Editor's Note: Jayne continues her series, giving us the lowdown on what it's like to take a worn out old homestead and slowly transform it into an energy efficient, ecologically friendly haven.

…and another, and another. Just like a sinking ship. Once there is one, insidious, little trickle they just keep on coming. The Homestead leak count is up to three. Leaks, drips, dribbles, oozes, and trickles make for some funny situations, but they can become serious problems and have a huge impact on the environment.

When we looked at the house in December, there was no way for us to assess the plumbing. As usual, the water had been turned off to prevent the pipes from freezing. I wondered at the time if this might come back to haunt us, but we figured we would be fixing it all up anyway. Superficially, the bathroom didn’t look challenging either, and having done remodeling I wasn’t intimidated by a 5 X 8 foot (1.52 X 2.44 meter) room or the need for new fixtures. So we didn’t push the issue.

Well, the first little problem arose when we turned on the shower for the first time. We noticed a significant puddle forming outside the surround. My heart sank a tiny bit. We weren’t going to get a free plumbing pass. Initially, we weren’t able to tell exactly where all the water was coming from. It looked like it was coming out the shower floor through a crack in the base of the surround. We called in a local “expert”, my father, who’s done most of his own handiwork, and he came out to help us re-caulk the base of the shower. No luck. At this point, I decided to begin calling the leak “Old Faithful.” If you turned the water on, “Old Faithful” could be counted on to form shortly thereafter.

Shower at right, leaky pipe at left...

On further inspection of the geyser’s source, we discovered the water was coming from inside the wall - the wall with no access panel. Neither of us noticed this when we toured the home. The lack of an access panel is a big no-no. Access to your pipes is vital in case you need to make repairs. I thought everyone knew this general concept, but for some reason the bathroom plumbing was well vaulted. Our only recourse was to put a hole in the wall. I was all for it. Greg gave me an excited look as he went for his tools. We joked about what we might actually find once we were inside. Maybe a hidden treasure. Or perhaps a body! We couldn’t decide which would be more exciting to find, but we did agree on which one would be more sensible.

We proceeded to deconstruct the wall with a screwdriver and a coping saw. Greg sawed in carefully since we didn’t know what else might be behind the drywall. White dust flew everywhere and landed delicately on “Old Faithful” below. We were having a blast making a huge mess!

Once we opened up the wall, we found the leaky pipe easily. We could tell the leak had been long-standing, as there was dry rot on the board supporting the pipes. We had to buy the necessary supplies and then find the time to fix it. This took a few days, so showers were taken in the basement. The basement has a rustic shower set up. By rustic, I mean a cement floor with a hole in it and pipes mounted to the field stone foundation. Aesthetics aside, it was absolutely freezing. Showers were short. Very short.

With uncomfortably cold basement showers as an extra motivation, we replaced the leaky pipe. It was wonderful to shower without becoming hypothermic and flooding the bathroom and kitchen! The hole in the bathroom wall still remains and is a bit unsightly, but the shower is functional.

Bathroom Ceiling

The other leaks are from the toilets. The toilet in the basement bathroom was leaky from the start, so we have never used it. Then just recently, the upstairs toilet began to give way. Greg noticed it last Tuesday. There was a big leak coming from the tank, which we discovered was put together incorrectly. The tank was bolted directly to the base, and the rubber washers in the tank had completely eroded. The bolts themselves had rusted to almost nothing. I’m surprised they had the strength to keep the tank on the base. Water dripped freely around them, and when we removed the tank from the base, one of the bolt heads broke off completely.

As we stood there watching the puddle make its way toward the bathroom door, I grasped the moment and said, “Well, I suppose we should just remodel and update this room now.” I went on to explain that if we needed to replace the toilet, we might as well redo the flooring. If we are going to redo the flooring, then we would want to start by painting the ceiling and walls, and work our way down to the fixtures and floor. It’s all logical, and, lucky for me, I have a great guy who’s ready for anything I might suggest.

We ended up working well into the evening in spite of the stifling heat and humidity. We removed the wood trim on the shower (it still stands on its own), took up the mop board, removed the wallpaper, and began to scrub the glue off the walls. The wall scrubbing is a daunting task. The water went from clear to completely white in a couple of minutes. We also discovered some interesting plaster work hidden behind the wallpaper. So, we’ll be repairing that too.

Then there is a list of other things we need to do to complete this project. We need to find eco-friendly flooring. We are on the hunt for an antique claw-foot tub. I have been researching composting toilets and low-flow faucets, toilets, and shower heads. There are so many products out there to help conserve water. It’s fabulous, but a little overwhelming. I am still sorting through the information. Greg and I do have the wall color picked out. It’s a deep red color called “Perfect Strawberry.” I hope to have time to look into milk paint…

To unwind and cool off after all our hard work, Greg and I took a stroll around our land. We lingered in the pine grove. We walked hand-in-hand through the tall prairie grass by the barn. We sat under the gnarled apple tree on the hill and watched a lovely, lavender-pink sunset. Then the dog was sprayed by a skunk.