Tasty Water and Terrific Tile

A few days ago, I got up and went into the kitchen to get breakfast.  As my protein bar was thawing a bit, I used our filtered water to fill my cup to take my morning medication.  For whatever reason, the water tasted terrible.  Rick and I had already discussed the filtered water situation, trying to figure out how long ago we had replaced the filters.  The answer: too long ago!

Rick's research revealed that the replacement filter we needed had been discontinued and replaced by not less than four different variations on that one filter, and we were not sure that any of them would fit into the system under the sink.  We decided to change out the canisters for a new filtration system.  On Sunday, the new system arrived via Amazon Prime.  Rick took it out of the box "just to look at it."  He said he would not install it until Monday.

A couple of hours later, I walked into the kitchen, and this is what I saw:

Impatient Rick installs the new water filtration system
under the kitchen sink.

Needless to say, we now have a new filtered water system on our kitchen sink.  One taste of the new filtered water confirmed that we really did need to change what we had been using.  The water now somehow just tastes more pure.  I taste no chemicals.  Perhaps it is all my imagination, but if that is so, I am enjoying my imaginary better-tasting water.

The concrete slab, complete with expansion cracks, does
not make the lanai an appealing place to sit.

On Monday we received a call from Sean saying that he could get a tile installer to our house on Tuesday morning to tile the lanai.  Yahoo!  That is the last structural step we need to make the lanai complete. We chose a light beige tile with a "sandy" non-slip texture.  These tile are made specifically for outdoor areas and for pool decks which easily can get wet.  With the humidity in Florida, we were advised that these tile would be safe.  An added bonus: rather than mopping them, we can just wash them with a hose to keep them clean!

Rodney put down a white membrane over the
expansion cracks so the tile would not split
when the temperatures cause movement of the slab.

Rodney and Sean showed up bright and early this morning.  They unloaded all of the supplies, and then Rodney started to lay out some tile.  He showed us a couple of different patterns for the tile, and after we chose the one we wanted, he got to work.  He told us he would lay all of the full tiles today, and he would come back tomorrow to cut the filler tiles and to grout the whole floor.

Of course, the lanai floor is not square, so Rodney
started with the outer wall since that is the first place
one will see when entering the lanai.

Rodney mixes more mortar in the backyard as he completes
yet another row of tile.  He used a chalk line to make sure each
row was straight and true.

By this afternoon, the heat really set in, but Rodney kept on working.  We supplied him with cold water, and he kept laying our tile floor.  He still has to lay tile around the laundry room door, and that could be tricky because the door sill is almost flush with the floor.

By the end of the afternoon, almost all of the full tiles
were down.  One full row is left, and then cut pieces
to fill in where needed.

Another concern is the amount of tile we were told to buy.  Rodney has done an excellent job, creating almost no waste; however, in taking inventory of what is left, he may have just enough to finish the lanai... or he may be a tile or two short if any of them break while he cuts them.  We will see...

We are happy with the color of the tile which blends
well with both the pavers and with the color of the house.

We can't wait to get the tile finished.  Then Gladys will be complete.  We have taken almost nine years to transform her from a tired, sagging, beat-up old broad into a beautiful old lady who stands proudly in the neighborhood.  This has been a lot of time, money, and work, but we are thrilled that we can call her home.