Hoarding - Springing Ahead

Gingernutty

Did anyone realise it was Hoarding Awareness Week this week (19th - 23rd May 2014)??

Scary video here.

GreyQueen

anirtak191 wrote: »

hair traps? just got normal plug holes with the criss cross that the plug sits on, usually need to clear that once a month in the bath, unless ive let my hair grow and need to clear it everytime i wash it then.
bath never seems too bad at draining, but the sink in bathroom drainage is slow and the sink in the kitchen was before the council had the plumbing redone when they changed the kitchen, has seemed fine for last couple of months.

A big chunk of my job is booking repairs on council homes, inc dealing with blocked plumbing. I think you have a partial blockage down there, beyond the reach of household remedies, probably needs a proper plumber, possibly even a rooter (sp?) down the pipes.

Partial blockages really need to be addressed as they turn into full-on blockages really suddenly - usually over a Bank Hol weekend or other maximally inconvenient time. I'd talk to your council landlord asap, if I were you.

Hearing about blocked plumbing on a daily basis makes me a little obsessive about my own. I use a product from Lakeland called a 'sinkie' which is a perforated rubber disk with suction cups which sticks over the plughole (when the plug is removed) and it's amazing how much is catches. I use it when I was my hair in the basin and also when I use the overbath shower, or drain the bath.

For the kitchen, I pour the washing up bowl water out through an old sieve which is kept for that purpose only. The other day I captured a strip of cellphane packaging material which I didn't even know was in the water, and which could have caused havoc down the pipe. HTH.

Happygreen

Good morning, all.

Could I post a question some of you might be able to answer?

Some folks have mentioned Amazon exchange credit or similar. I can't find anything on their site, probably I just don't know where to look. Is it like selling your stuff for store credit and how does it work?

JustAboutThere

whitewing wrote: »

let the workman put the bulb in for you/them.

I have anaemia too (came out in blood tests). I get the ferrous sulphate tablets from the chemist. 99p. I assume yours is being treated via your GP?
JAT, are you getting support with your decluttering? May be worth a trip to the GP for that? I know it is difficult to fit appointments in if you are working. Or, if you have funds, how about getting one of those specialist decluttering companies to quote you for a clean up. There are more around these days who know about hoarded houses. I think Jasmine's dehoarding website links to one company they used for her mum.

The building chap phoned yesterday - he's coming after work early next week.

I suspect there goes all my plans for the weekend. And yes, assuming I can't get the bulb working - he can do it.

I did mention to my GP, albeit rather jokingly about my 'house of grime' but considering we were discussing other matters more urgent, it got passed over.

I know I can do it, its just that I get overwhelmed and not helped if I'm under a time pressure as I will be for this guy's visit.

Anyway, I'll ignore it until the weekend. I've got to keep this job otherwise I'll just curl up into a ball and won't leave the house.

pigpen

*pleased*

I have sold a twin pushchair. binned a whole 2 boxes of stuff and recycled another one.. I am getting through the crap very very very slowly but it is gradually disappearing!!!!

silvasava

Just managed to declutter a whole load of bluebell & grape hyacinth bulbs along with a perennial geranium that had self seeded on Freecycle and a large cardboard box & some newspapers - all used to pack some stuff up to be sent off! Puss is having a sulk 'cos she's taken to the box

SueMaggie

Happygreen wrote: »

Good morning, all.

Could I post a question some of you might be able to answer?

Some folks have mentioned Amazon exchange credit or similar. I can't find anything on their site, probably I just don't know where to look. Is it like selling your stuff for store credit and how does it work?

Delurks for a moment...

I think you may be talking about Amazon Trade-In, of which you'll find details here.

They take books, games consoles and games. I've used it a few times for books and not had any problems, but they tend to want only newer books and you may be able to get higher prices for those elsewhere.

Retreats back into the shadows...

anirtak191

afternoon,
hi gq, i have phoned council in the past, whenever they have come out they do whatever it is they need to do and have told me theres no blockage, altho the neighbours have called them out and one time they have needed the big hose put down the outside drains. i have no idea if the drains are conected with them being flats. but on the times i have called saying the sinks are slow to drain, they have sent someone, and like i said, they have told me there is no blockage.
i should probably do it more often but i buy those degreeser machine washing detergents for the wm and dw and use them about every 3-4 months, only buy them when they on offer. or if i got some i iwll put a cup of clear vinegar into wm as i been told thats just as good for clearing the drains out.

well im doing collyflower cheese for tea tonight at hubbys request. and hes back in work for a night shift tonight after being in all day so im hoping i can find some energy somewhere to go and do the paint touch ups and get that finished tonight.
local car boot on sunday, whatever we get from that is going towards carpet so will nip down and pay that on monday.
hoping then i can start getting the rest of the place sorted cos im fed up of looking at it. but i at least managed to catch up on the washing just waiting for the load in the window to dry so i can swap it over. dont have a washing line so i put everything on hangers and hang on the pole over the window. towels over the tops of doors, and electrics running low so cant put dryer on for the small things so will drag the airer out of its corner for that.
well i just realised the itme so i should get moving on making tea. hubby prefers my cheese sauce cooked form scratch nt form a jar, so takes a little longer to do lol

silvasava

Anirtak - a scoop of washing soda in your washing machine will soften the water & keep the machine clean & keep the pipes clear too. I put some in the pre-wash compartment as it flushes out with the washing liquid anyway. Your dishwasher doesn't really need anything as the salt and the tablets/powder are very caustic & will clean the pipes. The dishwasher cleaners are just a ploy to get us to spend more money!

GreyQueen

Morning all.

anirtak, if you're in flats, you'll be sharing some of the drainage with the neighbours. My block has no exterior pipework visible at all, but when there's bad problems, they have to lift metal covers in the ground outside and get 'the worm' down there.

Depending on your geographic area, you may have a limescale problem. I've know limescale build-up to progressively narrow the bore of pipes inc WC waste pipes, to the point where they have recurring blockages no matter what the householder or the visiting plumber does - it comes down to replacement in the end. My Nan's original WC had to be removed after about 40 years as the limescale had reduced the part that the waste flows through by 75%. It was something to behold.

Some very bizarre things get dragged out of plumbing in our area, inc things like glass juice bottles put down outside drain covers for 'a laugh' by children. And there's often some nitwit stuffing disposable nappies into the WC. Wet wipes are a frequent cause of trouble.

All you can do is persevere. If things are very bad, the only option is sending cameras down to see what's in the pipes, but that's specialists work and pricey, so your council will probably only do that if they think there's a major problem with the drains outside.