The plumbing news is bad. Very bad.

[happybird]

The drain pipe from the downstairs bathroom to the septic tank has collapsed. All water from the house exits through that pipe. The pipe runs from the bathroom, across the hall, and under the garage floor. It has to be jackhammered up, the pipe replaced, then concrete poured and the floor re-tiled. OMFG.

Plus, the septic company that pumped the tank a couple months ago did it from the wrong side, which left standing water in there. Who knew there were two sides? Not me, but I sure as hell expect the pump people to know something like that!

So, I have water but can’t let any go down the drain. So, no toilet, no shower. The landlord (aka Dad) wants me to move out for however long it takes to fix. I don’t want to, mainly because of the cats and also because where the heck would we go? If it were just me, I could couch surf at friends’ houses, but I can’t leave the cats here alone. The house is far away from everything so driving here everyday to take care of them for a couple hours would be dumb and time consuming. And unfair to my babies. I might as well just stay here. I don’t think Mom and Dad fully comprehend that I’ve spent at least 5 years of my life living in cars, on tour, and in the Nat’l Forests with crazy hippies. I’m cool with living “rustic” for a couple weeks. Plus, I work five days a week which of course has a bathroom. I can birdbath here with a basin of water and take a shower every few days at a friend’s house. I’m sure she’ll let me do a load of laundry, too. Dishes can be done with the bucket system, like when camping. No big deal. Anyhow, you can’t tell him anything, he’s always right about everything, and I don’t want this to turn into a shit show. A second shit show, I guess lol. Wish me luck.

The plumbing company is calling on Monday with an estimate and time schedule for the work. The house is 50 years old and probably went without any maintenance for god knows how long before Dad bought it. Mom actually cried when he bought it because it was in that bad of shape. So, problems like this are not unexpected or totally out of the blue crazy. Dad did a nice job renovating the house but didn’t replace some big ticket infrastructure-type items like the oil furnace and obviously the pipes because who does that? It’s just been a hell of a month.

Thanks for letting me vent.

[NNadir]

1. That's rough. Our septic failed some time ago, and we lived for close to three months before we could...

...get a new one installed. It set us back 40K, about 10 years ago. It failed because a neighbor decides to change the grading on his garden in such a way as to cause water to flow over my drain field.

This meant going to public places to use the bathroom, being unable to wash dishes, bailing out the bathtub after a shower, etc.

It sucked.

Of course, like most bad things, it's just a bad memory. I did get to install a type of septic about which I'd mused previously thinking "why don't they make systems that..," not understanding that such a system was commercially available.

We are very careful with the septic now; among other things, we don't do our whites at home, but take them to a laundromat on a public sewer line. Bleach is bad for septics.

Good luck with it.

[happybird]

5. Thank you.

I had a roommate for a few months who was very sweet but not the sharpest tool in the shed. I explained about living on septic, not to flush *anything* but toilet paper– no Charmin or fancy tp, only thin tp, of which I bought her a case… then about a month after she moved in I realized she was washing horse blankets in the machine. She has 11 horses. It was a lot of blankets. She moved out in the beginning of September, when polo season shifted South. When attempting to snake the pipe yesterday they pulled out some wipes. That must have been from her. I highly doubt that contributed to the collapse but, really, girl!?

Did you ever talk to your neighbor about the issue? Wondering what they had to say about it. That’s a lot of money and a lot of inconvenience to endure.

[NNadir]

13. I haven't spoken to that neighbor in many years; both he and his wife are incredible assholes.

The funny thing about them is that, in the time I was still willing to be "neighborly" they would talk one's ear off talking about what other people were doing on their property that they claimed would affect their house.

Let me give you an example.

We had a beautiful 40 foot black walnut tree in our yard - it was there well before they moved in. Black walnuts yield prolific nuts, but they are contained in a layer of tissue that contains a chemical called jugalone, which is, biologically, what is called an alellopathic compound, a natural chemical that functions to control the growth of other competing species. Historically it was used as a dye, as one can see if one handles one with the tissue outside the shell without gloves; it leaves an orange stain on skin that turns brown and cannot be washed away easily.

One day, after the town installed sidewalks, the neighbor's wife came over to inform my wife that "One of your squirrels, took one of your walnuts, and ate on my sidewalk. You're lucky I was able to get the stain out." My wife just stared at her with a "what the fuck?" expression.

Unfortunately we had to have that magnificent tree removed to get the new septic done; the equipment couldn't get past it.

Finally, when the woman in that awful couple came over to complain about something else on our property, my wife - generally a gentle and tolerant woman - told her to get the fuck off our property and never set foot on it again.

This was after they installed the grading, but before it led to our septic failure. I can't stand those people and want nothing to do with them. If we sued their asses, it would just end up in lots of counter suits. I asked the septic contractor to grade our new drain field in such a way as to prevent water from their yard flowing into mine.

The woman had the nerve to actually leave a message on our phone, after we hadn't spoken to her intrusive sick ass for about two years, to tell us how happy she was that we had removed the walnut tree. She can go fuck herself.

The nuts, by the way, were problematic to get to, but damn they were delicious!!! They have remarkable health benefits as well. I hated to lose the tree, but not as much as I hated living without a septic.

[Bayard]

2. Oh my.....

That certainly sucks. Its amazing what we can live with when we have to though.

Good luck.

[happybird]

6. Thank you

I’m grateful that we are all in good health, the power and internet work, the leaves are starting to change and the weather has been lovely, and Kamala and Tim are looking good. Things could be a whole lot worse.

[AnotherDreamWeaver]

3. A neighbor of mine had his septic line clog up because woodpeckers dropped acorns in the vent pipe. nt

[happybird]

8. omg!

When I was a kid, we had a woodpecker who would peck on a metal vent chimney on the roof of the house. It echoed through the ductwork and sounded like the house was under a machine gun attack.

[2naSalit]

4. Ugh!

[happybird]

12. ...

[Hermit-The-Prog]

7. Suggestion: Rent an RV for the duration. Empty its tank(s) at an RV park when needed.

[happybird]

11. I'll look into that!

[Hermit-The-Prog]

14. Or a composting toilet.

[womanofthehills]

19. Amazon has toilet seat lids that fit on a five gallon bucket

You can compost it or put in throw away liners. You can always wash dishes outside with a hose.

[littlemissmartypants]

9. So sorry to hear about your troubles, happybird. ...

I believe that your dad will understand that you are going to make a decision that is clearly thought out and what's best for you and your cat babies.

I would try to find out from him more about his thoughts and opinions, though. Dad's don't always explicitly articulate their concerns. I believe that he will appreciate you taking an interest in how he feels about the situation overall.

Also, there may be underlying things he knows or feels that may influence the decision. It helps to talk things out and it will foster respect for him from you and from him for you if you're able to have a factual, forthright conversation.

Respect shown in reciprocity can often result in reciprocal feelings and may even bring you closer together in your opinions and possibly even emotionally.

Just my thoughts. Maybe some will resonate.

I understand the challenges of having an older home. Mine was built in 1944 so there have been many surprises here, too.

I know you will be fine. Stay encouraged. This too shall pass. I'll be thinking of you.

Good luck. 🤞

Keep the faith.

❤️pants

[happybird]

10. Thank you.

I think he’s angry at the situation ($$$) right now. I told them I’ll be here all weekend since I am working. Hoping by my next day off, Tuesday, he’ll have had time to adjust and we can have a calm, rational, and respectful conversation.

[MadameButterfly]

15. Sympathizing and a relief to hear it from someone else

as we are investigating some completely unanticipated plumbing expenses because I guess I though pipes even in old houses lasted forever.

"and obviously the pipes because who does that?"

[niyad]

16. Holding all of you, including the kitties, in love and light.

[Lemon Lyman]

17. Sorry

I'm sorry you're having to deal with this. Thinking of you.

We live in the city (not septic). Our main drainage line to the street collapsed in late February/early March. The plumber said it was simple. It was orangeburg pipe from a long time ago. They always collapse, eventually. Cost $7,000 - $8,000 for the excavating, new pipe install, etc...

We were really pissed at our insurance. We didn't have "service line coverage" b/c we didn't know it was a thing. If we'd had the coverage, we just would've had to pay the deductible. Made me mad that our local agent doesn't contact their client once per year and say, "Here's your coverage. I think you could add this or drop that." Just kind of a state of the union thing.

Make sure you have service line coverage. I'm sure most people already do, but it doesn't hurt to check.

[electric_blue68]

18. Ohhh, boy. Good Luck to you both! Stay safe!

[Emile]

20. You would think when they build these houses they

would give more thought to making it easier for the homeowner for maintenance.