We've joined the basement flood club :(

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mhardy6647
mhardy6647 Posts: 33,037
in The Clubhouse
I think a critter chewed through a piece of PEX tubing upstairs (2nd floor). I have a mess :(
Plus, our regular plumber is outta town --
fortunately, this house has separate shutoffs for pretty much everything, so I can (should be able to) isolate the leak.

It's in a wall, though, so it's gonna be fun to deal with.

Yay.

:|
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  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,369
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    Someone with a thermal camera should be able to trace the source without tearing up too much. I had a guy trace a difficult to find roof leak that way recently. Good luck!
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  • Willow
    Willow Posts: 10,871
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    It's not a feeble attempt at a DIY indoor pool....

    That sucks big time hopefully nothing important is damaged
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  • jeremymarcinko
    jeremymarcinko Posts: 3,785
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    Good with that. Hopefully the damage is limited and isn’t going lead to any kind of mold issue.
    Oh, Listen here mister. We got no way of understandin' this world. But we got as much sense of this bird flyin in the sky. Now there is a lot that bird don't know, but it don't change the fact that the world is happening to him all the same. What I am tryin to say is, is that the course of your life, well its changing, and you don't even see it- Forest Bondurant
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  • polrbehr
    polrbehr Posts: 2,826
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    I just love hidden sources of unwanted water, hopefully it's not a major undertaking to get it isolated and fixed. Take comfort in the fact that it's not January like mine was... lol
    So, are you willing to put forth a little effort or are you happy sitting in your skeptical poo pile?


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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,037
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    It was one of the radiant heat lines going upstairs. The relatively rapid dripping is mostly stanched. This will be... umm... invasive to repair. :/

    Yay.

    PS Our plumber called me right back -- which is nice. The bad news is that he's in Wyoming on vacation :|

    At least it's not February.
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  • Tony M
    Tony M Posts: 11,015
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    Good luck Doc.. :#


    leak club the past couple of years to ruin a week.

    If I was near, I'd be willing to come help you with my limited but not too bad plumbing and carpentry skills for nothing. ;)

    I hate plumbing leaks as much as anyone else I guess. But, I worked for a plumber for 7 years fixing leaks with him but repairing the damages by myself.

    I'm also glad for you that's it's still summer time. ;)
    Most people just listen to music and watch movies. I EXPERIENCE them.
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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,560
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    :'(
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  • xschop
    xschop Posts: 4,684
    edited August 2020
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    After you've cleaned up, about a month later, do an in-wall air sample. As long as the Stachybotris is below 500 plate count, you're good.
    Sorry for your sudden science experiment.
    Don't take experimental gene therapies from known eugenicists.
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  • txcoastal1
    txcoastal1 Posts: 13,132
    edited August 2020
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    Hmmm

    I like the concept of PEX, but I guess this would be one of the cons vs pro issues

    Sorry about your issues Doc, can see this being a real PITA

    I was going to use PEX at the deer lease cabin, but since we are not out their often enough, and because it's a haven for critters galor, I think PEX is not the way to go
    2-channel: Modwright KWI-200 Integrated, Dynaudio C1-II Signatures
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  • aprazer402
    aprazer402 Posts: 3,096
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    Sorry to hear about the leak. It'll be okay. At least you were home. Do tubes float?
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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,560
    edited August 2020
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    aprazer402 wrote: »
    Do tubes float?

    Only the good ones.... ;)

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  • mrbiron
    mrbiron Posts: 5,711
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    Sorry to hear this Mr. H!

    Was your basement finished? Hope the dump finds don't need to be returned...
    Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
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  • Gardenstater
    Gardenstater Posts: 4,183
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    Wow! Definitely a downside to Pex that never occurred to me! Maybe it needs to be wrapped with something metallic to prevent rodent's from chewing. Sorry! I had a minor flood of about 1/2" of water in my basement once when there were heavy rains overnight and the ground was already saturated. Apparently the plug for the sump pump managed to fall out of the socket. Ruined some stuff that shouldn't have been on the floor. Live and learn.
    George / NJ

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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,560
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    Gardenstater wrote: »
    Wow! Definitely a downside to Pex that never occurred to me! Maybe it needs to be wrapped with something metallic to prevent rodent's from chewing.

    There is a word for that...... Copper...... no PEX needed.

    The thing with pex is how much cheaper and faster it is to install and flexibility. You take that all away trying to install into a pipe of any sort.

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  • gyosa
    gyosa Posts: 699
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    And my wife doesn’t understand why I hunt the squirrels in my yard with a high power .223 pellet gun ......

    Bk
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  • Gardenstater
    Gardenstater Posts: 4,183
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    I didn't mean a pipe, which is why I used the word "wrapped". I was just wondering if something like a thick aluminum tape might prevent the critters from gnawing on the Pex. But no certainly not pipe. The advantages of Pex would be totally negated, one of the main ones being that it is flexible. Hopefully people here don't think I'm stupid lol. :D
    George / NJ

    Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
    Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
    Crown D150 amp
    Logitech Squeezebox Touch Streamer w/EDO applet
    iFi nano iDSD DAC
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  • mrbiron
    mrbiron Posts: 5,711
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    Honestly, the bigger problem is the critters living in your farm house. Without rectifying this first, your other problem will still exist.
    Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
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  • BlueFox
    BlueFox Posts: 15,251
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    gyosa wrote: »
    And my wife doesn’t understand why I hunt the squirrels in my yard with a high power .223 pellet gun ......

    Bk

    LOL. When I was a kid my father bought a .223 pellet rifle and during summer vacation I had to get up at sunrise and guard a stupid peach tree. He loved his peaches. :)

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  • mrbigbluelight
    mrbigbluelight Posts: 9,262
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    A good peach tree is worth defending.
    Sal Palooza
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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,560
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    Gardenstater wrote: »
    I didn't mean a pipe, which is why I used the word "wrapped". I was just wondering if something like a thick aluminum tape might prevent the critters from gnawing on the Pex. But no certainly not pipe. The advantages of Pex would be totally negated, one of the main ones being that it is flexible. Hopefully people here don't think I'm stupid lol. :D

    I know I was more messing with you. Still wrapping would not stop a determined rodent. I do agree PEX is, well lets say I do see its benefits YET I'm going to wait a few years or decades. I remember when CPVC was going to revolutionize the plumbing world. Is it legal to use that for drinking water anywhere now? I'm pretty sure it is not legal here where I live anymore. For now I can see using it for floor thermal heating. PEX really took off when copper prices went atmospheric. Like everywhere else when copper was sky high too many new construction houses were relieved of all their copper at night. It just got stupid crazy around here. Now its catalytic converters here. They will flat cut them off you vehicle with their 20v sawsall :#:#
    mrbigbluelight wrote: »
    A good peach tree is worth defending.

    And Squirrel make a good main course
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  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,020
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    Cpvc is perhaps the worst form of plumbing I've encountered, when pipes snap in half in your hand, that might be an issue!

    Sorry to hear you had a leak, hope is an easy fix!
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
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  • charley96
    charley96 Posts: 306
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    I'm not a plumber but I replaced all my copper in my 50's ranch. I went with the heavier grade M or L, I can't remember. Had an old guy I knew years ago that was a tool and die maker teach me to solder. I was able to route it more efficiently than the yahoos did years ago when the place was built. Plumbing and appliance repair is about all I'm good at around the house. My carpentry skills suck.
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  • Gardenstater
    Gardenstater Posts: 4,183
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    I will never use PEX in my house after reading about frequent (frequent enough) incidents of rodents chewing through it, even though I have no rodents afaik. I don't like the idea of plastic in contact with potable water anyway. I think they probably do it because they like to chew plastic and their teeth are constantly growing and they have to constantly be gnawing on stuff to keep them worn down, but probably also because they are thirsty and why not gnaw on something that's enjoyable but also yields a survival boosting prize at the end of the task. I remember when I was backpacking in the White Mountains and we of course had to hang our food up high between two trees. We used 3 layers of thick garbage bags (not contractor bags but pretty thick) and somehow they always went directly through the bag where the Gorp was, so they could smell their most desireable meal item in that large food bag(s) and not waste any time, through 3 layers of plastic not including the bag the Gorp was in! That still amazes me to this day.
    George / NJ

    Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
    Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
    Crown D150 amp
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,528
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    Sorry to hear about this DocH
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • charley96
    charley96 Posts: 306
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    At least I know the copper I put in will outlive me and won't be chewed on. Plumbers gotta love the Pex for ease of install.
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  • mrbigbluelight
    mrbigbluelight Posts: 9,262
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    I was perusing the interwebs for possible PLEX solutions and can't really say as I've seen any
    I did come across quite a number of videos detailing plumbing problems with women getting their hands caught in garbage disposal drains. Seems to be a particulaar problem apparently with stepmoms.
    I'll keep looking for solutions for the PLEX problem 😇
    Sal Palooza
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  • txcoastal1
    txcoastal1 Posts: 13,132
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    If I built a new home I'd still use PEX
    2-channel: Modwright KWI-200 Integrated, Dynaudio C1-II Signatures
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    erat interfectorem cesar et **** dictatorem dicere a
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  • charley96
    charley96 Posts: 306
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    Is it a big savings cost wise vs, copper?
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,037
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    We did have copper in the old house, this house is a mix, but the radiant heat is all PEX, I think mostly to allow for ease of installation of all of the loops.

    We live in the sticks -- critters are very difficult to keep out (small ones, anyway).

    ... and the ones outside bring troubles of their own -- as y'all know.

    The leak is virtually stopped (still some occasional dripping, about an inch in a 5 gal bucket overnight) and things are drying out. One box of rekkids will be lost (i.e., not worth salvaging) -- but they are, fortunately, a pretty cheezy lot of "pop" rekkids. Babs Streisand, that kind of thing. I got lucky, in that sense. :)

    I reckon it'll be fairly expensive/invasive to mitigate. And, yes, the critters do need mitigation, too.

    We do see pest control vehicles go up and down our road all of the time :blush:

    Thanks for the show of support! I was pretty unhappy yesterday.
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  • Gardenstater
    Gardenstater Posts: 4,183
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    copper may cost about 4 to 7 times more for the pipe. The labor is also much greater but depends upon the installation details.
    George / NJ

    Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
    Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
    Crown D150 amp
    Logitech Squeezebox Touch Streamer w/EDO applet
    iFi nano iDSD DAC
    iPurifier3
    iDefender w/ iPower PS
    Custom Steve Wilson 1m UPOCC Interconnect
    iFi Mercury 0.5m OFHC continuous cast copper USB cable
    Custom Ribbon Speaker Cables, 5ft long, 4N Copper, 14awg, ultra low inductance
    Custom Vibration Isolation Speaker Stands and Sub Platform
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