Helen
02-22-2008, 02:40 PM
Not having a good week - or maybe I should say month - aargh!!!!
First my back started bothering me 2 weeks ag0 (it's a b getting old)...but since I had back surgery for a ruptured disk back in 2000, when my back starts to bother me...I have to stop 'sitting' so much. And my huge graphics programs are on my desktop computer and not my laptop - may have to get a newer laptop so I can lie down and design digi stuff - lol.
Then my husband has been travelling all month - or so it seems.
And the weather here has been obnoxious - over 30+ inches this month so far.
Then last weekend, after my DH left for a business trip to Mexico and Utah, we got an ice storm - lots of rain, then ice, then snow. My power did not go out, so I never thought of going down to our unfinished basement.
I started feeling sickish Thursday afternoon - headache, sore throat, sore eyes, and just thought I was coming down with something.
My DH came home Thursday night and when he came into the house - he immediately - says 'what smells so bad?' - i thought maybe he was joking about our dog needing a bath - lol.
To make a long story shorter - he discovered that our basement had flooded - obviously last weekend when the ice storm FROZE up the outside drainage pipe that the sump pump throws out water - when it cycles out the water from the drainage tiles around the house.
Since the outside drainage pipe froze up from all of the rain and ice last weekend, the sump pump could NOT drain out the water accumulating around the house water levels. And then the sump pump died from trying so hard (and no we have no back up sump pump - one of those things my DH always said he was going to insall but never has).
There was about an inch still standing in the basement - and the ODOR from the mold building up was horrendous - when we opened the basement door.
NO wonder I was getting sickish- I have been smelling those 'moldy' fumes all week - and never smelled it. My sense of smell is not what it used to be - you must lose that when you get as old as me too. DANG!
He went out and bought a new sump pump and installed it, and started cleaning up - such a sweetheart - he wouldn't let me help yet - since I was not feeling well.
The fans have been going all night and still on - and he's going to go back to disinfecting and cleaning up this weekend - as much as possible before leaving again for business trip on Sunday.
SO I know what I am going to be doing next week - cleaning the basement.
AARGH!!!!!!!!!!!
Thankfully, no carpeting, but we do have some antiques down there in storage. Everything else I have in plastic sealed containers - at least I hope they are sealed - if not - will have to do some purging and spring cleaning.
Thankfully most of my antiques are upstairs in use.
AARGH!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for letting me vent - I rarely ever do that - but this month is not one of my best ones - it's got to get better. LOL!
When our electricity goes out in a thunderstorm - I always check the sump pump and the basement for fear of water coming in. I never thought of going down there in the ice storm - because our power never went out.
Never thought the outside drainage pipe would get iced in completely and stop the water from going on.
LESSON learned - even at my old age - when you have an ice storm OR rain - always check the basement if you have a sump pump - because the sump pump may stop working on its own!
Ok - enough venting - back to work for me. Just wanted to share why I have been missing in action lately - first the back - then sickish - now a flooded basement. When it rains it pours - literally!!!!!
First my back started bothering me 2 weeks ag0 (it's a b getting old)...but since I had back surgery for a ruptured disk back in 2000, when my back starts to bother me...I have to stop 'sitting' so much. And my huge graphics programs are on my desktop computer and not my laptop - may have to get a newer laptop so I can lie down and design digi stuff - lol.
Then my husband has been travelling all month - or so it seems.
And the weather here has been obnoxious - over 30+ inches this month so far.
Then last weekend, after my DH left for a business trip to Mexico and Utah, we got an ice storm - lots of rain, then ice, then snow. My power did not go out, so I never thought of going down to our unfinished basement.
I started feeling sickish Thursday afternoon - headache, sore throat, sore eyes, and just thought I was coming down with something.
My DH came home Thursday night and when he came into the house - he immediately - says 'what smells so bad?' - i thought maybe he was joking about our dog needing a bath - lol.
To make a long story shorter - he discovered that our basement had flooded - obviously last weekend when the ice storm FROZE up the outside drainage pipe that the sump pump throws out water - when it cycles out the water from the drainage tiles around the house.
Since the outside drainage pipe froze up from all of the rain and ice last weekend, the sump pump could NOT drain out the water accumulating around the house water levels. And then the sump pump died from trying so hard (and no we have no back up sump pump - one of those things my DH always said he was going to insall but never has).
There was about an inch still standing in the basement - and the ODOR from the mold building up was horrendous - when we opened the basement door.
NO wonder I was getting sickish- I have been smelling those 'moldy' fumes all week - and never smelled it. My sense of smell is not what it used to be - you must lose that when you get as old as me too. DANG!
He went out and bought a new sump pump and installed it, and started cleaning up - such a sweetheart - he wouldn't let me help yet - since I was not feeling well.
The fans have been going all night and still on - and he's going to go back to disinfecting and cleaning up this weekend - as much as possible before leaving again for business trip on Sunday.
SO I know what I am going to be doing next week - cleaning the basement.
AARGH!!!!!!!!!!!
Thankfully, no carpeting, but we do have some antiques down there in storage. Everything else I have in plastic sealed containers - at least I hope they are sealed - if not - will have to do some purging and spring cleaning.
Thankfully most of my antiques are upstairs in use.
AARGH!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for letting me vent - I rarely ever do that - but this month is not one of my best ones - it's got to get better. LOL!
When our electricity goes out in a thunderstorm - I always check the sump pump and the basement for fear of water coming in. I never thought of going down there in the ice storm - because our power never went out.
Never thought the outside drainage pipe would get iced in completely and stop the water from going on.
LESSON learned - even at my old age - when you have an ice storm OR rain - always check the basement if you have a sump pump - because the sump pump may stop working on its own!
Ok - enough venting - back to work for me. Just wanted to share why I have been missing in action lately - first the back - then sickish - now a flooded basement. When it rains it pours - literally!!!!!