Dishwasher Replacement Update
I wanted to post the pictures of the repaired wall and newly installed dishwasher today, but unfortunately this is still a work in progress. What follows is an update.
Here is our new dishwasher, as I unpacked it Monday on the back patio and prepared to spray down all of the plastic bits with vodka. I also hooked it up here on the patio using the garden hose and a half-dozen little brass adapter doo-dads. It only leaks a little. I am grateful that I am not a plumber.
We picked a model with a stainless steel tub because we figured it would take a plastic tub a lot longer to off-gas. Unfortunately, I hadn't anticipated the asphalt-based insulation that covered the thing. One smell of that stuff during the wash cycle told us it had to go. Here I am scraping it off. Not fun. We'll have to come up with some other way to insulate the tub.
On Monday, we also had a mold specialist come and do an assessment. He looked at the wet drywall and thought we probably caught the leak in time to avoid any mold growth. Still, to be on the safe side, we had a disaster specialist come, set up a containment area and take out the affected wall-board on Wednesday. No pictures of this - sorry - but imagine sheets of plastic taped to the floor and the counter tops, creating a little plastic bubble. I'm glad it wasn't me crouched down in there.
The good news is that there was no visible growth - big relief. This is what the drywall looked like when he was done.
Although the dishwasher outside is running and we've actually put a few loads through it, we're still using Pawelu as well, having moved it out into the middle of the kitchen and set towels behind it to catch the water. This arrangement has not been perfect, however, and twice water made its way back to the wall, getting the studs wet again. As you might imagine, when trying to avoid mold growth, it's important the wood be dry before covering it up.
I wasn't able to patch the wall yesterday because the boards still need another day to dry. The best I could do was trim it up square in preparation for the HardiBacker cement board I will be using tomorrow to patch the holes. Once that's done, I'll cover the wall with tile.
With any luck, that will be done in the next few days. I'll keep you posted.
Here is our new dishwasher, as I unpacked it Monday on the back patio and prepared to spray down all of the plastic bits with vodka. I also hooked it up here on the patio using the garden hose and a half-dozen little brass adapter doo-dads. It only leaks a little. I am grateful that I am not a plumber.
We picked a model with a stainless steel tub because we figured it would take a plastic tub a lot longer to off-gas. Unfortunately, I hadn't anticipated the asphalt-based insulation that covered the thing. One smell of that stuff during the wash cycle told us it had to go. Here I am scraping it off. Not fun. We'll have to come up with some other way to insulate the tub.
On Monday, we also had a mold specialist come and do an assessment. He looked at the wet drywall and thought we probably caught the leak in time to avoid any mold growth. Still, to be on the safe side, we had a disaster specialist come, set up a containment area and take out the affected wall-board on Wednesday. No pictures of this - sorry - but imagine sheets of plastic taped to the floor and the counter tops, creating a little plastic bubble. I'm glad it wasn't me crouched down in there.The good news is that there was no visible growth - big relief. This is what the drywall looked like when he was done.
Although the dishwasher outside is running and we've actually put a few loads through it, we're still using Pawelu as well, having moved it out into the middle of the kitchen and set towels behind it to catch the water. This arrangement has not been perfect, however, and twice water made its way back to the wall, getting the studs wet again. As you might imagine, when trying to avoid mold growth, it's important the wood be dry before covering it up.
I wasn't able to patch the wall yesterday because the boards still need another day to dry. The best I could do was trim it up square in preparation for the HardiBacker cement board I will be using tomorrow to patch the holes. Once that's done, I'll cover the wall with tile.
With any luck, that will be done in the next few days. I'll keep you posted.
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