How long do you figure my water heater has been leaking?

[roycebluebill]

I'm wondering if my water heater has been leaking for more than a month as there is a puddle underneath my home and the moistuire has spread a good deal into the particle board underneath the carpeting. I would say the moisture has spread around 6 or 7 feet from the water heater on the floor and has moved about 6 inches up the drywall of the surrounding walls.

Me and my friend discovered it last week by noticing the wet floor in the other room and we had to get a plumber to reroute our water past the water heater as there is no shut off valve. A mobile home repair company person just came this morning and did not say much because he has dealt with this more than once before. Our heater was 13 years old and it is clearly corroded on the bottom. Wish we would have been checking it more often. I'm wondering if here in Northwest Wisconsin where the temps are going down into the high 20's at night, if we should worry about mold and mildew inside the floors and walls. We started drying it out on Sunday with fans and are still doing it today. It seems to be dry on the surface but I am worried about the insides and underneath. Should I remove some of the skirting during the day to let more air in? I can put wire mesh around the openings to keep mice out. It also seems as though the carpeting is not glued down but it is tacked down around the edges. Would it be good to undo the staples and peel the capet back to further dry it out?

It looks like the insurance adjuster will not be here til Monday! That stinks as we will be without hot water til then. I wonder what he is gonna say? If he is gonna hold us acountable for the damages it caused by us not checking it monthly. I hope not. Anybody been through this before? It would be nice to hear some feed back from anyone, please. Thank you, Royce.

[shubhinetwork]

The big question is: where is the water coming from? Water heaters have a plastic drain valve. Sometimes it drips. If so, it is no cause for concern. On the other hand, if the tank itself appears to be leaking, then it is rusting out and there's really nothing you can do about it. Eventually, the tank will break and you'll have to replace it -- or turn off the water to it and make do with cold water until you can afford to replace it. I know that isn't what you wanted to hear, but there's no way to repair a water heater that is rusting out. (1995-2000)

[Greg]

Mold & mildew are concerns, but subfloor damage may be a bigger one. Once the get soaked the turn to sawdust. Get a fan on it to keep the air moving and drying out. Greg

[JD]

First of all, get the leak fixed whether it is plumbing or the water heater. just hold on to what ever you remove for the adjuster to see it. He/She does not need to see it leaking in place. Regular home owners insurance will not cover this part of the repair. Insurance covers "the resulting damage", which would be floors, walls, cabinets, insulation and vapor barrier. The repair of the leak will be on your dime unless you have a warranty product or "move in" type warranty/insurance.

How long has it been leaking? That would be hard to say. It could be a big leak that happened overnight or a small leak that has been going on for days. If the wood at the site of the leak does not have mildew or mold on it now, then it has not been too long. This length of time is important because if the adjuster finds that this has been a long term leak, he may deny your claim. The term they use is "Sudden and accidental". I have seen insurance companies cover leaks even though they were long term, but I have also seen them deny claims that appeared to be under the same circumstances.

You do want to pull up any wet carpet and prop it up so you can get a fan blowing under it. Cut out all wet carpet pad and throw that away. The padding tends to mold no matter what you do. You can buy decent carpet pad for 50 -60 cents a SF. You can install it with a T-50 stapler, that common construction manual stapler.

Be sure to point out every little bit of damage there is. A lot of people will just ignore a slight water stain at the bottom of the wall. With homeowners insurance, they are supposed to get you back to the condition you were in before the damage or better. If your claim is approved, they will pay for painting an entire room because of that slight stain. Be sure they cover your wet insulation and vapor barrier. Anything you can find that was damaged by this water leak. I say this because you will often find there is not enough money to do the all the repairs needed. This is especially true if you have an ACV (actual cash value) policy. After they depreciate the floor covering and other stuff, and remove your deductible amount, there is usually just enough money to buy materials. If you have a "Replacement Cost" policy, you may be alright. When I do insurance work, my bid is always a little higher than the adjuster's total amount. The insurance company has always accepted my bid and paid the extra, minus deductible of course.

Hope this helps
JD

[roycebluebill]

Thank you for the responses, all of you. You have given me some peace of mind as to what to expect. Now my friend who owns the house, will know what to expect from insurance adjuster.

[Greg S]

You may want to have your friend ask the adjuster if his insurance rates will go up if he makes a claim. Often, considering the deductible, it isn't worth making a claim if you get penalized with higher rates.