Hey guys! I did not intend to take a week off but we had some unexpected things happen that kind of put everything else off for a bit. Water damage. The joys of home ownership, right? After replacing appliances, the water heater, the furnace and AC unit, and our roof, I was kind of hoping for a reprieve for a bit.
I started noticing the flooring was buckling by the sink and realized we had a slow leak. I’m not sure if we didn’t tighten it enough or add enough plumbers putty, but the drain that screws on underneath the sink was leaking. We fixed it quickly but the damage was done and I had to rip up the flooring.
Under the laminate flooring was the original vinyl from the 1930’s. It had a paper like backing that was glued directly to the wood subfloor. This vinyl is the same that was also in the hallway. When we bought the house forever ago, we ripped out the old vinyl and had to scrape the backing and glue off. Before I go any further I should mention that we had our house tested for lead and asbestos at that time and both tests were negative. We still wore masks and protective gear to be safe.
Scraping the glue and backing off the wood subfloor in our tiny hallway took Shane and I two days working together all day. I was not looking forward to doing it again in a much larger area. I had to do it myself since I discovered it while Shane was at work. I worked from about noon until 7am the next morning without leaving the room… or sleeping.
The green stain is from the dye in the paper backing seeping into the raw wood below, not from mold.
Isn’t it funny how different angles can make things seem distorted? This angle makes my kitchen look way more narrow than it really is!
Originally we had planned on putting in laminate again. After years of having different flooring in each room I crave having the whole upstairs match. But after this experience, I think we are going with a wood like tile in the kitchen and dining area. I do not want tile in the living room, office, and hall so the plan is to find a laminate and tile that match as closely as possible so we still get the feeling that everything is congruent.
I have ordered several samples of both laminate and tile so we can see and compare them in person. After years of having dark floors, I am thinking of going a bit lighter. These are a couple of the wood tiles I’m considering.
So while replacing the upstairs flooring was on our to-d0 list, it was at the bottom. We will have to switch our budget and project schedule around and make it work.
Have you had any unexpected projects lately? I’d love to hear about when you had to switch things up :)
Also, have you installed wood like tile? How do you like it?
I am so sorry! What a mess! We have had to scrape glue and vinyl flooring up before and can relate. But didn’t have to do so unexpectedly or throughout the night.
On another note, we are in the proceeds of putting in wood-look tile flooring throughout our home. Due to my allergies, it’s almost the only option available. But we LOVE it!
People cannot believe it’s tiling. It’s super easy to clean. The dogs don’t slip on it. Nor do their nails scratch it.
My husband and I work together when we put it in and then I grout it. It’s not that bad of a project. Oh, we purchased ours from builddirect.com and have been very pleased. I think we have done about 1800 sq ft and had one chipped tile in the box.
Yep, scraping that glue is no fun at all. I’m sorry you had to do that too. I am glad you like the tile. That seems to be what everyone says, that it is realistic and easy to clean. I like that!
Oh nooooo! I’m sorry to hear of your unexpected project. Coincidentally, I just noticed some soft wooden planks in front of my dishwasher yesterday. We’re going to pull out the dishwasher to see what’s going on.
I look forward to seeing where your flooring project goes. I like the lighter look! I also love grey tones. I have carpet in my living room and bedrooms that need replacing, but bamboo everywhere else – but my bamboo has a sheen to it that shows every wee bit of dirt, so I don’t want to install more. I’ve been bringing home laminate samples (gorgeous, it has come so far), but I can’t seem to land on something. Keep going, and I may take your lead ?!
Man! I am sorry you may have water issues by your sink too! Yes, laminate has come a long way! I am still waiting for samples to come in the mail from a few places. I’m excited to pick!
Hi! I have installed an vinyl wood-like plank n my family room. Since it is right off the garage, we needed something substantial since our 123 lb Alaskan Malamute likes to rip through there.
I got a vinyl which is waterproof, and pet-proof. Wow, what a difference. It takes the dog running through, sliding, wet and snowy boots, (I live in NH) and it cleans beautifully. My friends thought I had put down a wood floor..
I have never been a fan of laminate. We did put laminate in our MBath, and a slight water leak got under it and of course it started to flake.. So, no more laminate for us.
Good luck on your decision.
Thanks! We have the wood like vinyl planks in our basement and really like it. The only reason I am not considering it for upstairs is that we have tile in the bathroom and will have tile in the kitchen. The tile with backerboard is thick and the vinyl is so thin there would be a big difference in height. But the vinyl is great and waterproof too!
So sorry, ugh!
I installed wood tile in my sister’s house in 2013. The install was the easiest I’ve had in all tiling I’ve done. It looks fantastic, and you can use the smallest grout spacers.
That is good to know since I hate tiling :) Haha!
Hi, Stacy! First off, thank goodness for NO MOLD!!! I know you will figure this out; you and your teammate always pull through! It happened a few winters ago and we had ice dams build up in the corners of our roof. My husband wasn’t into roof raking at the time and we had a slow leak into the upstairs master bedroom. No kidding, I asked my husband if he had brought cheese to snack on in bed one night. He was like, “What are you talking about?” Turns out we did have MOLD growing under our carpet. Turned our whole life upside down for months as we moved to the guest bedroom and tore up and had to pay to dispose of that nasty carpet in the middle of a horrific winter. We were put on a waiting list to have new carpet installed and cleaned up the mold ourselves. In the end, lots of work but not too expensive. Oh, and my husband NOW roof rakes if we get more than 3″ of snow! It’s good exercise for him! :-)
Yes! A little mildew but no mold, thank goodness. Water damage is the worst, I am glad you finally got yours worked out :)
Oh my I’m so sorry this happened and what a mess. Water has to be one of the worst when it comes to damage. We are all on budgets and when it happens unexpectedly which seems to happen it throws your brain and plans off.
We have hardwood tile in our laundry room and I love it. I also love that there’s barely a grout line.
Again so sorry this happened and when you were alone.
Cindy
Everyone that I have talked to that has the tile loves it so it makes me excited to do it! My bank account is not as excited ;) Haha!
We had wood tile in our home previously! when im a millionaire my home will be wall to wall tile becasue i loved it so much
My sister said the same thing. She wishes she could have put it in her whole home. I am excited to get the samples and pick one!
So so very sorry you have been faced with such a chllenge so early in the year. What a bummer to need to make adjustments to the budget so early on with a cannot be delayed challenge. Perhaps this will be getting the ugly episode over with early on and smoother sailing the rest of the year.
Thanks! I am hoping so too! But I am kind of glad it happened in the winter when I am not trying to also do outside projects.