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orange · Feb 1, 2006, 09:44 PM

I'm moving in a couple of months, but the house I'm renting right now has a really strong sewer smell coming from the shower drain, sink drain, and the drain for the washing machine, all in the basement. It's worse when the washing machine is running, but you can smell it pretty much all the time. All the drains run really slowly, so I plunge pretty often. When I plunge this black crud comes up and the smell is incredibly bad. I've mentioned it to the landlord and asked about getting a plumber, but he says it's harmless, it's just like that because the house is old, and that hiring a plumber would not help. Is he pulling my leg? :confused: He's left a lot of other "harmless" things unfixed in the house, and I'm thinking about reporting him when I move.

stew_1962 · Feb 1, 2006, 09:49 PM

As to harmless... I'm leaving that one alone.

As to annoying, A+

Tell the landlord the drains are slow and there is an unpleasant oror that he must fix, period.

PalmMP3 · Feb 2, 2006, 01:04 AM

First of all, this is NOT harmless - sewer gas is not only unhealthy, but even explosive; and if that's what you're smelling, it's a big problem.

Originally Posted by orange

I've mentioned it to the landlord and asked about getting a plumber, but he says it's harmless, it's just like that because the house is old, and that hiring a plumber would not help.

What a load of horse waste! Who the heck is he to make such a claim? Is he a Master Plumber or something, that he knows so much?

At the very least, your sewer line needs to be snaked (even I can tell you that much, and I'm not a Master Plumber either). Wait for Tom to advise you on this one.

Meanwhile, to make things easier, please tell us: are you on city water, or well water? City sewer, or private septic tank?

And by the way, what other "harmless" crap has the landlord been giving you problems with? It might be a good idea to tell us; maybe one of us will point out one or more things that are not only harmless, but downright dangerous as well.

Moishe

orange · Feb 2, 2006, 01:31 AM

I'm in a city, so I assume city water. I think we're also on city sewer, because city workers came here once last summer, and I think used a snake like you mentioned. They came because there was a flood in the basement after a storm, and a bunch of that black crud came up.

What else? Well... this I KNOW is dangerous, but the kitchen is not grounded or polarized or whatever the correct term is. I walked in there in bare feet once, and there was a small amount of water on the floor, and I stepped in it and touched the stove at the same time and got a bad shock. My then boyfriend, now husband, also had shocks off the fridge. Both the stove and fridge have those old cloth cords and are badly frayed. My landlord told us he couldn't afford to have the electricity fixed, and that we should just wear shoes when we're in the kitchen. We've also gotten shocks when trying to change the light fixtures, to the point where I'm scared to do it now.

Plus the fridge itself is about 40 years old and has these bad cracks in its casing. Through the cracks you can pull out what I think is pink fiber insulation. It's gross.

That's all I can think of for now... we are moving soon, obviously!

PalmMP3 · Feb 2, 2006, 01:51 AM

Originally Posted by orange

What else? Well... this I KNOW is dangerous, but the kitchen is not grounded or polarized or whatever the correct term is. I walked in there in bare feet once, and there was a small amount of water on the floor, and I stepped in it and touched the stove at the same time and got a bad shock.

WOW... now that is not just dangerous; it's potentially life-threatening (standing BAREFOOT in puddle + touching 120V power source = death by electrocution. You're lucky that what shocked you was just "leaked" current, which had very little amperage, or you could very well be dead).

I think I'll point tkrussell (from the electrical forum) to this thread; he can do a much better job than me at (a) giving you the facts necessary to "convince" your landlord that under no uncertain terms should those problems be allowed to continue, or (b) if you still have no success with the landlord, what you can do in the meantime to minimize the danger as much as possible.

Good luck,
Moishe

speedball1 · Feb 2, 2006, 07:00 AM

Originally Posted by orange

I'm in a city, so I assume city water. I think we're also on city sewer, because city workers came here once last summer, and I think used a snake like you mentioned. They came because there was a flood in the basement after a storm, and a bunch of that black crud came up.

What else? Well... this I KNOW is dangerous, but the kitchen is not grounded or polarized or whatever the correct term is. I walked in there in bare feet once, and there was a small amount of water on the floor, and I stepped in it and touched the stove at the same time and got a bad shock. My then boyfriend, now husband, also had shocks off the fridge. Both the stove and fridge have those old cloth cords and are badly frayed. My landlord told us he couldn't afford to have the electricity fixed, and that we should just wear shoes when we're in the kitchen. We've also gotten shocks when trying to change the light fixtures, to the point where I'm scared to do it now.

Plus the fridge itself is about 40 years old and has these bad cracks in its casing. Through the cracks you can pull out what I think is pink fiber insulation. It's gross.

That's all I can think of for now... we are moving soon, obviously!

Here's a little "payback" for the uncaring landlord that would keep you and your family in a unhealthy and potentially life threatening situation. You had the right idea in your first post.
Before you disconnect the phone, contact (1) The Health Department about the sewer gas and (2) The Building Department, Code Violations Sections and make a complaint about the plumbing and electrical systems. You might also look into a rebate of your rent because you have been paying rent on a sub-standard and unsafe rental unit. Let me know how you come out. Good luck, Tom

tkrussell · Feb 2, 2006, 07:22 AM

I agree with Palm and Tom, this is a serious situation. Too much going on to pin point exactly what is going on, but no one should feel electricity by touching a fridge, stove or light fixture.

If you cannot convince the landlord to have it repaired, perhaps, you can call someone else, if you have the guts to get the landlord , not necessarily in trouble but forced to implement repairs, of course , you may manage to get your home condemned and you will be forced to leave due to unfit living conditions, as it really is unfit.

I sure hope there are not any children living here, a small amount of current across the heart can kill.

Standing barefoot in a kitchen and feeling shocks really concerns me, is the flooring damp or wet? Even thou the fridge may be old and certainly have a fault leaking current, standing on floor should not be a problem, if you touch the fridge and say the sink, which is grounded, should cause a shock. As I am thinking about it, if the flooring is a linoleum type foor covering, many times theses flooring materials can condut electricity because of the materials used in the flooring, that is the only thing I can think of.

I suggest , after the landlord,if you do not get immediate attention, you contact the local city electrical inspector, health dept, or if there is an housing agency that may deal with landlords.

I see that you are moving, this is up to you but something really should be done, if you don't then what will happen to the next tenants. Not asking for you to take on the world, but I would hope that you step up and begin the process of forcing the landlord to have this corrected. If you decide to not rock the boat, and want to just "live with it until you move" then I sure hope you do live through it.

labman · Feb 2, 2006, 07:59 AM

Am I confusing you with somebody else, or are you the one that I told you your dog knows you are pregnant? 2 more good reasons to get something done. Does the dog have shoes to wear?

orange · Feb 2, 2006, 12:13 PM

Yep I'm the pregnant one. I was going to mention that too, as another reason I want to move. Since I got shocked by the stove, I don't allow the dog or the cat in the kitchen. I moved their food and water to a different room, and closed the door to the kitchen. And I stay out of the kitchen as much as possible myself, which is really annoying.

The floor is that old kind of linoleum, the kind that needs to get waxed. And yes the floor is a bit damp always... that's yet another reason we want to move. We think there's mould in the house.

I'm actually not in the house right now, and neither are our pets. I got married just last week and I am on my honeymoon on Vancouver Island. My husband unfortunately got the flu during our honeymoon, so I'm staying with my parents who have a condo in Victoria, and he's staying staying at a hotel, so that I don't catch the flu from him.

Actually with everyone's thoughts here on the board, plus telling my parents and in-laws, I think we might move right away, or as soon as possible, rather than wait 2 months. Obviously one of our big reasons for not moving yet was financial, but as a wedding present we received money from both sets of parents for a downpayment on a new house. And they don't want me to go back to the house.

I definitely want to report this landlord. We don't have a lot of furniture and belongings, so I think when we get back there, we could pack up quite quickly and then call the authorities. I'm not sure I want to report him while we're still in the house though, as he kind of scares me. But we could leave sneakily and then report him.

Anyway thanks everyone for your responses. I knew these things in the house were not right, but the landlord kept making me feel stupid and paranoid. He's going to get what coming to him though, definitely!

orange · Feb 2, 2006, 04:46 PM

My parents have a house in the city I live in, and they just go to Victoria for the winter. I didn't want to ask them before, but they now suggested that when we return home, we can stay in their house for the remaining 2 months, while looking for a new place. They will be in Victoria until May, so we won't be disturbing their privacy or whatever. So we've decided we're going there right away, giving notice to our landlord, and then reporting him once our stuff is safely out of there. Thanks everyone for your help and concern!

speedball1 · Feb 2, 2006, 04:47 PM

Good luck to you and yours. Tim

PalmMP3 · Feb 3, 2006, 02:24 AM

Hatzlacha Rabbah, Chava! Hope everything works out!

Like Tom always says, "keep us in the loop on this one". I'm sure I speak for us all in saying that we're very curious how it'll turn out in the end. :D

By the way, speaking of speedball1...

Originally Posted by speedball1

Good luck to you and yours. Tim

"Tim"?! Funny, I thought your name was Tom! :D:D:D

(Yeah, I know, the "o" and "i" are right next to each other on the keyboard. ;))

orange · Feb 3, 2006, 11:13 AM

Thanks very much Tim and Moishe... now that it's settled that we're to my parent's place, I'm sure everything will work out well!

speedball1 · Feb 3, 2006, 11:23 AM

Originally Posted by PalmMP3

Hatzlacha Rabbah, Chava! Hope everything works out!

Like Tom always says, "keep us in the loop on this one". I'm sure I speak for us all in saying that we're very curious how it'll turn out in the end. :D

By the way, speaking of speedball1...

"Tim"??!! Funny, I thought your name was Tom! :D:D:D

(Yeah, I know, the "o" and "i" are right next to each other on the keyboard. ;))

It used to be Tom until a fat finger changed it to Tim. See how easy it is to lose your identity? LOL. Tim/Tom Whatever!

PalmMP3 · Feb 3, 2006, 11:24 AM

Originally Posted by orange

Thanks very much Tim and Moishe... now that it's settled that we're to my parent's place, I'm sure everything will work out well!

Clarification: when I said "keep us in the loop on this one", I meant let us know what happens in the future - i.e.. e if/when you report the landlord, we'd like to hear the rest of the story. :D

Oh, and his name is Tom, not Tim. ;)

Cheers,
Moishe

orange · Feb 3, 2006, 11:34 AM

Yup when I said "I'm sure it will work out well", I meant with the landlord too. I was worried about reporting him because he's kind of freaky and has a bad temper, but if we're safely out of there, I won't be. I will let you guys know what happens for sure.

Incidentally, there is another slum landlord in our city who is right now being charged with negligent homicide or a similar charge, because there was a fire in one of his buildings and 2 little kids died. He had failed to update the fire alarm system. So I'm glad to be getting out of our hazardous place and getting a house of our own! And when we do look at houses, I'm definitely going to check to make sure everything is up to safety standards... the electricity, plumbing, etc. I assume that going through a reputable realtor rather than "for sale by owner" would help with this!

Anyway, thanks again!

speedball1 · Feb 3, 2006, 11:51 AM

Chava,
"when we do look at houses, I'm definitely going to check to make sure everything is up to safety standards... the electricity, plumbing, etc. I assume that going through a reputable realtor rather than "for sale by owner" would help with this!"

By law the seller's required to report any fault that he knows about prier to the closing. Your best bet in buying a house is to hire a inspector to make a home inspection and write a report listing what he found. This is money well spent as he may find a major problem that was overlooked. Also a home inspectors report can give you some leverage in negotiating a final closing price. Goodluck and let us know what went down with the landlord. Tom,(formerly Tim)

orange · Feb 3, 2006, 12:01 PM

Oh thanks TOM haha, for the extra advice. I never thought of that, but we'll definitely spend the money to have a house we like inspected. My husband is not very "handy" so he will be of little help LOL. And anyway I believe in using professionals.

orange · Feb 6, 2006, 12:15 PM

Well, we're back home now, just got back, but we're staying at my parents' place as planned. I'm already looking at the MLS listings online and driving my husband crazy. I'm very excited and anxious to move.

The really good and lucky news is, our landlord is away for a week! So we will be able to clear all our stuff out of the house and report him, all before he gets back! I'm going over later today with a couple of friends to pack up all the smaller items, and we've hired a mover for Wednesday, to haul all the bigger items. Mostly everything is going into storage for now. We also decided to hire a plumber and an electrician from the city to come and evaluate the house and give us a written report. Then we're calling the Rentalsman and giving them a copy of the plumber's and electrician's reports, along with our formal complaint. My landlord won't know what hit him!

I'll keep you guys informed as the saga unfolds...

tkrussell · Feb 6, 2006, 01:07 PM

You may consider taking photos of any pre-exisitng damage or to show what condition you left the home in as you left it. Photos of damage or faults the contractors find may help your case in the future.

I hate to burst your bubble, but contractors, thou hopefully knowledgeable, are not the chosen experts to find all defects, causes, and remedies. I do not mean to fault you for bringing in the contractors, I see you are thinking.

Contractors are for-profit companies, and can create misleading reports, plus you need to pay them for their time. City officials are considered to be without prejudice and can offer valid reports of code violations, and the cost, if any, is minimal. Does the city also have a plumbing inspector? Along with the items they find, and report on, take photos of each defect.

Collecting too much info now is easier than trying to prove your case later without.

Please do keep us informed.