Frozen washing machine

[jessmarimba]

Ok - random update here - still not sure what caused the gigantic puddle to form but the cabinet is completely disassembled (after 4 hours, 2 beers, and a crowbar)...

I also had to rip the sopping wet drywall off of the little box/cover built over the plumbing to make sure the pipes didn't actually burst. Well, taking off the drywall gave me my one and only glimpse at what the addition on the house looked at pre-asbestos siding: BRIGHT TURQUOISE tongue-and-groove siding (in perfect condition) and 1922 newspaper for insulation!!

Sorry, as a history buff, that completely makes up for all of the cursing and swearing so far today I'm practically giddy about it and I keep going back downstairs to look again.

[crazycanuck]

Jess, what juicy news did you find in the papers from 1922??? Coool...

[Mr. Bloom]

Every cloud has a silver lining! Awesome!

[PscyclePath]

Jess:

Check the hoses and their connections first. I had the same problem early last week with the washer draining onto the washroom floor and then running out into the carport. Thought I was going to have a pretty big job on my hands, but when I started tracing the lines, I found my 81-y/o mother had pulled one of the drain lines loose for some reason. Turned out to be a 20-second fix, thank God...

[jessmarimba]

Sheila - haven't pulled up the current plywood floor yet, but it looks like it is framed underneath (and not concrete like it appears from outside the house). I'll get to that this afternoon.

I'm probably not messing with the wall behind the appliances, since asbestos siding over wood siding over wood panels (whatever the 1920 equivalent of plywood was) stuffed with newspaper is probably as insulated as that is going to get without mold issues. I'll cover the plumbing back with plywood and add a little insulation under that and probably do blown-in insulation on the exterior walls this summer.

And the only article I can read is on a celebration of St. Louis's 100-year anniversary (it was incorporated in 1822).

[OakLeaf]

the only article I can read is on a celebration of St. Louis's 100-year anniversary (it was incorporated in 1822).

How very cool! That's a great silver lining.

[jessmarimba]

New update:

I believe this room to be an unpermitted addition. Based on the fact that A) I know building permits exist for this property back to at least 1914, and I have copies of all of them and B) the construction is beyond awful.

Half of the exterior walls have no foundation - I can stick a prybar through to the outside under the walls. If I can solve that problem, I plan to just lay in a brick floor over sand. Otherwise...I have no idea what's next. At least I know where the rot came from in the corner opposite the washer.