Orange cones could serve as lawn ornaments
Our yard could easily be mistaken for a section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Last weekend dust clouds were swirling around the house, earthmoving equipment rumbled across the grass, and long sections of underground pipe were scattered everywhere.
The place was a mess. Tree roots everywhere. Large rocks, mud, dirt, and big gouges, cuts in the lawn where the tractor tires dug into it.
The scene closely resembled one of those highway rebuilding projects on the turnpike. The only thing missing was a long line of tractor-trailer trucks, waiting to get through our street.
During this monsoon season, when it seems to rain every third day, the drainage system in our basement became overloaded. Too much water in the ground overwhelmed the capacity of the old pipes.
Two plumbers and several days later of running “snakes” through the pipes in a failed effort to unclog them, we did what any American family would do. We asked relatives to fix it for us.
Our son-in-law, armed with some heavy-equipment operating experience, agreed to spend a weekend digging up our lawn with a leased earthmover. He actually made quick work of digging the trench for the new pipes; yet, there is no way to avoid significant lawn damage and general mayhem when a tractor is driven through your yard.
After the pipes were laid and covered up with dirt, the work has just begun. Now we have to rake out the rocks and roots, smooth out the scarred areas, scatter grass seed, and hope for the best. That work with a rake and shovel is under way, but as soon as we plant the seed I expect another flash flood to hit and wash most of it away.
Even with the new drainage pipes installed and tested, the mystery of the drain system remains. We had originally theorized that the basement was being flooded because the pipes were overloaded, clogged, and the water was backing up through the floor drains.
We have since discovered that there is another outside source of water flowing into the drainage system. As far as we can determine the roof drain spouts are not connected to this system. So, where is the water coming from?
We don’t know. We found out that it’s rainwater, since it only shows up during a rainstorm. But how it is entering the drain system is the puzzle. As long as the new drains work, we won’t have a problem anyway.
There were various theories offered, but since we are not architects or engineers, we were unable to actually solve the mystery.
After digging, shoveling and raking I was exhausted, although my wife says the only thing I did most of the time was watch our son-in-law hard at work. Hey, he’s a young guy. Besides, he’s studying to be a lawyer. They have to be tough.
As every homeowner knows only too well, this won’t be the first major construction/renovation project we endure. There is a never-ending list of problems, from retaining walls that lean, to trees that must be cut down, stumps to remove, walls to paint, and new carpet to install.
Just like the motorists on the turnpike, I’m sure our neighbors were not thrilled with all of the sights and sounds of a typical construction project going on all weekend. Hand shovels and rakes make a lot less noise.
There is one bright spot. All the digging may have chased away a few of the moles in the yard, and I may finally get some use out of the old van I bought from the company.
With 185,000 hard, newspaper delivery miles on the odometer, I don’t think using it to haul away a few rocks, roots and stumps will hurt.
I wonder if the Turnpike people could use a good circulation delivery van. If it would help speed along those highway construction projects, I might even loan it to them.
Mike Ellis is the editor of the Herald-Standard. His e-mail address is: begin mellis@heraldstandard.com mellis@heraldstandard.com end
.