Reflections on Post-Storm Renovations

We're having an interesting couple of months at Chez Archer and I've realised:

• Problems don't just come in groups of three.  They'll arrive in any darned number they like and probably at the least convenient time!
• and there really is a silver lining to some of them!  Not all, but some!

So a few weeks ago we had a big storm - nope, make that a BIG BIG storm!  It was centred right over our area and lightning and thunder were happening almost simultaneously. Frighteningly loud!

The gathering clouds

The temperature plummeted and we had a huge hail dump...

Almost looked like snow!

... and then the rain started.  Hail stones had clogged the gutters so the water had nowhere to go...

Overflowing gutters

So I'm running around taking photos (as you do!) when I found the water was coming into the house.  Back flowing from the gutters.

I put the camera down and started running around with buckets and towels.

The carpet was sodden.  And it's very very old so it got unpleasantly stinky as it was drying out.  We decided it needs replacing... actually it needed replacing 20 years ago when we moved here but we'd put it off and somehow time just trickled on.

It seemed silly to get new carpets without painting... and it seemed silly to paint without:

1. replacing the ghastly laminated ply on two walls.  And when that came off we saw the walls needed insulation and there were all sorts of interesting cracks that needed filling!
2. and stripping the equally ghastly wallpaper off the other walls.

The carpet's so old it has wrinkles!

This is Bob lounging about in the paddock while we worked

Now the new carpet has been ordered - it's a pale nutmeg colour called "burnt oak".  I hope we like a whole room of it as much as we liked the 1' by 1' sample square!

We're now mid renovation and I'm looking forward to seeing the end result. 

So that's our silver lining from the big storm.  

• The old carpet, which has always been pretty gross, is finally going to be replaced.
• The tired old walls are going to be gleaming under a lovely fresh coat of paint.

What "silver linings" have you found lately?  Do you enjoy renovations? And if you do enjoy them, please share your philosophy because I confess I am not a fan so any renovation "zen" would be most welcome!

The (Post) Spring Clean

by Sharon Archer

Reading: Outside The Ordinary World, Dori Ostermiller

Listening: The Beach Boys

Making me smile: The smell of freshly deodorised carpets!


We’ve had the wettest summer since records began here in Victoria. In fact, nearly half our annual rainfall has come in what would normally be our driest months. There have even been days when we’ve had humidity on a par with the tropics.

With all that dampness, summer warmth and probably the ghosts of much-loved pets, our tatty old carpet has developed an unpleasant mustiness.

Something had to be done!

Carpet and furniture cleaning!

I rifled the Yellow Pages and found the perfect answer – drycleaning! Having experienced carpets after a wet-cleaning process many years ago, the last thing I wanted was to introduce more moisture!

I rang, I quizzed, I booked!

Furniture was moved, carpet that hadn’t seen the light of day for years was exposed, dust bunnies were routed.

And finally, the big day arrived.

The technician was right on time. We walked through the house, discussed electrical connections to be worked around and where the cleaning unit would fit and which items of furniture were to be cleaned.

And then he said the fateful words... “Of course, you’ll have to have somewhere to separate the cushions.”

“Separate the cushions?”

“To dry.”

“Dry?”

“The upholstery will be quite wet, because it’s a different process.”

Yikes. “Okay, then let’s not worry about the furniture. Let’s just do the carpets.”





“You do realise the carpet will be slightly damp?” he said.

“Damp?”

“Yes. Didn’t you ask?” the technician said.

Well, actually, no! It said drycleaning! How was I to know it really meant driercleaning!

I cancelled the job, pouted for a while and then hit the supermarket for carpet deodoriser. So now the carpets have been powdered and vacuumed and pampered. The musty smell has gone so my nose is happy.

And I got to pondering about the chicken-and-egg conundrum of asking the right questions... if you don't know the right information in the first place, how do you know what the right questions are? And if you do know the right information... well, surely you don’t need to ask the question...

What do you think? I’m still scratching my head!

Public Domain Pictures from www.wpclipart.com