Water leaked under laminate floor boards. What's the plan?

[Beartracks]

I've got laminate wood floor (placed atop cement) butting up against a wall on the other side of which is a tiled bathroom. A slow leak from the toilet apparently seeped under the sink cabinet, under the wall, and into the hallway, but the only reason I know it's there is because the laminate makes a squishy sound when I walk on it. Of my entire laminate floor, this hallway is the side of the house where the boards started getting laid down, so, if I'm not mistaken, I can't lift the boards out to air dry unless I take out ALL the laminate starting from the other side of the house.

1) Is it possible to lift out these boards without having to take out the entire floor?
2) Is there another approach I might take to dry out the floor without removing boards? Would fans help it dry through gradual seep-y evaporation or something?

[Silver Gaia]

1. We had a similar thing happen in our family room,

which was added by a previous owner atop what had been a concrete patio. As I recall, we used an oscillating saw wih a flat blade to saw along the joining lines of the laminate we needed to replace so that it could be lifted out. Our piece had to be replaced because it had warped, but we just removed the appropriate parts of the new piece and used flooring glue so that it could be laid in flat to replace the damaged portion. You can't tell unless you know what you're looking for, so WE know, but no one else notices. I hope that helps you!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

2. You can "work backwards" when re installing the flooring

I got the idea watching a pro put down a floor that way. I’ve done quite a bit of it. Sometimes it’s unavoidable if you center on a hall entrance and then have to go opposite directions when you reach two adjoining rooms.

It just takes a little more finesse.

I’m sure there are YouTube videos on the subject.

[Bobstandard]

3. I bet there's a YouTube video tackling this exact issue

Some hardwood laminates are nearly impervious to water. While evaporation might work in time, mold development becomes a worry.

I’m guessing there’s someone on YouTube who addresses this problem and can reveal how to expose the subfloor in an area without much trouble. There is also certainly some flooring contractor around who knows how to fix the problem too and it might be worth while getting a bid.

Of course the source of the leak has to be fixed first.

[Beartracks]

4. Its the valve assembly in the tank. It leaks a wee bit, the tank fills...

... and then water dribbles out the hole where the flusher handle sticks through.

So an easy enough fix, but... geeze, I just didn't the extra hassle of the floor right now.

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[KY_EnviroGuy]

5. Lots of air movement should do it and as warm as possible.

I've dried out many a flooded basement for friends and my own areas where our roof leaked and have been surprised at how effective moving lots of air can be, along with patience.

Moisture will migrate toward drier air and yes, that's simple physics.

You might be able to lift the boards slightly with those big mover's suction cups just enough to help with moisture migration, assuming the surface is slick. Tie them up to a ladder straddling the area and move it around through the day.

Just some thoughts from an old knucklehead......

[Beartracks]

6. The squishy area was right alongside where the boards also happen to abut against my tile entryway...

... and there was a tiny bit of seepage along that seam. So I've had a fan blowing across that edge for couple days now, hoping that the moisture can sort of "wick out" that way.

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[KY_EnviroGuy]

7. Try using heat and try to get rid of that moist air you're creating.

You can use heat (via your furnace or portable heaters) to speed up the process but also remember the moisture is now contained in the room air, which you should get rid of. If not, it will eventually condense onto cold windows and walls. You can help that process by ensuring some fresh air entry/moist air exhaust until drying is done.

A portable dehumidifier would help tremendously to speed things up, if you could borrow or rent one.

Another thing that will speed up the process is to run a wet/dry shop vac around the edges and cracks. That will pull any remaining water toward the open air for evaporation.

I know well how frustrating this can be and wish you the best of luck.

KY