I swear every time something plumbing-related happens in my house, I realize how little I actually know. Had a leaky faucet yesterday, thought it'd be a quick fix—nope. Ended up watching like 5 YouTube videos, making two trips to the hardware store, and still managed to flood under the sink a bit, lol. Feels like basic plumbing should be taught in school or something, you know? Does this stuff frustrate anyone else or am I just hopelessly unhandy?
You're definitely not alone in this! Plumbing has always been one of those things that seems deceptively simple until you're knee-deep in water and frustration. Last summer, I had this brilliant idea to install a low-flow showerhead to save water (eco-friendly goals, you know?). Thought it'd be easy-peasy—unscrew old one, screw on new one, done. Nope. Somehow ended up breaking off part of the pipe inside the wall and had water spraying everywhere. Ended up having to call a plumber anyway, and my little DIY project turned into a pretty pricey lesson.
But hey, don't beat yourself up about it too much. Plumbing can be tricky because a lot of it is hidden behind walls or under sinks, so it's hard to visualize what exactly you're dealing with until something goes wrong. Plus, those YouTube tutorials always make it look way easier than it actually is. I swear those people must edit out all the messy parts...
I do agree with you though—basic plumbing (and electrical stuff too) should totally be part of school curriculum or at least offered as electives. Would've saved me (and probably a lot of us here) a ton of headaches down the road.
Quick tip from my own trial-and-error experiences: Always have extra towels and buckets ready before you start any plumbing project—even if you think it's minor. Trust me, you'll thank yourself later when you're not scrambling mid-flood.
Have you thought about maybe taking a basic home maintenance course at your local community center or hardware store? I did one last year (after that shower fiasco), and honestly, it helped build my confidence a bit—though I'm still no plumbing wizard by any means. At least now I know where the shut-off valve is...
"Always have extra towels and buckets ready before you start any plumbing project—even if you think it's minor."
Couldn't agree more. Learned that the hard way replacing a kitchen faucet...thought it'd be quick, ended up flooding half the cabinet. Now I keep towels handy and always double-check shut-off valves first.
Had a similar mishap myself—thought I'd quickly tighten a loose pipe under the bathroom sink, ended up with water spraying everywhere. Now I always triple-check valves and keep a bucket nearby...lesson learned the soggy way.
