Two years ago we had a pipe break under our slab and flooded one bedroom and part of the living room. Our homeowner's insurance paid for most of it. Had to break up the slab and replace a section of CPVC pipe. Then replace some dry wall and the flooring. Not a pleasant experience!
How screwed am I?
- Thread starter jseyfert3
- Start date
Water leaks are the worst, especially when they’re in the wall. By the time you spot the leak, you can almost guarantee that it’s been leaking for months.
Hot water heaters are a close second. They usually develop a pin sized drip in the bottom of the unit, (you won’t notice it because it basically evaporates) then slowly gets worse. If you’re lucky you’ll catch it before the tank basically lets go. (And I guarantee it’ll happen when you’re not home)
Hot water heaters are a close second. They usually develop a pin sized drip in the bottom of the unit, (you won’t notice it because it basically evaporates) then slowly gets worse. If you’re lucky you’ll catch it before the tank basically lets go. (And I guarantee it’ll happen when you’re not home)
- Apr 2, 2018
- 67
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- 15000
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- Salt Water Generator
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- Saline Generating Systems Breeze 540
I've had my share of water leaks in the house and if I was you, I would definitely check with your home owners insurance to see if its covered. If it is, you will likely get a new kitchen for the price of your deductible. If the insurance does cover it but their adjuster tries to low-ball you with a low estimate, you can hire a public adjuster to provide a realistic estimate to repair your damages.
Back in July I noticed laminate flooring warping in two bedrooms on either side of a hall bath. Turned out the pipe in the wall was leaking where the tub spigot connected. I called our insurance company, they sent out a leak detection guy, who found the leak and determined it was recent and therefore the insurance company covered it. He called it a few weeks (though I think it may have been happening longer). Then they sent out a mold remediation team, who tore out the tub/shower surround, a bunch of drywall, and closet and door trim.
Ultimately, the insurance company paid to fix all that, and also replace the laminate flooring in the entire first floor of my house because it was continuous, about 2100 ft, and they paid about $20k just for that.
This whole thing set up a chain of update-one-thing-then-there-is-another, and the painters just finished up last week -- 6 months later. After doing the repairs and replacing the flooring, ended up having the whole house painted including kitchen cabinets, replacing flooring in other areas insurance wasn't paying for, updating a couple of bathrooms, new kitchen appliances, and converting our giant upstairs loft into a true 5th bedroom and a small loft.
So be careful, it's a slippery slope lol.
Ultimately, the insurance company paid to fix all that, and also replace the laminate flooring in the entire first floor of my house because it was continuous, about 2100 ft, and they paid about $20k just for that.
This whole thing set up a chain of update-one-thing-then-there-is-another, and the painters just finished up last week -- 6 months later. After doing the repairs and replacing the flooring, ended up having the whole house painted including kitchen cabinets, replacing flooring in other areas insurance wasn't paying for, updating a couple of bathrooms, new kitchen appliances, and converting our giant upstairs loft into a true 5th bedroom and a small loft.
So be careful, it's a slippery slope lol.
- Jul 3, 2013
- 9,027
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- 15000
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- Vinyl
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- CircuPool SJ-40
A $25k check from the insurance company to kick things off really helps lol. I still can't believe they replaced the entire floor instead of trying to just pay for those two little bedrooms where it warped.1 leak and a whole new remodelI like it...
- Jun 12, 2011
- 3,788
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- 19500
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- Pureline Crystal Pure 60,000
I had a leak under the sink that warped a small portion of the hardwood floor. My homeowners insurance payed all cost of repairs, including thousands to replace all the flooring throughout about 1/3 of the house. It was nothing I expected. When the adjuster came out, he was the one who first suggested they all had to be replaced in order to match perfectly. Moral: call your insurance!
Riiiiiiiight ??? A friends cat turned on their faucet in the master bath upstairs and they got over half their house redone with much nicer materials. I begged my cats to do the same but evidently they liked watching me go to work like a sucker.GUYS, How do you start a leak
- May 23, 2015
- 25,695
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- 16000
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- Chlorine
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- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
My neighbor had a small roof leak. One little wet spot on the ceiling and they located back to a tiny crack in the flat roof membrane. He ran it through their insurance .... that entire section of his roof (largest section by area) was replaced from one end of the parapet wall to the other, then entire membrane right down to the plywood. Had to be tens of thousands of dollars in roof work. My neighbor was originally going to buy some patching compound from Home Depot for like $40 .... but, ok, he was good with a new roof.
- Jul 17, 2019
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- 13000
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Just remember that when your insurance goes up. My wife is an agent and has been working from home, so I get to hear all of her phone calls. The other day some dude wanted her to redo his whole policy and get quotes from a bunch of different companies because his current carrier raised his annual premium by $20.
After 30 mins I came out of my office holding a $20 bill to just get the guy to shut up. There is a reason I'm not in a customer facing position
After 30 mins I came out of my office holding a $20 bill to just get the guy to shut up. There is a reason I'm not in a customer facing position
- Jun 1, 2018
- 16,007
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- 26000
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- Vinyl
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- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
Yes - at the time of our leak we didn’t really think it was worth the $1k deductible to file a claim since we had recently put that flooring down to match the rest of the house. I was worried I would end up with mismatched flooring if I went that route. Now , reading this thread I’m wondering if I could have gotten all new vinyl plank out of the deal.
We only did laminate in the liv. Rm, kitchen, dining & hall because it came up on sale & matched what we had put down in the bedrooms to replace really bad carpet when we moved in - at that time there was newer carpet & old linoleum in the liv/kitchen area so we left it for about 5 years.
We only did laminate in the liv. Rm, kitchen, dining & hall because it came up on sale & matched what we had put down in the bedrooms to replace really bad carpet when we moved in - at that time there was newer carpet & old linoleum in the liv/kitchen area so we left it for about 5 years.
Get a dishwasher pan. It'll pop right up if you Google. It's about $20, and will ensure no similar problems like this in the future. It's basically just a bottom and three walls, so any leaks are forced to come out in the front, where you can see it and do something about it. I caulked mine right to the floor in front, so water has to come OUT and can't weep its way around and under without us noticing.
Hmm, yes, tempting. Though obviously if you file too many claims they start looking at you unfavorably, and could even drop you. My home insurance is $650/yr (with $1000 deductible and guaranteed replacement coverage), would take over 30 years to equal a $20k payout so obviously they aren't going to do that very often. Or your rates will get jacked as @JJ_Tex alluded too.
I'm very much a fix it and move on. I'd rather have a happy insurance company/agent for when I've got a major issue. If this is worse than it looks then yeah maybe I'd look at insurance, but if it's $2000 to fix then no not gonna file a claim, no way. Also I literally just had the policy re-wrote, effective yesterday. I like to talk and while in the process on the phone with my new agent and deductibles came up, and he mentioned how he's got a few people that the insurance company is likely going to drop soon due to to many claims filed. He wasn't saying it as a threat, just a matter of fact.
Our auto insurance is now just $1024/yr, for two cars (including a 2020 Silverado), a motorcycle, and a travel trailer. This is for $250/$500k liability with $100 comp and $500 collision. Reading this thread I'm beginning to possibly understand why some (or a lot) of people have insurance rates that are really high.
Or, the water comes up in a hole in the floor directly under the dishwasher from the basement. I could get a pan, cut a hole, and any leaks would then get directed to the basement, where I would notice them much quicker than if they leaked into the wall/floor!
I'm very much a fix it and move on. I'd rather have a happy insurance company/agent for when I've got a major issue. If this is worse than it looks then yeah maybe I'd look at insurance, but if it's $2000 to fix then no not gonna file a claim, no way. Also I literally just had the policy re-wrote, effective yesterday. I like to talk and while in the process on the phone with my new agent and deductibles came up, and he mentioned how he's got a few people that the insurance company is likely going to drop soon due to to many claims filed. He wasn't saying it as a threat, just a matter of fact.
Our auto insurance is now just $1024/yr, for two cars (including a 2020 Silverado), a motorcycle, and a travel trailer. This is for $250/$500k liability with $100 comp and $500 collision. Reading this thread I'm beginning to possibly understand why some (or a lot) of people have insurance rates that are really high.
Hmm, that looks good, except that my kitchen floor is like 3/8" higher than the floor under the dishwasher, so I'm not sure that would work. I was planning on adding a leak detector under the new dishwasher, a pan with 4 sides would ensure the water would pool up and set off the detector and not be able to leak away without hitting the detector though, so I'll look around for at least something like that. I was already thinking of doing something like caulking the joints to the floor to do something similar (hopefully keep the water long enough to pool up by a leak detector). A pan would work better for that.
Or, the water comes up in a hole in the floor directly under the dishwasher from the basement. I could get a pan, cut a hole, and any leaks would then get directed to the basement, where I would notice them much quicker than if they leaked into the wall/floor!
Rattus Suffocatus
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- Jun 5, 2019
- 1,713
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- 14000
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- Chlorine
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- CircuPool Universal40
So... I missed most of this. If it weren't for the "little white bugs" I'd say you didn't have that horrible of a job. If those white bugs are termites... well, I can tell you how to do a professional treatment yourself for midwestern termites. You won't like it. But if you do it correctly you are good for another seven years and yes even the critters left in the walls you don't fix will die off.
If you see "mud tunnels" anywhere then, yes those are termites.. and yes they like to go for water.. that's a much bigger problem than the dishwasher is. Trust me, I know. Fixing and treating my house myself cost about $5K when I had it happen and would have been $25-30K if I would have hired out all of the labor. Lost an entire summer to it. Lots and lots of trench digging by hand to treat the termites.
Rip out a foot at least more than you see. I'd consider removing that cabinet.. yes if that is the extent of the damage a new dishwasher would cover it up, but removing and reinstalling the cabinet isn't horrible. That way you can keep ripping out drywall in that direction too, until you are about a foot past the damage. What Matt said is correct... vinegar can also be used to kill mold but bleach is better. If you can't do bleach somewhere use the vinegar.
If you see "mud tunnels" anywhere then, yes those are termites.. and yes they like to go for water.. that's a much bigger problem than the dishwasher is. Trust me, I know. Fixing and treating my house myself cost about $5K when I had it happen and would have been $25-30K if I would have hired out all of the labor. Lost an entire summer to it. Lots and lots of trench digging by hand to treat the termites.
Rip out a foot at least more than you see. I'd consider removing that cabinet.. yes if that is the extent of the damage a new dishwasher would cover it up, but removing and reinstalling the cabinet isn't horrible. That way you can keep ripping out drywall in that direction too, until you are about a foot past the damage. What Matt said is correct... vinegar can also be used to kill mold but bleach is better. If you can't do bleach somewhere use the vinegar.
Rattus Suffocatus
Silver Supporter
- Jun 5, 2019
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- Pool Size
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- CircuPool Universal40
And by the way ... the auto insurance.... don't ever move to Tucson, my friend if you think that is high! Of course all of the people who cause the accidents run from them too.. but I digress.... my auto insurance is $4K here.
If you have termites, and you do the job yourself, the chemicals alone will cost $2K. Sorry to tell you that... So You probably am at half the job I had in Iowa, because I also had a 1152 sqft wooden garage to fix and treat too... so say it's all about a $3-4K job DIY...
If you have termites, and you do the job yourself, the chemicals alone will cost $2K. Sorry to tell you that... So You probably am at half the job I had in Iowa, because I also had a 1152 sqft wooden garage to fix and treat too... so say it's all about a $3-4K job DIY...
- Nov 12, 2017
- 12,636
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- 12300
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- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Yep. Sorry 'bout that.
Wow, you got a lot of posts! Nice group, eh?
As mentioned, you need to dry everything out. But to do that you need to disassemble everything until you get to dry wood. Then, depending on existing humidity, you can air dry, fan dry or rent a dehumidifier. That process takes as long as it takes. You can use a moisture probe to double-check, or your own best judgement.
Joyful's recipe sounds good. I use this stuff. I couldn't say which is better, only which is easier. Then let that dry for another several days, then put it all back together.
Dishwasher and DW soap commercials will tell you that a DW uses less water than hand washing. It's a nice thought. One I use every time I start my DW! I don't want to know if that notion is not true!
Or you can hang your dishes out in a sand storm, which worked for the minors on Star Trek, so it must be true!
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- May 23, 2015
- 25,695
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Get rid of the gypsum based drywall and replace with magnesia board (MgO instead of CaSO4). Magnesia board is completely mold and bug resistant as the gypsum (CaSO4) actually provides the nutrients for mold growth whereas magnesium oxide retards mold growth. It’s only 5 or 6 times more expensive than regular drywall but a small area like that is worth it.
So that local pest guy came out, looked at the cabinets plus pictures on my phone as well as downstairs. He said I do not have termites. Said it could be booklice, they have tiny white larvae. Probably some silverfish based on the live version of the photo I posted of the bugs on the drywall. I did also see a carpet beetle, I couldn’t remember the name but he knew it when I described it. He said they were just drawn to the water and the food stuff dr. Things like the booklice he said like the particle board, with all the glue and stuff holding the wood together.
Then he too said I can kill the mold with bleach spray, 1 cup per gallon, let it dry and put drywall back in.
I’m tired but I suppose I should go rip out some more particle board...
Then he too said I can kill the mold with bleach spray, 1 cup per gallon, let it dry and put drywall back in.
I’m tired but I suppose I should go rip out some more particle board...
Does the TSP assist in killing the mold, or is that just to help clean off surface mold? According to their websites neither Menard’s nor Home Depot carry TSP, though both carry TSP substitutes.