The Holiday Party Toilet Overflow Debacle Continues
Happy 2009, y'all. I'm still kind of stuck in 2008, because the flush that took the shine off our December holiday party has flushed all the joy out of January as well.
We decided to wait 'til after Christmas to get the toilet-water-damaged ceiling looked at. Then O's birthday party was coming up, so we put it off a bit more. When we finally got it looked at, the handydudes told us we had two options: replace part of the ceiling for twice as much as we thought it would cost, or replace the whole ceiling for four times as much as we thought it would cost. When they opened up the ceiling to be sure the visibly damaged area was the full extent of the water damage, however, they found plaster under the drywall. Damp, crumbling plaster that smelled of mildew and ninety-nine years' worth of urine.
This new development meant that we'd have no choice but to replace the whole ceiling, and that it would now cost five times as much as we thought it would cost.
The job was supposed to take two days, maybe three. The first day would be very messy, with moldy plaster dust flying everywhere. We thought maybe we should stay with friends.
That was a week ago, and we are still staying with friends. And it looks like we will be staying with friends for at least three more nights. But who's counting.
Luckily, we have friends in town, friends who are super hospitable, have a spacious and well appointed home, and are always up for hanging out. They have been amazing about making us feel welcome, and now that we've settled into a routine at their place, it's actually gotten easier rather than harder being away from home. It helps that they have two cool sons who adore O. and Roo, a well-stocked wine rack, and box sets of Battlestar Galactica and My So-Called Life. Still, we miss our home.
So, some free advice for you: if your toilet is the kind that's remotely prone to clogging up, keep a plunger next to the throne. We have a plunger, but I keep it in the basement because it's all germy and gross and stuff. But having toilet water descend through your ceiling into your living room is germy and gross, too.
So I've bought a brand new plunger, white and pristine with its own little storage dealy. It's our guest plunger. We'll still keep the mucky old plunger in the basement for when we clog the toilet. But if you're at our house and you happen to clog our toilet, please, feel free to use our special plunger. We bought it just for you.
We decided to wait 'til after Christmas to get the toilet-water-damaged ceiling looked at. Then O's birthday party was coming up, so we put it off a bit more. When we finally got it looked at, the handydudes told us we had two options: replace part of the ceiling for twice as much as we thought it would cost, or replace the whole ceiling for four times as much as we thought it would cost. When they opened up the ceiling to be sure the visibly damaged area was the full extent of the water damage, however, they found plaster under the drywall. Damp, crumbling plaster that smelled of mildew and ninety-nine years' worth of urine.
This new development meant that we'd have no choice but to replace the whole ceiling, and that it would now cost five times as much as we thought it would cost.
The job was supposed to take two days, maybe three. The first day would be very messy, with moldy plaster dust flying everywhere. We thought maybe we should stay with friends.
That was a week ago, and we are still staying with friends. And it looks like we will be staying with friends for at least three more nights. But who's counting.
Luckily, we have friends in town, friends who are super hospitable, have a spacious and well appointed home, and are always up for hanging out. They have been amazing about making us feel welcome, and now that we've settled into a routine at their place, it's actually gotten easier rather than harder being away from home. It helps that they have two cool sons who adore O. and Roo, a well-stocked wine rack, and box sets of Battlestar Galactica and My So-Called Life. Still, we miss our home.
So, some free advice for you: if your toilet is the kind that's remotely prone to clogging up, keep a plunger next to the throne. We have a plunger, but I keep it in the basement because it's all germy and gross and stuff. But having toilet water descend through your ceiling into your living room is germy and gross, too.
So I've bought a brand new plunger, white and pristine with its own little storage dealy. It's our guest plunger. We'll still keep the mucky old plunger in the basement for when we clog the toilet. But if you're at our house and you happen to clog our toilet, please, feel free to use our special plunger. We bought it just for you.
posted by E. | 1:27 PM
5 Comments:
Oh my God. Oh my God, oh my God. When I read the original post about the toilet overflowing, I thought it was hilarious. Well, I'm not laughing now. Uck, I'm so sorry.
Dang, sorry you guys have been ejected from your home due to toilet woes, but very glad hospitable friends stepped up to the plate! Hope everything's resolved soon.
Thanks for your condolences. Yes, the whole thing's been a nightmare. But we're finally back in our house and clearing away the dust. (And the good news is that our homeowner's insurance is covering most of it. Also, our dust tested negative for lead. In a house this old, that's just short of a miracle, and lead would've made the whole thing so very much more of a hassle.)
And now we have a pristine new ceiling that's about four inches higher than our old ceiling, complete with a swank crown molding that actually matches our woodwork and doesn't have paint smudges on it. So that's something.
All hail the Homeowner's Insurance!
ps Don't you LOVE "My So Called Life"? I treated myself to that last Xmas- love the teen angst.
Is...uh...one of the friends that are hosting you perhaps the fella that started this little adventure? Does he know?
Good, good advice on that plunger.
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