Here’s the next instalment in my building work diary, telling the tale of when I had a loft conversion a few years ago.
If you missed the story so far, here are the earlier days:
Days Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven and Twelve
Days Thirteen, Fourteen and Fifteen
Days Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty and Twenty-one
Days Twenty-two, Twenty-three and Twenty-four
Days Twenty-five and Twenty-six
Days Twenty-seven and Twenty-eight
Day Twenty-nine:
Having taken Dyno Des’s advice and made sure I’m out for the day, I arrive back home to find the front door open, a hose pipe hanging out and water gushing over the lawn. There’s dirt and mess everywhere. He wasn’t joking…
Day Thirty:
A different plumber turns up and says Dyno Des has been called out elsewhere and he’s standing in for him. He introduces himself as Steve. Is it just me or is he hungover?
“Don’t worry about me. I had a skinful last night, but I’m good at what I do,” he reassures me.
Oh dear.
Day Thirty-one:
I take it all back. He’s done a great job with the plumbing and that’s it! The loft’s all finished! Well, there’s the decorating to do, but at least there’s no more workmen. Hooray!
One week later:
Just when I thought I’d never see Dyno Des again, in he comes. You see, the taps weren’t working properly. It turns out Steve connected the hot to the cold tap and vice versa. He’s fuming and calls Steve some very rude names. Still, he says it was an easyish fix. Plumbing problems over.
One month later:
It was lovely for a while – we decorated, we furnished, we luxuriated in our new loft space – until part of the ceiling in Charlotte’s bedroom below collapsed, water cascading down, and there was a leak in the airing cupboard resulting in a new tank. Steve had missed an essential connection. So it was Dyno Des to the rescue again.
And here I am, twenty years on, about to have some more building work. I’m hoping it’ll be hassle-free, just like my loft conversion…
Esther Chilton 
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