Fishing With Snakes

Sorry friends, this is not a NATURE post, unless you speak of the NATURE OF ALL THINGS SEPTIC. The snakes I refer to are Plumbing Snakes.

The new septic pump ceased working this past week, so it was back to mega-conservative mode until Ken could take a jaunt back down the hole to assess things. The pump was removed and tested in a garbage can of water and it worked just fine. This told us that there must be a more DRAMATIC event happening between the secondary tank where the pump is and the sand mound.

Thanks to a borrow from Mike W., Ken fished the snakes in and there seemed to be no clogs. Measuring the supposed path of travel on TOP of the ground, the line did not stop until it made it all the way to the mound. So there just might be something wrong on that end that is causing everything to back up and stop the pump from pumping. yummy.

So, the mystery continues. The pump was returned back into its home in the hole and after a few days of water use, we will know if the snake activity jostled things back to order or if we will need to call in an expert after we plant that money tree.

IT IS WORKING!!

We are hesitant to let our guard down. However... BIG NEWS!

When taking a peek with a flashlight under the septic tank lid after a few days of almost normal water/drainage use, the level is far from alarming.

It is accompanied by the pleasant whir of something that is supposed to be working, that really IS working!!!

Hi-Fives all around.

Wireless in the Bad Place

Something is awry. It doesn't look like the new septic pump (or at least the activation part) is performing as it should be. It is not pumping at all and the tank is almost full. We'll assess things this evening and see what challenges or victories lie ahead. After this disappointment was discovered, Ken alerted of another unexpected obstacle: "MY CELL PHONE FELL IN THE HOLE!". Does anyone happen have an old Verizon cell they are not using that we can activate onto our plan?

Operation Septic Pump

Thanks to the amazing generosity of our brothers and sisters in Christ, we now have a new WORKING septic pump!!

The new pump was ordered and delivered this week. Ken removed the old pump, parts and did all of the prep wiring on saturday. After a successful "phase one", while carrying the air compressor down the cellar steps, Ken slipped and bungled his wrist pretty bad. So, on account of Ken's injury (and to save Suzan from having to climb down into the fun-zone), on Sunday afternoon Scott came and was dubbed Master of Ceremonies. The project was completed successfully and we celebrated by having a Mr. Lee's Feast and Miss Morgen took the first INDOOR shower since the pump died over one month ago. Here are snapshots of the subterranean stink-hole heroes.

X-rays were taken of Ken's wrist today. We haven't heard from the radiologist yet, so maybe no news is good news.