Flooded my basement trying to fix a toilet myself last Sunday

Thought I'd save $150 on a plumber by swapping the fill valve on my own. Woke up to 2 inches of water and ruined a box of old photo albums. Has anyone else learned this lesson the hard way?

3 comments

3 Comments

emerym361mo ago

Start by turning off the water supply at the wall valve, not just the toilet handle. That mistake cost me a den of old baseball cards back in 2003. After you mop up, run a fan and dehumidifier for a full 48 hours to prevent mold. Check the floor joists underneath the subfloor too, water loves to travel along them. If your photo albums have any hope, gently separate the pages and set them in front of a fan, but don't touch the photos until they're bone dry.

the_alice1mo ago

That dehumidifier tip saved my uncle’s basement in 2014.

tessa_murray1mo ago

Wait, your baseball cards got DESTROYED? That’s a genuine tragedy, @emerym36. I’d be gutted if I lost my collection like that.