Oh yeah, sometime in all this mess we remembered that we do need to have a drink of water now and then. Now in Gustavus at the Miracle Cabin, unlike in your nice warm house at home, you CAN'T just turn the faucet on and all is good. You see, here we are on well water, which is powered by a pump that was sent up some 15 years ago, which is powered by electricity. That well sits 40' or so from the house, and the pump and it's tank are on top of the well, connected to the cabin and it's plumbing by an underground line. The photo above is taken from the front of the cabin, looking out at our field, and Paul as he works on our pump!
And, speaking of electricity, this would be a good time to note that Paul and Maria have been paying the electric bill at the Nicodemus cabin for the last 3 years or so. Good intentions and offers to help have stayed as mere intentions and offers, so they've born that expense. Starting this month Tom paid the latest $25 bill and will begin paying the $15 a month or so it takes to keep the power on. If you turn it off there is a $150 or so reconnection fee so it's cheaper to just keep it on and have the breakers shut off when we leave. Thanks Paul and Maria!
For a day or so we trudged across the field to the Dewitt's cabin to fill up gallon water jugs at their outside spicket. I remember the first time I went to get water. It came out of the faucet crystal clear, though when I tasted it the flavor was somewhat "minerally". Well, to make a long story short, by the time we had brought a few gallons back to the cabin and set them aside the water had turned a nice light shade of rusty brown! Yuck....
So, we begin to use the water purification method designed by the Nics three years ago at our last "mini-reunion". So, for those of you just dieing to know, here is the "secret" formula / recipe:
First of all you put about 6 filters in the coffee maker, then you run the water through the coffee maker! (this turns the paper filters brown and yucky after only a couple of pots) Then you set the water aside to cool in various containers in the kitchen. Finally you pull out brita pitcher number one and pour the water through that, followed by pouring the same water through brita pitcher number two! Voila! Clear, fresh, clean, good tasting water! We pour that water into gallon jugs and they go in to the fridge. As you can imagine, "making drinking water" becomes a part of the daily ritual.
OK, now back to the pump! This is an old Sears 1/2 or 1 horse pump (I don't remember which) that Dad brought up years ago. We found out the hard way the first year that when overwintering the pump you have to take it COMPLETELY apart at the main juncture and drain it or you will come back to find a burst pump and houseing.
So... 3 years ago that was done... however the pump, assembly, and gaskets were left on the front porch in the sun and weather. This resulted in the deterioration of the gaskets due to UV light and general further deterioration of the pump. The gaskets practically fell apart in your hands, and were in a couple of pieces. First we tried the electrical tape, jerry rigging of existing gaskets. Close, but no cigar. Then we found a piece of surgical tubing that almost matched the gasket, taped the ends together, and crammed it in the pump. It took two of us to hold the housing together, and finally, Voila! A working pump! Paul is a pump magician!! (This is a picture of him working on the gaskets.)
Then we cut some oldhose and replaced it with new, and fixed a couple of leaks under the house, and once again we were drinking water from our own well, and had a working toilet and shower to use!! WooHoo!! Oh, and by the way, our water is WAY better than the water from the DeWitt's well, although we still used the water purification method.
And, as a postscript, it should be noted that the pump is really done, as in finished, kaput, needing to be replaced. It is working, but not efficiently, and it's days are numbered. A little explanation: The pump sits on a tank that has a bladder in it that is supposed to be pressurized by compressed air (like a tire). The pump them pumps water into the tank and the back pressure creates pressure for the water lines in the cabin or our hoses or whatever else we need water for. In the process of messing with the tank it became obvious that the bladder is shot, the back pressure doesn't work, and probably had not worked for many years. The pressure we've had is basically from the pump pressurizing our lines. Bottom line is that we need to buy a new shallow well pump.
I saw one at harbor freight for $99 on sale, but alas did not have the coin to make the purchase.
Thanks to all of you who are following this saga online, and for your responses.
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