quake (Richmond, Charlottesville: safer, move to, shelter)

[cdrmike]

Originally Posted by tgbwc

Yep. Rumbled the house pretty good. Got me out of bed and woke up my son.

Woke me too.

[michgc]

I was already up. My husband is mostly asleep and he felt it, but my kids slept right through it. My daughter is going to be mad because she was in PA yesterday and is upset that she missed the earthquake. And now she slept through the aftershock, too. 4.5 is a pretty good size.

[tgbwc]

I got up and heard my son say, "Was that another earthquake?" He's a little worried about why.

[brava4]

Yes!!! I was sitting in my living room and it shook! I called work, hospital in DC., and they said they didn't feel anything. I knew it was another one. I checked the TV but no mention of it. Glad to see others felt it too. 4.5 really? Geez... This is getting a little too weird.

[perries]

Yes, woke me up. Usgs has logged it.

[dkf747]

Drats! Slept right through it!

[jillabean]

I slept though it and so did my dogs. Then again, this isn't the first quake we've been though, so maybe we just kind of have dulled senses to them. I am kind of glad I didn't wake up. I would have probably stayed up and been worried all night--quakes in this area are just plain scarier to me since we don't have the building codes that more quake prevent areas have.

By the way, I think the main quake on Thursday did some damage to my house... or at least a pipe. I noticed a small water leak in the dining room ceiling (there is a bathroom above it). For the life of me, I can't figure out where the leak is coming from. Whatever it is, it's very small. From yesterday afternoon to this morning, there is no change in the leak mark (I outlined it in pencil). Guess I will just keep an eye on it for now. I once had a similar leak in another townhouse. They tore up the ceiling, checked the bathroom and checked the attic and roof--and never found a cause and that leak never happened again. So I am reluctant to rush and call a plumber too soon for this small leak.

[sullyguy]

Originally Posted by jillabean

I noticed a small water leak in the dining room ceiling (there is a bathroom above it). For the life of me, I can't figure out where the leak is coming from.

Could be from the toilet - that's just sitting on a hole with a wax "seal" - earthquake COULD rock the whole thing, causing a leak. Could be something more serious like a broken drain pipe. I doubt that it's a supply pipe leak but I don't really know what I'm typing about.

If you see the leak on/through the ceiling, however, I think it's safe to assume the leak is more than a few drops...

Our main-floor bathroom's toilet developed a leak between tank and bowl due to the earthquake - that massive tank swinging back and forth apparently broke the seal that's between those two parts. Anyway, I walked over to Ace, bought a replacement seal (kit), popped off the tank, replaced the (20+ year old) seal, popped the tank back on, and all is well. The time for total repair was about half an hour, not including the walk back and forth from Ace (thanks, Dad, for teaching me one shouldn't be afraid of hands-on new situations!).

Anyway, you can see where your floor/ceiling joists are - look at your leak, follow that gap between the joists back to where the underfloor pipes probably are (drain pipes typically follow joist gaps since it's such a hassle to have pipes go THROUGH joists); that should give you an idea of what is leaking.

[persnicketygal]

I was awake still at 1 a.m., but I didn't feel the aftershock here in the eastern part of Annandale (not near the Beltway, the other end).

I'm glad I didn't. I still haven't gotten over Tuesday's quake. I was inside the house with a small dog and I was frozen with shock, not figuring out quickly what was so violently shaking the townhouse (4 levels, incl basement).This was not a rolling or swaying feeling that people in D.C. office buildings felt. They got off easy, as far as I'm concerned. I never want to experience the house shaking like that again. Had a bunch of broken glass to clean up; an extremely heavy mantel clock came crashing down. A neighbor has a crack in the wall.

Why is it the "D.C. quake" or what the Post ridiculously calls "The Capital Quake" (oh sure, it has a nice sound to it)?
It's because the inner suburbs are just considered supporting players in life in the Washington area (unless it's that time of year when the D.C. government wants to tax Va and Md commuters).
Even the Post pretty much ignored how this quake was felt in the inner burbs and beyond. Everybody thinks thousands of people being evacuated from D.C. buildings, forced to stay on the street, is so much more important. Sorry, but I don't agree. Their main concern was why they couldn't get cellphone service. Puhleeeze.

The craziness ensued during my drive into the city about an hour later (I had to get to work, can't telecommute) -- I can't tell you how many drivers either "blocked the box" (waited at one intersection for 3 light cycles!) or wouldn't pull over when an emergency vehicle came at us. Too many idiots on the road.

[jillabean]

Originally Posted by sullyguy

Could be from the toilet - that's just sitting on a hole with a wax "seal" - earthquake COULD rock the whole thing, causing a leak. Could be something more serious like a broken drain pipe. I doubt that it's a supply pipe leak but I don't really know what I'm typing about.

If you see the leak on/through the ceiling, however, I think it's safe to assume the leak is more than a few drops...

Our main-floor bathroom's toilet developed a leak between tank and bowl due to the earthquake - that massive tank swinging back and forth apparently broke the seal that's between those two parts. Anyway, I walked over to Ace, bought a replacement seal (kit), popped off the tank, replaced the (20+ year old) seal, popped the tank back on, and all is well. The time for total repair was about half an hour, not including the walk back and forth from Ace (thanks, Dad, for teaching me one shouldn't be afraid of hands-on new situations!).

Anyway, you can see where your floor/ceiling joists are - look at your leak, follow that gap between the joists back to where the underfloor pipes probably are (drain pipes typically follow joist gaps since it's such a hassle to have pipes go THROUGH joists); that should give you an idea of what is leaking.

Thanks for the ideas! I actually checked the toilet--nothing that I could find. All the seals are okay. Although I didn't specially check for a seal under the tank. I'll do that too.

Nah, I think I am going to have to cut open the ceiling to figure it out and I hate doing that. It's not a big leak though (and it actually seems to be drying up as of this morning). I think it's "leaking in drips and drops" over time (not a gush or even a steady leak). But I will keep an eye on it for now.