akirby Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 Tennis is huge in Atlanta - biggest local tennis league in the world. 80,000 members. It's all doubles so old folks like me can still play and the rules allow neighborhoods with players at different levels to play together - something USTA doesn't do. As a result almost every neighborhood has at least two tennis courts and some have 6 or 8 or more. Also lots of pools. When you have expensive amenities to maintain you pretty much must have a HOA and the associated dues and drama. We actually looked for stand alone land but couldn't find anything suitable in our price range in the area we wanted with the utilities we wanted. If it gets bad I'll just run for president and straighten it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 You must not appreciate a nice glass of fresh, untouched well water. Mmmm, yummy! We paid $30+/month for city water at our last house. We were near the end of the line, and the water was always full of iron deposits and we had to change our whole-house filter every 3 months. If there was a problem with the line, the sediment would make it through the filter and we'd be drinking brown water. A neighbor ruined a whole load of whites not knowing the washer was filling with brown water. The chlorine taste was nasty as well. Yuck! It was a no-brainer putting in a well at our new house instead of connecting to the public water supply. My grandparents in Alabama had a well on their front porch when I was growing up in the 70s. Man that was some good water - fresh, cold and clean. Never had a problem with our city water but you do pay a lot extra for sewer. Never had to worry about the pump going out or losing electricity or the well drying up. But sounds like it was the best option in your case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 (edited) My grandparents in Alabama had a well on their front porch when I was growing up in the 70s. Man that was some good water - fresh, cold and clean. Never had a problem with our city water but you do pay a lot extra for sewer. Never had to worry about the pump going out or losing electricity or the well drying up. But sounds like it was the best option in your case. Yeah, even with the cost of drilling the well, it was worth it for us. It's hard to beat the taste of water straight from the ground. It's what I grew up with, and I missed it when I moved out. The main drawback, like you mention, is no electricity, no water. Of course, our public water supply doesn't have generators for their pumps, so.... And one thing I truly wish we had was a sewer system (the town has one but we're outside city limits). The land around here is a lot of clay, so unless it's on a hill, it doesn't run off and doesn't soak in. It was an issue in our subdivision and was actually the main reason it didn't have another row of houses behind the first row. It sits on a ridge, so everyone's sewer can run down the hill. One neighbor actually had to put in a lagoon and two others put in fancy $20k sewage treatment systems. Everyone has septic tanks, so it's just liquids, but it's still nasty. At our new house, we ran the drain field way off into the woods because the easy path would drain it right into the spot I want to put a lake in 5-10 years. Edited October 24, 2017 by fordmantpw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 Water here is all gravity fed so we're good until the tank runs dry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted October 24, 2017 Author Share Posted October 24, 2017 Yeah, even with the cost of drilling the well, it was worth it for us. It's hard to beat the taste of water straight from the ground. It's what I grew up with, and I missed it when I moved out. The main drawback, like you mention, is no electricity, no water. Of course, our public water supply doesn't have generators for their pumps, so.... And one thing I truly wish we had was a sewer system (the town has one but we're outside city limits). The land around here is a lot of clay, so unless it's on a hill, it doesn't run off and doesn't soak in. It was an issue in our subdivision and was actually the main reason it didn't have another row of houses behind the first row. It sits on a ridge, so everyone's sewer can run down the hill. One neighbor actually had to put in a lagoon and two others put in fancy $20k sewage treatment systems. Everyone has septic tanks, so it's just liquids, but it's still nasty. At our new house, we ran the drain field way off into the woods because the easy path would drain it right into the spot I want to put a lake in 5-10 years. A lake eh? Sounds fancy! :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 A lake eh? Sounds fancy! :P OOOOOOOOOOOOHHH! High Roller! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 Water here is all gravity fed so we're good until the tank runs dry. That's what I meant...the pumps that pump the water from the ground don't have generators, so once the tower is empty, water is out. That won't take long... A lake eh? Sounds fancy! :P That's the plan anyway. My wife isn't sold on the idea because her favorite tree on our property, a huge 100+ year old oak tree will have to come down to make it happen. I wanted to wait until the kids got a bit bigger before building the lake, and in 10 years, the youngest will be 18, and I don't think the tree will make it 10 years (it's starting to show signs), so sounds about right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 OOOOOOOOOOOOHHH! High Roller! Cheaper in the long run than paying HOA fees. :P 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted October 24, 2017 Author Share Posted October 24, 2017 That's what I meant...the pumps that pump the water from the ground don't have generators, so once the tower is empty, water is out. That won't take long... That's the plan anyway. My wife isn't sold on the idea because her favorite tree on our property, a huge 100+ year old oak tree will have to come down to make it happen. I wanted to wait until the kids got a bit bigger before building the lake, and in 10 years, the youngest will be 18, and I don't think the tree will make it 10 years (it's starting to show signs), so sounds about right. Maybe you could make an "Oak Island" (not to be confused with the one in Canada....I find that show interesting, BTW) in the middle of the lake for the tree. Here's a dumb question......where do you get the water from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 Cheaper in the long run than paying HOA fees. :P Especially if your friends or neighbors own the bulldozer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 Maybe you could make an "Oak Island" (not to be confused with the one in Canada....I find that show interesting, BTW) in the middle of the lake for the tree. Here's a dumb question......where do you get the water from? Well, the base of the tree would likely be 15' below water level, otherwise I would definitely make an island out of it. Are you talking about water for the lake? It's just runoff from rain water. The lake would be built at the low part of our field and the hills all slope to that area. A big drainage ditch runs right through it. Especially if your friends or neighbors own the bulldozer. I wish! They are friends that I've known since childhood, but you still gotta pay 'em! My sister had a lake built 10 years or so ago, and I think theirs was $12-15k for a 1.5 acre lake. A lot depends on the lay of the land and how much effort is involved in building the dam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted October 24, 2017 Author Share Posted October 24, 2017 Well, the base of the tree would likely be 15' below water level, otherwise I would definitely make an island out of it. Are you talking about water for the lake? It's just runoff from rain water. The lake would be built at the low part of our field and the hills all slope to that area. A big drainage ditch runs right through it. I wish! They are friends that I've known since childhood, but you still gotta pay 'em! My sister had a lake built 10 years or so ago, and I think theirs was $12-15k for a 1.5 acre lake. A lot depends on the lay of the land and how much effort is involved in building the dam. Build a dam around the tree hahaha. You'll have to share pics sometime.....I have an image in my head, but pictures are always better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbone Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 But thats not the issue. What if your neighbor decides to paint his house neon green, never cut the grass and leave junk cars in the front yard? Nobody would ever buy your house and your property value goes way down and you have zero recourse. Houses in my old neighborhood sold within 1-7 days for top dollar. Why? Because every house in the neighborhood was well maintained along with the pool, tennis courts, playground, lakes, baseball/soccer field, etc. etc. Like I said - I was never denied any modification requests or told to do anything other than refresh the mulch and get rid of some weeds. The things that were against the rules are things you wouldnt want to do anyway. There are pros and cons to HOAs, as mentioned above, but for the most part they add value, unless you have a weak HOA that does not enforce or selectively enforced its own rules. Thats when the issues arise in my opinion. I would prefer to have one in an urban environment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 Build a dam around the tree hahaha. You'll have to share pics sometime.....I have an image in my head, but pictures are always better Here are a couple pics. The first is google maps overhead view with the lake area roughly outlined (just under 2 acres). Circled is the tree in question. The other is a pano taken from just off the SW corner of the patio. I circled the tree here too. The land slopes left to right (it's sometimes hard to tell in the pic) and down toward "the tree." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted October 24, 2017 Author Share Posted October 24, 2017 Here are a couple pics. The first is google maps overhead view with the lake area roughly outlined (just under 2 acres). Circled is the tree in question. The other is a pano taken from just off the SW corner of the patio. I circled the tree here too. The land slopes left to right (it's sometimes hard to tell in the pic) and down toward "the tree." Capture.JPG file.jpeg That'll be a pretty deep lake if you're saying the base of the tree will be 17' underwater. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 That'll be a pretty deep lake if you're saying the base of the tree will be 17' underwater. I'm just guessing based on the lay of the land, but I'm thinking 20-25' at it's deepest part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted October 24, 2017 Author Share Posted October 24, 2017 I'm just guessing based on the lay of the land, but I'm thinking 20-25' at it's deepest part. The picture must be deceiving then....it's hard to tell how much the terrain dips in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted October 24, 2017 Share Posted October 24, 2017 The picture must be deceiving then....it's hard to tell how much the terrain dips in it. Yeah, the pic doesn't do it justice. Of course, I haven't put a transit to it to be sure, so I could be way off because I'm not a very good judge of distance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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