Ingenious Home Repairs You'll Amaze You With
Home repairs often require a little creativity and ingenuity, especially when dealing with a broken PVC pipe in your yard or even crafting a backyard paradise from found materials. Let's explore some amazing home repair projects that didn't just get the job done but were also truly ingenious and mind-blowing.
Repairing a Broken PVC Pipe
When faced with a broken PVC pipe in the yard, the challenge often lies in performing a non-code repair. In one instance, a broken 1-inch schedule 40 PVC pipe required a creative fix. The repair involved using a solid 1-inch round bar PVC and heavy-duty PVC adhesive. This DIY approach ensured a permanent and non-compliant fix, making the water fountain issue a thing of the past. The inside diameter of schedule 80 pipe was measured, and a rod, which fit with a decent clearance, was inserted to prevent pressure buildup.
Crafting a Backyard Paradise
Imagining a backyard paradise created from free rubble may seem like an idea from a dream. However, it's a reality when a hydraulic engineer and mountaineer took on the task. He used found objects to create a backyard filled with a hot tub, fountain, jacuzzi, huge arbor, firepit, grill, and a wet bar. The addition of tropical potted plants and tiki lights transformed it into a slice of Key West or Bahamas paradise. The project, while not your ordinary Home Depot job, was all handcrafted and impressive in its sheer creativity.
Repairing an Old Television
While not exactly a home repair, the story of swapping the guts of an old color TV is worth mentioning. The client's mother-in-law had a beautiful Mediterranean oak cabinet TV from the mid-1960s. By 1990, the colors and contrast were so faded that it was nearly unwatchable. A professional repairman suggested it was too old to repair. The saver, however, was a new TV with a corner smashed, available for $50. During the night, the project was discreetly executed, with the new TV's guts being swapped for the old one. The biggest challenges were aligning the manual controls and the image tube. After several hours of work, the swap was complete, and no one could tell it had been retrofitted.
These examples of ingenious home repairs demonstrate the power of creativity and persistence. Whether fixing a broken pipe, creating a backyard paradise, or even replacing a TV, these projects showcase the potential for DIY solutions that defy the odds.