I pulled my keys out on my way towards home and they slipped out of my hands and fell into a drain. My wife was home so I was able to get into my apartment and the apartment company gave me 3 sets of keys so I technically am fine for the time being.
I am wondering if there is anything I can do to actually recover my keys though. I went back to the drain, pulled the grate off, and tried fishing for my keys using a makeshift net consisting of a broom and colander but sadly was unsuccessful. I just want to recover the keys to avoid having to pay, what I assume is, an insane amount of money to replace them. I have no idea how sewage systems work so I am not sure if my keys are just lost under Tokyo forever or if they will end up in some treatment facility and then thrown out or destroyed.
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It won’t be an insane amount of money.
If it’s a typical MIWA key, you can search for the service on Amazon. Provide them the key number and they’ll make a new one for you. Think it cost me like 2k yen for the old house.
I would have used a magnet to fish for it, personally.
Tokyo has a combined sewer system, so, given enough time, your key may make it to the nearest sewage treatment plant. If you ask nicely, they might let you go for a dip 😉
If you couldn’t recover it where you dropped it, It’s gone.
Can you still see it in the drain? Daiso sell these long ‘picker-upper’ tools which have a little claw and a magnet at the end.
https://jp.daisonet.com/products/4549131235678
I once had a large battery (which was powering my bicycle light) fall into a streetside storm drain. It was just thin enough that it could fit through the bars, and I tried some kind of chopstick-like maneuver to pull it upwards but wasn’t having any success.
Then a city worker happened by and he got it for me in an instant. He knew the trick you already know: you can pull those gratings right off the ground. He lifted it up, gave me my battery, and put it back in place. God bless him.
Now how deep is your drain? And is it on your property, your building’s, or your city’s?
A strong magnet on a string. Put it in a bag if you can’t get the string attached.
You could also buy a strong telescopic magnet pick up tool from the home center or Amazon, but I would worry that the telescopic part would rust after submersion.
Let us know if you manage to get it back!