Toilet leak - how to mitigate water damage?

[grego33]

I just found a leak from the fill valve of my toilet in the house we recently moved into. The PO must have doubled-up on the chlorine tablets and a gasket failed.

It went unnoticed because we had temporarily moved upstairs due to a furnace problem. I discovered it by seeing the puddle in the crawlspace going under there with the HVAC guy. A bit of a bad luck string for us.

Anyway, it's leaked through some of the floorboards below the toilet. I am looking for how to get that dried out. Do I need to pull up the tile? Do I point a fan up there? It's going to get down to 35F tonight and below freezing in the coming days. I don't know whether it's better to bundle the insulation back up in there (and trap the moisture) or let it air out as much as possible (and risk things freezing).

Advice?

 

[Gary Swart]

You need to expose as much of the wet to air. A fan would help. Try to get the air to circulate. Even a little heat in the area would be beneficial and help prevent freezing. From the photo, it looks to me like everything will dry out OK. I would leave the tile alone at least for now. Wait and see how things dry out and if the tile loosens. Insulation will impede the drying process. Don't get the insulation wet either. Be very careful if you use an electric space heater. Keep it well away from walls and flooring. More or less the same precautions if you use heat lamps. They're not as prone to start fires, but they can if care isn't taken. You might rig a plastic curtain around the area to help keep the heat from escaping, but again be super aware of fire danger. Wood can take a lot of water exposure without damage, but fire can ruin your whole day. You might check with local rental companies about fans. They may have fans that will blow warm air (not hot)

 

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[grego33]

fire can ruin your whole day

If that isn't an understatement, I don't know what is!

Thanks for the great (and prompt) advice! It's reassuring to hear you don't think it should have a problem drying. I wasn't aware there were warm air fans. That sounds ideal. For tonight I placed the insulation kind of back up there, not as tight as it was. The paper backing is a bit wet so I think replacing a few pieces of insulation is a small price to pay. Some of it wasn't looking great anyway. I'll look for a source for a warm air fan and try and get one on there pronto in the morning.

Thanks again!