Halloween Horror Story (Eeeeep!)

We had hoped to get through Halloween without any horrors, but it wasn't to be. Hubby came downstairs and, at at the base of the stairway, the carpet was squishy wet. (Eeeeeek!)

Where did the leak lurk? We know water accumulates under the stairs. Our first leak years ago was caused by condensation on an air conditioning line. It had no place to drip except onto the floor. All summer long. The bills totaled up to a terrifying amount. We've had several leaks since, all in the area where our HVAC and water heater reside. (Yaaagh!)

We bravely set out to see what was leaking. We don't have a spooky basement to descend into, but the closets to the water heater and HVAC were plenty scary enough. The doors creak loudly. Our active spider population supplies enough webs and creepie-crawlies to terrify any homeowner, and we hadn't opened the closets for at least 2 years. (Shrieeeeek!)

Hubby spotted the leak. It was a water line connected to the water heater. Water was spritzing out of it. The leak was probably about the size of a large pinhole; or a small spider fang, if you want to stay in the Halloween spirit. (Yipes!)

Also in keeping with the mischievous spirits of Halloween, today was the day we were finally supposed to get our rain. Sure enough, it started just as Hubby stepped on the squishy spot. The door to the water heater is outside, so we got drenched looking for the leak. Once we got back indoors the rain stopped. (Doom dum DAAAAAA!)

At this point in a spooky movie, people get nervous and call for help, only to find that help can't reach them... they're on their own. Sure enough, our plumber was booked solid. The emergency plumber who once replaced our water heater did not answer; his answering machine said that 'someone would call back when they could.' (Nooooooooo!)

Our regular plumber gave us the number of a fellow plumber who was reliable. We called him and he promised to be there in 2 hours. That's a long time to wait when a pipe is spritzing. Duct tape made the leak worse, so we knew we'd have to not use any water until everything was fixed. (Yowww!)

After 2 anxious hours the sky opened and the rain poured. It got so dark we had to turn on the lights. Then... there was a knock on the door. I half expected an enraged water beast, but it was the plumber. I led him through the pouring rain to the spider-closet of doom, then fled to shelter. (Squelch! Squelch!)

Once I got inside the rain let up. The plumber fixed the line and the only terror left was the bill (Howl!) 

So if kiddies come to the door tonight expecting to scare us, they'll be disappointed. We've already had our scare, and lived to tell the tale. (Sinister organ music plays....)