Because of a Drip

About a month ago we installed the water line for our icemaker to our freezer. We had a little problem with installation, but it was quickly resolved. We checked for any leaks and found none. So we went on business as usual.

The third week of January we went to my brothers for the week. Had a very laid back restful vacation. Our trip back was delayed a day due to weather, but we made it home early evening Friday night. We couldn't get into our driveway due to all the snow that accumulated while we were gone so my husband snow-blowed out a path for us to walk up until he could blow out the whole drive. Once inside, it became apparent almost immediately that we had a problem. {Water dripping from the rafters of the basement from below our kitchen cabinets.} Lovely!

We quickly realized that the water line we hooked up to the freezer was the culprit. Not sure for how long, but drip by drip it turned into a watery mess. So we fixed the leak, cleaned what water we found, thinking that we were okay.

A couple days later we realized we were in for a world of hurt. Our wood floor began to buckle from all the moisture. The floor actually started to affect our cabinets and counter by pushing them both up.






{Our wood floor buckled in front of our cabinet}

 





We laid this floor about a year and a half ago before we moved in. So, in essence this is a brand new floor. We chose hickory because of the look and durability. Although, unfortunately for us, wood flooring isn't waterproof!

So thus began the task of taking out the cabinets, counter top, removing the stove and refrigerator, and of course some of the floor. Also when we laid our flooring, we laid an underlayment similar to carpet pad to help isulate and muffle noice. Turns out that holds water very well, and when we tore out the flooring some of the underlayment was saturated still.

{Mold found on the bottom sides of the pieces that were affected}



We had to rip the flooring out all the way down the wall past our sliding glass door! We salvaged what we could by taking out nails and reusing as many pieces as we could.



{When I say "we" I mostly mean my husband with some help from my dad.}



Finally,after we relayed the floor, we were able to start putting everything back in.





{Notice a flat floor!}


What a day! Yes, we did this all in one day! My hardworking husband with some help from my dad, did a fantastic job! I think God was watching out for us, because the whole project went so smoothly! Now everything is back to normal and we are still double checking to make sure all is good underneath the counter. We do NOT want to go through this again!



{Finished!}





Hard to believe a little drip caused all of this! Lesson for all DIY homeowners: Always check and recheck your work, no matter how small the project!