Pipes and Pains

After working hard in the front yard late last week, we actually were kind to ourselves and took the weekend off from hard work.  I don't know about Rick, but I needed that.

We spent part of Saturday running errands and then meeting our nephew's fiancee.  Rachel is a delightful woman, and we are very happy to have her join our slightly insane family.  My sister is quiet, so I am sure she wondered how this talkative woman could ever be her future mother-in-law's sister.  Who cares?  We went to lunch with Jon and Rachel and had a wonderful time.

Sunday was truly a day of rest.  After church, we did some planning for this coming week which resulted in lots of shopping on Monday.  We went everywhere from Kohl's Department Store to Home Depot and Lowe's.

Today we made up for our slough of the past few days by tackling our next project: routing the drainage from our front gutter/ downspout into an underground water removal system.  We needed to do that to carry the rainwater away from the front of the house.  The ground is uneven, so when the water goes down the downspout, it tends to backwash down a slight hill and puddle where our new pavers and front sidewalk eventually will be built.  Water is always the enemy of construction of any kind... save, perhaps, a water-driven mill.

We started by removing the current downspout and laying out the path of our new underground system.  Then Rick became a modern-day sod-buster, taking up the sod along the path for the underground pipes.  We both dug out the trench until we were sweaty and filthy.  Sweaty?  Yes.  Today is December 1, and Florida is still experiencing above-average temperatures.  By the time we finished this project at 1:40 this afternoon, the temperature had climbed to 81 degrees.

Rick shovels out the trench for the pipes.
(Actually, I dug the trench, too, but he never takes a
picture of me working hard.)

Rick glued lots of 4" drainage pipe together until we were approximately 30 feet from the house.  We wanted to get the drainage out beyond the slight rise in the front yard so that when the run-off surfaced again, the water would run down our yard into the street.

Sections of pipe await final construction.

Of course, the transit again was invaluable to make sure that we had the pipe pitched low enough to carry the water away.  Thank you, Steve, for lending us the transit.  We may have to start paying rent on it yet!

The glued, finished pipe is ready to be glued
onto the downspout at the house.

The good news with our dig was that we found the buried house sewage pipe without damaging it, and it was actually closer to the house than we had anticipated, so it worked fine with the decline of the underground pipe.  We safely passed above the sewer line without incident.

The second break we realized was when we hit only one 3 inch root from the now-departed bottle brush tree.  We both feared that we might run into some major roots, but Rick soon dispatched the small branch with a little SawsAll action.  A couple minor roots were sliced though with the shovel.

After much digging, gluing, and reassembly of the downspouts and new drainage pipes, we now have a working underground water-removal system for our front gutter.  All of that rainwater used to pour down like a waterfall onto our front porch before we added gutters.  Now it will not only be captured in the gutter, but also it will be carried safely away from the house.

The completed downspout hugs the house.
Once we add shrubs in front of it, it will be almost
unnoticed from the front of the house.

The finished project from the downspout to
the egress which pops up when water fills
the pipe.

This was the next step in our plans for re-landscaping the front yard. We both are sore and exhausted which leads us to second-guessing whether we really want to put the pavers down for the front porch and sidewalk.  Laying the pavers is relatively easy; doing the prep work with crushed concrete and sand is another story.  We are re-evaluating what we are physically capable of doing.  My muscles certainly are not what they were, and Rick has made no secret that digging and lifting things with a shovel is hard on him, too.

After lots of intense labor, Rick deserves a rest.  I took the
picture from inside, through the screen, so I would not awaken him.

We are pleased with the results of today.  Yes, we have a scar down the center of the yard that must smooth out and grow over.  That will just take a couple of months.  We tested the system and know that it works.  And that is good.  Rain is predicted tomorrow evening and Thursday morning, and no place has rainstorms quite like Florida!