Not attempting to be a wise azz here.........................but it's a gooder thing you don't live further North where it gets COLD!!!!
Question, could you not hear water running or see it in your water usage if on a billed system or electrical bill if you are on a well? You really need to keep on top of the little things when it comes to stuff like you are dealing with. Just sayin.
Kimberly, it is too difficult to "like" several of your posts. This is a nasty problem and many of us understand what it is like especially when low on funds. Good luck.
It isn't exactly a balmy summer day here. There is still snow and ice on the ground. My toes are ice cold from standing in the mess.
It is probably a slow leak that has been accumulating for some time until the moisture build up was great enough to cause the floor to disintegrate. I have not heard the well pump come on any more than usual; slow leaks are like that. I can hear the pump because the foot valve in the pump is bad and it bangs every time it comes on and I can hear it. The pump will eventual fail so that is a future expense I am dreading.
I have been thinking of this problem today. I have no idea how many connection tees are hiding under the floors of the house. If the ones under the small bathroom have started to leak, the others could be leaking or close to leaking. This house was plumbed with that polybutal grey pipe crap where you push in connecting tees and such and then put on a crimping band. There was a class action lawsuit and they eventually pulled the product from the market. I called the manufacturer of the home shortly after we got the house and was told they did not use the connection tees that were causing the problem. Therefore, I thought all was good. However, the whole crimping mechanism was a bad design. I am thinking that I am courting more such problems in the future. Therefore, I think I really should replumb the house so I can have piece of mind. PVC piping is not that expensive; the fittings are the most expensive part of the process.
SharkBite fittings may work. To be used with PEX, copper, and CPVC lines only. Not with PEX-AL-PEX or polybutylene. You can get them at HD, plus the tools. I'd buy PEX online in bulk and cut to fit. If they're installed to code, the manufacturer carries the liability should something happen in the future. What type of home do you have?
The last time I went to Lowe's to see about PEX fittings that would work on this pipe to add some shutoff valves that stuff was so pricey.
I got the sink base out, the toilet is out, and the vinyl is up. I had thought the flooring had deteriorate but it had absorbed so much moisture that it had swelled and buckled. I looked down through the hole where the sink lines are located and could see two elbows, and two tees. It looks as if the elbow is weeping; probably for years and the water just slowly accumulated under the floor. There is a heavy polyethylene barrier under the insulation; which is probably there to prevent moisture from rising from the ground and penetrating the insulation. This barrier acted to hold the water leaking from the pipes. I kick myself for not redoing the plumbing in the house but of course at the time we had limited funds and was told that the lines were done differently than the ones in the class action lawsuit. The crimps on the lines are aluminium; which can corrode and weaken the crimping action. If one of these crimps have failed, then others could fail. Therefore, I have decided to replace the water lines with PVC. That will mean opening up the wall in the foyer to get to the shower lines; I am hoping I can remove that section of wallboard without damaging it. One issue is that the wall behind the toilet and sink is not sitting over a sleeper. It is not a load bearing wall; just a partition wall. If I cut the flooring up to the wall, then that section of the wall will have no real support under it except for the damaged flooring. It this had been a plywood subfloor, it would not bother me as much but it is this particle board subflooring. Putting any kind of support under that section may not be easy. In the photo, the sleeper is just behind the hole where the water lines come through for the sink.
I cut an inspection hole at the water lines. This particle board subflooring is glued to the sleepers and then nailed. There was a hump in the floor but that hump may have always been there as far as I know. I am going to cut out between the sleepers and remove that part of the damaged floor. Then I can nail some pieces to each sleeper to have a nailing surface for the new flooring. The old floor along the wall will be left in place; the worst section was where the sink was located. I can sand and fill so it is level and I think I will just put sheet vinyl back down. The toilet never flushed properly since we set the house up and it is because there is a long horizontal run across the house; as they say in the business, crap runs downhill. Therefore, since I have to open up and put a new toilet flange, I am going to cap off that sewage line and run a new one.
