Posted: 4/10/2007 4:25:39 PM EDT
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I say this with about 99% surety since it involved water. The way the entrance from our kitchen to our family room is, there are three steps going down into the family room. When you are standing at the top step the ceiling for the family room is at about neck level for me (6"1'). Last night I putting something in the trash and I feel a drip on my arm. I look up and there is water coming from the family room ceiling. I wipe it off walk away and come back a little later and now there are two drips about three feet apart. I should also mention that in the last month there has been a crack forming about an inch above the ceiling. It extends about a foot and a half with it's widest point being in the middle, maybe 1-2mm. Could or could not be related to the drip. I'm guessing it is... just seems too convenient not to be. We have a "hatch" in the family room so I opened it up and stuck my head in there. Above the room is the bathroom. Right where the hatch opening is is the drain end of the tub. To the left is the toilet drain. I think that might be what's causing the crack because it looks like it might have settled on a support "board" and is now bearing some of the weight of the toilet drain pipe. But I can't see to the are where the drip was. It's obscured by floor boards/joices. Don't know what to think of it. We called a plumber who's coming Thirsday. not sure what they're going to be able to do without ripping apart the ceiling but the homeowners insurance company said e needed to get a plumber out there immediately before the damage got too extensive. They'll cover the damage but won't cover the plumber to come look at it. So we're using out Home Warranty plan to have the plumber come out. We have a deductible but we figured regardless of the cost we'd have to pay it so why not try to get some of it paid for by them if we can. Anywho... I doubt anyone will have any idea what this could be but in the off chance someone does I'm all ears. Thanks guys |
I want to say I just recently replaced that when I had to replace the guts in the tank. But that was over 6 months ago. Not sure how that explains the cracking ceiling/wall. Plus I could see one side of the toilet drain pipe and it didn't appear to be leaking. |
Dunno--it's hard to tell from your description. Is this bathroom ABOVE the dining room? Keep in mind water often runs a ways before it finds a place to drip downward. You have several possible sources--water supply to either the toilet or bathtub, or either of the drains. You will have to find the source, no matter how much has to be torn up in the process. Sucks. |
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Turned out to be a pinhole leak in the sink pipes behind the wall. Must have been going for a while. I'll post a picture in a minute Lots of mold not-so-drywall. Mold on the wood beams or whatever they are. The picture probably don't do it justice. The insurance company will cover everything but the plumbing repairs and the home warranty company covered that. It'll still sting, but not as bad as if we were paying for it all out of pocket. The insurance guy has been awesome though. Very glad he's our man... so far. |
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A friend of mine built a cabin twenty years ago and had a similar problem last summer. He had put up some decorative "fake log" boards near his shower and one of the staples used to hold the boards laid against a copper line for twenty years. The electrolysis of the dissimilar metals finally ate a tiny pin hole in the pipe--which resulted in a fine mist shooting out. It finally accumulated enough to run out the bottom of the wall. Luckily it didn't go as long as yours, so no mold developed. I'm glad you got it located and fixed--coulda been a LOT worse! Think--flooded house while you were gone. 
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Worse would have probably meant getting more stuff replaced on the insurance company's dime v. ours... But either way... just another PITA to deal with. |