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Yesterday afternoon my Wife was cleannig our hall bath and heard what appeared to be a dripping noise in the wall between the toilet and the back of the shower / tub. When I got home I confirmed it was a leak at a very slow drip so I called the Lennar Warranty Department. This morning I noticed the sound was louder and more frequent. Well the Builder's Plumber came out today and found that the hot water line to the shower / tub mixing valve was leaking. Ouch!!!!! This is brand new home (December 2010) While the leak was being repaired my Wife walked into a closet which shares a wall with the bathroom (at the rear of the tub) and found the carpet to be damp, not sopping wet but damp.
It sucks that there is a hole (although pretty square) in the wall. The 2 x 4 under the valve has some dark discoloration, more than likely mold. I'm certain the leak has been going on for some time. Here is my question.......
There are moldy protions of the 2 x4 and its obvious that the water traveld at least 8-9' to the closet. What concerns should we have with the area under the tub? Is there anyway to treat the area which will be a buger to get to with something that will kill mildew /mold? We will insist that the carpet padding be replaced in the closet.....what about the carpet that is wet? Should that be replaced or just be allowed to dry out? Is there any need to open up any of the surrounding walls (one in the living room and the other at the rear of the closet) to look for damage? My worry is that this has been going on for some time.
I know I'm on the verge of pulling my hair out but its a new $190,000.00 home.
If you could offer any suggestions for me to pass on toLennar I would appreciate it.
Although I shouldn't say this.....We all know what it's like when something goes haywire especially if its' on their dime. I would hate to be bamboozled.
Insist on a mold test, and that Certified Mold Remediation folks do any required inspections/cleanups. Do NOT allow them to do ANYTHING until such a time as they can show there's not a problem, because if you DO have some of the nastier molds, getting it airborn can be a real no-no.
Chances are that there's not going to be any real issue, because mold really takes a while to get going. Most molds are pretty innocuous. If you want, DM me and I'll give you a contact name/number of a lab guy I'd trust 100% to tell you what to do. If he says "don't worry", take it to the bank type of trust!
Other than that.....yeah, they're gonna replace ALL carpet, and they're going to test the sheetrock to ensure that it hasn't become water-soaked. Sheetrock is really bad about "wicking" any moisture it comes in contact with. Caught early, dehumidifiers will dry it out without a problem, but they should have those in place for you already.
Treatment - a chlorine solution (10% household bleach) will kill it pretty readily.
Yesterday afternoon my Wife was cleannig our hall bath and heard what appeared to be a dripping noise in the wall between the toilet and the back of the shower / tub. When I got home I confirmed it was a leak at a very slow drip so I called the Lennar Warranty Department. This morning I noticed the sound was louder and more frequent. Well the Builder's Plumber came out today and found that the hot water line to the shower / tub mixing valve was leaking. Ouch!!!!! This is brand new home (December 2010) While the leak was being repaired my Wife walked into a closet which shares a wall with the bathroom (at the rear of the tub) and found the carpet to be damp, not sopping wet but damp.
It sucks that there is a hole (although pretty square) in the wall. The 2 x 4 under the valve has some dark discoloration, more than likely mold. I'm certain the leak has been going on for some time. Here is my question.......
There are moldy protions of the 2 x4 and its obvious that the water traveld at least 8-9' to the closet. What concerns should we have with the area under the tub? Is there anyway to treat the area which will be a buger to get to with something that will kill mildew /mold? We will insist that the carpet padding be replaced in the closet.....what about the carpet that is wet? Should that be replaced or just be allowed to dry out? Is there any need to open up any of the surrounding walls (one in the living room and the other at the rear of the closet) to look for damage? My worry is that this has been going on for some time.
I know I'm on the verge of pulling my hair out but its a new $190,000.00 home.
If you could offer any suggestions for me to pass on toLennar I would appreciate it.
Although I shouldn't say this.....We all know what it's like when something goes haywire especially if its' on their dime. I would hate to be bamboozled.
Many of your inspectors and mold remediation companies will have infrared guns that they can aim at the walls and see if there's any moisture in there. It's pretty cool to watch. They can then open up small portions of the walls and put air movers in to dry it out. They've got chemical compounds that they can spray on the mold to kill it and prevent it from forming again. If it's too far spread they'll take it out.
Lennar will know what needs to be done, so just take it to them and see if they'll comply. They most likely will. If it needs to go further, worry about that then.
Insist on a mold test, and that Certified Mold Remediation folks do any required inspections/cleanups. Do NOT allow them to do ANYTHING until such a time as they can show there's not a problem, because if you DO have some of the nastier molds, getting it airborn can be a real no-no.
Chances are that there's not going to be any real issue, because mold really takes a while to get going. Most molds are pretty innocuous. If you want, DM me and I'll give you a contact name/number of a lab guy I'd trust 100% to tell you what to do. If he says "don't worry", take it to the bank type of trust!
Other than that.....yeah, they're gonna replace ALL carpet, and they're going to test the sheetrock to ensure that it hasn't become water-soaked. Sheetrock is really bad about "wicking" any moisture it comes in contact with. Caught early, dehumidifiers will dry it out without a problem, but they should have those in place for you already.
Treatment - a chlorine solution (10% household bleach) will kill it pretty readily.
Certified Mold Remediation folks = Crooks
As Kev said, the Lennar people will know what's needed. You're simply talking opening up the wall, repairing the pipe, spraying germicide on the framing, tape/float/texture new sheetrock and paint walls. The carpet in the closet will not need replaced unless its stained. They will replace pad and steamclean the carpet.
They WILL NOT start tearing walls out "looking" for mold so don't even think about that. Without seeing your bathroom, I'm pretty sure that wont be removing your tub either. You tear out the visible damage, correct the water problem and make the necessary repairs to affected walls/celing/floor. End of story.
Also, mold has to have a continual source of water and material to feed on to grow. Take the water away and it ceases to live. Don't fall into the paranoid crowd that thinks they're going to die from mold.
As Kev said, the Lennar people will know what's needed. You're simply talking opening up the wall, repairing the pipe, spraying germicide on the framing, tape/float/texture new sheetrock and paint walls. The carpet in the closet will not need replaced unless its stained. They will replace pad and steamclean the carpet.
They WILL NOT start tearing walls out "looking" for mold so don't even think about that. Without seeing your bathroom, I'm pretty sure that wont be removing your tub either. You tear out the visible damage, correct the water problem and make the necessary repairs to affected walls/celing/floor. End of story.
Also, mold has to have a continual source of water and material to feed on to grow. Take the water away and it ceases to live. Don't fall into the paranoid crowd that thinks they're going to die from mold.
True...to a point. I've seen some pretty nasty cases of mold that actually do need professional remediation. However, they were cases that involved many, many, many months of leaking that wasn't seen until it was too late. Then they did need a major tear out and remediation. But most aren't that severe. The main benefit of a professional remediation is that when you turn to sell or change insurance, the house cannot be denied insurance if you've got a certificate of remediation.
Also, mold has to have a continual source of water and material to feed on to grow. Take the water away and it ceases to live. Don't fall into the paranoid crowd that thinks they're going to die from mold.
With all due respect....don't bet your life on it. *IF* bad enough, or the right strain, mold CAN do serious damage to your health.
Having said that, "my bad" for not clarifying that 99% of the mold claims that forced the insurance industry to start precluding them WERE made from whole cloth. Only certain strains of mold can be dangerous, and while it IS important to KNOW what you're dealing with first, those kinds of determinations are best made by trusted pros, which is why I offered a name/number to him if he wanted to follow-up on it. 99.9% of the time, it's a simple clean-up and move on. It's that 0.1% that can hurt you. From what I've been given to understand, the possible presence of most dangerous molds can be eliminated by a simple visual inspection. Since it's not something I routinely get involved in, I don't try to keep a real hard eye on it, but since many of my customers are in the health industry, I've been involved in some interesting discussions about it.
By and large, it WAS a "fad" problem. There WERE some issues early on, simply because many folks had it for a long time without taking action simply because they weren't aware of the dangers. Nowadays, folks tend to be a lot more proactive about it, and are also better educated about understanding the difference between nuisance mold and dangerous strains.
True...to a point. I've seen some pretty nasty cases of mold that actually do need professional remediation. However, they were cases that involved many, many, many months of leaking that wasn't seen until it was too late. Then they did need a major tear out and remediation. But most aren't that severe. The main benefit of a professional remediation is that when you turn to sell or change insurance, the house cannot be denied insurance if you've got a certificate of remediation.
We're obviously not talking a Dripping Springs type case here so obviously major remediation isn't necessary. Make no mistake though, there definitely are times when full-blown remediations are indeed needed and I've seen tons of those cases first hand. From what the OP is describing however, ain't nothing to get alarmed over.
Thank you all for your insight and suggestions.
Lennar came by today (I wasn't here) and took photos. I was sent an email later today and was told (as it stands now) the carpet / padding in the closet will be replaced and the 2 x 4 under the valve assembly will be treated. My Wife was told that the sheetrock repair / texturing, etc. will take place Tuesday. Since they are off Monday I can't see any Lennar Folks coming back until then
I never saw the drip but certainaly heard it yesterday morning and it was steady. I didn't see any movement on the meter but there are meters out there that are not to sensitive to small leaks. The home was completed in late November / early December so there is no telling how long a less steady drip was taking place. Not being in the construction trade it is more than obvious that the wood has been saturated for a while especially for it to start molding.
I do find it amazing that there is an Infrared Gun that detects moisture. However I have no idea how long sheetrock in a climate controled dwelling holds moisture so if this process was to be used I would think there is the possibilty for it to be dry / dryer by Tuesday.
Again I thank you all and I will send Lennar an email tonight.
The EPA has guidelines on how to handle water damage and prevent mold. I'm including links to the two tables that summarizes that information.
Since it is a new home, I recommend that you take photos, keep a log of any phone calls, emails, conversations with Lennar or the plumbers and include when leak was discovered, when they were called, when they . . . . . etc. I'm surprised that they haven't made arrangements for someone to come out today and stop the leak. If it were me, I think I would call/email and demand that. It sounds like it's getting worse. And the longer a surface is wet, the more likely mold will grow. If you decide to call them, please take a few minutes to read the information in these 2 tables before you do. I think it would help.
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