Got Backup?????

So how many of you really do your regular data backups?????? I always say I'm going to do it, but somehow other things get in the way. I remember back in the stone ages of xt’s and 386’s people had whole units to do backups that were as big a box as the computer was.

Well, after our returning from the New Hampshire trip and having some glitches i decided to go through all my data, get rid of what i don’t need and use that nifty 40 gig portable hard drive i bought to do backups,,,,, 3 years ago. HEY!!!! Ya don’t want to rush into some things. So now the backups are done. Even the weather data since 2005.  And i was happy. In fact so happy i decided to take the rest of the evening off and have some ‘me time’, starting with a long hot shower.

The Princess had gone to the Y so i decided to be nice and fix dinner, BUT made a quick stop at the downstairs bathroom………. Now, i have never heard of plumbing systems being jealous, but apparently they can be. The downstairs toilet (last thing on the line as it goes out) was overflowing. The main septic line was now ‘Backed Up’.

Remember all the fun Plumber Jack had the other day fighting with the evil ‘roots’????? Well apparently after dislodging the root clog it did not “go quietly into the night”. No it begrudgingly headed to the main line and there decided to ‘backup’.

Plumber Jack was here again after i  begged his wife to let him come ‘play’. After sending the BIG snake up the line numerous times, and  not seeming to clear the latest clog i started to listen to the ground where the line is buried. What should have been a metallic clinking sound of the snake going through cast iron was a dull thumping sound (all together now say ‘Oh No!!!!’).

The decision to dig up where I heard the thudding was an easy one. What we found was the least expected. If you have never heard of “Green Field” piping it is nothing more than tarpaper rolled into a pipe. It is the cheap substitute for the old time cast iron. It also does  not hold up to pressure from above, and since the main septic line runs under our parking area we had a sure fire disaster in  the making. As they say on TV,,, BUT THATS NOT ALL!!!!!! Even after finding this crushed and broken pipe and clearing the dirt from it we still had little or no flow. Half an hour with a closet auger finally got to the root of all the problems and it was extracted with great effort (told you it didn’t go quietly). And with that we finally had flow, and a big open spot in the line. Since this line will be getting replaced next Monday we decided that a temporary solution to keep any more dirt or debris from falling into the open line was in order.

SOOOO if you are going to do any data backups, make sure that the bathroom door is securely shut.

Grenville