That conversation with a retired plumber about water pressure still bugs me

Was at a friend's cookout last summer in Tacoma. Met this older guy, retired plumber. He saw me filling a bucket from a hose and just laughed. Said I was doing it all wrong. Told me to let the hose sit in the sun for 10 minutes first. Then run it slow. Claimed it prevents air bubbles that mess up pressure throughout the whole system. I nodded but honestly thought he was full of it. Six months later I replaced a faucet and noticed the pressure was way off. Tried his method on a whim. Water flowed way smoother. Now I'm wondering how many other basic things I've been doing backwards my whole life. Anyone else get a random tip from a stranger that actually worked?

3 comments

3 Comments

jana88129d ago

Read somewhere that older trades guys have this whole oral tradition of weird tips that actually work, like the hose thing. There's a book about it, "Shop Class as Soulcraft" or something like that, that talks about how they pass down these little fixes because they actually tested them. Makes you wonder what else we miss by just looking things up online instead of asking someone who's been doing it for 40 years. I almost feel like I owe that plumber an apology, but I don't even know his name.

gray_morgan29d ago

Used to think old guys just liked hearing themselves talk, but this one actually changed my mind. That hose trick is wild, I tried it too and the water did come out way more consistent. Idk, maybe it's just me but I notice little things like that way more now. Feels like all those little shortcuts people pass down actually have some weird science behind them. Kinda makes me pay more attention when someone older drops advice.

nguyen.morgan29d ago

3 years ago my neighbor showed me how to keep a drill bit from walking by putting a piece of tape on the spot first. @gray_morgan it's like you said, the little tricks are what stick. I think the real reason these old timers know so much is because they had to fix stuff themselves instead of just buying a new one. Everything was built to last back then and parts were expensive so they figured out workarounds. My dad still has a belt from 1987 he keeps patching with shoe glue instead of replacing it. Those guys didn't have YouTube or google so they learned by messing up and passing it down. That hose trick is just one of a hundred things they figured out through trial and error.