Well, it happened - water in basement!

[debodun]

One water remediation company I spoke with this morning asked it it was area or wall-to-wall. When I said it was the later, she became dismissive. I also contacted a local carpet business. They must have received many calls like this during the week because the first thing she asked after I said I wanted carpet removed was, "It it wet?" When I replied in the affirmative, she said "Call us when it dries out."

One problem is the paneling because it has quarter-round molding at the bottom and I suspect there is padding under the carpet.

I worked over an hour this morning before the remediation guy came bringing up bags and boxes of soaked curtains, linens and bedding and spreading the out on the deck to dry. I am just running out of room to put things once they have dried. I DO have some quotes from dumpster companies - there all about the same. I ruled out one because he said I had to have all the things for disposal ready and out so they can arrive, load the dumpster and be gone. I was looking for more of a "leave it for a few days" and I can load it myself, That way I can sort through things as I go. That what's I did when I moved.

I already have a big pile of linen tablecloths and bedding to be trashed. One made me sad - it was a beautiful tablecloth with butterflies all around it, but now hopelessly stained.

 

[Michael Z]

The dehumidifier can be bought for under $300. Same with the sump pump. Try Home Depot. Then hire a handyman or woman if needed and they could even help with the purchase. These are not difficult items to install given you already have a sump The quotes you got were outrageous.

 

[debodun]

The quotes you got were outrageous.

I thought so too, but knowing my ignorance and penchant for thrift, I wanted some other opinions as to whether they were reasonable fees.

 

[debodun]

They have Hisense dehumidifiers at Lowes. I watched this video and it seems simple enough - even a Debbie could do it. I jut wonder if it would fit in my car.

 

[hollydolly]

They have Hisense dehumidifiers at Lowes. I watched this video and it seems simple enough - even a Debbie could do it. I jut wonder if it would fit in my car.

that will fit in your car..I have a similar one... just get them to load in for you.. it'll be fine...

 

[Gemma]

They have Hisense dehumidifiers at Lowes. I watched this video and it seems simple enough - even a Debbie could do it. I jut wonder if it would fit in my car.

As long as the dump bucket is emptied, it should work fine. Otherwise, the machine will shut off waiting for it to be emptied.

 

[debodun]

I'll have to post a reminder note on the cellar door. At least it shuts off when full, or I'd be back where I started. How often should it be checked?

 

[hollydolly]

As long as the dump bucket is emptied, it should work fine. Otherwise, the machine will shut off waiting for it to be emptied.

Mine has a hose which is fed through a hole in the wall of the barn.. so no need for emptying... this is quite a large one and it sits on the workbench i

A second smaller one I have in the shed does have a tank, and depending on the humidity or rain I have to empty it approximate once a week.. not a problem because its very lightweight.. It hold about 1200ml and has auto shut off when it's full...

 

[Jules]

Deb, do you have a trolley/dolly of some type to help you bring things upstairs. Trolleys with triple wheels climb the stairs easier. It might help you a bit. Once this mess is cleared away, it would be handy for carrying things up and down if you do decided to store them down there again.

 

[Knight]

Deb, do you have a trolley/dolly of some type to help you bring things upstairs. Trolleys with triple wheels climb the stairs easier. It might help you a bit. Once this mess is cleared away, it would be handy for carrying things up and down if you do decided to store them down there again.

Getting one of those sounds like an excellent idea. Not only for this but for the future when she wants to move stuff for her yard sales.

I've never seen one so I looked it up.

Trolleys with triple wheels

Looks really easy to use.

 

[jujube]

Besides the always-wet basement of my childhood home, I've only lived in one house that had a basement. That was the first house we owned in Michigan. The basement was dry as a bone the first three years we lived there. Then our luck ran out.

There was some sort of freak storm and the storm sewers backed up with no warning. Black water came oozing out of the floor drain and, unfortunately, we had a 9'x12' Turkish rug rolled up and stored on the floor of the basement. Unluckily, it soaked up all the stinky black water.

Equally unfortunately, we were leaving on a 10-day vacation in a day, so we had to do something fast. There was a place in our town that cleaned oriental carpets, so we drug the rug out of the basement (yuck...) and loaded it in the back of the station wagon, hanging out the open tailgate, and headed for the cleaners.

We drug it in their back door. They took one look at it and said NO! We explained how desperate we were and they still said NO. We backed out the door, saying "do what you can" and sprinted to the car, with Iranian (maybe...) imprecations being thrown our way. Came back after vacation and they had washed and dried it. If looks could kill, we'd be deader than doorknobs. And, believe me, we paid through the nose for it, too. But it was that or lose the rug. Even if they had thrown the rug into a dumpster, it couldn't have been worse.

I don't like basements, dry, wet, or otherwise. They creep me out.

 

[Knight]

They have Hisense dehumidifiers at Lowes. I watched this video and it seems simple enough - even a Debbie could do it. I jut wonder if it would fit in my car.

Probably has a port that can have a hose adapted to go to your sump. Should be electrical outlet near since your sump pump that you are thinking of buying operates on electricity.

As for DIY sump pumps. there are lots of DIY videos on youtube you could check out to see if you think you could save money by doing it yourself.

Otherwise Don's post is really worth considering.

 

[Gemma]

Mine has a hose which is fed through a hole in the wall of the barn.. so no need for emptying... this is quite a large one and it sits on the workbench i

A second smaller one I have in the shed does have a tank, and depending on the humidity or rain I have empty it approximate once a week.. not a problem because its very lightweight.. It hold about 1200ml and has auto shut off when it's full...

Yes, ours has a hose attached too. So much easier than emptying the bucket.

If Deb doesn't check it weekly, and empty it, it will just shut off and defeat the purpose of it. Does she have a place to empty the bucket inside the basement, or is she going to have to lug 8+ pounds of water up the stairs and out the door?

 

[hollydolly]

Yes, ours has a hose attached too. So much easier than emptying the bucket.

If Deb doesn't check it weekly, and empty it, it will just shut off and defeat the purpose of it. Does she have a place to empty the bucket inside the basement, or is she going to have to lug 8+ pounds of water up the stairs and out the door?

even if she hasn't got somewhere to empty it in the basement.. she simply has to just check it every day, and empty it every day that way she's not lugging a heavy bucket of water upstairs...

 

[Teacher Terry]

When I was getting my house ready to sell I paid a teenager in the neighborhood to empty my basement. He wanted to be paid by the job instead of the hour which I did. He was so fast bringing everything outside and then I just had to sort it.

 

[Don M.]

I'll have to post a reminder note on the cellar door. At least it shuts off when full, or I'd be back where I started. How often should it be checked?

Actually, with all the moisture you have, the dehumidifier bucket will probably fill up every 2 hours....unless you get your sump pump working, and run a drain hose from the dehumidifier to the sump. This could continue for days, or weeks, until your basement dries out.

 

[Don M.]

They have Hisense dehumidifiers at Lowes. I watched this video and it seems simple enough - even a Debbie could do it. I jut wonder if it would fit in my car.

Walmart sells a brand called Midea, with the capacity to dry out 3200 sq. ft. for about $200. I bought one earlier this year and it works great. If you have a Walmart near you, check it out. Walmart will even ship it to your house for free, if you buy it online.

 

[debodun]

Walmart will even ship it to your house for free, if you buy it online.

Yeah, that won't work for me.

 

[debodun]

I thought the items that were in plastic bags would be spared - wrong! One little hole and fabrics really wick up the water.

 

[Knight]

Yeah, that won't work for me.

Don's suggestion was well intentioned. Maybe he forgot you don't use or have a credit card so buying online won't work for you. If interested you could probably go to the service desk to get what he suggested delivered.

There has been a lot of suggestions offered so far all that is known is you still are sorting out soggy stuff & drying what you think you can salvage from all the stuff. I wish you success with getting your problem resolved.

 

[debodun]

The major piles as of yesterday. There's still a bunch of stuff airing out on the deck. I didn't realize how winded I was going to get doing this. It takes me several minutes to catch my breath after making a few trips up and down the stairs - and SWEATY. My heart was beating so hard I could see it through my shirt. I may have bronchitis now even though I wear a mask when i go down there.

 

[PeppermintPatty]

Deb, do you have a trolley/dolly of some type to help you bring things upstairs. Trolleys with triple wheels climb the stairs easier. It might help you a bit. Once this mess is cleared away, it would be handy for carrying things up and down if you do decided to store them down there again

This is a good idea. We have a dolly and use it to move lots of things.

I wasn't happy with what the water remediation guy said. He only seemed interested in replacing the sump pump. His quote:
Zoeller 1/3 hp pump with new PVC pipes and buried discharge - $975
with battery backup - $1925

I insisted to be given a price on a dehumidifier. He grudgingly said he could do an AprilAire for $1849.

Then I asked about the carpet which really turned me off on this guy. He response was in effect - if this is the first time the carpet has been wet in 3 years, it probably doesn't have to be removed. Just put some fans down there.

The sump pump, he’s talking about costs $300 US on Amazon. The battery back up costs $300 US. The needed dehumifier probably costs far less than he’s offering but you aren’t coming clean with all of us. You want all these people to work without a credit card .

Are you looking for the best offer?
Do these people that are offering you help know that you don’t use a credit card? Without the use of a credit card they need to trust that you aren’t going to change your mind, cause if you do they will be out thousands of dollars but you aren’t mentioning that part in your plea for help.

Yeah, that won't work for me.

How many offers are you going to pass up ?
Is there any part of you that thinks you are being unreasonable? How long are you going to live life without a credit card and why?
What advantage does having no credit card offer you?

I really thought you were going to challenge your unreasonable fears and get past this.
With the money you have and what you need done, did you really think you’d have a line up of offers?

 

[debodun]

 

[PeppermintPatty]

View attachment 361798

Sure 18% manage without one but you leave that part out of your thread which makes a huge difference in the outcome. Normally you’d order the garbage dump with no hassles and order the sump pump and the people to install it for you, with no hassle
You need a good dehumidifier and need a contractor to set that up so you aren’t going up and down the stairs to empty it. You are having problems going up and down the stairs already. This is going to get worse as you age, not better.

People can’t help you unless you are honest with them

 

[Knight]

Sure 18% manage without one but you leave that part out of your thread which makes a huge difference in the outcome. Normally you’d order the garbage dump with no hassles and order the sump pump and the people to install it for you, with no
You need a good dehumidifier and need a contractor to set that up so you aren’t going up and down the stairs to empty it. You are having problems going up and down the stairs already. This is going to get worse as you age, not better.

People can’t help you unless you are honest with them

PP posting of problems goes way back to when she hoarded stuff in the home she sold. She inherited that home & stuff accumulated. Her posts clearly shows uneillingness to make needed repairs even though she professes to have plenty of money. Proof in the various pics show she left it deteriorate. That seems to be the direction this time.

Then came weeks of hauling the hoarded stuff to store in this home. As has been shown in this thread the hoarded stuff is being dried out. Granted like most people she has items of sentimental value, but after years of putting stuff out for yard sales with as she says no buyers, at some point most would have put the unsold into the trash.

Being frugal may be due to parental influence or at least it seems that way in what she posts. Not that parental influence is bad just that ignoring advice offered by those living in the present IMO have a greater grasp of how to get things done. Small items like use of a credit card to get cash back, pay bills like copays and get an immediate record of payment, order needs online with the real potential to save money don't resonate with Deb & probably never will.

I am not writing to bad mouth her just writing about a person I don't know personally that if I did I would try to help. I truly feel sorry for her. I hope other posters ignore my post & continue to offer help.
Or if matrix feels this is contrary to site standards it is removed.