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Posted almost 15 years ago

All Plugged Up!

I planned on just doing a little work today. To that end, I didn't leave the house until about noon. My plan was to coat a small section of roof that was leaking; repair one window; and put a few weeds out of their misery. One of my tenants had different ideas. She called as I was on the way to town and reported that her commode and bathtub was plugged up. I asked her about the bathroom sink drain and the kitchen sink drain and she said that they were fine.

Upon arrival at the house, I did a little troubleshooting. The commode was indeed plugged as was the bathtub. The kitchen sink appeared to be open as did the bathroom sink. My initial diagnosis was that the sewer line was plugged somewhere just below the commode (and obviously below where the tub line "Y's" into the main sewer line. I tried plunging the toilet to no avail. I tried a toilet snake - again to no avail. At that point, I tried running the bathroom sink again and discovered that water was coming up into the tub as the sink was running. That signaled a more serious blockage and I called the plumber. The plumber arrived about 30 minutes later and had to cut out a BUNCH of tree roots from the main sewer line.

My next project was to coat the leaking roof, which only took about 20 minutes. I then fixed the window, which again only took a few minutes. Finally, I had to work on one of my security camera systems. Everything was working except the "remote view" feature, which allows me to view the security cameras from home. I thought I had it fixed, but it's still not working. I'll have to call tech support tomorrow and get a little help.


Comments (6)

  1. She should've melted them down and called it a 'Goodyear'


  2. Hysterical, Eric!


  3. I can vividly remember one of my homes where "the good girl" lived....Her toilet was clogged and the first few runs down with the snake revealed a pile of condom's so large you could ski down it.... We had words, I told her plainly NO MORE CONDOMS use the garbage....Not even 2 weeks later, same problem, same mountain of condoms.... It was eviction time for the condom princess...


  4. Ahhh . . . the joys of snaking the main line. It's always fun watching the MEGA snake in action as it destroys every root in its path.


  5. Actually, I only worked 4 hours yesterday. It would have been longer if I had fixed the plugged sewer line myself - in fact, I'd probably still be working on it. I have a nice power snake, but it only has a 3/8" diameter cable. That definitely wasn't enough for this job. The plumber has a machine with a 3/4" diameter cable. Even so, it took him over an hour to cut out the roots! Replacing a window pane literally takes 10 minutes. Spreading some roof cement literally took 20 minuytes (it was only a small area). Working on the cameras took about a half hour, but will probably take a little longer today because I will need to consult with tech support. Mike


  6. was the plumbing all taken care of ? I swear as I continue to read your blog posts it seems like I'm a real lazy S.O.B. I don't get nearly as much done throughout the day as you do. I think making few phone calls and writing up a contract or two is good day for me, I can't imagine having to do all the work that you always end up getting done in a days time.