Toilet nightmare (and how property management is dealing with it)
Kansas City, MO · Member since 2018 · 19 posts · 4 votes
I hate to post about the cliché problem of a toilet not flushing at 2 AM, but I'm currently dealing with this problem with a particular property under management. They have received 3 emergency calls (and charged me accordingly) on a toilet that continues to be a problem over the last several months. I've now spent $700 on a toilet over the last 2 months because of emergency call fees, and I'm wondering if/when to start holding the property manager accountable for the repairs they are performing.
If I do need to be holding the property manager accountable for repeated emergency calls on the same problem, how should I go about approaching them with the problem? After $700, I would've just replaced the toilet rather than trying to fix it 3 times. Thanks for your input!
You should have a conversation with your property management company about two questions. 1) What constitutes an emergency? and 2) How to solve the toilet problem longer-term?
If the toilet is overflowing, that is a problem that needs to be solved quickly. Telling the residents how to turn off the water supply valve is the easiest solution and the rest can be solved later. If the property has more than one toilet, a clogged toilet should never be an emergency. Giving your residents a quality plunger for free may also be a good idea.
Next, you need to know why the toilet is backing up. If the toilet is old and non-functional, replace it. There also could be blockage in your sewer line. Have a plumber go check it out if there are any questions. Spending some money now will likely save you more money in the long run.
You should have a conversation with your property management company about two questions. 1) What constitutes an emergency? and 2) How to solve the toilet problem longer-term?
If the toilet is overflowing, that is a problem that needs to be solved quickly. Telling the residents how to turn off the water supply valve is the easiest solution and the rest can be solved later. If the property has more than one toilet, a clogged toilet should never be an emergency. Giving your residents a quality plunger for free may also be a good idea.
Next, you need to know why the toilet is backing up. If the toilet is old and non-functional, replace it. There also could be blockage in your sewer line. Have a plumber go check it out if there are any questions. Spending some money now will likely save you more money in the long run.
You should have a conversation with your property management company about two questions. 1) What constitutes an emergency? and 2) How to solve the toilet problem longer-term?
If the toilet is overflowing, that is a problem that needs to be solved quickly. Telling the residents how to turn off the water supply valve is the easiest solution and the rest can be solved later. If the property has more than one toilet, a clogged toilet should never be an emergency. Giving your residents a quality plunger for free may also be a good idea.
Next, you need to know why the toilet is backing up. If the toilet is old and non-functional, replace it. There also could be blockage in your sewer line. Have a plumber go check it out if there are any questions. Spending some money now will likely save you more money in the long run.
Thanks, Greg. Because there is only 1 toilet in the house, it would definitely qualify as an emergency each time. The issue has specifically been around the power flusher/bladder. They've repaired it 3 times now. I'm trying to figure out if it's related to improper repair on the first 2 visits, or if it was just time to replace it. On this last round of repairs ($400), they replaced both the power flush bladder and toilet tank. I'm just trying to figure out when/if I should be cutting them a break. I realize stuff goes wrong and it's not always the PM's fault, but I'm trying to find a reasonable line in the sand where I start holding them accountable for the quality of their repairs.
After the second time, you should have reached out to the PM and found out what was going on. If it is the same problem, then the people who 'fixed' it, didn't fix it and should be doing it free of charge.
Is it something that the tenant is doing (eg blockage) in which case the tenant should be charged after the first time.
You should have a conversation with your property management company about two questions. 1) What constitutes an emergency? and 2) How to solve the toilet problem longer-term?
If the toilet is overflowing, that is a problem that needs to be solved quickly. Telling the residents how to turn off the water supply valve is the easiest solution and the rest can be solved later. If the property has more than one toilet, a clogged toilet should never be an emergency. Giving your residents a quality plunger for free may also be a good idea.
Next, you need to know why the toilet is backing up. If the toilet is old and non-functional, replace it. There also could be blockage in your sewer line. Have a plumber go check it out if there are any questions. Spending some money now will likely save you more money in the long run.
Thanks, Greg. Because there is only 1 toilet in the house, it would definitely qualify as an emergency each time. The issue has specifically been around the power flusher/bladder. They've repaired it 3 times now. I'm trying to figure out if it's related to improper repair on the first 2 visits, or if it was just time to replace it. On this last round of repairs ($400), they replaced both the power flush bladder and toilet tank. I'm just trying to figure out when/if I should be cutting them a break. I realize stuff goes wrong and it's not always the PM's fault, but I'm trying to find a reasonable line in the sand where I start holding them accountable for the quality of their repairs.
For $400 they could have replaced the entire toilet. A competent plumber would have told you to replace it if it was old especially if it was the same person each time.