Labor Day Weekend Bathroom Tsunami!

About 1 a.m on Saturday morning. I am awakened by the sound of running water.  Not just water running from a sink or toilet, but the sound of gushing water.   I lay there half asleep thinking, “What is that?  Who left the water running?”

Then I hear, “JOEY, HELP!!”  

Holly had got up to go pee, and somehow in the process, snapped off the PVC water pipe sticking out of the wall and into the toilet.  It was JETTING water into the bathroom floor.  Not gushing, but jetting at high pressure.  Within minutes the floor was flooded (about 1 inch of water) and rising with each passing second.  We threw about 5 towels into the door step to sort of dam up the water and keep it from flooding the house.  The water kept climbing.  

I knew there was a valve outside to turn the water off to the entire house, but the problem was the water was jetting into the house so fast that it would literally flood into the next room by the time I went outside and opened the box and turned the water off.  Also, I was still kind of half asleep….trying to figure all this out in a matter of seconds…having just been woke up.  Omg.  Plus, now Ivy was awake and stumbling around crying because of all of the stress.   

Solution?  I grabbed two dog food bowls nearby and had Holly just start scooping water as fast as she could into the bathtub.  It was working!  She able to at least keep the water level from rising even higher.  I ran outside to the driveway and began trying to open the box containing the water valve.  It was covered it mud!!  But I dug out the mud with my hands, opened the case, and began feeling around for the valve (the box was full of muddy water because of rains from the previous day).   Found it!  I think.  Turn turn turn.  

I trot back inside.  The sound of rushing water had stopped.  “Did that stop the water?!” I shouted.   Yes, came the answer.  Impending disaster averted. 

For two more days, we simply lived without running water.  But we didn’t have to wait long for repairs because – as it just so happens – our next door neighbor is a plumber.  He came over on Labor Day (his day off) and fixed it for us!  He also charged us only $250, whereas normally his company would’ve charged us $650.   

So it is great to know your neighbors and have a good relationship with them!  😀 

As for damage to the floors or walls….?  Nope, the floors and walls in the bathroom are entirely ceramic, so no water damage at all!    In fact, I took the time to clean and bleach the floors and clear out dirt and mold.  After everything was said and done, the bathroom looked brand new.