One Tricky Problem Solved

Of all the ways to flood a basement

a blocked sewer line

on a Sunday

is the most disgusting.

DeRay didn't want it to happen again

in January

when there is 4 feet of snow

on the frozen ground

so he 

took affirmative action

and scheduled the work yesterday;

a nice, warm summer day.

He parked his chair

right by the hole

and watched all day long,

beginning at 7 AM.

I wish I had taken his picture.

The sewer line was down 8 feet.
Because we have a ground water problem here,
someone had put Orangeberg and gravel all around the house.
They had drilled six 1/2" holes 2" apart in the top of the sewer pipe
so the ground water would drain into the sewer line.
Totally illegal.
It worked for about 15 years
then we started having ground water problems.
Even though it's only been two or three months
since they cleaned the roots out of the sewer line,
two roots were growing in the pipe already.
It's good that DeRay was proactive.
(Besides that,
he likes to spend money.)

"Don't flush the toilet," DeRay calls on his cell phone, "it's an open pipe.
I'll call you when you can flush again."

 

Finally, Ed said, "Mind if I use the toilet if I don't flush."
I hadn't thought of that.
Smart.

 

When DeRay came in late in the afternoon
after Amy was home,
I teased:
"How much longer?"
"What?"
"You'd said you'd call when we could flush the toilets."