In the fall of 2025, you answered the nuns’ prayers. Thanks to the generosity of very special donors, the nuns at Shugsep Nunnery were able to tackle the emergency plumbing situation and replace their leaking pipes. Here is the report for you.
The Plumbing Crisis at Shugsep Nunnery
In 2025, the roughly 100 nuns at Shugsep Nunnery and Institute began experiencing serious problems because the underground water pipes installed during construction in 2008 had become severely corroded and were leaking. The degeneration of the pipes was, in part, due to the heavy iron content in the water from the bore well.
The Shugsep nuns pray for help with their leaking pipes and plumbing issues. The nuns rejoiced when you answered their prayers for help during this crisis at the nunnery.
The leaking pipes caused severe dampness in the walls of the nuns’ rooms next to the bathrooms and made them uninhabitable.
Nuns at Shugsep digging up the leaking pipes to try to do as much work as possible themselves. Thanks to your generosity, the work was completed in the spring of 2026.
To try to rectify the problems, the nuns and the Khenpo (abbot) began digging up the pipes in various places and fixing them by themselves. But they soon found that they had no choice but to hired outside help and to replace the pipe system throughout the nunnery with good-quality PVC pipes.
The Tibetan Nuns Project put out a call for help early in 2025 and, thanks largely to one very generous donor, the project was fully funded in December. The nuns are extremely grateful for your kindness and support.
These photos show the nuns working on the water pipes.
Your support provided:
1. Good-quality PVC pipes with unions, bends, and sockets
2. Paid for plumbing labour costs
3. Funded the excavation and the repair of paving where necessary
4. Repaired the plumbing in the teachers’ section and guesthouse