Things are not always as they appear

[Roy in TO]

Most of my spare time this summer has been working on some landscaping and retaining walls out front. This has been to resolve some parking issues, control drainage and last but not least provide a spot for our trailer so I can work on it.

Last weekends efforts were on getting the last bit of underground drainage and conduit in place before repositioning the retaining wall where the trailer will be parked. Early this week I had a client say something about hooking up the trailer permanently out front and he didn't think it was legal in the city.

Confused by his comment, I asked him what he was talking about. To which he replied:
"I see you have the sewer lines all set up for the black water", as he pointed over to the rear of my trailer. Little did I realize what my unfinished drainage pipes looked like to somone passing by.

[jeff isaacson]

Roy, hope your client wasn't from the local Environmental Health Dept. ya can only chuckle

[Weinel, Alan]

YIKES!!!
Some folks DO take things out of context.
We are SO FORTUNATE, we just happened to have some sewer work done a couple of years ago, and **AS AN AFTERTHOUGHT** the guy asked if we would like a clean out where the line leaves the property out front.. we said Sure, why not... BOY has that come in handy NOW that we have the Scamp. My buddy even brought HIS over when he got home from his last trip. (only "problem" is it is on the door side of trailer unless you park the wrong way. Oh well - STILL nice to have it at home.


[quote]Most of my spare time this summer has been working on some landscaping and retaining walls out front. This has been to resolve some parking issues, control drainage and last but not least provide a spot for our trailer so I can work on it.

Last weekends efforts were on getting the last bit of underground drainage and conduit in place before repositioning the retaining wall where the trailer will be parked. Early this week I had a client say something about hooking up the trailer permanently out front and he didn't think it was legal in the city.

Confused by his comment, I asked him what he was talking about. To which he replied:
"I see you have the sewer lines all set up for the black water", as he pointed over to the rear of my trailer. Little did I realize what my unfinished drainage pipes looked like to somone passing by.


Attachment 21362

[Roy in TO]

I hope you are talking sanitary sewer there Alan.

Part of the reason I am doing this work is that right now for us, the two (storm and sanitary) are combined. BUT the word has come down the pipes saying that on property catch basins and down spouts must be disconnected from the sewer system in the near future. That pipe will drain in the weeping tile I am installing in the back yard next to the patio. The city does not have the $$ to replace a 100+ year old infrastructure and believes (or is trying to make us believe) that they are stimulating the economy by having us do it our selves. Funny thing is that over the years with all the amalgamation of smaller towns into one big city the documents got lost and the city has no idea where our sewer lines are. They think they are out front under the street, but I know it runs through the back yard because that is the down hill side of the system. The dye tests prove it. I have not dug down back there yet, but I am pretty sure I am the end of the line on the old system.

[Roy in TO]

Roy, hope your client wasn't from the local Environmental Health Dept. ya can only chuckle

It could be worse Jeff, I'm the last property on the block that falls into the new river by-law. The river is part of a flood management system and the city sent me this big formal letter telling me what I could and could not do. Being the activist I am, I had an inspector come over to show them all the work I had started prior to the new by-law being enacted. The once adamant manager changed their tune when they seen the property in person rather than elevations on a map. So I have unofficial permission as long as I don't tell anybody. so sshhhh

(on edit: it was easier and cheaper to give me the nod than pay for an engineer to study their official plan and have the lawyers rewrite the by-law ... you gotta either love or hate the beauracracy of politics. Or know how to use it against them)