Water, water everywhere, not an overflow hole in sight

Press, 13 April 1984, Page 22

Water, water everywhere, not an overflow hole in sight

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Progress in the world of bathroom, laundry, and kitchen fittings appears to have taken two steps back for the sake of one step forward. No longer, it seems, is it fashionable to have an overflow for sinks, tubs, vanity units and baths. Overflows — you remember, those little oblong-shaped holes at the top near the taps — are now seen as unhygienic, unreliable, and simply not “in vogue.” But how many times have you heard a neighbour or friend complain about having to “mop up” after a different kind of overflow — the one where they left the taps running and the floor has taken on the appearance of an inside swimming pool. Perhaps it has even happened to you. I regret to say it has certainly happened to me, on more than one occasion. A colleague also had a nasty experience recently. On his return from his clothesline he was met by a minor tidal wave in the doorway between the lounge and kitchen. It was the familiar story of a forgotten running tap in the kitchen. He also had the “bonus” of discovering that the water had filled partlyopen cupboards. Apparently, he set a new world

MIKE DEACON

record with a mop. They should have sent him down to Southland. Despite our mistakes, we are determined to battle on with the one-hole sink. The trend, according to one leading bathroom retailer in Christchurch, is for sinks without that handy little device near the taps. The ban on overflows seems to have little, if anything, to do with price. For example, you can go for a fancy marble-topped bathroom basin at around the $l5O mark, topped off with gold taps for another $lOO. But it still will not stop the pool formiqg on your bathroom floor if you forget a running tap, because the chances are that the basin will not have an overflow. You may think that the plumber’s bill for fitting an overflow sink has risen, and that that is the explanation for the trend. But you will find no solace in that train of thought. A leading Christchurch plumber informs me that fitting an overflow sink is only slightly different from fitting a normal sink, and the extra cost would be negligible. “We receive very few requests to fit sinks with overflows these days. I think fashion has set the trend away from them,” he said. “Any-

way, you sometimes get clots in the back of the overflow if they are not cleaned regularly, and you get caught out when this ‘safety measure’ doesn’t work.” I take his point, but surely cleaning the overflow regularly is better than the heartache of mopping up when the “dam breaks.” Not to mention the expensive floor coverings that such a spill can ruin. The trend against overflows must appear somewhat puzzling to other countries. In Britain, for example, sinks, old and new, are more often fitted with overflows than without them. In the United States they have all sorts of overflows, from hand-

released ones to automatic jobs, and, of course, the good oldfashioned ones too. Now, to overcome the thrills and spills of a soggy floor here in New Zealand, a manufacturer has come up with an alarm system which you fit near the top of the sink. The alarm goes off if the water rises dangerously near the top. A good idea, but what an elaborate step to take when the oldfashioned overflow did exactly the same job. Sometimes in life it does seem as though we take one step forward, only to take two steps back. In this case watch where you are treading when stepping backwards — you may get your feet wet.