We got home about 4:45 this afternoon. As we neared our house and I saw water flowing along the side of the street, I wondered aloud to my wife, "I wonder where all that water is coming from?" Then, as I turned into the alley I saw that it was flowing from my backyard. And it was pouring out of my garage onto the driveway. And I knew. A water pipe had burst.
Last night's temperatures had dropped to the low teens, but so had they the night before and we didn't have any trouble. But today we did. We were only gone seven and a half hours (at the office, to my chagrin), but it was enough.
There were two inches of water in almost the entire northern half of the house. The carpets were soaked. As I stepped on the carpet that looked dry, I felt my foot sink into the carpet a couple of inches and water almost sprayed from beneath my feet.
I was able to turn off the water quickly, but the damage had been done. We got a plumber to come out relatively quickly to fix the broken pipe (for $225), but we still haven't heard from nor seen the people from Service Master (who ostensibly should have called us within an hour after our insurance company called them and should have been here within four hours). I guess a lot of people have the same issues and the company is busy. Until they come extract the water, we'll be sloshing around a very wet house.
The exterior wall of my house, in back where the plumber had to tear it up to find the broken pipe, is hideous and will need some expensive repair. Who knows how much time and money the carpets and related water damage will cost. Like the plumber (who spent less than an hour), I suspect the Service Master people will give me a bill that suggests they are golden.
Oh well, we still have a nice warm place to sleep tonight and eventually the water will disappear and all will be normal again. But forgive me if I complain just a little.
Dammit!
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6 comments:
Silver threads and golden needles cannot mend this heart of mine....
As Janis would say.
I wondered whether anyone would connect my title with the song...you did it and you win the prize!
Oh no! Well, I feel less badly about it knowing you were able to connect your title with that song..... which I always think of as a Linda Ronstadt tune. I just checked -- lots of cool peeps recorded that numbah.
I'm so sorry, Mr. Kneeblood. May your cleaners be golden and your carpets be dry. Soon.
Ellie
You can bring the prize to me here at my office where I am waiting, swooning.
“But forgive me if I complain just a little.” – Don’t worry, Springer. I certainly understand your predicament. I also dealt with the same situation in my home. Our old pipes burst after winter, and there was water all over the house. Our trusted plumber came to the rescue and saved us from the “mini flood” inside the house. [Elia Lester]
I know it's a bit late, but you shouldn't feel bad about it. Having broken pipes is inevitable and could make you panic-stricken. The only consolation that you can get is the lesson that you learned, like calling the plumber right away when that incident occurs again.
Levi @CapitalPlumbing.ca
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