nelhageApr 24
jacobian

You can measure your skill at DIY house projects by the ratio of visits to the hardware store against days of work:

- no visits: god tier
- less than one visit per day: excellent, you know what you’re doing
- 1 visit / day: average
- more than 1 visit / day: reconsider your life choices

Apr 24 at 1:33amWeb
Show threadjacobianApr 24
(I am at 6 visits in 3 days and about to head out for what I dearly hope is the final trip. FML.)
Show threadjacobianApr 24
The project was setting up a pump to pull water from our rain tanks into a new paddock, so it involved both plumbing and wiring — the two most fiddly disciplines, you really need the right parts, improvising is bad. Then I ran out of 90° elbows, discovered the pump had a leaky fill plug, cracked the waterproof electrical junction box, and to cap it all off discovered at the last minute that I’d installed the pump backwards.
Show threadJordan SisselApr 24
@jacob you’ve earned the use of a few swear words or perhaps some deep sighs after that ordeal
Show threadjacobianApr 24
@whack many swears were swore
Show threadWillApr 24
@jacob At least you're all set up to pump electrified mud into your rain barrels now!
Show threadDave bauerApr 24
@jacob Always buy too many elbows!
Show threadOlivier MehaniApr 24

@jacob I think this misses the effect of persistence.

After a while, you have all the tools. You're still bad at it. But man, this shed has half the inspirational glow as a Bunnings aisle, and that's something.

Show threadBen BerryApr 24
@jacob this math does get a little fuzzy as you accumulate leftovers and wrong parts from previous jobs.
I saved a trip for hinges recently because I already had some from previously buying the wrong ones
Show threadAlex WillmerApr 24
@jacob a visit to Accident and Emergency counts as 5 hardware store visits
Show threadDemonHouserApr 24
@jacob okay I didn't come online to be attacked, geez
Show threadSean ReifschneiderApr 24
@jacob By god tier you mean it's often talked about but doesn't, in reality, exist? ;-)
Show threadjacobianApr 24
@jafo mentioned in myth and song
Show threadSean ReifschneiderApr 24
@jacob I was pretty proud of that time I made my son re-set the toilet (don't ask) and I had all the parts to do it on hand. Bought a few different rings for a project 3-4 years earlier, they seem like something good to have on hand.
Show threadDave bauerApr 24
@jacob I did change my well pump in 1 visit! Record I think was 7 in one day. I definitely had the 1 day record for the local auto parts store I could walk.