By Trent Modglin

I’m not entirely sure if there’s a world record for the number of times the Weather Channel app can be refreshed in a week, but I’m pretty sure my wife and I set the mark last May.

Reason being, the Park Ridge sewer line backed up into our basement not once, but twice, in less than 72 hours. All while two of the four street drains at the intersection next to us were backed up, making our street look more like the Des Plaines River and forcing water up over the sidewalk. It took the better part of the next day to slowly dissipate, removing plenty of our fresh grass seed and mulch with it.

But I digress. Let’s get back to how the city’s outdated, overwhelmed sewer system unceremoniously welcomed us to Park Ridge by making our basement floor drain look like an angry volcano of poop water. Because I know a lot of you have been there too.

Trust me when I say there’s nothing quite like watching a stranger’s toilet paper float past your son’s Lego collection. On carpet you had installed a month earlier. In your newly renovated basement. That new-carpet smell was no more, in case you were wondering. Quickly replaced by a scent just slightly less desirable.

Trust me when I say there’s nothing quite like watching a stranger’s toilet paper float past your son’s Lego collection. … We were scrambling to decide what was most important, minds racing, me gagging, wife hyperventilating.

Realizing we couldn’t keep up with the sewer backup, we surrendered to lifting the most important items up off the ground to what we hoped was safe territory. Scrambling to decide what was most important, minds racing, me gagging, wife hyperventilating.

It was a disaster. And at no fault of our own. We spent loads of money fixing foundation and roofing issues we were aware of upon moving in nine months earlier, but in no way were we expecting sewer water to back up into our home because of a heavy rain.

At this point, we ventured outside to check the street flooding and, one after another, many of our neighbors joined us. Some with flashlights, some with umbrellas, some in pajamas, all of them beleaguered. We commiserated, sharing stories about shoving t-shirts down toilets, lakes in backyards and waking sleeping kids from their basement bedrooms. We actually bonded amidst the strangest and most depressing of scenarios.

Now fast forward to three days later — our restoration company had just left and I was picking up Chinese food when my wife called. I could hear my son crying in the background. It was happening again. It. Was. Happening. Again. Flooded street, and more sewer water flowing freely across our freshly disinfected basement.

It was devastating. That feeling of helplessness overwhelms you, and we knew we needed to do something significant to prevent this from ever happening again. After getting five different estimates for a flood-control system, we settled in on the company we trusted most and never looked back.

Goode Plumbing was it. Their intricate flood-control system consists of a large, accessible enclosure below ground, with two backwater valves to prevent water from going from the municipal lines into your private line. There is an overflow fitting behind the valves, so any water from your house drain (toilet, shower, dishwasher, etc.) is directed to a basin that houses an ejector pump, which sends outgoing drainage up and over the backwater valves and into the city sewer line. In other words, you can lead a normal life during a rainstorm. Every component in Goode’s system is of very high quality — cast iron, copper and brass — and a cleanout pipe is also installed for easier future drain maintenance.

Instead of wondering why sewer flooding stories seem like some irrational rite of passage to live in Park Ridge, we hired Goode Plumbing and never looked back.

Instead of wondering why sewer flooding stories seem like some irrational rite of passage to live in Park Ridge, we hired Goode Plumbing and never looked back. Their staff couldn’t have been nicer or more professional, explaining every step along the way and following up weeks after the project was completed.

The fact my family — after two city sewer backups in four days — can actually sleep at night during a rainstorm is a credit to Goode Plumbing, plain and simple. We hired the right people, we got the right system in place and our home is protected. And there’s no greater feeling than that.

You can reach Goode Plumbing at GoodePlumbing.com or 800-662-1875.