A Tale of Two Pipes
July 19, 2011 |
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We are DIYing our moms a Duplex in Alaska! Check out our progress so far as we owner build a home, step by step. Read the Momplex blog here.
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posted by Ana White
Momplex Stats
Money Spent So Far:
$7000
Time Spent So Far:
180 Hours on Site + Planning This is the story of how we stuck two pipes in the ground.
For the bargain price of $5000 (with the bonus of having Snort back on the hill to also dig the foundation).
Up here in Alaska, at least where we live 100 miles from a stoplight, when it comes to things like water and sewage, you are on your own. The Momplex would need it's own utility company of sorts.
Back when I was potty training Gracie, I kept telling her, we go in the potty, and we flush, and it's all gone . . . and of course she said, where does it go? Followed by how and what happens if the tank fills up and so on. An to my embarrassment, I didn't entirely know what happens when we flush. I wasn't around for the installation of the septic system at our house (that was all the Ram) so I was very curious as to exactly how a septic system works.
Here's where we left off, with the foundation dug, footers at grade. And Snort still on the hill for another day.
We've consulted with a local engineer, a really smart and very generous member of our community, Stephan, on the placement, depth and location of the septic, marked it out, and now it's time for the Ram to start digging. I've been begging the Ram to teach me how to operate the Snort, but he says, let me have one thing that I know how to do that you don't :) and I have to agree, once in a while, it's nice to sit back and just watch.
And take pictures. So here we go, digging a trench.
We used the Boss (you can see his Inside Guy on the silver measuring stick) to check grade for the trench. And you can see the Ram looking for his wife to make a sandwich . . . or fetch some water . . . or run home and grab a tool. Maybe she's hiding out?
Found. But I don't mind. Tell me, don't you love a guy with a tape measure? The Ram and his Dad layed the pipe, adjusting so the pipe drops 1/4" every foot for proper sewage drainage. Each pipe comes in a twenty foot long stick and gets bonded together with couplings at the joints.
Then the pipe gets bedded in sand and covered with foam insulation to keep the pipes from freezing in our 50 degree below winter cold spells. What you see covered with a bag is the cleanout. At the end is a bigger whole for the septic tank.
Did you know this is what a septic tank looks like? Strange. We hooked the tank up to the Snort . . . can you tell it's getting darker?
The sun DOES go down in Alaska in the summer - but just not until the wee hours. Yes, this was a long day of hard work.
And we aren't done yet. Time to drop the septic into the hole at the end of the pipe.
And line the pipe up with the septic tank . . . perfectly.
And with that, we called her a night.
To be continued . . .
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clips
Ana this is so great that you
Ana this is so great that you are showing every step of the process. It really helps to know all that goes into such a great and big task as to build a home. Not only a home, but all the necessary things that have to be considered when building in the country and cold. Love all the great pictures also...
Amazing progress so far!
Amazing progress so far! Thanks for documenting this and showing us what's involved in building a home from the ground up. That's a good sized septic tank - I assume that someone eventually will have to come pump it, despite your distance form the nearest town. How often will that have to happen?
Can't wait to see whole house, step by step!
clips
Thank you! The septic tank
Thank you! The septic tank is sized for a duplex, and it's recommended that the tank gets pumped every year. But we've had our septic in for a decade and haven't needed to pump it yet. The tank just holds solids, the fluids pass through the leech field (we'll get to that soon!)
We are quite encouraged by the progress too! Such a HUGE project though!
I am amazed! Do you think the
I am amazed! Do you think the Momplex will be finished when the cold arrives?
So THAT'S what a septic tank
So THAT'S what a septic tank looks like! We're actually house hunting and we've been talking septic vs. sewer and I've been wondering what a septic tank actually looks like. Not at all what I imagined. Very cool.
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