The Best-Laid Plans...

[neadods]

Yesterday M & I spent hours scrubbing the heck out of the house in the once-monthly deep clean, both of us rushing to get it done in one day so she could work at the theater today and I could have my retreat.

Today, instead of sitting in my bedroom knitting and listening to my laptop read to me, I am typing this while watching a plumber ripping out the hallway ceiling, plaster and lathing and squirrel-chewed acorns bouncing off the tarp and onto the carpets and tile. I'd got about an hour's quiet knitting and breakfast in before M noticed the puddle in the hallway... and the fact that it wasn't from last night's mopping but dripping fresh from the light fixture...

It sucks that my retreat has gone, or at least been seriously shortened, but I do remind myself that it would have been a lot worse if I'd planned on getting 1000 errands run. Or if the plumber hadn't been able to find it. Or if there had been some specialized something going wrong. Right now, he's drinking tea and I'm typing, waiting for the glue to set so we can test the juncture.

Any house owners out there have any good ideas for temporary ceiling fixes? I'm not calling a plasterer right away, but I'm not comfortable with a gaping hole either, not with squirrels and mice running about the walls.

Comments

[neutronjockey.livejournal.com]

How much of a temp fix are we talking about here? If it's just to provide a barrier then cardboard and duct tape should keep the critters at bay.

A small piece of sheet metal (and duct tape) if you're in fear the mice might eat through the cardboard.

I suppose it depends on the size of the hole we're talking about as well.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

About a foot square. I don't mind much if mice fall through - if the fall doesn't get them, the cats will - but both M and I are a bit worried about squirrels.

[neutronjockey.livejournal.com]

The cardboard or a piece of sheet metal on the other side of the hole either weighed down or taped down (air conditioning barrier) should do the trick.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

Hopefully, by the time it's prime air-conditioning season here, I'll have saved the money for a contractor/handyman to come in and fix ceiling, replace light fixture (it's rusted) and paint hall.

I don't know why I'm bitching about lost leave. For three years I've traveled instead of putting money into the house, and now the house is making sure I'm staying close to home.