Here We Go Again!

You would think after we spent last year going through this and having a giant insurance claim and spending months with construction workers in the house – all would be well.  But alas, it is not.

Here’s how it went – 

Cell phone rings – it’s my neighbor “Hey – is your basement flooding”?

Um, I went down there before I went rowing early this morning– all was well – let me check again – walk down stairs, all looks ok – then SPLASH.   Nope, all is not ok…

Hang up, call plumber – text husband at work “We have a flood in the basement again”.  

Look around – you can actually see the flow of water coming up from the drain – its moving fast!

Ok, chill, plumber is coming, he’ll be here soon – it will be ok.

Plumber comes – 140 foot of drain snake later (apparently 80 feet is normal?) he has found nothing, water is still pouring in, he tells me to call the city – it’s the “Main”  i.e. - it's not ok.

Call city – they say they will check it out – water is just pouring in…

Call husband at work – one word – “HELP”- he’s on his way.

I start to bail the water – its three inches deep, I can’t believe this is happening again – our beautiful freshly finished basement – it hasn’t even been a year.  

Plumber made a giant mess in my beautiful laundry room – really it’s not his fault – but yucko!

Husband comes home, we sit on the couch to strategize and watch the water flow rippling across the floor, he goes to Home Depot – time to rent a pump, blower and super duty carpet cleaner to suck out water. 

 

Water is still coming in….

Call city again – they tell me they are at the main – I walk over to my neighbors yard where the main is (the third gentleman that is having flooding in our area) of course – they are NOT there.

Pump hooked up, hose outside window – similar scenario next door – water flowing to the street out of hoses. 

Time to rip out the less than a year old carpet in the laundry room – it can’t stay after what the plumber stirred up.  Same goes for our treadmill – out to the trash it goes.  So, so bummed out – let down – disenchanted – this was not our fault.  After twelve years in this house – why are we suddenly having a problem?

Go to janitorial supply store for super duty germ killer (the same stuff the guys used last year), buy paper suit and mask for homemade hazmat suit.  I’m sucking water out of the rest of the basement carpet with the vacuum (wonder tool!) he is all suited up to scrub and spray the laundry room.

Four days later (and why there was no post Friday), dry as a bone, looks good – except there is no rug in the laundry room.  Going to look for the same stuff they put in last year – since it looked so fabulous (for ten months).

I promise, we are going to use some tricks that all houses had in the town I grew up in (on an overflow river) THIS WILL NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN – NEVER, I PROMISE.

Oh – while all this was happening, my darling neighbor girl came over – she wanted a picture “For her slide show” of all the fun we were having as a neighborhood, and this is what she got – her mom said “make sure to get those boots in the shot” – yeah – thanks!!

(And yes, I know it's sideways - it's not in the shot I have, it's just that - well, apparently that's how it feels today, a little sideways - so that how it's going to be...)