Dripping tap + bank holiday = DIY

aka 'In praise of people who understand what they are selling'

Our kitchen tap has been dripping for about six weeks (don't fret, OlliEcological - we have been putting plants in the sink). So, it being a bank holiday, this weekend was the time to shut off the water and do something about it.

Now, I remember the old days, when 'doing something about it' meant getting a 15mm washer from the stash in the shed, taking off the top of the tap, removing the squidged useless washer, putting in the nice new one, putting the top of the tap back on, switching on the water, filling the kettle and making a cup of tea. 30 minutes max, and that was if you couldn't quite remember where the washer stash was.

Nowadays it means extracting the 'ceramic tap top gland' and taking it off to a shop that can supply a matching replacement.

I was under the impression that Jewsons was a tolerably reliable place so headed there first.
"Ooh, no, there are thousands of those and they're all different - you'll need to buy a new tap."
"Ah, and how much will a new tap set me back?"
"About 75 quid, but we haven't got any in stock."

No kitchen taps in Jewsons. I knock Jewsons off my 'Useful places' list.

Next, the DIY supermarket, Wickes, without much hope, but it's just across the car park. At customer services there are five people trying to avoid my eye.
"Can anyone give me some plumbing advice?"
The runt gets kicked and looks at me, frightened. I ask my question.
"Don't think we do universal ceramics. Do we do universal ceramics?"
She turns her back on me. I can't be sure whether the 90 seconds on the computer (that's a long wait) is her looking for a universal ceramic thing or for the tea break rota. Then:
"No we don't do those tap things."
I thank her. And remind myself not to try Wickes again.

Plumb Center is down the road and has one useful word in its name so off I go. At least the man looks like he knows what a tap is. I ask my question. Sharp intake of breath through the teeth, but he takes the ceramic thingy from me and looks at it.
"You'll need to know the make. How old is the tap?"
"Eighteen years, and it says San Marco on it."
"Ooh, no, that's old, and there are thousands of those and they're all different - cost about £15 each. You'd do better to buy a new tap... But you could try Smith and Low. It's mostly electricals but we often send people there. They have all sorts of stuff."

Smith and Low is an independent shop on the other side of town. It is not a chain. I've been there for electrical stuff but didn't know they did plumbing. So a cycle ride across town to Smith and Low. It's a dark shop with lots of drawers with things in. It has a huge storeroom just behind the counter. The people in Smith and Low like hardware and they understand how things work. They look at the Ceramic Tap Top Gland, look through their copious stocks and come back with a matching set. Thirteen quid the pair.

Now, that's more than a tap washer used to cost, but a lot less than new tap.

Hope Smith and Low are still there in 18 years time. Couldn't care less about Jewsons, Wickes and Plumb Center.

We also had an easter egg hunt. With our two grown up children :)

Oh, and mega, mega new-found respect to those people who do water drip shots.