Back in May we had a bit of a plumbing issue. Apparently one of the kids flushed something but no one would fess up as to who did it and what was flushed. Of course, the toilet was not working properly - it never overflowed but it did drain rather slowly. CJ and I knew something wasn't right. We even used one of those 6 ft. plumbing snakes to try and push whatever was in there, out. When this failed we decided to call a plumber.
Unfortunately, even though I had mentioned the name of the plumber my mom uses, CJ had forgotten about that the next morning when we got up and had to have this taken care of, so he just picked a plumber out of the phone book. He chose
Longs Plumbing and Remodeling - the guy had a quote under his name 'The Professor of Plumbing' (yea, professor my ass!)
He came out that day and long story short, after he tried snaking the toilet and ding something to the tank in the back, he determined the toilet would need to come off so he could really take a look at things. Understandable.
He couldn't find anything wrong but told us the seal on our toilet needed to be replaced, as well as the flange. Fine. So, after going through several parts, because he couldn't find the proper one that fit, he finally replaced what needed to be replaced but not until after he cut through a water line! Yes, while trying to replace the seal and flange he caused water to pour into my kitchen - since the bathroom is above the kitchen. I didn't get a picture of all the water but I did get a photo of what we had to do to the ceiling to get to this pipe and get it fixed.
So, after HOURS of work - of no fault of our own, he finally got things fixed and he didn't charge us to fix the water line he busted. I wouldn't have paid if he would have charged us. Well, actually, the bill to us, to basically take the toilet off the floor, replace the seal and flange, was a grand total of
$371.00 - outrageous! He probably did charge us for his screw up - it's probably hidden in the bill.
All this and still not knowing what the problem was - he told us he would need to come back and get in our attic to check the main exhaust pipe. Sometimes that can get blocked and when airflow is restricted, problems can arise. We understand that but our other toilet was functioning, as well as our sinks and bathtub. In any event, he said he would return the next day to do that and that 'should only be about another $150.00'
Oh, and THIS is how he put our toilet back on the floor:
Yup, WOODBLOCKS!
Here you can see where he chipped the bathroom floor and made a hole!
Needless to say, when we'd sit on the toilet, it would wobble. Ummm, not good. I could NOT believe he left things like this and told us that was the best he could do because we have an old house and old pipes.
He came back the next day and I told him I finally found out that a small bar of soap was what had been flushed, which explains why the toilet never overflowed and water was draining, but slowly. This also explained why nothing was found and why after a while the toilet seemed to work better. So, he didn't venture into our attic and because his policy is one free re-visit within 30 days, I didn't have to pay for this. However, I told him about how I didn't like the way he had the toilet all jacked up and again, he told me that was the best he could do.
When CJ got home we discussed this and I said there was NO WAY I was leaving the toilet this way. He agreed and gave 'the professor' a call. Whomever answered the phone (secretary? wife?) said, 'Oh, you're the people with the really small bathroom' - nice...guess that was his excuse, he told her he couldn't work properly in our bathroom because it was so small. Our bathroom is of average size, but whatever. CJ told her he was not happy with the work and she said she'd have him get back to us.
Later that night I hear 'drip, drip, drip' coming from the kitchen. THE TOILET WAS LEAKING AGAIN! CJ immediately called hm and of course, it as after hours, so he had to leave a message. The next morning 'the professor' called back and CJ told him how he wasn't happy with the work and how now things are leaking again and he needs to come out and fix the mess. The guy tells him he can come out but he won't fix it for free. These are things that have gone wrong BECAUSE of him. I told CJ that he would never walk out of a million dollar home leaving a toilet the way he left ours - guess we don't matter much.
CJ got fed up and so I told him to call the plumber my mom uses,
Northampton Oil And Heating Inc and that's who we called.
He came out that day and fixed the seal, which was what was leaking. He fixed the valve for the back of the tank. He also put our toilet back on the floor the right way:
Although, you can still see where our floor was busted by 'the professor':
This guy was in and out in under 30 minutes, fixed everything and then some, for a grand total of $92.00
'The Professor' will never be used again!
What do you think? I think it is pretty awesome! I am sure I can get CJ to agree this is what we should go with!
What do you think? I think it is pretty awesome! I am sure I can get CJ to agree this is what we should go with!
