Lou Corlin had planned to do some studying for the digital logic course he was taking for this unit. However, he hadn’t been expecting a call from Juss Forsythe, asking for some help with a pump controller.
It would be something he’d know just enough about that he could actually be useful, so he couldn’t very well beg off on lack of background. And given the closeness between their respective ur-brothers, he couldn’t very well refuse on any lesser grounds. Yes, he needed to study, but he could fit the time in later in the day.
So here he was, heading down to the deep service levels under the greenhouse farms. Areas a lot of people didn’t even realize existed — but if you gave any real thought to the mechanics of operating a greenhouse, you’d know they had to be down there. Areas where all the pipes and tubing gave things a certain visceral look.
And there was Juss, his auburn hair bright in the harsh industrial lighting, kneeling beside a tall pump. Lou hurried over to join him.
“So how’s it going?”
“Not well.” Juss looked up from his work. “It’s looking like defective irrigation tubing wasn’t our only problem. We’d just finished getting it all set up, and the next morning we’ve got leaks. Not huge ones, but it’s pretty clear that water is pushing out at all the connectors.”
“Sounds like a pressure issue.”
“My thought too. Which is why I’m checking the pressure on all the irrigation pumps. With luck, it’s just an issue with the controllers and we can fix them ourselves. I’d really prefer not to have to take any of these things to Engineering.”
Lou could understand the sentiment. However, if it was necessary, trying to get by with half measures was apt to bite you in the butt down the road. And with the current situation, they couldn’t count on being able to get food shipped in to make up for losses.
“Do you get the feeling like everything’s balanced on a knife edge, and anything could send it teetering?”
“Yeah, all the time.” Juss wiped his hands with a rag that wasn’t a whole lot cleaner. “But all you and I can do is fix the problems in front of us, and hope the guys at the higher pay grades do their jobs.”