Why

The concrete Fire Hydrant sign was just looking dull. It had also had “LS26” badly sprayed on it and had no faceplate on it. It was also partly obscured by a neighbour’s hedge. I think it’s kind of sad when signs are no longer doing their job or displaying anything. It feels like a wasted opportunity and just feels neglectful.

When

December 2008.

Where

About 5 seconds walk from the end of my drive.

Materials / Media

ABS Plastic, paint, Black tape

Production

I initially actually managed to make a right failure of this simple thing because I incorrectly measured the plate shape and made it square instead of rectangular and had to begin again after I’m cut it, shaped it, drilled it and painted it. I re-made the plague part and stuck on an “H” identical to the ones they use on normal signs. I could have made it into something else, but I thought I’d just be responsible and restore/improve a hydrant marker post rather than make it the basis for something else.

Execution

I painted the post for it with masonry paint at night. Even for something basic like this the plaque part was more faffy than you’d expect. The original holes for the attachment of the plaque part were big square holes that i think had wood blocks in that then took screws. I think I had to bung up the holes with some sort of flexible filler and stick in some sawn off rawl plugs before screwing in the plaque, which had to be spray painted yellow and have elongated screw holes that you can’t easily make with a normal drill.

Notes

I didn’t put any numbers on it as I didn’t know the specification of the fittings  so I thought it would be irresponsible to put any on if they weren’t accurate.

Duration & Fate

The bloke on that side was a right rough scratter that had done time for manslaughter and was prone to being aggressively drunk. I think he kicked the post in not long before he moved out. The plaque part lost its “H”. I can’t remember if I took it off to do it up or if it was removed by someone else but I didn’t bother again. The snapped concrete is still in place because it has steelwork in it, but it looks a pig and I should sort it out a bit. Why can’t people just leave stuff alone without destroying things?