SOS Send in the Life Boats Titanic Laundry!!

[toggleswitch]

YUKKERS. Here is to more seasonable and reasonable weather.

Water water everywhere and not a drop to drink.

The flood is over, the mud is dry,
why do you wear your pants so high?

Hoping no major damage is done!
Did the appliances survive and is your oil-burner ok?

To dry up my basement, I put at least a foot (0.3 meter) of concrete around the house and redirected the rain spouts to be a few feet from the house as well!

In this pic you can see that I replaced the grass by the house by widening the foot path.

 

[toggleswitch]

How dry I am, how wet I'll be if I don't find the ba

.....and here is a pic of the rain spouts.

STAY DRY!
Hope it all works out!

I have had a dry basement since. Here's hoping you do too!

 

[frigilux]

Lordy! I don't envy your cleanup at ALL. We had a massive amount of rain during April and water came up through cracks in the floor in my garage (fortunately, there's a floor drain) for a week. The floor of the garage is about 3 feet lower than the lowest level of the house proper, which remained completely dry, THANK GOD. Good luck and if I may echo Austin's caution: Don't operate electrical appliances while standing in water!!

 

[jetcone]

more to come

Brett, this happens about once every two years, my basement was built to drain in 1892 but things get clogged over 100 years.
I put in 2 forty foot drain trenches at the back uphill side of the house two years ago that do keep me dry 99% of storms. But this storm is HUGE and everyone is having problems.

I should hook up a few machines to pump out good idea Sudsmaster , I almost went to HD to get a second pump today but my ZOeller cast Iron submersible started to catch up by 1 pm. So I saved abuck there but not on my SHOES!
Last Xmas when dad was here he took my only pair of waterproof rubber boots, so off to DICKS sports goods today IN THE RAIN to find their last pair of size 14 Merrell rubber toed boots. REI was O U T! I was lucky to find Dicks had one pair of them.

HI Kelly, I love that RW Pressure cooker, that one is mint but I have my Mom's up in the kitchen which I still use. I can't believe how supple the gasket is for a 1949 cooker!!

Toggle what I should do is dig two huge sluces on each side of the house headed downhill.

I have a rock foundation and some of the cement after 100 years is gone leaving gaps 3 to 4 inches up the walls, it is these gaps where the water is just gushing into the basement.

Yes thank heavens for the Kitchen GE combo, it did its duty today!

thanks for all the support, I will be the one in women's clothing in the lifeboats!!

Jet

 

[jetcone]

Here's a Manhole cover down the bottom

of my hill. Never seen this before!!

 

[veg-o-matic]

Man, that really sucks! I'm sending some "Arizona Thoughts" your way, Jon.

Keep out of the basement 'til the tide goes out, okay?

veg

P.S. Size FOURTEEN???? Here come the vapors again...

 

[mixfinder]

Supple Gaskets

I still can't believe how supple the gasket is...

I collected and sold vintage appliances until 2002. For a time in college, I actually worked in a Sunbeam authorized repair outlet.

As years rolled by and parts became obsoleted, one hard to find part, was the big black rubber "doughnut" casket for the vacuum Coffeemaster that went between the two bowls.

I recommended soaking the gasket in glycerine, to soften it.

I would get a blank stare and then the question, "What is glycerin? Where do I get glycerin?"

At the drugstore, was my reply. The cheapest way to get it, is buy a Fleet enema.

If they were enjoying a cup of coffee from the Coffeemaster, they would gag and spit!

Kelly

 

[toggleswitch]

I had one today as a breath-mint.

as in a Glycerin suppository.............

*LOL*

 

[tolivac]

The first picture of someone standing in the water and running the washer is scary--Don't think I would be wanting to run any electrical equipment in that kind of a flood.On the TV here been hearing about those bad rainstorms in the Northeast area.Now I can truely see how bad it is-worse than what was shown on the TV-The water spouting out of the manhole cover is something!

 

[tomturbomatic]

Floods and Revere Pressure Cookers

Jon, I called John L. last night when I heard that Melrose was on the verge of evacuation(Toggle, this has nothing to do with the glycerin suppository) and John said that you live up high so you were in no danger of flooding. Question, why did the sump pump get so far behind the flood? Too much water too fast or was something wrong with the pump?

You would not need a suds saver washer to suck the floor dry. Any machine where you could get easy access to the pump would work if you disconnected the hose from the tub and connected a hose with an angle cut end for the floor to the intake port on the pump. A modern Maytag with front access for service would be just the ticket.

Kelly, I was in love with those original Revere Pressure cookers for years (and lots of others, too) and even bought a few of the new ones Revere introduced in the mid 70s, but all of them, like the MirroMatics, the stamped Prestos, etc. bulged out the bottom as the pressure rose, lifting the base away from the heating element. They were honestly better on gas stoves where the bulge did not matter. It took 17 years of wishing and wanting before I found my first of the late 40s-early 50s Revere pressure pans. I have all the designs of the early Revere cooker; the original with the flat bottom and the later models with the raised center of the base (which the 70s cookers also had) and they all bulge out when pressure builds. The only ones other than the cast aluminum cookers, like some of the Prestos, to remain flat under pressure are the good stainless steel European brands with the heavy sandwich bases.

 

[bobbyderegis]

Jon,
Holler if you need help. We are a little drier in Everett. I would be glad to help move things or bail water.
Bobby in Boston

 

[jetcone]

Thank You everyone

My Zoeller kept up and the water has receeded now but they say we are in for more rain all WEEKEND!! Jeeze!

Tom, the Zoeller was keeping up but the rate of flow was so great that it held at 3 inches across the basement floor. My neighbor around the corner made national news with 5 feet in his basement, I went by Sunday and all his kids toys were floating in the yard around the house!!!!

My basement like alot of others here due to the age they were built in, are made of natural stone so the cement between the stone, at 100 years is no longer solid and so water flows in between the stone at 2-5 inches above the basement floor.

I now know where the "fountains" are so I will pull all those machines out to the driveway this summer and recement the whole wall!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I consider myself lucky at 3 inches as alot---no most people got alot more and all my water was fresh clean rain water thank heavens!!

Our City Yard, High School and two major roads into Melrose are all under 3 feet of water.
The new storm drains installed last year by the MWRA (MASS WATER RESOURCES AUTHORITY) were closed last week for maintenance!!! So this was prime for the storm!!

Al & I are warm safe and dry and the machines will be soon too. Remember they are washing machines and should be able to take it, and my basement floor will be so clean now you could eat off of it!

Cheers to all
jon & Al

 

[tlee618]

Glad you posted Jon, I have been wondering how things were going. I am just glad that none of your wonderful machines were damaged. You and Al take good care and stay dry!! Terry

 

[appnut]

Jon, so glad you & Al are doing so well under the circumstances. And glad you posted. Have been really worried about you.

 

[johnb300m]

this happend to us in Orland Park, IL a few years ago. A certain part of town was under 4 feet of water in some parts.
Luckily our house is on a hill, some people were at the bottom of the hill.

When it rains in OP, it pours.

 

[angus]

Not sure why the pumps couldn't keep up. A few weekends ago when we had over 9 inches of rain in a 24 hour period, my neighbor had the same thing happen. It was just coming in so fast, his pump was overwhelmed. The fire dept ultimately had to come and pump him out...

 

[Brent-Aucoin]

Jon,
Thanks for the pictures, but I just hate this for you, and your neighbors.
I hope that it will be all over soon, and the water will be out!
I know this must have you stressed!
Take care and keep us posted, and keep Al dry!
Brent

 

[foraloysius]

That last picture is really amazing. Hope all is well with you and Al.

 

[frontaloadotmy]

Hope the Waters have receded by now

Jon. I love the Blackstone Tub with the Kelvinator Agitator;
It looks like the "Predator" disrobed in your basement.
(you know the one I mean; he couldn't see our governor after
he covered himself in mud!)