Perch and Steelbunz, how much hide to do I have to take out of my sons' backsides?

[wiegie]

So, last night my two sons (4 and almost 3) were taking a bath together upstairs. I went downstairs for about 5 minutes to do some laundry and when I came back upstairs I saw that they had flooded the bathroom floor because "they wanted to make a waterfall" by dumping pitchers of water out of the tub.

 

I cleaned up the water ASAP and thought all was good, but this morning happened to look at the ceiling in my living room and noticed that there are four plate-sized water stains as well as a drywall seam that is wet for a couple of feet. I've got a fan blowing on it to dry it out.

 

My questions are:

 

1) Is there something urgent I need to be doing right now?

2) How much is it going to cost me to repair the damaged ceiling (the ceiling is drywall and has a texture).

3) Do I need to be concerned about any type of structural damage?

4) What type of person should I contact to fix the ceiling?

5) Anything else that I should know or be aware of?

 

Thanks in advance for anybody's help or suggestions.

[rajncajn]

You left the 4 & 5 yo in the bathtub alone long enough to go downstairs & do laundry & expected no less?

[wiegie]

You left the 4 & 5 yo in the bathtub alone long enough to go downstairs & do laundry & expected no less?

I know. I completely blame myself.

[buddahj]

Seems like a rookie mistake to me.

[dmarc117]

my man, never ever leave little ones near water alone. so dangerous!!! ur lucky all you have is water damage.

[wiegie]

my man, never ever leave little ones near water alone. so dangerous!!! ur lucky all you have is water damage.

I understand what you are saying, but there was about 3 inches of water in the tub and i could hear them laughing and playing the whole time. What I could not hear was the water being poured on the floor.

[SteelBunz]

Aww wiegie......sorry to hear. Sort of a PITA I bet.....LOL.

 

Well....even if you "dry it out" that drywall seam won't go back to being flat. And the stains won't go away. Honestly, I just think a handyman/woman would do just fine for you. That section of the ceiling should be removed (carefully cut out) so you can open it up, let it dry....and make sure the water didn't compromise any electrical. Make sure if there is any wet insulation.....you replace it. Remember....water can travel along joists quite a ways from the actual leak.....so inspect the area as far as you can see.

 

Maybe even have the handyman spritz the subfloor and joists that got wet with a very weak bleach solution and wipe down to make sure you don't get any mold down the road.

 

Speaking of subfloor......what happened to the floor in the bathroom? If it's vinyl on subfloor....I'm guessing the water got in at the juncture where the tub meets the floor. After you get it all dried out below.....go back and recaulk that seam.

 

After you let it dry out a few days, they'll replace, tape and mud a new piece of drywall....then try to match your texture as well as possible. Then you'll have to repaint the ceiling. If it's just "ceiling white", you might get away with only painting the patch. Most likely though...you'll probably have to roll the whole thing out. (Don't worry about cutting in at the walls......you won't need to be that fastidious. )

 

All in all......sort of a pain in the rear for a little waterfall.......lol. But don't be too hard on the boys.

[wiegie]

Thanks for the advice, Bunz... want to come up and do it for me? (Grand Rapids is lovely this time of year. )

 

The water actually appears to have gotten into the floor via the carpet in our hallway on the opposite side of the bathroom from the tub -- that's how much water they dumped onto the floor.

 

All in all though, I agree with dmarc--this is a very small price to pay for my negligence in going downstairs while they were in the tub. (It's actually the first time I have ever done that and it won't happen again.)

[Perchoutofwater]

Bunz covered it.

[SteelBunz]

Thanks for the advice, Bunz... want to come up and do it for me? (Grand Rapids is lovely this time of year. )

 

The water actually appears to have gotten into the floor via the carpet in our hallway on the opposite side of the bathroom from the tub -- that's how much water they dumped onto the floor.

 

All in all though, I agree with dmarc--this is a very small price to pay for my negligence in going downstairs while they were in the tub. (It's actually the first time I have ever done that and it won't happen again.)

 

I'd love to......lol. But gas money for me might cost you more than just hiring a handyman around Grand Rapids.....lol.

 

That sounds right....soaked through the carpet. If you can do it without too much trouble....peal that carpet back and dry out the pad and subfloor. Small area like that you can usually stretch back to the tack strips by hand later and retuck it into the threshold strip with a putty knife.

[Dr. Sacrebleu]

Aww wiegie......sorry to hear. Sort of a PITA I bet.....LOL.

 

Well....even if you "dry it out" that drywall seam won't go back to being flat. And the stains won't go away. Honestly, I just think a handyman/woman would do just fine for you. That section of the ceiling should be removed (carefully cut out) so you can open it up, let it dry....and make sure the water didn't compromise any electrical. Make sure if there is any wet insulation.....you replace it. Remember....water can travel along joists quite a ways from the actual leak.....so inspect the area as far as you can see.

 

Maybe even have the handyman spritz the subfloor and joists that got wet with a very weak bleach solution and wipe down to make sure you don't get any mold down the road.

 

Speaking of subfloor......what happened to the floor in the bathroom? If it's vinyl on subfloor....I'm guessing the water got in at the juncture where the tub meets the floor. After you get it all dried out below.....go back and recaulk that seam.

 

After you let it dry out a few days, they'll replace, tape and mud a new piece of drywall....then try to match your texture as well as possible. Then you'll have to repaint the ceiling. If it's just "ceiling white", you might get away with only painting the patch. Most likely though...you'll probably have to roll the whole thing out. (Don't worry about cutting in at the walls......you won't need to be that fastidious. )

 

All in all......sort of a pain in the rear for a little waterfall.......lol. But don't be too hard on the boys.

 

Bunz, you know that I am an overall decent person, and as a good liberal I respect women and adhere to the basic PC principles.

But a lot of what you just said made mah pants very tight.....

I'm not sure if it was you talking about a wet joist, getting the stains out, or the wipe down.

[TimC]

Steelbunz is 100% right, as usual.

 

The builder on my last house had my condensation drain pipe for my heat pump in the attic tilted the wrong way and the water started draining down the drywall instead of the outside pipe. It really wasn't a lot of water since it's just a slow steady drip, but it wrinkled the tape when it dried. I tried just painting in and fixing it that way. No way. Had to get the builder back in there and do the Steelbunz fix. PITA.

 

My punishment would be showers for the kids for awhile...if living in Michigan isn't punishment enough.

[The Holy Roller]

Boys. What a joy. Once I went into my sons bathroom when they were about that age and they were having a contest to see how far away they could stand and still pee into the toilet. I wore out some hide that time.

 

I would go through the whole thing again (raising them) in a heart beat.

 

Count your blessings and remember them everytime you look at that ceiling.

[SteelBunz]

Bunz, you know that I am an overall decent person, and as a good liberal I respect women and adhere to the basic PC principles.

But a lot of what you just said made mah pants very tight.....

I'm not sure if it was you talking about a wet joist, getting the stains out, or the wipe down.

No worries Sac. I'm quite used to jokes and innuendos about being nailed, screwed, mudded, drilled, hammered, spackled, painted, plumbed, leveled and caulked. Clearly I picked the right business to be in to feed my wicked sense of humor......lol.

It helps to be able to dish it out as well as take it. Or.....just smile and laugh.

 

That's why I picked "The FixIt Chick" as my business name......lol. Women think it's cute and clever....men study the business card and I can practically hear the quips running through their heads. Then they look up and say, "I think I'm in love." Or "Have I got a job for you!"

 

And so far.....I'm loving every minute of it. Can be hard work.....but, more often than not, it just requires patience and tenacity. A couple traits I'm sort of long on......lol. I've got some pretty terrific clients...they feed me and make me tea, love to learn how something is done and have quite happily passed along my business cards to all their friends. I'm just extremely fortunate to have found a little niche in a bad economy and a sector of business that's been brought to it's knees. Lucky, I guess!

 

Spring is getting pretty booked up.....so who am I to complain or be offended if wiping down a wet joist makes your pants tight?

 

Boys. What a joy. Once I went into my sons bathroom when they were about that age and they were having a contest to see how far away they could stand and still pee into the toilet. I wore out some hide that time.

 

I would go through the whole thing again (raising them) in a heart beat.

 

Count your blessings and remember them everytime you look at that ceiling.

lol.....MrBunz says leave the ceiling as it is and hold it 'over their heads'...for life.

 

And trust me.....girls can be every bit as destructive, even if it's not on purpose. I know someone in here was replacing vanity tops because of curling irons and nail polish remover. And never underestimate the destructive potential of a young girl who has found a Sharpie and is learning to spell.

[Dutch Oven]

And trust me.....girls can be every bit as destructive, even if it's not on purpose. I know someone in here was replacing vanity tops because of curling irons and nail polish remover. And never underestimate the destructive potential of a young girl who has found a Sharpie and is learning to spell.

 

+

[HowboutthemCowboys]

No worries Sac. I'm quite used to jokes and innuendos about being nailed, screwed, mudded, drilled, hammered, spackled, painted, plumbed, leveled and caulked.

 

 

[Gonkis]

And never underestimate the destructive potential of a young girl who has found a Sharpie and is learning to spell.

 

 

This is sooo true....

[Chavez]

Boys. What a joy. Once I went into my sons bathroom when they were about that age and they were having a contest to see how far away they could stand and still pee into the toilet. I wore out some hide that time.

I'd only be angry if they were missing.