Wedding Woes

So I flooded the basement

To call today an epic fail would be a dramatic understatement.   It wasn't going well to begin with when...I put a crib sheet to soak in the laundry sink.  AND FORGOT TO TURN OFF THE WATER.  For an hour, people.The basement is so flooded. The laundry room is right over DH's workshop, and everything on the workshop shelves is soaked. The shelves are soaked. The ductwork is dripping with water. There is a 150 square foot puddle on the floor.What kind of repair is going to be involved here?  I'm from the south, where we don't have basements and crap.  Will we need to replace subfloor? electrical? ductwork?  Will a typical homeowners policy cover this? (and even if it did, would I want to use it or would my rates skyrocket?)Seriously. I was ready to quit life 2 hours ago. Now I'm ready to jump off of a bridge.

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Re: So I flooded the basement

  • **O-Face****O-Face** member
    10000 Comments Sixth Anniversary 25 Love Its
    edited December 2011
    Holy sh*t.  Yeah. That's a pretty big mess.  Drywall, subflooring, flooring, only electrical if damaged...eesh.
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  • edited December 2011
    eeek!they may have to remove some drywall and place fans around to dry the framework.Or you can just sell your house to Carrann.
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  • 6fsn6fsn member
    Knottie Warrior 10000 Comments 500 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited December 2011
    You need to get this cleaned up immediately- shop vac, fans, dehumidifier.  I'd say your looking at at least 100 gallons of water.  I assume the workshop doesn't have carpeting, but you'll probably be looking at replacing the drywall.Electrical- DO NOT TURN ANYTHING ON!
  • VarunaTTVarunaTT member
    Knottie Warrior 10000 Comments 500 Love Its First Answer
    edited December 2011
    Go rent or buy a wet vac ASAP.  You can start soaking some of that up.Your electrical/ductwork should be fine.  Do you have carpet that's soaked?  That's really going to be the big issue.
  • DG1DG1 member
    Ninth Anniversary 5000 Comments 25 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited December 2011
    no carpet, no. laundry room floor is tile. Basement is unfinished.  I don't think any drywall is involved, although I can't see under the baseboard in the laundry room.  I also can't tell if it soaked under the hardwood in DB2's room (adjacent to the wall where the laundry sink is).Dexter is napping. Finally. Thank god. But that won't last long.

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  • 6fsn6fsn member
    Knottie Warrior 10000 Comments 500 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited December 2011
    You got pretty lucky then.  Suck up the water that is there and get a dehumidifier on it ASAP.
  • DG1DG1 member
    Ninth Anniversary 5000 Comments 25 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited December 2011
    and how would I even begin to dry out the subfloor/basement ceiling?  It's not really exposed to any air, you know?I sopped up the visible water from the laundry room. Moving the washing machine by myself is not a possibility with a 34 week belly.I'll go down there and make an effort, but I think the damage is pretty much done. We'll either have to replace the shelves (and all of their contents) or we won't, you know?  But I'll give it a shot, mostly so DH is somewhat reassured that I'm not happy about having done this.

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  • jessjo04jessjo04 member
    1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    :( That sucks major. I can't give advice, but DH just did drywall in our basement, you can borrow him.
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  • jojobrnjojobrn member
    Eighth Anniversary 2500 Comments 100 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited December 2011
    Oh no! I can't offer anything much, but when I was in an apartment and a resident above us did that, they just mopped up the water and brought in fans and a couple dehumidifiers and ran them for 36 hours.I would run yours longer though. When we moved out you could smell mold starting along the side that was flooded...
  • zsazsa-stlzsazsa-stl member
    Eighth Anniversary 5000 Comments 100 Love Its First Answer
    edited December 2011
    This isn't bridge jump worthy.  It happens all the time.  Ditto turning on any fans you have to keep the air circulating.  Your floor might be fine.  I think rotted floor situations are more likely from slow leaks - like when your pipes have been dripping water onto the subfloor for months and the wood has no choice but to rot.  The unfinished basement is to your advantage here because the floor will have more air circulation underneath.
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  • edited December 2011
    Call your homeowner's carrier immediately and check your coverage.  If this type of loss is covered, the insurance company will will send out a disaster team.  They use huge fans and heaters and dry everything out quickly.  Otherwise, you are going to have mold.They will also inspect everything you mentioned above to see what might need to be replaced.I just went through this a few months ago.  Good luck.
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