Risk of mold after toilet leak?

Question

I had a plumber come to my house to fix two toilets ( attach it properly to the floor). 6 hours after he left we noticed water on the bathroom floor. I turned out that the overflow piece that is supposed to be lower than the handle to flush the toilet was higher and the water started espaping through the opening for the handle. Today we noticed 2 wet stains on the garage ceiling ( bathroom is over the garage). One stain was about 10-12 inches in diameter.
I have a couple of questions:
1. What should I do about the stains? Is it enough just to dry the surface of the ceiling ( the toilet is not leaking anymore)? What about any moisture trapped between the bathroom floor and the garage ceiling? Is there a risk of mold growing in that area? Do I need to remove a piece of the ceiling and dry the space between the floor and the ceiling?
2. Should I ask for my money back from the plumber? He said the problem existed before he came but in that case how come it never leaked before?

The reason I'm worried about mold is because I've had allergy tests done and I'm allergic to almost 80% of the things they tested for ( and that includes mold). I would like to live in a "healthy" house.

Is there usually an insulation between the second floor room ( master suite in our case) and the garage ceiling? If so, doesn't the water get trapped in that insulation?

We dried the bathroom floor yesterday as soon as we saw the water on the floor. Today we've been having a heater on in the closed garage and the stain is not getting bigger; in fact it's drying up slowly.

Answer 1

What is the garage ceiling made of , drywall? The paper backing on drywall is a good growth medium.

It sounds like you dried it out rather quickly, so it may not become an issue. Additionally how much time do you spend in the garage and is the bathroom well ventilated generally? If the answer is little and fairly well, odds are its nothing to be overly concerned about yet.

One caveat if you do have mold growth it is likely to be in the ceiling cavity, so you are unlikely to notice it for a good while.

With that said again its probably not worth worrying too heavily, the worry and stress may actually impact your health than a smallish amount of mold.

www.hawaiimold.com

Answer 2

The Plumber that you had isn't responsible for Pryor leaks or water damage but he or she should have checked for proper operation of the toilet, In my opinion the leak over the handle and onto the floor is worthy of a call back, next are the water stains getting bigger? If they are then there is still a leak. it could be a water connection or a wax ring leaking.Stop the water soon,let the ceiling dry, I wouldn't worry about mold if the leak is stopped fairly quick, If the stain gets bigger cut the ceiling open and see where the leak is coming from. cracked pipe call the plumber, leaking wax ring. call the plumbers insurance

Answer 3

If the plumber simply reset the toilets, then no he didn't touch anything inside the tank. Most people would not worry about the posibility of mold growing, but there is a chance that mold could grow inbetween the floor and the ceiling. If it worries you that much than yes cut out the sheetrock, remove the insulation, replace the wet with new, and replace the sheetrock. Otherwise paint over the dark spot, and forget about it.

Answer 4

If this just occured and you caught it in one day, you wont have enough moisture sitting above your ceiling to worry about mold forming. You need moisture over a much longer period of time for that to start. As far as the ceiling, I am assuming you have a standard sheetrock ceiling in the garage? If that is the case, with a small leak that was caught fast, put a small fan in the garage to blow on the area. When it dries out ( a day or two), prime it with KILZ II, a primer/sealer made specifically for prevention of mold and mildew, then paint the area. As far as the plumber goes, it would turn into a "he said, she said" match in court. That is up to you if you want to take him to small claims court. I hope this helps you.

Answer 5

Any plumber that would install any toilet and leave without checking that it was operating properly shouldn't be in the business. Regardless of the height of the overflow tube in the tank, the water level should have been set correctly and should not reach the top of the overflow tube unless the fill valve is broken. If it were my home, I'd remove a piece of the ceiling to allow it to dry, where the water seeped through from the floor above, and I'd either insist on payment for the repairs for a job sloppily done, or sue the plumber if he doesn't comply.

Answer 6

sounds like you had a defective toilet. The plumber installed the toilets properly if they dont leak at the floor, however, He should have made sure they were working properly before he left. Dont worry about mold, there was not enough moisture to create any

Answer 7

Don't panic over mold concerns so soon, If the leak was minimal and short lived it will dry naturally in time and shouldn't pose a problem.After the stain has ample time to dry out, paint over with a quality stain blocker and paint to match. Asking for your money back could prove to be a challenge, sounds to me like he caused more of a problem than you you had to start with. If the water damage is more than minimal you may need to cut out sections of the drywall and air out the affected area. Drywall can swell and distort after prolonged contact with water.

Answer 8

Mold needs three things to survive. they need warmth, food (wood/organic material) and moisture. since it only happened quickly I think the risk of mold growing in there is very low. to ensure that it does not, open a small hole in the ceiling of the garage and spray straight bleach inside the cavity. this will kill any and all mold growing inside.

Answer 9

You will find it in the "perils" section. Plumbing leaks are generally covered, as long as they are sudden and accidental. If water slowly leaked over a period of time, it won't be covered, whether you knew about it or not. If you are asking which specific damage will be covered, the answer will be either all of it, minus your deductible, or none of it- depending on whether it's a covered loss.

Answer 10

Make sure when you do paint that the paint has the mold resistant chemical in the paint or added to it, your paint store will know.