Of all the rooms in your Columbia home, the bathroom is by far the most vulnerable to water damage. Over time, this can lead to extensive damage to walls, floors, sub-floors, and wood cabinets.
Even minor leakage can lead to huge problems when water seeps below the tiles and damages the underlying structure. Next time you visit your bathroom, we at Rumsey Construction and Restoration would like to encourage you to keep an eye out for the following:
Ok. keep your nose open for the first sign! If you have that persistent musty smell after repeated cleanings, you have mold and mildew in the walls or subfloor. A hidden leak or water accumulation in some crack is causing excessive moisture in your bathroom that never has a chance to dry. Broken tiles, decaying grout, and poor waterproofing may lead to moisture behind the tile, painted surfaces and wallboard. Since the mold and mildew are actually growing from the inside out, repeated scrubbings won’t help this problem.
When drywall breaks down due to moisture, it becomes soft, warps and breaks into smaller pieces. Crumbling plaster, blistering paint or crooked walls indicate the sheetrock is wet. If you feel some movement pressing upon the tiles in your bathroom, notice many gaps in your grout or caulk, or cracks that get deeper, address the hidden water damage issue. It will not stop!
A toilet leak is one of the harder water leaks to find if it is next to the tub; it’s difficult to distinguish from dripping water from the shower. Wet floors can come from an overflowing toilet, a loose hose in the toilet’s system, cracks in the bowl, or old caulking. Be sure to check these places frequently and seek assistance if you notice any extra water.
Look under the items in the cabinet for any possible water damage. To locate damage earlier, place a paper towel under the lowest part of the “u” curve. Check for water stains weekly.
As a shower ages, the caulking deteriorates and gets brittle. Take a look at the sealing in your shower, tub and soap dish, and inspect for weak points. Splash leaks are a common source of water damage in the bathroom; even minor leakage can lead to huge problems over time since the water seeps below the tiles and begins to rot the sub-floor. Signs include:
Bathroom floors are designed to withstand water — unless a leak develops. Then constant moisture below the floor will cause cracking, buckling, and staining. If your home was built with a wooden floor truss system, the sub floor is usually made of plywood. When subjected to moisture or hidden leaks, the floor will gradually become softer, unstable and spongy. The plywood will rot and the floor will eventually collapse.
When you can see mold growing on the walls, or spreading on the ceiling, or crawling in the corners, it will not go away unless you eliminate the source. After fixing the leaking problem, you’d still better opt for professional water damage cleanup because mold is extremely difficult to remove completely. Choose a complete solution for your water damage problem.
Rumsey Construction is a full service construction and restoration company with extensive experience to handle your water problems. Rumsey Construction and Restoration can respond to all types of disaster: fire damage, smoke damage restoration, water restoration, and storm damage.
When you have water damage in your bathroom, Rumsey Construction and Restoration is available to manage your entire rebuild process: demolition, structural framing, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, sheetrock, paint, carpet, and even custom cabinets.
Columbia, SC
803.764.0222