So my house flooded again. Yes, seriously. If I had purchased this one simple $25 dollar tool I could have saved myself money on repairs to my basement. This $25 dollar tool could save you thousands of dollars!
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About 3 weeks ago I was sitting enjoying my morning coffee when I hear my husband yelling from the basement that we had water leaking through the foundation.
I ran downstairs and immediately turned off the main water shut-off valve for our house.
For those of you who have been following me for a while, you already know that I had a flood in 2014 that ruined my newly renovated kitchen and hardwood floors. You will also know that my husband (bless him) is the least handiest (it’s a word?!?) person I know. So disasters and fixing them are all on me.
Water coming through parking garage walls, not my basement.
After shutting the water off I continued to hear water running and could actually hear it hitting our foundation. CRAP! Knowing that I had to shut off the water at the water main I ran outside (crazy hair and pajamas still on) and opened the water meter in the street. Only to be greeted with a tiny working space and a stuck valve.
My amazing neighbor saw me outside struggling and came out to help. She is a young and sprightly 69 years old and shares my “love” of DIY. She and I collectively ran into our houses and collected tools to see if we could get the valve closed. I did call the city and asked them to come out ASAP to shut off my water but was told it would be at least a 1-hour wait. No hate to my husband who had (clears throat) morning “bathroom” duties that could not be interrupted.
We worked on trying different wrenches in the tiny space to close the valve without avail. But my neighbor thought to add some dish soap and a rubber sheet for extra leverage to the mix and was able to shut off the water.
I can not begin to explain how grateful I am for having a person next door that is so helpful and quick thinking!
The city ended up showing up about 45 minutes after I called to shut off the water. Had we not been able to shut the water off my basement would have been filled with water.
The magic tool that I reference at the beginning of this post is a water meter key. Every homeowner should have this tool and know where and how to use it! You better believe I bought one for myself and my wonderful neighbor.
Had I had one I could have easily gone out and immediately shut off the water main. DOH!!!!
You may be wondering how did this happen? Well, the main water line to my house broke. My house was built in 1953 and has galvanized pipes. The old girl was destined to have this happen and we had no clue.
Basically, we have not had any rain for months, and because of that, the dirt around the pipe acted like a tourniquet, slowly squeezing around the pipe tighter and tighter until there was no give and the rattling from the large trucks going up and down the street broke the pipe. And apparently, it had been happening all over the city… SO YEAH!!!!
Just goes to show that no matter how prepared you are to own a home it will throw you curve balls every once in a while.
The cost to fix the water main break was a little over $7,000. That was around the median price after receiving quotes from multiple plumbers. No, it’s not covered by homeowners insurance. As soon as it enters your property it is your problem. If there is damage inside the house there is a chance that homeowners insurance will cover it as long as you have not had a claim in the last 5 years (per my dad who is my insurance agent.)
Let me know if you would like to have more information about the fix and what to expect during that time you are waiting to have it fixed.
Check out my other posts on DIY disasters so you can avoid them!
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