Home improvement hitches

I tried my hand at installing some Ikea ceiling lighting we received as a wedding gift today. Right after I pulled it from its packaging and took down the cover from one of the lights already in our bedroom. I unscrewed its base then grabbed the first part of the new lights I needed. Hitch #1: the base plate of the new lights didn't line up at all with the screw holes at the base of the drum that held up the old light. OK... so, how do I get this likely European-standard metal base plate (a.k.a. square peg) to work with the existing screw holes (round hole). I took a quick break then came back to realize that since the distance between the screw holes was less than the size of the new base plate, I could just drill some new holes in it and I'd be in business. I took the necessary measurements then headed out to the garage. I wanted to score the metal a bit before I began drilling so I hammered a nail to score the surface where I needed to drill. After a few taps (and actually bending a couple nails) I became slightly bolder and went in for a stronger swing when (Hitch #2) WHACK! I tagged my thumb.

After thinking I could shrug it off I realized that hammering one's finger really does hurt and that I should acknowledge it as such. After running some cool water over it I went back to work and successfully drilled the holes I needed. Back in the bedroom, it looked as though I lined things up just great and I was back in business and on my way to some new lighting. I used the screws from the old light and began twisting them into place. One went in smoothly while the other stuck a bit before it was all the way. Being the manly man I was, I slowed the rate of screwing and evenly applied force to urge the screw into place. Unfortunately (Hitch #3) the last centimeter or so of the screw gave and twisted right off from the rest of the screw. So, out of about two inches there was about 85% still sitting in where it was screwed and now I have no way of getting it out.

My parents are paying us a visit up here in Tacoma tomorrow and I talked to my dad about these woes and he's going to bring some tools to see if we can't get the decapitated screw out. Cross your fingers for me. Since it seems the home improvement gods have reason to play games with me, I can use all the help I can get.

Comments (0) | To Top