Thanks for the reply. I really do appreciate your assistance. I'll try the metal pipe method today. Bare hands only didn't work, as the pipes are all touching each other. Your suggestion to "replace it all" is exactly what I would've done on my own, had it been easier. I should've been clearer, as I would've dug down by the 1st valve had it been easy enough. The 2nd picture above IS only about 1 foot away from the 1st valve, just the other side of the fence. The room shown in the pic #1 is the entirety of the room available. It is too tight to do any real work in there (even if I remove the junk shown). To the right is the house, to the left is the cement slab with a big shed, to the front is the fence with metal post topped off with cement running just underneath it! It took over an hour to remove just 3" of rocks from around the valves; we didn't even make a dent in it. You can't tell from the pics the whole area is very secluded so I don't care if it's ugly. Question: Do the metal+pvc manifold lines need replacement every so often, just like the valves do? If so, then I guess I'll bite the bullet and tear down the fence section and break the cement, in order to clear out the rocks and replace the manifold. The wiring is looking pretty old, too. Becomes a much bigger project at that point. If the pipes rarely go bad, I guess I'll just skip the Master shut-off idea and replace the valves. I also have a new 6 zone auto-timer ready. Does the last pic look like the only materials needed for a valve-only replacement? Thanks

Hi All~ I order from many on-line/mail order sources and do have high regards for Hallson's, Naylor Creek and Glenbrook. I have also gotten some nice plants from White Oak. I mostly lurk here but noticed a comment that I must reply to. I too have gotten an order from Viktoria at Glenbrook this year (8 plants) and strongly disagree with omoelegba's conclusion. All my plants were of an expected size and overall quality. There was a white powder on a couple of my plants, but it was obviously a fungicide. I congratulate Viktoria for being proactive in her application of a fungicide to any cuts made during division to ward off any possible problems. I have gotten to know Viktoria over the last few years and have even visited her nursery a couple of times. All the plants I purchased at her nursery, at her vendor booth at First Look, or thru mail order have been of excellent quality and have thrived in my garden. I hold Viktoria in the highest regards and feel that she stands behind her plants 100%. I do not mean to jump all over omoelegba for your opinion, I just wonder if you contacted Viktoria directly to voice your concerns. I am sure she would've explained the powder and your mind would've been at ease. Also, please do share about how the plants grow for you... my guess is that they will thrive as long as they get the care they need. Finally, I might ask if the plants you ordered were newer to the market (might explain the "puny" size and the expense). Most newer plants do cost more and will be on the smaller side, even from the other on-line sources. Just my humble opinion~ Cheers, Kathie

At $16.99 they are about $12.22 per yard. The advantage is the variety of fabrics, no waste,and time. Disadvantage is limited choice of patterns that they are used in and with added postage they are a little expensive. I have never ordered from them but the fabric choices seem pleasant and useful. Tempting but would like to beable to have the same fabrics in different size pkgs.

IMO, wallpaper never goes out of style, it's the most classic way to decorate! Here's a website which I ordered a sample of my future wallpaper from, they sent me a large sheet and I love it. BTW, I have wallpaper in the bathroom too, and I just love it. I don't know how to do a hyper-link: http://www.seabrookwallpaper.com/ Here's the wallpaper I'm putting on one large wall only, in the dining room. It will have white/cream beadboard below it while the rest of the walls in there will be painted THE lightest yellow I can find. I'm more excited about this wallpaper than I am with the other remodel! lol http://www.seabrookwallpaper.com/products/default.aspx?t=2&styleID=19&subjectID=165&patternID=8447&search=