© That Smith, 2008. | Permalink | 3 comments
Post tags: Home, homeowners, house, wichita

The total damage was $85 and a week of not being able to wash our towels. We did end up pulling out the floor tile in our laundry room (which is something we were eventually going to do anyway) and now have a 1m x .5m hole in our paneling.

I wasn’t very fond of the paneling either so I won’t be too upset about tearing out the rest of it.

Before:

After:

The three sections in the picture above each had about 2 inches of moldy insulation in the bottom. The washer drain pipe in the center section meets the pipe from the kitchen sink and dishwasher on the right. The cleanout valve (bottom right) had to be forced open to remove grease and other junk and I guess needs to be cut out and replaced now too.

On a positive note, the rest of our basement wasn’t affected by the flooding in the laundry room. Laura is almost done painting our basement family room as well.

This is the large wall by the bar. The rest of the room is light beige.

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We went to Overland Park for Father’s Day but first found out our washing machine leaked everywhere the night before. Last night we discovered the leak was actually coming from the drain pipe in the wall rather than the washer, so we tore out some paneling and floor tile only to discover there was also black mold growing there too.

This is the first time we’ve ever had an issue with our plumbing, but by the looks of it the previous owners did too. I removed most of the mold and am waiting for bleach to kill the rest. Tonight we bought an auger and tried to fix the clogged pipe ourselves but had no luck, so I will be calling a plumber tomorrow during my lunch break.

Luckily so far Kaden hasn’t complained any about the mold. Here’s some pictures Laura took of him Monday. We bought his nice outfit at Goodwill.

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These are my 8 bad things about being a new homeowner:

• Traveling trash

Apparently when you become a homeowner you also become keeper of everyone else’s trash. I’m not talking about storage either, that comes later. Maybe this is something that comes with being on a corner lot, because what I’m talking about is the trash that always finds its way into our driveway and yard now that we own a house.

Laura and I often discover plastic bags that somehow make their way into our rose bush, and regularly find cans when we go out for the mail. I’m sure plenty of people’s trash was around when we lived at the apartment – we just didn’t care then because we weren’t the ones that had to pick it up. Now we are.

• Plumbing woes

I suppose we have been lucky because we have not had any major issues with our new home, but when things do happen they really stir us up.

We have had a few minor issues with our plumbing, such as clogged sinks and toilets, but every time we have one we immediately assume the worst.

When I lived in the apartment or with my parents they happened all the time. Now we worry more because even parts of the house we never see are our responsibility.

• Storage for other people’s junk

I am going to take a wild guess here and say that everyone has a lot of junk but us and no place to store it. It at least seems that way when you move from a small area to a large one and don’t have enough things with which to fill it.

Since we moved 5 months ago certain areas and closets of our house have been used for storing things we don’t want and neither do the people that sneak them over.

Most likely when you first move – if you are close enough to friends or family – parts of your house will become a community storage shed too. Doesn’t anyone ever have garage sales anymore? Oh yeah, that’s why these things are at our house…

• Hosting events for family

If your house has enough space and a prime location, then most likely you will be nominated or chosen to host family functions too. I enjoy cooking and eating, I just prefer to do it for myself.

What’s worse is when it’s decided that you will be storing and hosting the family garage sale as well. This was not in the new homeowner’s manual!

• Becoming a place for relatives to stay

Similar to becoming host to family functions, if you have a large enough house (eg: 4 bedrooms and only 2 family members) you will probably get to become the family hotel as well.

There is nothing worse for a new homeowner than seeing someone else use your fridge, eat your food, wash clothes in your laundry room, and use your toilet paper. Awful, just awful.

• Neighborhood kids and charities

I disliked the neighbor kids at our apartment because they always enjoyed playing in the parking lot or in the pond outside our window when I was trying to sleep in.

I figured they would go away when we bought a house, but they didn’t. They’re just different neighbor kids now. The one’s we have always walk through our grass and occasionally leave their bikes lying in the corner of our yard.

I see them dragging sticks down the street that always end up somewhere in my yard. They also have a thing for looking in mailboxes – which has got to stop. Then they knock on your door when they have something to sell.

• Increase in junk mail and telemarketing

We used to get junk mail and occasional phone calls when we lived at the apartment, but now we get even more. It seems like every company that offers credit cards will send them to you and relatives that don’t even live in your house when you become a homeowner.

Laura gets them from WaMu every day and receives offers for mortgage life insurance even though her name is on the house and not the mortgage. Her dad has gotten a few things at our address because he is listed on her car title.

I also list my 316 number as our home and business number, even though it’s my cell phone. Now that we don’t have an apartment number after our address it seems that people call more for surveys and to offer business services because now they can’t tell.

• Increased area requires increased security

The worst thing they don’t tell you when you become a new homeowner is you will probably feel less secure. Especially if you move from a small, cozy apartment to a large house.

Laura and I are still trying to adapt to the change and continue to wake up to unfamiliar sounds coming from other areas of our home. We now have 3 doors rather than just one, and a bunch more windows.

I know I will be traveling for work in the future and I already worry about her and the baby being alone. I plan to add a few cameras around our house and will be calling ADT about a better security package.

I’m sure there were car break-ins and burglaries at the apartment, there is just more at stake when it’s just your house and all your stuff.

Of course owning a house has its perks too. We have plenty of room to roam and we don’t have to worry about being crowded when Kaden grows up. Perhaps next month I will return with a few reason why being a homeowner is awesome.

Photo: dmansouri

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