The tile guy left a level in my wall - should I go back and get it or leave it?

I was remodeling my guest bathroom in Austin last month and the tile installer dropped his 4-foot level into the open wall cavity behind the shower valve. He said he couldn't reach it and we just moved on. Now I'm standing here looking at the drywall patch and wondering if that level is going to rattle around forever or cause some weird issue down the road. My buddy says leave it, it's just a level. But I keep thinking about how it might shift and hit a pipe or something. Has anyone else accidentally sealed something inside a wall and regretted it later or am I overthinking this?

3 comments

3 Comments

thomasgonzalez5h ago

Should you really just leave a tool in the wall like that? I'd cut the drywall open and grab it, levels aren't cheap and that one probably cost the tile guy a good chunk of change. It's not gonna hurt anything but it'll bug you forever knowing it's there.

emma_baker612h ago

Oh come on, is it really that big of a deal? Sure it's a chunk of change for a level but it's already sealed up and it's not going to cause any problems. I've left way dumber stuff in walls before and never lost sleep over it. Plus cutting into drywall that's already finished is a whole messy job with mudding and painting. Not worth the hassle for a tool that's probably fine where it is. Honestly half the time you forget it's even there after a few months.

the_viola2h ago

You've got my sympathy there, that would drive me crazy knowing it's sitting in the wall... I'd go back and get it just for peace of mind, cause stuff like that always pops into my head at 2am.