Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard Armchair Anonymous: Remodeling Disaster
Mar 13, 2026
Jessica, a listener who recounts a DIY floor-refinish that led to a garage fire and lost belongings. Megan, a listener who hired painters only to find drug paraphernalia and months of harassment. Elise, a listener who bought a fixer-upper that suffered floods, sewage backups, and a $40,000 pipe replacement. Short, wild renovation stories filled with unexpected danger and chaos.
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DIY Fixer Flood Turned Sewage Catastrophe
- Elise recounted buying and gutting a rat-infested fixer-upper, then finishing a kitchen only to have a second-floor water line flood and ruin newly installed hardwood and cabinets.
- Months later a clogged main line led to a pressurized balloon device bursting sewage through the kitchen sink, causing standing fecal waste and a $40,000 cast-iron pipe replacement due to root intrusion.
Call A Plumber Before Using High Pressure Drain Tools
- Avoid DIY high-pressure drain tricks when a main line is clogged; call a plumber to camera-inspect lines first.
- Elise notes plumbers would have run a camera and discovered tree-root infiltration, preventing the device that burst and the subsequent sewage exposure and costly foundation plumbing replacement.
Flooring Labor Caused A Uterine Prolapse
- Callie spent 1.5 days scraping glued vinyl bathroom flooring and developed severe straining that led to a uterine prolapse she discovered in the shower.
- Her doctor confirmed prolapse likely triggered by the exertion; Callie later chose hysterectomy after symptoms worsened and conservative options (a pessary cup) were unsatisfactory.