Yes, it's been a steep learning curve.

We pretty much have the problem of getting water to the barn solved but still there are problems with the joint between the hydrant and the heated part of the hose freezing. What I do is to check this first and, if it's frozen, put the hairdryer on it while doing the barn chores.



That's a fine idea if you pay attention to the other end of the hose. One day this week I failed to do that so, when the tap end melted, the free end thrashed and blasted water into the light switch. The next day Anna reported that the lights didn't work. I assumed that a fuse had blown but it turns out that the lights aren't wired through the fuse box. I wish I'd known that when I carefully removed the fuses before tapping into the circuit for the bathtub heater.



In this case I heated up the outside of the switch until the icy glaze over the screws melted.



Then I was able to remove the cover and heat the inside of the switch. A trickle of water ran out and then it was all back to working.




Valuable lessons, there. Firstly, don't trust inherited wiring. Secondly, a hairdryer is critical to the operation of a barn. Most importantly, look where your nozzle is pointed before sending water through it.