TWISTEDWILLOW Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Howdy everyone sorry I haven't been super active lately I’m still trying to bounce back in between places, run a business and keep up with hauling max to all his stuff i just need a moment to vent over recent events, my grandma passed this last Thursday, she was my last grandparent on either side so we were dealing with all that and then today my hot water tank at the new house decided to blow a seem and flooded the house… I was down south worrying at the shop and Ashlee called me frantically so I shut down and sped home well over the speed limit to find inch’s of water in the floor, she had found the leak coming from the hot water tank under the stairs and she had tried taking the panels off I went to look at where the water was coming from and I heard cracking noises and I took the second panel off to see where the noise was coming from then I realized the sound was the 220 arching from the water spraying on it while I was standing in water!!!! I rushed to the breaker box and killed the power and then ran up the road to shut off the water meter then proceeded to break out shop vacs to drain out the house and hooked a hose to drain the tank, The flooring is shot, this house is on a concrete slab and the water was already soaked into the wood laminate i had to pull it all up to get all the water out, the damage is done water is soaked into the walls and cabinets downstairs, I’m very thankful the tank didn’t actually blow up and wreak the house or hurt anyone and I’m very thankful that me an Ash didn’t get fried by the electric Max could have came home from school with no parents… I took a hundred pictures and videos and called the insurance company to see what can be done on their end but I’m not looking forward to what’s to come… I just needed to blow off some steam, my backs aching and I’m mentally exhausted and I can’t even take a hot shower to relax lol that said we are safe and the tank didn’t actually blow up and destroy the whole house and here I was just gonna post some follow me home stuff I just got hold of on ifi when all this happened… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Sorry to hear this Billy. Can't offer much help, but will go out to the garden and ring the anvil to ask for some help with the insurance co. and maybe someone near you to pitch in with help in the clean up. I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sail’s.~ Semper Paratus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Really sorry to hear this. I think that your home owner's insurance may cover this minus your deductible. The cleanup, particularly any wet carpet will be the hardest part but your insurance will probably pay to bring crew in. Years ago I had the sewer back up into the finished basement and insurance paid. They did tear out all the carpet and panelling and we ended up with an unfinished basement. At the end of the day we had to pay to have a new service line laid in the backyard out to the main sewer in the alley, about $5k about 20 years ago. Take lots of photos/videos of the damage for documentation. G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gewoon ik Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 My friend Good luck with the drying of your house and afterwards with the needed repairs. My parents had a roofleak years ago and their wooden floors were also destroyed. The wood did shrink back, but it was all bent. Lucky, the walls there are bricks and the plaster on it dried nice and with new toerails and floors all was good. Hope you don't have to fight with your insurance for your money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Latticino Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Very glad to hear that you are safe at least. As others have mentioned I have also had pretty good support from homeowner's insurance for a claim that is as straight forward as this one appears to be, hope it will be the same for you. Some points to consider: It appears you are talking about an electric domestic water heater. I suppose it is possible for one of these to malfunction and have insufficient water to somehow allow flashing to steam inside the barrel, but I suspect you would know about this by not getting hot water at the tap before it becomes a major issue. As far as I know, boiler explosions are more commonly associated with gas fired hydronic heating systems rather than electric domestic. Still any water heating system should have a pressure safety relief valve downstream of the heater and it should be checked periodically. In my experience two major things contribute to early domestic water tank failure ( I had mine fail the night before Christmas when we first moved into our house some 25 years ago and were expecting guests. That was a fun emergency repair): lack of dielectric nipple connections between the steel tank and copper distribution piping and worn out anodes. When you replace your unit you may want to be careful regarding these. Don't you have a main shutoff valve at the domestic water service entry to your house? I've never seen one without, but I guess I don't do much in very rural areas. If you don't have one now I would certainly install one. You shouldn't have to run up the road to shut off your service. With the newish "sharkbite" style valves these are super easy to put in. I would go for a 1/4 turn ball valve. Make sure your new water heater is installed on a housekeeping pad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted September 19 Author Share Posted September 19 9 hours ago, Irondragon Forge ClayWorks said: maybe someone near you to pitch in with help in the clean up. Thanks Randy, yes I had a very good friend come over and spent a few hours helping us out yesterday, my brother and my dad have also offered to come lend a hand as well 8 hours ago, George N. M. said: we ended up with an unfinished basement Oh man that’s terrible!!!! I hate to hear that, me an Ash have taken lots of pictures and videos, the insurance man said that insurance should cover all damages caused by the hot water tank but not the tank itself, I’ve got to go shopping for one today an get it installed, I don’t think Ashlee will last long taking freezing cold showers lol 6 hours ago, gewoon ik said: walls there are bricks and the plaster Oh man I hate to hear about their leak, I’m glad that they were able to fix it back up my house is on a concrete pad so thankfully I don’t have to worry about subfloors just the walls, cabinets, vanity ect Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Yeesh. Sorry to hear about your troubles -- you and domestic water infrastructure certainly have a fraught history! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted September 19 Author Share Posted September 19 1 hour ago, Latticino said: Don't you have a main shutoff valve at the domestic water service entry to your house I sure don’t man, my only shutoff is at the meter up by road, As far as the tank explosion goes there was an old house in my area that blew up from a hot water tank exploding couple years back so I just assumed that any hot water tank could do it, it’s good to know that this one couldn’t! Thanks for the information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Good Grief Billy, that's sure a good news bad news event! I can't tell you how glad I am nobody got hurt and it didn't go as bad as it could have. While at the same time I'm sad for the damage and hassle it caused. I don't have a water heater disaster story and only one leak when I left the upstairs sliding door open a crack and froze the baseboard radiant heat line. We noticed it soon enough we didn't even have to replace the sheet rock in the living room. We do have one light switch in the kitchen that's kind of wonky once in a while but that's it. Having an oil fired boiler has it's up and down sides too. The one good result from a disaster is upgrading things during repairs and clean up. Be well Billy, wish I could do more than be positive for you. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 My condolences on the passing of your grandmother. When mine died a few years back it nearly broke me, we were very close. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted September 19 Share Posted September 19 Oh MY! I got so caught up in the water heater I forgot you lost your Grandmother! You and yours have my deepest condolences. I miss both my Grandmothers and never got to know my Grandfathers. I'll say a prayer for her Billy. Be well Brother. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted September 19 Author Share Posted September 19 7 hours ago, JHCC said: you and domestic water infrastructure certainly have a fraught history Tell me about it! I’ve dealt with blown lines, frozen lines, underground lines, waterlines breaking in the wall and leaking, not to mention the time at the previous house that the last person just plumed all the sinks and dishwasher and shower to dump out under the house! now a water heater fiasco… I’m gonna be a paraplumber by the time I’m done messing with old houses!!! 5 hours ago, Frosty said: The one good result from a disaster is upgrading things during repairs and clean up. That is a good point, I bought a 50 gallon heater to upgrade from the 40 gallon we had, I’m actually in the middle of installing it now, 4 hours ago, BillyBones said: When mine died a few years back it nearly broke me I’m sorry to hear that, it’s definitely tough to come to grips with, my granny Pat being my last living grandparent kinda bugged me a lot when she passed, it was slow and painful for her over the last week, there was also some closure issues that never got resolved and now never will… 47 minutes ago, Frosty said: my deepest condolences Thank you Jerry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted September 20 Share Posted September 20 Billy, in our old house when we had to replace the old hot water heater we installed a tankless one. It is somewhat more expensive initially but over time it pays for inself because you don't have to keep 40-50 gallons of water at, say, 110 degrees 24/7/365 which is not an insignificant amount of energy, gas or electric to pay for. And, you have unlimited hot water. You only pay for the energy to heat the water you use, not the water that has to be available all the time. I suggest that you look into it. G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted September 20 Share Posted September 20 Sorry for the loss of your grandma Billy. All mine have long been gone but their memory lives on. My parents are now the grandparents and even great grandparents now. I understand the stress of flooding. It's rough but you'll get through it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott NC Posted September 20 Share Posted September 20 Grandmas are pillars of the family. Sorry for your loss Billy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted September 23 Author Share Posted September 23 Thank you Scott, yes they are Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted September 28 Share Posted September 28 Well the title is true now for me. Was planning to go to Quadstate this weekend but a hurricane and a herniated disk in my back has changed my mind. I feel for those who came early and had to endure yesterdays weather. Rain at my house was coming in sideways. 35 MPH winds gusting to 50 MPH. Today not so bad misty rain with a slight drizzle and no (well no more than normal) winds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted September 28 Share Posted September 28 I hear you, watching the hurricane reports on the news makes want to offer all of you living in harms way my prayers, shelter from the storm and rapid recovery. Be well everyone and take care of each other. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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