Watershed Moment

Until now, my experience as a homeowner has been great. No major issues - other than picking a paint colour. I realize I have been lucky as other friends have dealt with roof, window or basement issues. Well, that changed this week.

On Monday night, I was getting ready for bed and realized there was no hot water. The power had been on and off during the day with those crazy-high winds so I wondered if something had flipped off on my tank. I grabbed my flashlight and headed to the basement.

Dad's first time playing Phase 10!

As I got about half way across my family room, I noticed a squish squish sound as my slippers made wet footprints on the carpet. Oh no. I opened the door to the utility room and saw water surrounding the hot water heater. I immediately turned it off and called Reliance. Well, no...actually I immediately called my Dad. Seriously, these are the situations Dads are made for.

The following 24 hours are a bit of a blur but it involved a parade of workers through my home. The carpet had to be ripped out and disposed of and I currently have industrial fans and dehumidifiers humming away downstairs. I finally got a new hot water tank at about 9pm.

Mom - killing time :)

My retired parents are nothing if they are not supportive. They arrived Tuesday morning with a shop vac in the trunk and ready to help. Apparently my optimistic outlook was not that realistic and when Dad saw my basement he quickly realized the little shop vac in his trunk was not going to be much use. They stayed with me for the rest of the day - for moral support. I can't thank them enough.

Although the saga is not finished (my basement is in complete chaos!) I'm thankful for small mercies. I'm especially thankful this did not happen while I'm away next week. And on the same day I was dealing with this, my sister-in-law called to tell me I had won $50 through a fundraiser at my niece's school. Now, it would've been really sweet if the cash prize had been enough to cover my insurance deductible, but I'm not complaining.

The current state of my family room