kitchen ceiling goes BYE-BYE

[surfn]

so, my dad just had a hip replacement a month ago, and the recovery hasn't gone well b/c his foot is still numb and swollen. the docs have no clue whats going on, and he's not able to do the normal chores around the house due to this. and my mom is out of commission with displaced disk in her back.

so i've been coming home about every 5-7 days for the past month, to visit and do work around the house and yard.

so on the agenda for tomorrow, was going to be something relatively easy. was just gonna drain the hot tub on the deck, scrub it clean, fill it back up and put the new chemicals in. its pretty nasty and hasn't been drained in over a year. and my mom wants to get in so i figured i'd come home and do this.

so 2 hrs before i get home, *apparently* a water pipe burst right above the kitchen, soaked all of the plywood and drywall, and it all came crashing down and into the kitchen.

so this is the mess i came home to and had to clean up. (i took the pics after it was cleaned up).

i reviewed the home owners insurance policy tonight, and State Farm *SHOULD* cover it........but who knows with that company. they'll probably say its flood damage or some crap...lol

 

[gm333]

That stinks, the worst part of that mess is the ceilings are flat and is hard to get pieced in and look like it was never fixed.

 

[autoponicz]

dam thats whack.....
if the repair guy knows what hes doing....he will cut a section out and replace a sheet of drywall and plaster over it (this part need some experience)and roll on some matching paint...good as new..

 

[surfn]

yeah, alot more will have to be replaced other than just where the hole is. i'd say an area at least 5x the size of the hole, and all the way to the walls on both sides.

i'm wondering how long it will take to get a contractor to come and and do it, i wonder if it will be done before xmass....lol

also, the plywood will have to come out on the floor above.......and the floor re-done (its a bathroom), i can see it sinking a bit when someone walks on it on the floor above.

 

[143gadgets]

I just had a contractor come out and replair my ceiling and it was pricey. They did a great job on mine. Hope it works out well for you.

 

[jonbar1]

Again, this is what I do for a living.

I'd call your local Structural Drying company, and make sure they are IICRC Certified, and preferable an Xtreme Team Member. The subfloor and ceiling/affected walls must be dried before you start putback or else you run a high risk for mold. The drying company should also repair it, or else be able to refer a reputable contractor. If you have them dry it, make sure they are using low grain dehumidifiers and checking daily for moisture contents.

In most cases, they will cut out a section to fit in a sheet of drywall. Then the ceiling gets scraped since matching the stomp pattern in VERY difficult. Then they re-stomp and paint.

We do a lot of work for State Farm, and every pipe break we've done has been covered. The only problem with them is that they usually have a $1000 deductible. Also check to make sure you don't have a low cap on your coverage.

Jon

 

[surfn]

well, just talked to State Farm....

*apparently* they dont cover any plumbing......lol

BUT, they will cover the water damage and reinstallation, IF it goes over the $1000 deductable.

so i guess we are on our own to get a plumber in here and fix the pipe, possibly replace other pipe with higher quality pipe since its all 20 years old.

they will cover the people coming in to dry everything out, and cut it out, and reinstall the new sheet rock.

....sigh....

 

[jonbar1]

The cause is usually never covered to be fixed, forgot to mention that.

As far as drying goes, I can give you a rough guess of what to expect based on prices here.

I'm guessing the walls by the window are wet and a few other areas besides the ceiling. What kind of floor is in the area?? That could drastically change the price of drying if it is hardwood which takes special equipment, or if it's Pergo which would need removed. I'll assume it's tile on concrete for simplicity's sake.

Expect any sagging ceiling drywall to be torn out, and either large centrifugal fans be placed to blow into the cavity or else a low grain dehumidifier ducted into the cavity and the area sealed off in 6 mil plastic sheeting. The fans and dehu will run 24 hours a day for probably 3 days. I'd guess the whole drying estimate to come in around $2000-$3000 depending on what kind of flooring is in there and how much area is affected...and that does NOT include the cost for put back.

I can't stress finding an Xtreme Team member and IICRC certified company enough! We have a lot of drying equipment and specialized training other companies cannot get without being a member. If the company comes in and says they need to tear out all wet material and doesn't know what a low grain dehumidifier is...call someone else. At most, the bottom couple inches of the drywall would need removed to allow airflow over any wet insulation if it's an outside wall.

I'd be very interested in hearing what the company advises, and if you want to bust their balls and make sure they do it right I can give you some good questions to ask them while they're working.

Jon

 

[surfn]

well, a contractor came by around lunch time.

he said he wasn't too bad, and gave us some estimates, but since we already had a dehumidier we could place right below the spot, and we have a bunch of box fans in the actic............basically all i did was get up on a ladder, cut out all the wet sheet rock. the walls are completely dry, insulation is dry. seems like we got pretty lucky. there is some mildew on the plywood on the floor above, and some of the cross beams, but that will probably be another job in the future.

i've been spraying some bleach spray up on the wood to kill off the mildew, and i've got the fans all pointed up. i'll upload some pics here in a little while of the progress i've made.

but from here on out, sounds like all we need to do is call a contractor in to come and make sure everything is dry, then put up a new sheet rock (only need 1 sheet). then fix some things with plaster and tape, and then repaint.

someone else will have to be called in to fix the wax o-ring thing in the plumbing though. i'll upload some new pics in a bit.

 

[Mr.Firemouth]

Besides the price, the only other downfall would be an outbreak of mold. As long as the area stays dry there should be no mold issues. If mold develops and the wood/drywall it grows on can be removed and replaced then do so. If not then use a wire brush and bleach solution and remove all Visible mold. Then allow to dry.

Mold needs 3 things to survive...Moisture, heat(above 55F), food(organic sources). As long as those 3 things exists together mold will form. I would keep running the dehumidifier as a back up plan.