After having a plumber just leave our house, I know two little boys who are surely going to be in trouble! It all started innocently enough with a bath. No, actually it started two weeks ago with mother nature. Frigid cold air and boys being kept inside. So boredom and a bath was the combination for the latest fiasco at this address.
It was late in the afternoon. Neither boy had taken a nap. I had bunko later in the evening and wanted to help my husband out by getting the kids fed, bathed, and worn out. So I feed them lupper (late lunch/early supper) and then put them in the bath, more specifically, I put them in our bath, the big garden tub. And let's face it, for kids, those tubs are like a mini swimming pool. The boys didn't want bubbles 'cause "they're too scratchy?" So after I filled the bath they both dove in and started playing with their water toys while I finish sorting laundry on our bed. That should wear them out for daddy! The last thing I say to them is "No splashing or you will have to get out."
In the meantime, Princess, who also didn't take an afternoon nap, starts getting a little fussy. I take her downstairs to fix her a quick bottle before putting her to bed a little earlier than usual. Just as I am screwing the top on her bottle, I hear a strange noise in the family room. I peak around the corner and nearly gasp all of the air from the downstairs in one breath. Water is pouring through the can light over the fireplace and onto the floor!! O.M.G!!!
I take off running up the stairs and find the two boys still IN the bath and nearly half the water OUT of the bath on the floor. I am paralized. I don't know what to do first! Do I grab a bunch of towels for this floor or the downstairs floor? Do I get the kids out of the tub or just stand there and scream at them? Think! Think! No, take 10 breaths and calm down, nevermind, you don't have time for that! Just get moving lady!!
Okay, okay. So I realize the tub is draining. I plug the tub and start grabbing towels and throwing them on the floor while politely scolding the dear children. Okay, I admit it, I was screaming at the kids. There goes that new years resolution! I pull the boys out of the bath, grab a few more towels and march them downstairs naked and shivering to see the water pouring from the ceiling. I explain (insert little white lie here) calmly that this is why we are NOT supposed to splash. They both look completely puzzled and ask "Mommy, why is there water coming from the ceiling?" BTW, young children don't understand the phrase "DUH!" along with the head nod body language that normally accompanies and the really curious ones will innocently follow with "Mommy, what does duh mean?" Insert deep breath, huge sigh, big eye roll.
I then put more towels down to soak up the water already on the floor and to catch the water still falling from the ceiling, which is finally starting to taper off. I get them back upstairs and dressed and order them to sit on their bed. I head back to the bathroom to start investigating.
Where exactly is this water coming from? I notice there is water everywhere and two different cracks in the caulking. I'm not sure if the water is coming from the cracks or if there could possibly be a leak in the plumbing. So I decide to do a test. I unplug the drain (as there was still about two inches of water left in the bath). I run back downstairs and sure enough water starts pouring thru the light again. It must be the drain pipe!
So just before 5 on a Friday, I am calling a plumber. Not wanting to pay for emergency service, I make an appointment for Monday. The plumber on the phone indicates that when a TV speaker was installed just under the tub 5 years ago, a screw could have pierced the drain pipe and could have recently rusted out leaving a hole in the pipe. Believing his theory, I feel just a little bit guilty for blaming the boys and their splashing.
That guilt all changed this morning when the plumber who cut a HOLE in my ceiling and ran some "drain" tests could not find any leak. Thus, coming to the conclusion that the splashing and the small cracks in the caulking did in fact cause the pouring water thru the ceiling. So as I look up into the 9 inch square hole in my ceiling revealing a pipe and a lovely fiberglass tub bottom, I recall once again "little boys caught making puddles, are surely going to be in trouble!"
Anyone know a good drywall guy?
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