Firewire issue--Backup drive not found w/Time Machine after imac sleeps

I've had a lot of problems with Time Machine on my G4 imac since starting to use it a month ago. I think I have isolated the problem:
Time Machine functions properly while the computer is in use, and it has no problem after a restart or shut down, but if the computer goes to sleep and then TM runs its hourly backup, I get an error that it cannot find the Backup Drive. Once this happens, TM will no longer work until I've deselected the drive in TM, unplugged it, plugged it in again, and reselected the drive as the backup Drive. Sometimes this requires a shut down or restart too.
Here's what I've tried:
1. connected the drive via USB--it operated without a problem
2. unplugged all devices from the computer, shut down, waited, 20 mins, restrted, plugged the external drive back in via Firewire--the problem persists as described above.
3. deleted the TimeMachine.plist file, restarted--problem persists.
I've read that the Firewire port can be reset with other procedures such as zapping the PRAM or updating the firmware. I've also read that new problems can arise after reseting the PRAM so I'm hesitant to do this. Can anyone shed some light on the PRAM option?
I cannot find where the firmware updates are located on the mac site. Could someone point me in the right direction? I've looked under downloads and after searching, came up with a long list, but nothing was labeled clearly. Each listing mentioned firmware in the header, but it seemed to always pertain to a certain issue (eg. superdrive, or installing appleworks). I could not tell what was the most recent firmware released for my machine, and I fear installing something retrograde that will create new problems.
If anyone has any thoughts on how to deal with the firewire problem, or if you think my issue with using a FW connected drive with Time Machine might be rooted with something else, please comment.
Thanks!
HM
Message was edited by: imaginary_forest

fzgy wrote:
"Mac OS X can't repair the disk. You can still open or copy files on the disk, but you can't save changes to files on the disk. Back up the disk and reformat it as soon as you can."
It's possible a heavy-duty 3rd-party disk repair app can fix it, but they're expensive (DiskWarrior is about $100), and there's no guarantee it can do it.
Am prompted to reformat but I don't have a good understanding of what this means and how to do it.
That will erase it. See Time Machine - Frequently Asked Question #5.
It sounds very much like the disk is beginning to fail, although it's possible there's a bad port, cable, connection or power supply (if it has its own).
I'd suggest getting a new one, and using it for your Time Machine backups; once you have a good backup there, reformat the old one (and select Security Options to write zeros to the whole drive -- if that fails, you know the drive is toast). Use it for secondary backups, per FAQ #27. If it has failed, get a second new one for secondary backups.

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Sadly it didn't help me either.
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dakine2403 wrote:
Thanks a lot. I am sure I am doing somethign wrong but since the external hard drive can not be seen any more, I don't see it either in any one of my back ups. It does not show anywhere.
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