Could Have Been Worse

 

Yesterday I visited with a friend whose water heater failed and flooded her entire basement while she was recovering from heart surgery.  No one found it until a neighbor went to pick up some things she needed.  We talked about the logistics and damage and insurance issues during the visit.  I felt so bad for her and the additional stress on her right now as she has to depend on others to oversee repairs for her.

I came home and a few minutes later my neighbor called, wanting to return the high chair she had borrowed.  (Best $5 high chair purchase ever - great for guests and lending to others)  I stepped into the garage to open the doors for her and noticed water on the floor in front of my freezer.  My first thought was that the freezer had quit but it was fine.  Then I noticed water running off the platform in the corner where the water heater sits.



I told my neighbor, she brought her husband and we quickly moved everything we could.  C. shut off the gas and the water and we hooked up a garden hose to drain the tank onto the lawn.  Then C brought over a mop and bucket and cleaned up the rest of the water.  I called the company I use for my furnace and they will send someone today.  However a new tank will have to be ordered and that will take three to five days so it's roughing it time here for awhile.  I told my friend that I think I brought her bad water heater karma home with me but in all honesty I may not have realized the problem if we hadn't just been talking about water heater flooding.

When I think about how much worse it could have been I am so aware of the tender mercies that happened.  It could have been today while I was supposed to be out of town.  It could have been later this month while I plan to go out of state.  Or it could have been later this year when I'll be gone for a couple of weeks at a time.  Instead, I think I found it within just a few minutes after it began leaking from the bottom.  There were a number of cardboard boxes sitting in front of it and I had been meaning to move them somewhere else so I could defrost the freezer.  They were on pieces of carpet that were soaked, but the boxes are not wet.  Only one box was wet and it was next to the platform and received the initial waterfall.
I was really looking forward to my trip today, spending time with Neal's sisters, hiking together and just enjoying family time.  That certainly would have been cheaper than this will be!
But I am grateful it wasn't any worse.