I woke up this morning, and the house had no running water. When I was a city dweller, I would have thought, “Did I pay my bill? What’s the super’s number? Did the idiots on the construction project down the street hit the water main?” This morning, my first thought was: “I have to go to the well house and bang around until the pump works.” All the romantic poetry of living on a vineyard and getting fabulously clear water from your own well evaporates into a hard reality when you wake up on a farm without water.
The first time this happened, Clay had already left for his commute to the city. I went into the well house to look around, armed with a big broom because it’s always full of spiders and bugs. I noticed the pressure gauge on the pump was at zero. I swept out the little building, disturbing the spiders and occasionally banging against the pipes and the pump equipment. A little more sweeping and suddenly the pump engaged, the gauge rose, and water began to flow.
I called our pump guy, Bob Plumb of Luciani Pump, and told him what had happened. He said that it was very common. An insect can get between the electronic connections in the pump equipment and fry. Until it gets crispy and falls out, it breaks the connection. He said his company often gets calls like this. When his guys go to the home and give the pump a couple good whacks to fix it, the rancher thinks they’re heroes.
So my first job this morning is to go to the well house and bang around. I’ve got my broom. Hope it works again.