Sunday night we have a thunderstorm blow threw, dumping inches of rain on an already saturated ground. When I heard the phone at 6 a.m., I'm ready to scream. Yes, school was now being delayed due to flooding of roads in the area. In a panic, I go check the basement. We've had a history of storm sewer back-up problems during heavy rains. Our last flood was in 2006, after which we had a backflow valve installed. Well, instead of the water coming up through the drain, it seeped up around the cement cap on top of the backflow valve. I had two large area rugs that were soaked through and destroyed, but I realize it could have been worse. I called some of my neighbors who always flood when we do, but their basements were dry. We can't seem to win. Between water in the basement and ice dams on the roof causing water damage in our addition almost every winter now, I'm ready to move to the desert.
This morning, on the drive to school, we had a coyote cross the street in front of us, about a mile from home. Now I suppose between dodging ice and snow, I have to watch out for coyotes on my walks. Thanks, mother nature.
Well, you know, Mother Nature can be a nasty bitch. . .
ReplyDeleteI think our town budgeted for two blizzards; so when we got the third one last week, they didn't put down any salt, and only the main streets got plowed. I got stuck on my little one-block dead-end street, because of SIX INCHES OF SLUSH, that simply would not allow forward progress. Now that it's cooled down some again, we've got 6-inch deep pitted, rutted ice ridges all up and down the street, which makes driving like a special kind of amusement-park ride. . .
As to the ice dams - we get the same thing. A few years ago, I put up a heat tape, and that at least helps minimize the damage. . .
Craig - Amusement park ride is a good description of our neighborhood driving during the first ice storm. It took over a week for it to melt. I kept thinking I had flat tire.
ReplyDeleteWhat is heat tape? We have the heating cables on two sides of the roof, but honestly, the only thing that helps is for husband to go on the roof with a roof rake and shove the snow off. I live in fear he will fall off someday.
"This morning, on the drive to school, we had a coyote cross the street in front of us, about a mile from home."
ReplyDeleteOMG, that's actually very cool....I've never seen a coyote that close up!
It's the same here, our weather this time of the year is like a see-saw. One day it's 57 degrees and sunny, then the next day it's 20 degrees and hailing. It's been kinda nice lately, however I'm waiting for the bomb to drop us more SNOW. We can get quite a bit in March, and sometimes even April!
So sorry to hear about your flooded basement. We I was a kid, our basement would always flood after a heavy rain. I can still remember my mother and I with buckets, dumping water into our basement sink. Oy vey!
Have a great Wednesday, Bijoux!
I would say move south! But we have coyotes here too. And lots of ice.
ReplyDeleteYeah, we're living the same winter here. Like last year it has been a long, steady cold with snow several times every week. Cold enough taht we ran out of firewood and had to buy more, been a decade since we had to do that!
ReplyDeleteBut I can cheat. Me older brother bought a skid steer and stores it here so I been clearing the drive with it. SWEET!! Anyone North of Maryland should own one of these.
Basement flooding is nasty stuff. We've never finished our because of that but I helped a friend try and salvage old photographs and other sentimental possessions after one.
What I'm calling 'heat tape' is probably the same thing you call 'heating cables'. . . It's just like an electric cord that we zig-zag along the edge of the roof, to keep a full-out ice-dam from forming. The key, I think, is to make sure that the lower end of the zig-zag loops over the edge of the roof, so the melt-water can flow away. Get some really spectacular icicles that way, tho. . .
ReplyDeleteMother Nature has not played nice this year, like you I am ready for some sun and warm weather for a while.
ReplyDeleteWe have coyotes run down the street right in front of our house or down our property next to the house, I suppose as long as they keep moving and leave us alone then it's OK
... just a few more weeks. Hang in there. Spring is surely around the corner.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy my little mantra? It's the only thing keeping me sane. We've just enjoyed the coldest March 1st on record in the past 90 years. -40C. Mother Nature is feeling particularly bitchy around these parts. I literally almost was in tears today just reading the word "bike". I don't even super-like biking.
Ready for spring? You bet.
Ron - You are correct; the scary part is that we can have a snowstorm in late April!
ReplyDeleteRuss - Thanks, but I don't think I can handle the bugs!
Xavier - The flooding started in 2000. The previous 10 years were completely dry. Supposedly, we are having '100 year rains' now ever couple of years.
Craig - Yes, that's what we have. I think our issue is that the cables can't keep up when there's 8 inches or more falling in a short period of time.
Jimmy - The coyote sighting is rare. I usually only see one or two a year. There have been reports in our community of them killing small dogs, which is worrisome to pet owners.
Flutter - The countdown is on!
We have, thankfully and knock on wood, only had one snow day this season. The school built in a snow day into the calendar and so the boys don't have school April 25 because of that. This week came a message that the school year would be extended a day to June 3 as a result of the one snow day so far. Why we're not just making it up on April 25, I have no idea. Perhaps you should route that coyote this way to convince the administration to change their mind!
ReplyDeleteA few years back we had one of those "100 year" floods followed a couple years later by one of those "1000 year" floods. Good times for sure.
ReplyDeleteI spent all of last summer regrading half an acre of our property to reduce the chances of our basement flooding again. Fortunately we have a walk-out basement so a flood is far less catastrophic but I still have to keep the floor clear. We'll see if my efforts are effective or not next time around.
That's funny, as I was reading that, I was listening to the coyotes yipping out back!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm suddenly thankful my basement flooding was all clean rainwater.
FADKOG - Decisions made by school administrators never fail to confound me.
ReplyDeleteXavier - They really termed something a '1000 year flood?' Now that I think back, I do recall them using the phrase, "Biblical proportions" when talking about a storm that knocked out about half our state.....
Agent - I need to google sound coyotes. I'm not sure I know what sound they make.