# Most recent horror story....



## TotalPlumber (Sep 30, 2008)

This was a customer that stated he had less and less hot water....this heater has been installed just as shown for over 4 years.
It is in the basement laundry room in the center of the house, backing up to a garage. Daughter's bedroom with infant girl lives in adjoining room.
Customer stated that the previous plumber told him that it didn't need to be vented because of the "new sealed burner."
I quoted him our standard rate to replace and re-connect the flue, then he told me that the guy that put it in only charged him $200.00, and I was too high! I don't want customers like him, anyway.


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## ILPlumber (Jun 17, 2008)

I'd have to call the inspector before somebody died if the client didn't want to pay me to make the repair. 

I wouldn't want that on my conscience.


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## Va. Plumber (Dec 8, 2008)

I would have turned off the gas.


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## Wethead (Oct 13, 2008)

CAN YOU SAY

Condemned 

Red TAG

I WOULD actually call the fire department as well as they handle CO2 issues now


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## muck (Oct 10, 2008)

at least he had an easy spot to put his sattel tee


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## 22rifle (Jun 14, 2008)

@#$%&*


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## Bill (Jun 17, 2008)

What an idiot, someone should report him!


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## Wethead (Oct 13, 2008)

Bill said:


> What an idiot, someone should report him!


The worst part is the first guy .......jeez , how do you live with yourself not venting a water heater with kids in the house.....

That clearly had to be a shop with a bunch of wet backs to water heater swaps , you know the " in and outs"

There getting paid as the old heater is still on the side of the house dripping and so is the flux

What a horrible mess


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## smellslike$tome (Jun 16, 2008)

TotalPlumber said:


> This was a customer that stated he had less and less hot water....this heater has been installed just as shown for over 4 years.
> It is in the basement laundry room in the center of the house, backing up to a garage. Daughter's bedroom with infant girl lives in adjoining room.
> Customer stated that the previous plumber told him that it didn't need to be vented because of the "new sealed burner."
> I quoted him our standard rate to replace and re-connect the flue, then he told me that the guy that put it in only charged him $200.00, and I was too high! I don't want customers like him, anyway.


Man you have got to report that! We share the same market and neither of us need people like that in the trade. CO can do a lot of damage without killing you. Ask the HO how many people in the house have chronic fatigue and/or headaches. Make certain that they understand that CO is colorless and odorless and that he's been lucky so far but one morning someone is not going to wake up for school or work and maybe even nobody in the house will.

THAT IS HORRENDOUSLY DANGEROUS! The tank is a whirlpool and so it obviously came from Blowe's. Tell the HO to pay you whatever you ask immediately and then tell him to call the guy at the number on the refrigerator and he will get him all of his money back plus a whole lot more. Document everything and if it ever gets to court, make a tidy sum as an expert witness. Whoever did it should be driven out of the trade in shame and Blowe's should be made to pay for sending someone like that out there.


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## PlumcrzyRedneck (Dec 13, 2008)

Oh my God! I would have turned off the gas and called an inspector IMMEDIATELY!! then I would find out who did it and report them. I would also write down and document everything that i saw and explain the severity of the situation to the HO and then get him to sign saying that he did'nt want me to do anything, I would also take pictures ( as you obviously did ) That is extremely DANGEROUS! shoot here they would fail it for having a valve on the hot side.


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

Wow! It is unbelievable that anyone could do that!

Whoever did that install should be locked up!:furious:
I too would have turned it off immediately and if they didn't want the work done had it red tagged.


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## smellslike$tome (Jun 16, 2008)

Come to think of it, if you don't report it, I bet you are setting yourself up for some kind of liability jeopardy later on if anything happens since you were there and didn't notify anybody even though you had nothing to do with the install. That guy on the refrigerator won't care one bit that you didn't install it.


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## PipemanNYC (Nov 21, 2008)

WHat a F****ng Ass guys like that need a beat down ,, and what the hell is that ell facing up going outside the house...


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## ROCKSTARPLUMBER (Dec 14, 2008)

Yea, looking at it, that ell probably spins freely. i would have at least tried that. If I would have seen that, i would have either sold him at least a CM detector, or a parrot. "Take your pick, The bird or the differnt smoke alarm?", "whats that sir?", " Oh no sir, the parrot doesn't need batteries."


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## pzmember (Sep 20, 2008)

people have died from bad venting, how in the hell is anyone in that house alive. that is the biggest pile of bulls!%$ ive seen. you should have called the local inspector immediatly and start the ball rolling on s!%thammering this a-hole. if you have not called do so now. or at least the gas co.


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## TotalPlumber (Sep 30, 2008)

*Wow...*

I guess I should have posted what I did after I left the house....

1. I shut off the gas
2. I informed the HO that this is the most dangerous thing I have seen
3. I called the Gas Co.
4. I called the plumbing/gas inspection office
5. I informed the customer that I was going to make the calls, and he couldn't stop me.
6. I had the customer sign a "hold-harmless" agreement specifically mentioning the improperly installed water heater.

I'll post his name and phone number if you need to speak with him directly.

BTW , he stated that this install was done by a handyman. go figure.


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## ROCKSTARPLUMBER (Dec 14, 2008)

I swear, these freakin handy men. I would try my best to find out who this unhandy man is and stick it to his ass. These SOB's around here do plumbing work all the time. No license either. I try to keep up with the new ones that pop up around here. Have a fairly new one, called and asked them about plumbing work, said they had a plumbing license, that they could remodel my bathroom, move the toilet over 15" for me in the slab.
Checked them out online, no license. Really pees me off. Charge over 85 an hour too.


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## Bulldog Plumbing (Nov 9, 2008)

Wow

That heater is clearly not sitting level.


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## M5Plumb (Oct 2, 2008)

Kill the gas, call the inspector, make the HO call the idiot who did this and have them fix it right, pay the fines for not being licensed etc....That is Bullshit!!!


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## brain freeze (Oct 20, 2008)

i'd like to invite the original installer up here and take him for a walk at the flow-edge.

nobody would ever know.

Vince

if i were the HO, i would sue


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## service guy (Jun 26, 2008)

TotalPlumber said:


> I quoted him our standard rate to replace and re-connect the flue, then he told me that the guy that put it in only charged him $200.00, and I was too high!


While everyone is rightfully angry at the hack who did this dangerous job, this would have never happened if it weren't for the ignorant, cheapskate mentality of the homeowner! A lot of the blame lies on the homeowner imo. *Totalplumber pointed out how obviously wrong and dangerous the installation was, and he offered to replace it at his standard price and he got thrown out!!! * *The idiot homeowner deserves this sort of thing with that kind of attitude.* Customer's like that really tick me off, and I feel they deserve the dangerous hacked up work in their house since they aren't willing to pay for professional, LEGAL installations of their gas appliances.


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## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

service guy said:


> While everyone is rightfully angry at the hack who did this dangerous job, this would have never happened if it weren't for the ignorant, cheapskate mentality of the homeowner! A lot of the blame lies on the homeowner imo. *Totalplumber pointed out how obviously wrong and dangerous the installation was, and he offered to replace it at his standard price and he got thrown out!!! * *The idiot homeowner deserves this sort of thing with that kind of attitude.* Customer's like that really tick me off, and I feel they deserve the dangerous hacked up work in their house since they aren't willing to pay for professional, LEGAL installations of their gas appliances.


 
this is the root of the problem for sure. the handymen exist only because there is a market for them. people think plumbing is easy, just snake a drain here (probably make a huge mess and ruin their rug) and fix a leak there (hose clamps and rubber patches or sloppy booger soldering). there's a mentality that it's not worth paying a fair price for quality work because "my friend can do it too". if the public knew more about the hazzards of improperly installed and repaired plumbing, they _might_ be willing to spend what it takes to have it done correctly. same reason home depot/walmart/mcdonalds/ect. exists. laziness and tight-waddery. 

don't think i believe they all deserve to die in their sleep but the homeowner should shoulder the majority of the blame here.







paul


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## brain freeze (Oct 20, 2008)

rocksteady said:


> this is the root of the problem for sure. the handymen exist only because there is a market for them. people think plumbing is easy, just snake a drain here (probably make a huge mess and ruin their rug) and fix a leak there (hose clamps and rubber patches or sloppy booger soldering). there's a mentality that it's not worth paying a fair price for quality work because "my friend can do it too". if the public knew more about the hazzards of improperly installed and repaired plumbing, they _might_ be willing to spend what it takes to have it done correctly. same reason home depot/walmart/mcdonalds/ect. exists. laziness and tight-waddery.
> 
> don't think i believe they all deserve to die in their sleep but the homeowner should shoulder the majority of the blame here.
> 
> ...


 
here here.

Vince


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## TDB (Jun 25, 2008)

a efficient burning W/H will put out less than 20ppm CO which happens to be "safe". Still illegal and I can only imagine what the other installs this guy did look like. Must be a disaster zone in the neighborhood.

Also, that heater needs some form of seperation on the inlet and outlet...


How tough could it be to slap a couple adjustable 90s and a stick or 2 of flue together? About 10 minutes and 10 dollars....


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## Herk (Jun 12, 2008)

The homeowner may shoulder most of the responsibility, but he and his family could just as easily have wound up dead. He was preyed upon by someone who had no business doing the work. I'll be happy to lay ALL of the responsibility on his shoulders. 

The homeowner can bask in the luxury of being stupid. People working with gas appliances cannot.


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## smellslike$tome (Jun 16, 2008)

service guy said:


> While everyone is rightfully angry at the hack who did this dangerous job, this would have never happened if it weren't for the ignorant, cheapskate mentality of the homeowner! A lot of the blame lies on the homeowner imo. *Totalplumber pointed out how obviously wrong and dangerous the installation was, and he offered to replace it at his standard price and he got thrown out!!! * *The idiot homeowner deserves this sort of thing with that kind of attitude.* Customer's like that really tick me off, and I feel they deserve the dangerous hacked up work in their house since they aren't willing to pay for professional, LEGAL installations of their gas appliances.


I hear you SG but remember this, he may "deserve" what he gets but his kids most certainly do not.


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## smellslike$tome (Jun 16, 2008)

TDB said:


> a efficient burning W/H will put out less than 20ppm CO which happens to be "safe". Still illegal and I can only imagine what the other installs this guy did look like. Must be a disaster zone in the neighborhood.
> 
> Also, that heater needs some form of seperation on the inlet and outlet...
> 
> ...


Again, CO doesn't have to kill you to ruin your day. 

Ever been working in an attic or other space in which vent piping leaked? How long did it take you to start getting a wicked headache? It hits me in about 3 minutes.

I had a client a few months back for whom someone vented her ng water heater using flexible dryer vent. So help me it was flexible dryer vent and had bends resembling an S-trap and open gaps in a couple of places. Before I told her what I had found I went back upstairs and asked her if anyone in the family had been suffering from severe headaches. This stunned look of disbelief came over her face. She had been to a BUNCH of doctors about it with no relief. I repaired the vent. Later we got called back for other work at which time she reported that the headaches had stopped.


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## service guy (Jun 26, 2008)

smellslike$tome said:


> I hear you SG but remember this, he may "deserve" what he gets but his kids most certainly do not.


Again, *he was offered to repair it and correct the danger and he refused.*:blink: He is consciously putting his family at risk. That is what I call "stupid cheap."


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## smellslike$tome (Jun 16, 2008)

service guy said:


> Again, *he was offered to repair it and correct the danger and he refused.*:blink: He is consciously putting his family at risk. That is what I call "stupid cheap."


I agree but my point was that the kids have no voice in this. Under the circumstances I would not have hesitated to alert everybody possible so that the guy was forced to have the repairs made whether I did them or not.


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## Kyle181 (Sep 5, 2008)

ive never seen that before, thats horrible, good job on calling the proper authorities and shutting off the gas


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## service guy (Jun 26, 2008)

smellslike$tome said:


> I agree but my point was that the kids have no voice in this. Under the circumstances I would not have hesitated to alert everybody possible so that the guy was forced to have the repairs made whether I did them or not.


Oh yes, I would have absolutely reported this situation to the authorities.


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