Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke
Our bathroom renovation has entered its next chapter.
Unfortunately, it is not yet the chapter titled Finished.
The restoration crew returned this morning to check the moisture level in the floor joists. The good news is that the wood is steadily drying. The less encouraging news is that it is not quite dry enough for the repairs to continue.
That is summer in Nashville for you.
This time of year, the combination of heat and humidity seems determined to slow down anything that needs to dry. Fortunately, the restoration crew brought in a second dehumidifier to speed things along.
With a little luck, tomorrow will finally be dry enough to move forward.
Of course, every improvement project seems determined to introduce at least one new surprise.
Not long after the second dehumidifier was installed, I noticed that our water dispenser had mysteriously stopped working.
After talking with my wife, we discovered that the refrigerator downstairs had also lost power.
Apparently, two industrial dehumidifiers, a large fan, and our home’s electrical circuits were having a disagreement.
Fortunately, the explanation turned out to be much less dramatic than I first imagined.
One of the breakers had tripped.
After resetting it, everything came back to life. Water dispensers were working again, and the downstairs refrigerator resumed its normal duties as though nothing had happened.
The electrical system, it seems, was simply reminding us that every circuit has its limits.
The restoration crew also closed the bathroom door to keep humid air from entering while the machines worked.
It is a sensible idea.
The only downside is the noise.
Those dehumidifiers are astonishingly loud. Even with the bathroom door firmly closed, they produce a steady mechanical roar that can be heard throughout the house.
Now that there are two of them, the soundtrack has become considerably more enthusiastic.
Oddly enough, the loudest machines in the house have solved another problem entirely.
Normally, a closed door is an irresistible invitation for our cat to investigate.
Not this time.
One brief listen to the dehumidifiers was apparently enough to convince him that whatever mysteries lay beyond that door were someone else’s responsibility.
For perhaps the first time in history, loud industrial equipment has successfully defeated feline curiosity.
Home renovation continues to teach the same lesson.
Rarely does one problem travel alone.
Fortunately, neither do good solutions, nor patient contractors.