tell what angle I'm looking at later. Couple things I've found helpful:
- Quick voice notes describing exactly what I'm filming (e.g., "under kitchen sink, left side connection").
- Immediately renaming or tagging photos/videos after taking them—tedious but saves headaches later.
- Sometimes just scribbling a quick sketch on paper helps more than digital stuff.
Still haven't found a perfect system though... plumbing chaos is real.
Totally relate to the plumbing chaos... I tried the video thing too, and honestly, it just made me dizzy later trying to figure out what I was even looking at. Voice notes sound smart though—I haven't tried that yet.
When I first moved into my place, I thought I'd be super organized and took a bunch of photos of all the plumbing connections before doing any work. Felt pretty proud of myself until I realized later that every single photo looked identical—just a mess of pipes and shadows. Couldn't tell left from right or top from bottom. Ended up spending hours squinting at blurry pics, trying to match them up with reality.
What finally helped me was using colored tape. I grabbed a cheap pack of colored electrical tape and wrapped small pieces around each pipe or connection point before taking photos. Then I'd jot down a quick note like "blue tape = cold water line under bathroom sink" or "red tape = hot water line behind washer." It sounds kinda kindergarten-ish, but honestly, it saved my sanity more than once. The colors pop out clearly in photos, even if the angle is weird or lighting sucks.
Sketches are good too, but my drawing skills are... questionable at best. Last time I sketched something, I ended up confusing myself even more. But hey, whatever works, right?
Still haven't found a foolproof method either, but the colored tape trick has been my best bet so far. Maybe combining that with your voice notes idea could be the ultimate solution?
Your colored tape idea is actually pretty clever—I wish I'd thought of that before diving into my last plumbing project. I totally get what you mean about the photos; mine always end up blurry or shadowy, and then I'm stuck playing detective later on. Voice notes sound promising too, but knowing myself, I'd probably ramble and forget crucial details.
One thing that helped me was labeling each pipe with a Sharpie directly—just small notes like "hot," "cold," or "drain." It felt a bit crude at first, but it stayed put even after shuffling things around. I also started taking wider-angle shots to include reference points (like the wall or cabinet edges), which helped orient the close-up images later.
Still, plumbing documentation feels like one of those things that's never quite perfect, no matter how organized you try to be. Maybe combining your tape method with voice notes would finally crack the code...worth a shot anyway.
Sharpie labels are my go-to as well—crude but effective, haha. I've tried voice notes too, but ended up with a 5-minute ramble about my cat knocking over tools...not exactly helpful later. The colored tape idea sounds pretty smart, though I wonder how eco-friendly it is? I've been experimenting with reusable zip ties in different colors lately. They're sturdy, easy to reposition, and don't leave sticky residue behind. Still, no matter how organized I think I am, there's always that one pipe connection that ends up a mystery. Maybe plumbing chaos is just inevitable...
Reusable zip ties sound decent, but honestly, I've found that anything removable eventually gets removed by accident or laziness. Sharpie labels fade, tape peels off, and voice notes...well, you already covered their pitfalls. I've resorted to snapping quick photos on my phone and scribbling notes directly onto them—it's messy but surprisingly effective. Still, I wonder if there's a genuinely foolproof method out there or if plumbing chaos is just part of the deal?
