Thank goodness we have an emergency fund. I'm working on a post describing how pinched I feel financially lately, and now we're having trouble with our sewer. Since neither of us know much about plumbing, we're not sure exactly what's wrong, but I can try to describe the symptoms.

First, remember that we live in a hundred-year-old house. The plumbing isn't that old, but I think the sewer lines are at least 50 years old.

Here's one symptom: If we drain the full bathtub, it empties about half way and then stops. The toilet then bubbles and gurgles and does some sort of back filling. Then the tub drains very, very slowly. Also, there's a broken exposed pipe outside the house, and water is leaking out at the foundation. We figure that, at the very least, this needs repaired.

Other possible related issues: Our upstairs toilet has always become easily clogged. When we came home from our recent weekend vacation, it was to find the bathtub running (we think a cat accidentally turned on the water) and the basement wet. Looking back, I suspect that this was due to trouble draining.

Anyhow -- now we're faced with the task of finding a plumber. I'm not really sure how to find a good one. Usually I'd ask for recommendations from friends and neighbors, but that requires time. We're in a pinch. I want to get somebody out soon to look at this. Anyone know of good resources for finding plumbers?

You have to pay for the service, but I have heard that Angie's List is good at weeding out disreputable contractors.

I have a local plumber. When I had a home warranty (huge waste of money, IMO) the company they sent to do my work was on time, helpful, and when the claim was denied, came back to me later with an estimate that was much lower than what AHS told me it would cost. He even left parts to fix a faucet that he noticed was leaking - no charge. I've called them for every other little thing and love them.

Before I found Ernie, I did all my business with a national chain plumber (Rescue Rooter) and I understand that they are a chain, and every office varies, but I was very happy with their services.