wet floor

[jk the sooner fan]

i feel sick to my stomach

there is a spot in the carpet in the middle of the house that is really wet....pulling the carpet back reveals a wet pad and floor......we've just gone thru a heavy heavy rain since yesterday

i fear this is a foundation problem....

the kitchen is the adjacent room, but no signs of leaks in there (not that i can tell)

[sanantoniosooner]

Has 1TC been over?

[mrowl]

check to see if there are any pools of water around your house that may be coming through the "breath" hole in the brick...

That happened to us a couple years ago after the first heavy rain of the year.

[Al Gore]

In the middle???????

[Flagstaffsooner]

In the middle???????Not THAT middle, Al.:D

[jk the sooner fan]

well, not in the middle....its not too too far from the north wall of the house, but between the north wall and where the wet floor is, is the kitchen and utility room

[jk the sooner fan]

check to see if there are any pools of water around your house that may be coming through the "breath" hole in the brick...

That happened to us a couple years ago after the first heavy rain of the year.

breathe hole? hmmm

the north side of the house is where we get water pools when it rains......

[Al Gore]

Slab or basement?

[BajaOklahoma]

You haven't mentioned any signs of celing damage - did you look?
How close to a wall? Dripping down the wall or in through those stupid weep holes in the bricks they put in the walls down here.
Is it under a light? We had water on the carpet in a closet - dripped down the light fixture so it was in the center of the closet. Found a small leak in the roof after much work.

What kind of warranty do you have? Copy of the inspection?

[BajaOklahoma]

Slab or basement?

Basements are rare down here. Mostly in the older homes in the City of Dallas.

How close is the kitchen sink, dishwasher and frig? Thinking broken lines.....

[jk the sooner fan]

Slab or basement?

slab

and there is nothing coming from the ceiling

there is a wetbar DIRECTLY next to the wetspot, but we NEVER (ever) use that sink

i'm able to pull the carpet up because it is next to where the tile in the kitchen ends...

[Al Gore]

Really???? Is there a lot of rock down there???

[BajaOklahoma]

Check under the wetbar sink anyway.

[jk the sooner fan]

Check under the wetbar sink anyway.

:)

i did! first place i checked, dry as a bone

[Al Gore]

Are pipes set in the foundation????

[BajaOklahoma]

Really???? Is there a lot of rock down there???


Clay, very hard on the foundations in the hot summers and cold winters (when we get a winter).

[BajaOklahoma]

Are pipes set in the foundation????

Yeap.

[jk the sooner fan]

Are pipes set in the foundation????

that i do not know, my guess is yes......which i'm sure means "oh ****"

[Al Gore]

So...you can pull the carpet and the pad and see the slab? If so, do you see any cracks?

[Al Gore]

I need to go make a quick speech.....I will be back in a few......

[BajaOklahoma]

And then maybe turn on the water at the wetbar...... if that's the source there should be an increase in the water..........

Don't panic yet, insurance may cover some of this.....

[jk the sooner fan]

i pulled it back a bit and dont see any cracks...i called my home warranty company and reported it to them

hopefully its something covered

[BajaOklahoma]

Regular homeowners should if the warranty doesn't.

[jk the sooner fan]

Regular homeowners should if the warranty doesn't.

really? under what peril?

[RacerX]

Might be a broken pipe in the slab. Happened to a neighbor.

Duh, I missed about three posts up there.

[jk the sooner fan]

Might be a broken pipe in the slab. Happened to a neighbor.

Duh, I missed about three posts up there.

and how costly was that to your neighbor? ballpark?

[BajaOklahoma]

really? under what peril?

I don't know - they pay wierd stuff. You buy the showerpan and they pay for cost of ripping out the old one and replacing the tile and carpet. I'm thinking it would be something similar.

[jk the sooner fan]

hmm, well i have a $50 deductible with AHS, hopefully its covered with them

[SoonerInFla]

Could it be the hot water heater or washing machine?

[OUAndy1807]

the reason we don't have basements down here is mainly because of the freeze thaw line. in order to get below the freeze/thaw line for the footings of the house, you only have to go about 2 feet down. further north, the line is deeper, so if you're already digging down 4+ feet, you might as well make it a half basement or go a little deaper and make it a full basement. Here, it's just cheaper to build up.

Whatever it is, you'll have to pull the carpet up anyway to dry out the pad. Pull up the carpet and follow the water back to the source.

[OUinFLA]

......... follow the water back to the source.

probably the Trinity River............did you mean to follow it back that far?

[Al Gore]

the reason we don't have basements down here is mainly because of the freeze thaw line. in order to get below the freeze/thaw line for the footings of the house, you only have to go about 2 feet down. further north, the line is deeper, so if you're already digging down 4+ feet, you might as well make it a half basement or go a little deaper and make it a full basement. Here, it's just cheaper to build up.We like them for storms also.......

[jk the sooner fan]

Could it be the hot water heater or washing machine?

no

[OUAndy1807]

We like them for storms also.......
that's what safe rooms are for. nothing like one room of the house haveing 12" thick reinforced concrete walls (although the people usually just hang a hollow core door like idiots)

[KC//CRIMSON]

We like them for storms also.......

That's one thing I really liked about moving to KC. It doesn't matter if a house was built in 1906 or 2006, almost all houses have full basements.

[ChickSoonerFan]

That does not sound good. I hope it is not a broken pipe in the foundation. yikes.

[RacerX]

Sorry JK, didn't ask'em.

They specifically had a hot water pipe break. She said she had noticed a warm spot in the floor and thought she heard water in the floor vents. I guess that wasn't enough, so they decided they had a problem when the inside of the windows started fogging up.

heh.

[jk the sooner fan]

geez....we've just had 3 inches of rain, so i'm thinking its "connected"

but i dont know whats worse, a wet spot in the floor because it rained (not roof related) or a busted pipe

either way it sounds $$$

[ChickSoonerFan]

If is is a wet spot due to rain and not roof related...there might not be a way to correct it. Could just be a high "water table" spot under your house that rises when it rains. We have a house around the corner that has that and water literally just seeps up through the sidewalk when the water table gets high under it. Nothing can be done. Hope that is not it either!

[jk the sooner fan]

i'm just wondering how they tell what the problem is, how much destruction is necessary to determine why its doing what its doing

[sanantoniosooner]

i'm just wondering how they tell what the problem is, how much destruction is necessary to determine why its doing what its doing
If it's rain it will stop when the rain stops.

If it's plumbing, it will continue and you should notice a change in your water bill. If you are concerned about a plumbing leak, shut off all possible water and go look at your meter, if there is a leak it should register some movement, even if it takes a few minutes.

If it is a slab leak they will usually abandon the line and run a new one over head eliminating the need to break the slab.

[Jimminy Crimson]

Burn the house down and collect the insurance ;)

[BajaOklahoma]

If it is a slab leak they will usually abandon the line and run a new one over head eliminating the need to break the slab.

They break into the slab here for a lot of different things. I do have friends who had a pipe replaced several years ago and they went through the slab.
They will also break into the slab for jacking up the foundation.....

What about the grade of the ground next to the foundation? We had to have ours regraded to correct the backslope...

[OUinFLA]

Probably no biggie:

http://www.betlejemski.ca/blog/lib/img/pht/fullsize/1082681362042972200.jpg

http://www.epinions.com/images/opti/d9/a0/204449-movie.jpg-movie-resized200.jpg

[sanantoniosooner]

They break into the slab here for a lot of different things. I do have friends who had a pipe replaced several years ago and they went through the slab.
They will also break into the slab for jacking up the foundation.....

What about the grade of the ground next to the foundation? We had to have ours regraded to correct the backslope...
yeah.....there are reasons to break into a slab.

It's not necessary to do so for a supply side plumbing leak.

Given a choice, I'd rather not.

[Mjcpr]

The big question is who's going to sleep in it.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Plumbing companies in the area should be able to snake a camera down the pipes under the slab. Check the water meter to determine if it there is flow when you have shut off all the water. They may be able to repair the pipe using an epoxy based resin shot in the pipe if it is a break and not too big. Texas Drain Technology (in Houston) has the in situ pipe repair that is used for many houses here in Houston. We have galvanized pipe and they corrode and plug up. We need to have ours done. They sand blast out the pipe and then shoot epoxy into the pipe to protect it from corrosion. Permanent repair. Copper pipes in the area have problems as well due to the hardness of the water down here.

You may want to think twice before fileing a claim with your home owners insurance. Water repairs tend to be a black mark...mold and all...

[Okla-homey]

Had a guy tell me years ago that most rain-induced water problems are often because the roof run-off is not properly guttered away from the slab.

Are your downspouts situated in a such a way that the water is not pooling against an exterior wall? If not, that just might be the source of the trouble. Make sure your downspouts get the rainwater away from the house, even if you have to extend some of them out a few feet to get the flow to a place where the exterior grade can take over and channel it away from the house.

[jk the sooner fan]

Had a guy tell me years ago that most rain-induced water problems are often because the roof run-off is not properly guttered away from the slab.

Are your downspouts situated in a such a way that the water is not pooling against an exterior wall? If not, that just might be the source of the trouble. Make sure your downspouts get the rainwater away from the house, even if you have to extend some of them out a few feet to get the flow to a place where the exterior grade can take over and channel it away from the house.

i'm guessing you didnt read the entire thread ;)

[Okla-homey]

i'm guessing you didnt read the entire thread ;)

I did. Water can do some wierd stuff. If its pooling under the slab, I guess it could percolate thru the slab in wierd spots. Cracks could be so hairline that you don't even see 'em and after all, concrete is porous if not sealed.

[jk the sooner fan]

you must have missed the post where i said water pools against the north wall of the house.....the neighbors yard slopes down just enough.......i probably need to get some fill dirt over there and slope the ground down toward the front yard

its not the rain gutters though

[Okla-homey]

you must have missed the post where i said water pools against the north wall of the house.....the neighbors yard slopes down just enough.......i probably need to get some fill dirt over there and slope the ground down toward the front yard

its not the rain gutters though

Ah ha! Well, I bet that's the problem. You might even be able to work something out with the neighbors if they're good folks. Maybe drain tiles between your homes? Thing is, its only going to get worse if you don't do something.

I'm not sure what the law is in texass, but in most jurisdictions they kinda have a duty to help ensure surface water issuing from their property to adjacent land is not causing a problem -- again, that ain't a legal opinion, just something to keep in the back of your mind.

[jk the sooner fan]

yeah its definitely an issue i need to address, i have underground sprinklers over there and even in the heat of the summer i have to run them just a short time because of how soggy it gets there

its not a large area, probably 6 feet wide from his fence to the edge of the house......its not really visible from the street so i wouldnt have to worry too much about aesthetics

[Okla-homey]

yeah its definitely an issue i need to address, i have underground sprinklers over there and even in the heat of the summer i have to run them just a short time because of how soggy it gets there

its not a large area, probably 6 feet wide from his fence to the edge of the house......its not really visible from the street so i wouldnt have to worry too much about aesthetics

Probably worth parting with a few sheckels to have a civil engineer d00d take a look and propose a solution.

[jk the sooner fan]

ok so the "guy" comes out, its definitely not a fresh water leak.......he suggests we wait for the next heavy rain to see if it does it again

could be a roof leak (doubtful) where the water comes down inside the sheet rock......or a foundation problem......

now to call a landscaping company or two to see how much putting in a french drain on the side of the house will cost

ugh

[Mjcpr]

Congrats on the new home, JK!!!

French drains aren't that bad. I had one put in a few years back and I think it was around $400. I'm sure that has gone up some and it would depend on the type, but I don't think it's horribly expensive.

[sanantoniosooner]

Congrats on the new home, JK!!!

French drains aren't that bad. I had one put in a few years back and I think it was around $400. I'm sure that has gone up some and it would depend on the type, but I don't think it's horribly expensive.
depends on the mood of the frenchman.

[OUHOMER]

jk any problems with the last rains

[jk the sooner fan]

yep, that same spot got super wet again...i had a contractor come out and put a french drain on the side of the house, so we'll see how that goes when we get our next big rain

here's what makes me think its a foundation leak....it started raining on friday, rained all day saturday...floor didnt get wet till sunday.....if it were coming down thru the roof, i think i'd see something on the walls by now

a plumber ruled out any fresh water leaks, so the pipes are all ok

[Scott D]

look at the bright side, at least the dogs aren't the source of the wet floor :)