Mr. and Mrs. Duck Visit Our Pool

 

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A Drive To The Cemetery

 

A beautiful day for a drive through the cemetery and what did we see? Oh, deer.

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An 'Artoon' for Today - Dream On!...

 

Oh to be in Sint Maarten

Only 3200 km from here!

The Waubaushene Ferns Love A Water View

Well another year and the Waubaushene ferns that Wendy transplanted  (a few plants) from Mabel's yard have continued to multiply over the past 40 years or so. 

They seem to love a waterfront view even if it's just a pool.

Alas, they tend to turn brown and whither as the summer progresses, but we do look forward to seeing them every spring.

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My "Artoon" For Today

 

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The Dogwood Is Spectacular Again This Year

 More beautiful than ever, even after the squirrels ate half the buds:

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Our Pool Is Open!

 I hooked everything up and started the pump/heater/chlorinator (on 100% superchlorinate) on Friday. Tim uncovered it yesterday and vacuumed today. It's still a little cloudy but I haven't had to dump in any chlorine yet. The heater brought it quickly up to 80F,

If all goes well, we might be swimming by Friday.

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Drunken Meter Install.

It looked like the gas fitter that installed Erin's gas meter must have been drunk but I figured the angular stance must have been caused by some exterior force and could have slowly morphed over time. 

You can see by the pictures that the earth has settled several inches below the parging on the wall. We knew we had to bring in a load of soil to fill it back up because rainwater now runs right against the house. Fortunately there is no evidence that water has ever entered the basement.

Possibly due to the settling, all the pipes were askew but upon examination it was apparent that no single fitting had rotated more than a few degrees. After turning off the gas I went at the problem with my trusty pipe wrench. 

Luckily, no single joint had rotated more than an eighth of a turn and most required tightening to fix, not loosening, so I was able to tweak them back nearly to the way they probably looked before. I did a 'soap test' later and it revealed no leaks so I'm confident I've solved the problem.

Below is a video about settling gas lines. This is maybe what happened??? Or maybe something ran into the pipes or meter and knocked it out of whack. I guess we'll really never know.

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My "Artsy" Pic For Today.

 Lady In A Hot Tub:

"Lady In A Hot Tub"

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An Unexpected Leak In Erin's Pool...

 Erin's above-ground pool seemed to require filling too often to be caused just from evaporation. There had to be a leak somewhere. Since the pipes run underground, a leak can be very difficult to find. 

Good work Erin! She found a little 'hot spring' right beside the pool shed door. Since the heater has been on and the pool was nearly 90F, there was no doubt the hot water percolating up from the ground was a leak in one of the buried pipes, namely the 'return' line which is the 'pressure' side of the circuit.

Erin dove right in, scooping out the clay mud with her bare hands.

There's the leak! Actually two of them right at the end of an underground conduit that carries the two pool water lines (pressure and suction) and also the electric wire and the natural gas line to the heater behind the shed.

I cut away the conduit with my angle grinder and inserted a barbed splice and two hose clamps. Of course I turned off the electrical breaker and the gas during the repair.

We figured I might as well replace the piece of PVC before we re-fill the hole

I cut out the section with the 2 leaks. Above and below you can see that these holes we very small and must have been abraded and punctured when the pool was installed at least 7 years ago.

All back together and everything is running as it should. I wonder what my next minor emergency will show up. Every day is a new experience with this house. I have completed 72 little jobs and still have 31 on my list:

Dad's List 590

To Do:

Cover gaping hole in patio deck.

Find Landscaper

Order Salt Chlorinator for Hot Tub

New sink in upstairs bathroom (add 2 shutoff valves)

Vent Installed Upside Down upstairs bedroom

Recheck all toilet flappers in summer

Install Can Crusher

Check out the Big-O at the retaining wall

Check gas line to BBQ - reinstall outlet Tom Knight (gas fitter)

Replace track lights in living room?

Measure for new, brighter light in master closet

Study disconnected Air Exchanger Pros and Cons

Check out gas meter pulled away from wall outside

Clean old glue and stick down threshold in basement kitchen

Add shut-off valves in upstairs bathroom sink

Replace noisy toilet valve (main floor) (re-order valve)

Investigate disconnected Rogers home security - Zigbee?

Check operation of sump pump

Put motion detector lamp in the bathroom??? Lamp on fan???

Install new water heater and new catch pan with drain to sump

Check possibility of replacing anode rod in water heater.

Install new railing on deck to meet bylaw/inspection (wait til warmer weather)

Shelf units for Pantry (measurements taken)

Fasten pool railings per code for inspection (wait til warmer weather)

Expose all piers on deck per inspection (wait til warmer weather)

Check and repair garage coach light south (loose) (wait til warmer weather)

Install rain diverter (wait til warmer weather)

Fix Outdoor Tap in Garage (wait til warmer weather)

Done:

Repair leak in pool line.

Install light socket and wall switch in pool house.

Install new wheelbarrow wheel

Book Tree Guy for Tree Removal

Order spare filter for Hot Tub

Re-program Front Door Smart Lock

Install automatic chlorine dispenser for hot tub

Repair Sliding Door Screens

Fix Run-on Toilet Upstairs Master

Basement TP roll holder loose

New Toilet(s) (both upper bathroom flappers leaking, both bowl finish bad)

Basement and main floor bathroom flappers leaking

Replace coping caps (damaged by freezing) on pool (wait til warmer weather)

Repair/replace circuit board in hot tub

Re-open swimming pool for summer (wait til warmer weather)

Check wheelbarrow behind shed (wait til warmer weather)

New rollers on Dishwasher lower rack

3-Way Dimmers for Main Chandelier and 2 'boob' lights in hall

Find clamp, dowels, glue for Newell post

Replace 2 outdoor motion detectors and rear door (3 new motion detection lights)

Replace/Correct 2 basement three-way switches

Black Robertson bit to tighten Newell post

Tape off Hot Tub breaker

Snowblower handle (left) loose

Snowblower starter loose not engaging.

Snowblower engine surging backfiring

Water test heater drain.

Revise site drawing 8' (#067b)

South basement outlet duct grill broken

Strip Heater for eaves

Take over masking tape - check if dried out first

Order extension cord for eaves heater

Take over step ladder to change hall bulb

Fix Snowblower - Linkage too short

Get gas for Snowblower

Check all exterior doors for keys - order new door knobs as needed

Shim basement door hinges (paint stir stick shims)

Neighbourhood Watch List

File down sharp bathroom catch

Fix Basement stair railing

New Laundry Tub (old tub badly stained) Try hydrochloric???

Check dryer vent

Check/measure Furnace Filter

Scan all Deck Docs

Replace upper bathroom light switch (broken)

Get Erin a Flashlight

Measure shed 8 x 12' 8"

Add a blue (24 vac) "C" wire from the furnace to the thermostat

Check garage door remotes

Identify wall switches everywhere

Program 4 garage door remote(s)

G3T-R 3-Button Remote is also equivalent to 37330R, G3T-A, G3T-BX

Order clear silicone table shims

Get and install dusk to dawn bulbs front of house

Replace batteries in kitchen touch tap

Fix threaded rod on consul table

Connect Honeywell Thermo to wifi

Replace Furnace Filter

Colourful Key fits all 4 outside doors except front

Replace bathroom sink main floor

Add dimmer in Dining Room

Brighter LED Bulb in Laundry

Order and replace upper rack height adjuster in dishwasher

Apply o-ring sealant to all toilet flappers.

Adjust 2 casement windows (laundry, dining) and replace 2 broken crank mechanisms

Move over 3 piece sectional chesterfield unit from 593 basement (hire movers)

New dimmer switch in dining room

Add dimmer switch at bar lights

Move over Greg's chest

Change Thermostat to Celsius

Fix pool clock hour hand loose

Bear Property Washing - Wash Siding and Roof Stains

Fix Icemaker in basement

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Looks Like A Perfect Week Weather-wise.

 

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A Rare Occasion: Birthday/Mother's Day

Today, every six years or so since Tim was born, two special events for us converge on the same day. Today it is Mother's Day but also our son Tim's birthday. 

Wendy baked a cake and there were a few gifts exchanged but the best part was celebrating the two events at the same time. 

A tradition now on birthdays is to have Erin play the birthday song as we all sing Happy Birthday. This year again as in the past couple years due to COVID we have had to have Erin only over the phone but with a nice day forecast we are hoping to maybe sit outside on our deck for the song.

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Here's How I Plan My Projects...

 I like to visualize the end product before I start my projects. That way everybody knows what I'm up to and what it is supposed to look like when I'm finished. I of course used Photoshop to render out a gif.

In this case Erin's back deck has a hole where the furnace and other service lines enter the basement. We have no idea what might have been originally built around this dangerous and unsightly opening before but my idea is illustrated above. I figure I'll box in the area and place a manufactured plastic deck box on the platform. Some spacers will allow more air circulation and avoid restricting to furnace vents while elevating the box so you don't have to bend over as much when you retrieve your chair cushions etc. The natural gas outlet for a barbeque grill will fasten to the left hand side of the box/stand.

Well, that's the plan. We'll see later what it really ends up looking like.

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Artoons for today:

 

Wouldn't it be nice to avoid Rogers and Bell and communicate directly through the satellites? The phones would work anywhere. I don't even know if it's practical on a huge scale but what could possibly go wrong?

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Wile E. Coyote? Is That You?

 

Wile E. Coyote? Is That You?

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