A Rat Chewed My Pex Plumbing Pipe Causing It To Burst
[ Friday March 10th 2023 at 5:30 pm ]
About a week ago a rat got into my home. I identified the access point it likely used while going through the process of my sump pump being replaced. A permanent repair isn't able to be executed until spring. This is because an above freezing temperature is required for the building materials to cure. I have a plan to address this in the spring.
I took the initial step to eliminate the rat a week ago. I setup poison feeding stations at the areas where the rat has been active. If successful the rat poison I used would have caused the rat to die after 5 days. This wasn't successful.
I woke up this morning to a burst pipe. When the pipes burst a few weeks ago my friend Brandon installed shut off valves to separate the kitchen water from the rest of the house. I was able to use these shut off valves to stop the leak and begin cleaning up the water. Thankfully some of it flowed directly to my sump pump and was discharged from my home.
I have some really kind friends. There is a core group of friends I have known "in real life" for 10+ years. Many of these live in the same city as myself. There is a different group of friends I am equally close to who I have got to know through the Internet after several years. I am able to be real with each person. I don't need to have a a filter when talking to any of them. I am able to speak my mind and explain (in a very honest way) if something is troubling me or share what I am working on. My friend Brandon was willing and has the technical skills to replace the section of Pex pipe that had ruptured.
Upon closer examination there were chew marks on the Pex plumbing pipe. They match the size of a pair of rat teeth. My efforts to exterminate the rat will need to escalate. The two remaining options that I may pursue are glue traps and rat electrocution. I am going to deploy both. I can't allow the continued damage the rat is causing to my home. I am hoping I wll find success in these efforts. This needs resolving as fast as practical.