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Happy Mother's Day. Day #17 after the tank was pumped. No problems yet. The leaking panels were removed and the ground has dried underneath. I suspect that the solar was leaking even more than I suspected and that the drainfield was just saturated. A few small changes in water consumption haven't h...

Emergency funds: 3 months Debt: $11k school loans @ 6% (Started with $28k, most extra money has been going to this in the few months since i graduated) $19k car loan @ 2.5% You have no business being 90% in equities at this time. Build up emergency funds to a minimum of 6 months worth of living exp...

Should I sell my 2 rental properties? Only you can answer the next question honestly, "What will allow you to sleep better at night?" Kids are expensive, more expensive than a new parent can possibly realize. Strictly my opinion, you need an emergency fund to cover a minimum of 9 months o...

"If it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown flush it down"

So far, everything is working 'OK.' A neighbor suggested trying an aquarium fish tank or septic tank aerator for a while and run a plastic pipe to pump air into the septic tank to allow bacteria to multiple rapidly. He stated it helped with 'biomat' in the drainfield as the bacteria seemed to chew e...

Right now, we are living off social security and about a $1000/month of income from a part time job. Our house is paid for and our expenses are the basic necessities of life. We do have about $25k in the bank for emergencies. We have an 800k portfolio that is 70% stocks, 5% bonds and 25% cash from ...

Is investing different for the "rich"? I think so, depending on your definition of rich. I invest differently now than 30 years ago. Back then, when I had much less (and should have risked even less) I wanted to make a killing and took a lot of risks. The only killing I made was killing m...

Thanks, SteveNet. Whatever it was that got me, sure slowed me down. Stupid me, I was in flip-flops at the time. I agree that the first two septic people were in a big hurry to get me to sign and do the job, a job that might not even need to be done. The last one was the most reasonable and in no hur...

This morning marks a week since the tank was pumped out and we had several estimates, two of which were in a hurry to get the job done. So far, so good. Leaking solar panel removed, no more leak there. Unfortunately, in the process, something bit my left foot and I don't know what. At first I though...

Check out Zillow.com for information. If you decide to rent - check their credit!!! Anyone with a less than stellar credit rating should not be your tenant. With your financial reserves, consider renting and adding an extra $3-500 a month additional principal curtailment to the mortgage payment. The...

It seems that precious metals ETF's and funds have taken a beating. Just wondering if it's time to put a little into them? VGPMX is down >30% in one year. Any others you can think of that may be worthwhile? I'd be putting money from cash reserves into it for the long term. Probably no more than 1% o...

scubadiver -- Regarding the teenagers and long hot showers, have you considered just getting a smaller hot water tank? I already did! Went from a 50 gallon to a 40 gallon water heater a year ago. rebus -- It may also mean that the water table is so high that the drain field is underwater for that r...

I've been watching water useage in the house like a hawk. My mentally handicapped son uses a tremendous amount of water. My wife routinely did 7-8 loads of wash on weekends plus run the dishwasher on most days. She's going to the laundromat tomorrow instead. I checked the water use for the type of f...

After removing the solar panels, the leak from the underside was far worse than expected. It had probably gone undetected for a long time. I attributed the pool's water loss to excessive evaporation. Well. the area should dry our nicely now that it is uncovered and the leak has been addressed. I thi...

Thanks moon2. Welcome to Bogleheads! The washing machine is a fancy front loader that uses less water than a top loader. SteveNet, they're there to heat the pool water. Each solar panel is a 20 foot long by 2 foot wide black plastic panel with multiple channels (like a cardboard box) where water flo...

It has been over 48 hours since the tank was pumped. I'm peeking into the tank daily. Tank is about 1/2 full, so it roughly translates to 250 gallons a day. The offending solar panels have been removed and the ground immediately underneath was like a swampy mess. I'm beginning to breathe a little, m...

Sometimes, after one or two good nights of sleep, clarity and the big picture come into focus. Two weeks ago we had a handyman come out to do some work on a plumbing fixture. He had to shut off water to the house. After he was done, we all noticed that there was significantly higher water pressure ...

Steve, he mentioned the system is a pipe and trench sytem and one linear foot equals three square feet of drainfield. He estimated my system at around 700-750 SF, so around 233-250 linear feet. He was very reasonable and said he'd be happy to wait and see what happens with all the conservation measu...

Third inspection and estimate of the day (wow, it was nonstop) seemed the most reasonable. The man stated it was best to just let the system dry out as much as possible, minimize water use and get rid of leaky solar panel. If the septic still has problems, he suggested adding extra drain pipe to inc...

Thanks, I appreciate a healthy dose of skepticism. Man #2 stated that the drainfield was overwhelmed and, as such, the biomat was damaged. His rational to try this Bio-one product is to have this biomat degrade over time and 'restore' the health of the septic field to a normal level. His words, not ...

Thanks everyone. I had a second man come out and he quoted $5000. He blamed the whole problem on the leaking solar panels, saying the drainfield wouldn't repair itself. He poo-poo'd the idea of adding a secondary drainfield. He suggested a product called "Bio-One" to see if it might help t...

The man also said I could give the system a rest by significant water resriction and see what happens, or I could come up with $8000 for a re-do of the drainfield, or $4000 for an extension of the drainfield. He also said the tractor couldn't cause damage.

I'll do the water restriction first!

Had my first inspection and estimate this AM from a very knowledgable low key gentleman. He indicated that the system was apparently overwhelmed by excess water after he dug down and found standing water about 18-20 inches down. To complicate the issue, I already have several solar panels laying ove...

What is the likelyhood, in today's volatile employment market, that you will still be in the same position with the same company/employer for the next 10-20-30 years? $65 vs $85K a year with varying retirement benefits.. What would your situation look like if you took option 2 and invested, and live...

Two of my teens, one of whom is mentally handicapped, take extremely long showers. Is it possible that they just 'overwhelmed' the system with excess water use, Unfortunately, my mentally handicapped son cannot be reasoned with at all and is hopelessly at the mental level of a 3 year old at best. If...

SteveNet wrote: The 30-50 gallon of reverse flow from the fields are a sign that the whole field system is full, gravity makes the reverse flow, the rest of the fields are below the "Tee" level so it won't flow back in. It is possible that the line between the tank and the fields is plugge...

Maybe I'm being scammed? When the man was pumping out the tank, which had a lot of greasy matter at the top, he told me that I had a drainfield problem. The reason he said this was he noticed water flowing back into the tank from the outlet 'Tee' (which goes to the drainfield) and about 30-50 gallon...

Thanks everyone.

I have no water bill. We have our own well and filtration system. Ten years ago my water bill averaged around $100 a month (including sewer and garbage pickup). I just looked at an old bill and it said we used 101 'units' for the month. I'm guesstimating that a unit is probably 100 gal of water, so ...

$275 for the pumping. Apparently the man noticed a lot of water backflow from the drainfields back into the tank as it was emptied. I looked and, yes, it was a lot. He said that my drainfield had failed. So I'm waiting for an estimate to repair. I've called a couple of other septic people and had se...

Thanks for all the responses so far!

Having been a city dweller until we moved, I know practically nothing about septic as everything was on a sewer system.

I guess I'm going to learn.

Stevenet wrote" Having a septic system needs maintenance just like a car, depending on the number of people in the home on a regular basis the general rule is pump every 5 years for a 1000 gal tank. If you have a smaller tank (500) gal then 2.5 years. Not necessarily an accurate statement. I fo...

After I posted this, the system backed up.

It's getting pumped this morning.

Apparently, it's 'normal' to pump out a system on a regular basis depending on the size of the system and number of users, regardless of what additives you put in.

Oh well! What's a few hundred bucks?

Sigh.

We have a septic system that is about 9 years old. We have been in the house just under 5 years. Once the system backed up and we had to get it pumped out two years ago. I was at work and couldn't see or ask the man about septic care/tricks to avoid this in the future or how to check for, or clear, ...

How many days are you going to be in London? Some things can take most of a day, others an hour. You can make it a full day by walking from Parliament and Big Ben along the Thames, past the Millenium Wheel (tourist trap), Shakespeare Theatre, all the way to Tower Bridge and the Tower of London (a tr...

We're on our second Toyota Sienna. The first one was highly reliable despite being used and abused and finally gave out at 160,000 miles. Used for long commutes and long driving vacations. Plenty of room for five, plus a dog and (in my opinion) too much luggage including the kitchen sink! Surprising...

I assume that this is for a personal residence and not an 'investment' to be rented out? It depends on your personal plans as to how long you will be staying in the location you plan to buy in. Most Americans move every five years or so. Tough to recoup realtor's fee's in such a short time. May I su...

May I suggest good shoes and an exercise stroller.

As far as I'm concerned, the treadmill we bought was an expensive piece of junk that eventually collected dust - despite our best intentions!

Real estate is starting to percolate again. I toyed with the idea of getting a few rental properties, but have decided against it due to dealing with prior tenants who were a pain in the @**. I do not know which way prices are headed over the next decade, there might well be another TARP style colla...

I live in Florida and the house has no shade anywhere from the sun. When the attic gets hot, the heat radiates through the sheetrock ceiling into the house. Actually, my bedroom gets the worst with a southwest exposure. Rather than try some fancy stuff, I'll just have someone blow in some cellulose ...

I just found out that our home doesn't have adequate insulation in the attic. It has blown in cellulose, but not nearly enough to be effective as it provides only about an R-11 at best. :annoyed I've been advised to get either blown in cellulose or fiberglass to get it up to an R-30 rating, which wo...

Rick said:

She'd make me to go out and shovel cow manure for a while to put me back in place.

ROFLMAO

I'm thinking about moving out of the USA seasonally, for about 6-9 months out of the year. When I factor in cost of living and travel, it's still less expensive than being here in the USA year-round. I think the experience of living in foreign countries would be fantastic and an eye opener. Some nat...

This is the 4th home we have owned. Have been proactive about AC system tuneups, etc living in Florida. This year, had a 'tech' (probably a flunkie sales-shmuck) come out and service the system. He was hard sell on mold issues and the need for an uber-expensive ultraviolet light air purifier in the ...

Has the Cypriotic confiscation of 40% of account assets in excess of 100,000 Euros in bank accounts caused you to re-think your foreign asset allocation, specifically in Europe?

If so, how?

What changes, if any, will you make?

Salvage it? Was a torpedo involved?

Nah, he just wanted to put some of my cash in his pocket before I knew what happened.

I already knew what he would have done, provided less than mediocre results for a handsome fee (at best). A horrible loss at worst.

What would be the difference in your emergency fund if you put down 30% versus 20%? If you find you are on a razor thin margin should anything happen, then I wouldn't do it, I'd keep the 10% for emergencies and realize that the .25% extra you're paying is an insurance policy. Run the numbers, you ca...

Numbers are nice goals to shoot for. They fluctuate depending on age, expenses, expectations, etc. When I was younger, I had a number that was much higher. The reason was that I wanted to retire and be financially independent at 50 and had to cover expenses for 12 years till I started getting any so...

I don't think the poll is ambiguous at all. Anyone with a high school education understands that K stands for thousand. as in k ilogram, k ilometer, k iloton, etc. I think real estate and vehicles should be separate from net worth in the vast majority of cases. The only exception to this would be so...

Some of these 'financial advisors' are outright stalkers. I went to a presentation by one about a year ago. He called repeatedly for months after that, leaving elaborate messages of how he was going to salvage my portfolio (Yeah, right!). I still get mailings every few weeks. Anyone who is good, in-...