Reattaching Taps, Soaker Hose and Weed Suppressing Membrane

Three of the large planters on the Sainsbury Building balconies were refilled with soil on Monday. The next step was to reattach the taps to a new, short length of hose which would then be attached to new soaker hose and covered with a weed suppressing membrane.

The existing hose did not come off the tap easily, tucked away in the most awkward of places to reach. Once it had been removed the new piece was too rigid to fit on the tap so a cup of boiling water was called for. Carefully dipping the end of the new hose in to the water it became more flexible and went over the tap end with a little less effort than it took to take it off! (Thank you to the students who very kindly offered cups of tea and coffee everytime a cup of boiling water was requested).  Next, the black porous soaker hose, a tangled mess in a cupboard, it was easier to mark out the required pattern using string and take it to the cupboard rather than take the huge spool of hose up to the planter. The string was used to mark the length of pipe needed.

The cut length of pipe was then taken up to the balcony and pegged down on the soil with small wire pegs individually cut from a larger roll of wire.

Next it was back down to ground level to cut the membrane to the required size, the roll being far too big and cumbersome to take up to the balcony.

Returning to the balcony, the membrane was rolled out over the soaker hose and soil, and anchored down with plastic garden pegs.

Up and down, up and down the ladder all day, two of the three planters were completed, the last one will be finished tomorrow morning.