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I know there are a lot of posts about bad landlords (I have taken one to court before) but I have never had a landlord do this while I was still renting.
When we first moved in he told us that the sink backs up, which is due to plumbing hooked up to other apartments in the building. We did NOT know it was this bad of a problem!
Our apartment smells SO BAD... all the time. We can't get dishes done because it backs up instantly. The disposal even stops working and we are VERY, VERY careful on what does/doesn't go down the drain. (Most of the time the disposal sounds like chewbacca it is so loud, also shaking the entire counter... I suspect he needs to replace the disposal entirely... or maybe have a plumber fix it!)
Problem is... we have talked to neighbors next door and they laughed, said he was full of crap and their sink is fine. We have had him personally come look at the problem 3-4 times over the last 4 months and he tells us that he fixed it and that there's "something stuck in there that he can't get to" and leaves it at that. Then, it just goes right back to its old self. It is unhealthy to have food backing up around the kitchen, especially since I am pregnant and it is making me vomit. How should we go about this now???
ALSO: About two months ago there was disgusting black stuff that had spurt up out of the shower drain into our shower. We did not inform him about it but this sounds like a MAJOR plumbing issue.
Send him a certified letter describing the problem and giving him one last chance to fix it, present him with a dead line and tell him if not fixed properly, you will call a plumber, have it fixed and deduct it from the rent. This is a perfectly legal recourse to this problem, no one needs to live with sewage backing up. Good luck
In the certified letter describe the problem as you did on this forum, and include that the problem is a major health issue that endangers your family and pending child. If you do not get a response by the deadline, I'd give it 5 days from date of receipt, tell him and follow through, that you will call the health department. then do call the plumber yourself, and the health department so it is on record with a city authority.
Pour lysol down your drains and let it soak overnight. The WHOLE bottle.
The next morning flush the drains all morning with boiling water.(multiple large pots) Do this every month with lysol.Some use bleach but its not safe to let that lay in your pipes all night. Only for the 10 minute wait and flush. Never pour the boiling water down the toilet because you will ruin it. (crack the porc)
If its just pipe build up it will get it.
Disposals are loud. Its probably just not in there tight.
BTW - are you vomitting in the toilet?
That can clog the line and calls for a pro. I dont know where your T is at and if he has the toilet seperate from the sink drains.
From now on try to keep the morning sickness to a bag with papertowels shedded newpaper in it and throw it out.
Have a manual snake on hand.
(plus googles & gloves) Make the hubby do it because you dont want hep during your pregnancy. Backwater carries all kind of nasties.
I pulled a toothpick out of a drain I snaked.
DO NOT use harsh chemicals at all. Lysol is fine. But if it needs snaked by a pro tell him that you used bleach. Other chemicals (drain cleaners) may seem flushed but can splashback when snaking a drain and give the plumber a nasty chemical burn.
If that doesnt fix it. Start writing letters as shane said.
I think with health hazards here is 24 hours. Other repairs 10 days.
Check your local laws or call the health dept to ask.
Send a letter via fax as well as by certified mail. I would also look into an attorney. It's harder to break your lease with a private landlord than with a property managment company. There are laws against the landlord not keeping up with repairs. Your best best is to start documenting EVERYTHING and no longer contacting through calling. You need to be able to prove how many times you have called it in. Also, you may be able to threaten him by reporting him to your state's consumer affairs. I would look it up first.
Good luck on your pregnancy! I am pregnant too! 28 weeks 4 days!
(I works as an assistant property manager for an apartment community)
Being pregnant, your options are few. You may be interested in a "Constructive Eviction" which is where the landlord did, or didn't do, something to create an uninhabitable environment, forcing you to move. A pregnant woman can use health reasons as an excuse for any legitimate complaint. This is a legitimate complaint. A plumber friend of mine says, "Nothing good ever came out of a clogged sink." You need to get out. No court will knock you for protecting your unborn baby. Are you still there? Leave!
Thanks for all of your replies, he ACTUALLY listened to us when we gave him the final word. Found out there was a quarter in the disposal that was blocking the water from draining. The flaps that protect your food/hand from the drain also had to be cut... which we did ourselves. I am glad it worked out!
Caveat emptor! He told you the sink backed up but you moved in anyway. Black stuff spurted into the shower stall but you didn't tell the landlord about it. You have to read your lease agreement before signing it, understand what it says and document everything that goes wrong. All other advice given to you by posters is right on target but you have to protect yourself from the beginning of any tenancy. The very best to you and good luck. Just know in future that you need to cover your bases and, for a start, I'd suggest that you write your LL a simple letter saying what you experienced, what he did and what you did, etc. And do it certified return receipt. Cheers!
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