THE Road Widening - A Continuing Saga

[jeff kushner]

I love how it's all coming together. Your yard looks great with the driveway and fences.

Is your solar farm active? You have a lot of panels, 36 or so? What is your net effect on your electric bill?

 

[Yvonne G]

I love how it's all coming together. Your yard looks great with the driveway and fences.

Is your solar farm active? You have a lot of panels, 36 or so? What is your net effect on your electric bill?

I use too much electricity keeping my tortoises warm during winter, so I still end up paying quite a bit at the end of the year, even though the meter runs backwards most of the summer.

 

[NamedNut]

All caught up! You've been going through a lot!

You're an absolute champion in my eyes!

 

[Yvonne G]

The desert tortoises, Texas tortoises and Russians have spent two winters and one summer on the carport in jail. I finally have the CDT and Texas yards fit for occupation, so they've been moved out to their permanent home. I would have thought they would all take off in different directions, "FREE!! FREE!! Good Lord Amighty! We're FREE!!!!!", but no, the Texans just sat where I put them, looking around. One reached over and took a bit of a young mallow plant, but basically they just sat there. The CDT DID start wandering around, walking the perimeter, and one of the Juveniles proceeded to escape into the big guys' yard.

Texans:



CDT Look closely and you'll see one way far away next to the fence:



Juvenile CDT yard:



I'm afraid the Russians will be in jail for a bit longer. Their yard needs quite a bit of taking care of before those little escape artists can occupy it.

 

[Cathie G]

The desert tortoises, Texas tortoises and Russians have spent two winters and one summer on the carport in jail. I finally have the CDT and Texas yards fit for occupation, so they've been moved out to their permanent home. I would have thought they would all take off in different directions, "FREE!! FREE!! Good Lord Amighty! We're FREE!!!!!", but no, the Texans just sat where I put them, looking around. One reached over and took a bit of a young mallow plant, but basically they just sat there. The CDT DID start wandering around, walking the perimeter, and one of the Juveniles proceeded to escape into the big guys' yard.

Texans:

View attachment 356946View attachment 356947View attachment 356948

CDT Look closely and you'll see one way far away next to the fence:

View attachment 356949View attachment 356950View attachment 356951

Juvenile CDT yard:

View attachment 356952View attachment 356953

I'm afraid the Russians will be in jail for a bit longer. Their yard needs quite a bit of taking care of before those little escape artists can occupy it.

I can't believe that all this time has went by. I'm glad for you too. It looks great 👍.🤗

 

[Yvonne G]

Well nothing has been done to the street in quite a while. We have my side, two lanes, paved but it's one lane each direction. The other side, which will be three lanes going east, is still dirt.

My yard is all finished. All the turtles and tortoises are where they belong, that is, it WAS that way until my neighbor called me Saturday to tell me my pond had sprung a leak and was bubbling up out of the ground next to his driveway. And it actually was bubbling up out of the ground!

When the road crew (not a professional pond builder) said they were finished with the pond and walked away, it was a **** poor job. Wrinkles in the liner, not pressed down onto the dirt underneath. And this was actually a re-do. But I went ahead and started water into it.

All was seemingly ok. I had my filter running, all the turtles and fish were back in there and it looked pretty good - bare, but ok.

So what I'm guessing happened is the weight of the water pushing the liner down into the gap space between the liner and the ground was too much on a vulcanized seam and it split. The water found a fissure in the area that was backfilled and made an underground river, coming to the surface in my neighbor's yard.

The pond is now about 8" deep, and since the weight is much less, the water is no longer rushing, but just seeping.

My neighbor had a 12' circular livestock tank he has loaned me and I've set that up in my backyard for the turtles. Then there's a big rubber water trough I've set up for the fish. So tomorrow I'll don my rubber boots and grab my fish net and go wading to catch the animals.

It's never easy, is it?

 

[jeff kushner]

Flexseal Tape? It can go on wet I think....and I will attest to it working in a wet environment.
It might make a big job, small?

My crock on my septic tank got broken and fell in....great fun, let me tell you. I had it pumped then hopped down into that aromatic wonderland and used a rubber boot and flexseal tape to tape a clay piece of pipe back together.....10 years ago!


Good luck Y

 

[wellington]

I agree with Jeff. The easy fix would be the flex seal tape. Will probably work better than actual pond liner tape, as that stuff has to be put on really clean and dry surfaces for it to stick and stay stuck.
So hard to play hardball with someone you don't have to pay for the job done. But the flexseal tape should work good for you.

 

[Yvonne G]

Flexseal Tape? It can go on wet I think....and I will attest to it working in a wet environment.
It might make a big job, small?

My crock on my septic tank got broken and fell in....great fun, let me tell you. I had it pumped then hopped down into that aromatic wonderland and used a rubber boot and flexseal tape to tape a clay piece of pipe back together.....10 years ago!


Good luck Y

Oh no! I'm not the one gonna' have to fix this mess. I talked to the City's Construction Manager this a.m. and he's contacting the big boss of the road widening crew, who is supposed to come over tomorrow.

 

[Yvonne G]

I forgot to mention that my pump gave out a couple weeks ago and I haven't had the $$ to replace it yet, so that's why the water's green.

 

[wellington]

Oh no! I'm not the one gonna' have to fix this mess. I talked to the City's Construction Manager this a.m. and he's contacting the big boss of the road widening crew, who is supposed to come over tomorrow.

Oh wow, you go lady! I wouldn't have even thought they would do anything about it.

 

[Yvonne G]

Oh wow, you go lady! I wouldn't have even thought they would do anything about it.

I've got it all planned out what I'm going to say. I hope I can stick to my guns. In the email I sent to the City engineer I told him to give me a name and number at the City where I can get a CWBO number (custom work billing order) and I'll hire a pond builder to clean up this mess. The city's Construction Manager came out bright and early the next day (this a.m.). If the road contractor had only sub contracted it to a pond builder right off the bat it probably would've been cheaper than it's going to be now. To say nothing of the work I'm having to put in catching the fish and turtles.

 

[wellington]

I've got it all planned out what I'm going to say. I hope I can stick to my guns. In the email I sent to the City engineer I told him to give me a name and number at the City where I can get a CWBO number (custom work billing order) and I'll hire a pond builder to clean up this mess. The city's Construction Manager came out bright and early the next day (this a.m.). If the road contractor had only sub contracted it to a pond builder right off the bat it probably would've been cheaper than it's going to be now. To say nothing of the work I'm having to put in catching the fish and turtles.

You can do this. Stick to your guns, you are totally in the right! I agree, if they didn't know how to build a pond, they should have hired a pond builder. At least consult with one or have a pond consultant over see the job.

 

[Cathie G]

I'm so sorry you have to go through this with all your daily chores as it is. 🤗🙏🤗🙏

 

[vladimir]

Good luck @Yvonne G !

 

[Yvonne G]

I asked the big boss of the road widening company when he came out a couple days ago to look at the pond why they didn't sub contract the pond to a pond company. He gave me a song and dance about once they bid a job they had to do the job as bid or some such nonsense I really didn't understand. Anyway, he saw where the liner had split, and it was right at the base of where it should have been tucked into the corner, where the wall meets the floor, and instead, the liner made a gentle slope from floor to wall, leaving nothing behind the liner in the corner but air space. Well, naturally, the weight of all that water put quite a bit of strain on the liner, and eventually it just split. It looks like it's about a foot and a half long split.



The picture doesn't do the female softshell justice. She's about 2' SCL. They've only been in that water a couple days and it's already getting pretty dirty. What a job it would be to have to keep that clean. Hopefully the pond will be ready for them in about a week.

 

[TammyJ]

I just love the Softshell turtle! So elegant.

 

[Cathie G]

I asked the big boss of the road widening company when he came out a couple days ago to look at the pond why they didn't sub contract the pond to a pond company. He gave me a song and dance about once they bid a job they had to do the job as bid or some such nonsense I really didn't understand. Anyway, he saw where the liner had split, and it was right at the base of where it should have been tucked into the corner, where the wall meets the floor, and instead, the liner made a gentle slope from floor to wall, leaving nothing behind the liner in the corner but air space. Well, naturally, the weight of all that water put quite a bit of strain on the liner, and eventually it just split. It looks like it's about a foot and a half long split.

View attachment 361427View attachment 361428View attachment 361429View attachment 361430View attachment 361431

The picture doesn't do the female softshell justice. She's about 2' SCL. They've only been in that water a couple days and it's already getting pretty dirty. What a job it would be to have to keep that clean. Hopefully the pond will be ready for them in about a week.

🤞

 

[Blackdog1714]

Stand your ground and accept no less than done correctly!!! You and your animals deserve it!!!