Oh the joys...

Of remodeling an older home. After years, and years, and years of not being used properly as a home, the plumbing pipes are a bit... plugged. There's some build up somewhere between the house and the street. Primarily focusing during the washing machine draining time.

I've been very fortunate. So far, water hasn't actually backed up and spilled over or ruined the flooring. That's my fear, gushing water all over the hard wood flooring. Not a good combination!

Problem is, I can't wash clothes and go to the bathroom at the same time. Well, I could go to the bathroom, just not flush. But that's just icky! And boy howdy, don't take a shower too! And I definitely cannot wash two loads in a row, one after the other.

You see, it all starts with bloop bloop blooping in the toilet. Then the bowl fills up with bubbles. (I could see there this could be kinda tripy for some...) Next thing you know the shower drain starts to make noise the bubbles and water start to slowly rise. And the water rises. And it rises. And I start to panic. Then I start madly plunging the drain. Only to realize that the motion of plunging is causing the water to move which is threating to gush over the edge. So I stop plunging. And I stand there in fear biting my nails. The at last, I can't take it anymore! I lift the lid on the washer to make it stop. After sometime, the water will go down. Then I put the lid down and let it finish.

Let me show you what happens...

First the toilet bloop, bloop, bloops and fills with water and bubbles. More bubbles than water.

Then the shower starts to fill. Notice it's not very high yet.

Starting to rise a little higher...

And it only starts to fill when the spin/drain cycle starts.

Now the water is high enough that almost empty bottles of stuff fall over and float. And this is how it will be for the next hour or so.

And Lordy, Lordy. Do not wash red rugs. I was minding my own business in the bathroom getting ready for a party. Mercy, if I didn't know that I was washing red rugs I would have feared for my life that one of the plagues was happening and that Revelations was coming true. I'm talkin' blood red water (with pink bubbles) came out of the drain.

Time to call Roto Rooter!

Roto Rooter Update (or other type plumber):
We were visited by a plumber late on Friday. And after much shoving things down holes and trying to clear the pipe, which some was, it was determined that roots were invading the main line. Stinkin' roots! After some himming and hawwing, we decided to let the plumber stick a camera down the main line to see how far in and how deep the exact location is. Well, it turns out that it is a majority of the pipe, about 48 feet worth. There was only one really bad root that we saw, but he pointed out many spots where they have poked through.

Hopefully, with what he cleared out I'll be able to have less problems temporarily.

So, anyone wanna help dig a long trench and install a main line...?