Born under a bad water sign
September 7, 2011 by Shannon
Just as the summer was getting going around here, Kellan and Michael made a terrible, awful discovery in the basement. Water. To be honest, his wasn’t particularly surprising, because apparently our house was born under a bad water sign. (As you may recall, my in-laws were the former owners of the house. And when you mention the word “flood” to them, they begin to rattle off all the times they’ve been inundated with water, and it usually takes two people with two sets of hands to tally up all the times it’s happened. Like I said, bad water sign.)
The latest flood actually dates back to early winter. When the first freeze hit, we didn’t get the hoses off the faucets in time. So one of them froze. Duh. Fast forward to this summer: not thinking, we started using the same hose and faucet to water pots of tomatoes and herbs. Water leaked through a half-inch split in the pipe, into the walls, down into the basement ceiling…well, you can imagine the rest.
My first reaction? Depression. Then came a smidge of anger. I was pissed to have this problem on our hands, because the last thing I wanted to do was spend money on repairing a soggy basement. Then, it dawned on me: this could serve as the impetus for a basement remodel! Ah ha!
So here we are. It’s early September, and drywall has been ripped down, carpet pulled up, walls demolished. The dark, 1970’s paneling? Gone. The dark brown carpet? History. I’m now looking forward to a light, bright future in that basement, with creamy walls and a beige-ish, super stainproof carpet. I get a little bit giddy every single time I think about it.
There have certainly been bumps in the road. Like the discovery of a crack in the foundation. Oh, and then a pipe in the bathroom decided to start leaking all over the place, prompting the necessity of ripping out more drywall. And that prompted the discovery of some rotting wood from a previous flood in the upstairs bathroom. (Sensing a bit of a pattern here?)
The good news is, this gives us a chance to start fresh. To install moisture barriers behind the new walls in the family room, and moisture-resistant drywall in the bathroom. And the best part is, a key part of the basement (which I detested before all of this) is being salvaged and reused. The 60’s-70’s era bar that once greeted you immediately upon entry to the room has been ripped out and reset in a much better area, right next to our double-sided fireplace. And I have to say…it looks smashing, baby. When this is all over, I’m going to plop myself there and have a martini.
Cheers to leaky pipes!
