Garden watering system

Garden with drip lines
Garden with drip lines

Over the Memorial Holiday, I finished installing an automatic watering system for the new garden. I planted Indian corn in the back row, and Cindy will be sowing some seeds in the other rows (hopefully today). I mixed in some garden soil into the rather clay-like soil, so we shall see if things actually grow. The most difficult part was digging the trench from the back of the house over to the wall.  It is only about 25 feet, but the ground is so hard that it takes a lot of effort to dig.  I had to presoak the ground which helped, but it was still hard.

Finished trench
Finished trench

This is the finished trench where it meets the house.  Luckly for me, there was a previous sprinkler from a time long past, so I was able to just use the outlet from the existing gate valve and run that over into the trench.  It is only a matter of time before the kids somehow manage to break that PVC pipe, so I want to put some backing underneath it.  On the other hand, maybe they will not mess with it.  Lucky thinking.

Supply side
Supply side

The next picture is a close up of the supply line from the hose outlet. There is a few inches of clearance below the pipe.  I also need to do something to prevent the sunlight from damaging the pipe.  I think a nice paint job of the sage house color should help.

Hot Water Pipe Slab Leak

It’s 3 days before Aidan’s First Communion, and reception afterwards at our house.  Last night I was hearing a water sound from the pipes, and yes, it’s a slab leak!  The hot water pipe under the entryway area seems to have a leak.  I still have to call the insurance and see what they can do. I expect nothing, so I think it will be time to dig into some walls and reroute the water pipes.  Conveniently, there were some water pipes run through the upstairs attic when the new bathroom was added during the addition.  I’m thinking those pipes are going to be supplying water to other areas of the house. Continue reading “Hot Water Pipe Slab Leak”

Front Yard Finished

Front YardWell, I finally got the sod in.  This picture was taken Dec 5, 2008. It’s Marathon II.

The lower picture is from July 24, 2005, and gives an idea of what the house looked like before the addition.
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