Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Nothing

Is ever as easy as you think it's going to be, is it?? Especially when it comes to household repairs. I've been meaning to replace the kitchen lights for most of the year, (we bought a nice new, brushed steel, spotlight array in the January sales, to replace the awful fluorescent tube that was there) but haven't had the time while there was enough daylight. And then I got mumps and had time but not the desire. This week I had both time and inclination. So I got cracking.

I opened the new fitting and checked it over. No back-box. (Building regs state that all ceiling light-fittings must have a back-plate or BESA box - you can't fix them direct to the plaster). No worries, I thought, I'll use the old one. I took down the old light. No backbox there either. After a short period of rest - to allow me to break into a cold-sweat thinking of all the things that could have happened - visions of the house burning down etc. I asked myself how the hell I could have put up a light without one before remembering that I didn't. It was here when we moved in. Presumably the clot who lived here before had done it. His d-i-y work scares me. He's the bloke who connected the porch light to the same fuse as the shower heater!!

I started ringing round the trade-suppliers for a backplate. Nobody had one. I started on the d-i-y places. Still no luck. Finally I was left with just B&Q. I hate B&Q. It's my opinion that the stuff they sell is crap. Lots of people like it though because it's cheap. The staff (though very willing) are generally (it seems to me) poorly trained. I shouldn't have to explain to the chap supposedly in charge of the paint dept. what a fitch is!! Needn't have worried. They didn't have one either. Though it took them 10 minutes to understand what I wanted!! I wound up having to buy a complete pendant set just to get a plate.

I got the set home, unwrapped the plate & went to fix it. It was only then that I noticed none of the cables had the little circle of red tape on them. One of them should have had it to indicate which cable goes to the switch. Do you think I could remember which cable had gone where in the old fitting?? Hah!! I had a choice of three. Know what that means?? Yep. It means I had to fully fit the new light and turn the power back on to check. And then take it down , move the cables around and re-fit it all over again if it didn't work first time. Wanna guess how many times I had to fit the light??

You got it. Three. I've marked the cables this time. And if the light ever needs replacing again we are moving house!!

Enjoy your updates, goodnight and may your God/s go with you.

Ze

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