Fock!!!

Ok, so I am strumming along happily this morning doing some online bill paying when my wife lets out a series of screams. I run out of the den to the family room and there she is scamperring about with a bunch of towells. Water is leaking from three different areas on the ceiling and through the upper heating vents. Water (sewage) is also coming through the toilet and bathtubs of two of our bathrooms? I turned off the house water and called the plumber. Two hours later they show up dumbfounded and start cutting random holes in my ceiling.

Verdict- my yougest son placed a toy down the toilet which caused a major back-up to the tune of $500. That could have been worse, I guess. Problem now is that I am staring at a couple of giant holes in my ceiling- in is about 2 ft x 2 ft- the other is about 2 ft x 3 ft.

Anyone have any experience with this type of repair job? Would it be worth it to do myself vs. having someone come in to do it? My homeowners deductible is $500 and I have no clue what it would cost for someone else to do. Either way, I am sure this is not going to be fun.

just got done with a drain in my basement backing up....two days of flooding...with boxes still on the floor,not opened,from my move......the damage??.....untold..but it ain't pretty...i know what you're going through,james...

Call a repair guy and get an estimate.... then compare it to your deductible.

Unfortunately (I'm guessing here) dry wall work on a ceiling is a PITA because it's a real beeatch to match up as well as being overheard work. The actual part of filling the holes isn't that bad it's coating, texturing, and painting so it's not noticeable. If you have the time and are a bit of a handy man I'd say DIY.

Those holes are small enough you will only need one 4x8 sheet of drywall.

Texturing to match what you already have is the biggest pita.

If it was me, I'd do it myself. It really isn't that hard. Shouldn't take more than a couple hours plus painting.

Yikes that's a crappy way to start the day.

Unless the ceiling is really high, I would vote DIY. Like others have said, the hardest thing will get it to match up cosmetically.

It's not so bad.. Read this...

http://www.popularmechanics.com/home...47.html?page=1

The other thing I use are these clips...

http://www.improvementscatalog.com/h...air-Clips.html

http://www.prest-on.com/Scripts/prod...sp?idproduct=1

They work great!!!

Is there a sprayed on finish on your drywall ceiling? If there is, you'll need to hire someone to respray the ceiling. If not, you could fix it yourself but it's a whole lot of work.

So who sent the cigars? :smiley40:

Just kidding bro, for a minute I thought you were going to say someone bombed the hell out of you.

I would get an estimate first to see how much it would cost. It won't be cheap even though it's a small area.

You could DIY for less than a $100 depending on what tools you have. As stated before, the biggest pain will be matching the texture of the ceiling. You can get aerosol cans of ceiling texture at the hardware store. Just a heads-up though, these usually only cover about 2 or 3 square feet with each can. They also make a hell of a mess. I've used them on a couple of occasions with pretty good results. I could tell where the work had been done, but only because I knew about it (plus I'm a perfectionist). If you have smooth ceilings it should be a piece of cake.


If you DIY and dont have any drywall tools let me know. I have some that I could lend you.

Ouch. I'm not a handyman so I can't tell you what to do. However, that is not a good way to start the day.

This is not a good way to start a weekend, let us know how you are doing

James - That doesn't sound like a fun day. Fortunately the repairs are actually pretty easy. If you have a knock-down finish then matching is pretty easy. Then you can take a chip of paint from the ceiling and have it matched at a Home Depot or someplace with a computer.

I had to do a similar repair a couple of years ago on a bathroom wall. Even I couldn't tell where it was when the paint dried.

Working overhead can be a real pain. I would suggest that you get a contractor to do it. Drywall, tape, texture and paint shouldn't cost too much - maybe a couple hundred - well below your homeowners deductable.

I would not suggest turning it into your insurance company. I have heard of instances where insurance to new owners was refused to homes that had any kind of water damage insurance claims because of mold possibilities. You might want to check into this.

It didn't get your humi, did it??

omg, the day after I read this, my wife discovered water in my basement. It's leaking all the way down the drain pipe from the shower upstairs. Arrgh. Now it looks like I have to cut a hole in the adjacent bathroom wall. :smiley3:
I am a DIYer, even if it means I end up doing extra jobs due to my f-ups. :smiley8:
Sigh...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sprangalang

omg, the day after I read this, my wife discovered water in my basement. It's leaking all the way down the drain pipe from the shower upstairs. Arrgh. Now it looks like I have to cut a hole in the adjacent bathroom wall. :smiley3:
I am a DIYer, even if it means I end up doing extra jobs due to my f-ups. :smiley8:
Sigh...

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Check your grout in between your tiles and the calking around the tub base, and also the seal around your drain. Even the smallest crack in grout can cause the water to leak behind the wall and get under the shower basin. From there it follows the drain pipe. If you see a crack in the grout, regrout the area.

Thanks Shelby. But I think it's gotta be behind or under. It's one of those combo tub-shower jobs, so I have a strong feeling it's the tub drain assembly - or the supply after the diverter, or the diverter. Either way, I have a feeling, it's a hole in the wall I must make. :smiley2: