That’s what happened to Terri Gulasy’s house. A 15-year-old water line behind the fridge started failing, developing small holes that leaked water for months.
“We could see the floor in front of the refrigerator buckling,” Gulasy said. “That’s when we decided this is a bigger problem than what we thought.”
Once they’d discovered the source of the leak, Gulasy called Burggraf.
“Overall, I think they did a very good job,” she said of the kitchen restoration. “It turned out great.”
You had a slow leak behind the fridge from the water line, and there was damage to your hardwood floors and the wall behind the fridge. What were you thinking and feeling when you discovered the leak?
With hindsight, I think back to some minor problems we had with the ice maker, but we didn’t really put anything together.
At first, we weren’t sure it was that big of a problem. Then it got visibly worse. We could see the floor in front of the refrigerator buckling, and then it was moving over by the sink. That’s when we decided this is a bigger problem than what we thought.
We pulled the refrigerator out and saw water on the floor, but didn’t know where it was coming from.
We turned the water off and then we turned the water back on and immediately could see that there were pinholes in the plastic line and it was spraying against the back of the wall and dripping down the back of the refrigerator. So we shut it off again.
This had apparently been going on for months. The refrigerator’s 15 years old, it was just fine. But I guess the plastic got old and brittle and it developed those little pinholes, being under pressure.
We pulled it out, we mopped it up, we debated on what to do, and then called Burggraf the next day.
Did you have any other damage, like mold?
Yes. They took it all the way down to the studs when they did the demo. They pulled out the insulation and there was mold damage in both the cabinets there, and the wall behind it. And that was all sprayed.
Why did you choose Burggraf?
I wasn’t aware there was really anybody else. Burggraf was the name that came to mind. I just Googled water damage and you guys came up and I said, “That’s enough for me.” And we called.
What was the plan of recovery? How long did restoration take?
It took four months. I think Jason was the first guy that came out because you were really busy at the time because there had been the fires in Mannford and then some other storm. He came out and said it might be as quick as two months, but it would probably be longer than that. So he told us up front it was gonna be a while.
Did you have to be out of your home during restoration?
We stayed in the house for everything except for the floor refinishing and when we got to that point, we were out for a week. However, we had no kitchen for that whole time.
Burggraf pulled up the center island, which is the dishwasher and the sink and the cabinets where the refrigerator was, and next to it was where the cooktop was. So we had no cooktop either.
And then when the kitchen got sealed off, we didn’t have access to the microwave or the oven, so it was kind of inconvenient. We lived on takeout.
Did Burggraf help you with the insurance process?
Yes, they did. They handled it pretty much completely. There was a bit where I was involved right at the beginning, getting the estimates done, but for the most part I didn’t talk to insurance after that.
How would you say that Burggraf helped you avoid failure?
I have a very large kitchen island with a granite countertop and they did a very good job of preserving my granite because it matches everything else in the house. It sat in the garage against the wall for three months and then they came back out and put it back in place and it all came out just fine.
I would’ve been very disappointed if they had broken that, but they didn’t.
Would you recommend Burggraf to others?
Oh, yes. Yes. Overall, I think they did a very good job. It turned out great. I have no complaints on that.
Bill Shouse was the manager on it and he did great. Patrick, the guy with the insurance and the estimating, was really nice.
There was a small punch list when it was over with a couple of things that needed correcting and they dealt with it just fine.
Clean Up Water Damage Fast
When you need water damage cleaned up fast and cleaned up right, give Burggraf a call. We’ll get you back on your feet.