4th time's the charm...

I must confess that I am pretty frugal when it comes to home repairs, so I undertook my first extensive "plumbing" project today. I've done plenty of toilet repair, but this one is a little more daunting to me and much more expensive.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed that there would be water on the rug in front of the sink whenever I did dishes. I didn't seem to have the problem all the time, just whenever I used the disposal. So I looked under the sink and decided there must be a gasket leak because when I just ran water down the drain I didn't see any water.

Well today when I was putting something away under the sink I discovered it was very damp. I turned on the water and out of the side of the disposal came a very distinct stream of water. Apparently the disposal had corroded through.

Well, I can fix that, right? So I undertook to remove the old one and discovered it was a little trickier than I initally thought. So I enlisted the help of my retired and very handy neighbor, Larry. I call him my surrogate dad, as I go to him for the advice on home repairs that I would ask my dad if he were around. Larry came by and crawled under my sink to put in his two-cents worth. He wasn't sure how to remove it either but made a suggestion. Then off he went to deal with his own plumbing problem...a broken sewer line! (Glad I just have the problem with my disposal.)

I tried his suggestion and voila -- one detached disposal in my hand. I took it with me to the store and bought exactly the same one to replace it. $91 and change -- ouch! I was hoping more like $50 or $60. Anyhow, I paid the price and headed home.

I took it out of the box and casually reviewed the instructions. Then I put it on the sink. Wow! That was easy...Hmmm, how do I plug it in? There isn't a power cord attached? Well, that's not good. So I took it off. (1st attempt). I turned it over and discovered that there is no power cord attached anywhere. I'm sure glad I haven't discarded the old one yet.

So now I'm an electrician, too! I dismantle the power cord from the old one, attach it to the new one and reattach the contraption to the sink again. This time I even get all the plumbing reconnected. Now it's time to turn on the water and make sure there are no leaks...Oops! Mounted it crooked and the water is coming out all over the place! (2nd attempt). Back to the drawing board.

On this attempt I'm very careful to mount the unit properly. I align the mounting bracket and place it on the ring. Then I get out from under the sink and go to tighten it. Uh-oh - I twisted it the wrong way and off it pops! (3rd attempt)

Well, this is now a comedy of errors. I get back under the sink and realign everything again. I tighten it up and get out from under the sink to reconnect all the plumbing stuff. Now to try the water. Yay!! No leaks. Now for the big test. I turn off the power to the outlet, plug in the disposal, turn on the water and flip the switch. Whirrrrrrr. It works great and I didn't have to pay a plumber!

I am woman and I can do anything! Now, I wonder how much it would cost to replace my dishwasher. I bet I could do that....