What a crappy day doing maintenance

Question

I like to be proactive on some maintenance issues . So today was sewer snaking day . A full 10 hours of running the sewer snake down 7 different sewer lines . Some may ask why ?  But I have found that if I do this once a year I get to inspect the properties and I catch potential problems before they happen. Wore my worst clothes , had bleach water and soap and had a miserable day .  Now had I paid a plumber it would have been $400 plus per house . (close to $3 grand )  Since I have my own 100 ft snake , It only cost me time .

Matthew Paul · Answer

Account Closed Hey merritt , of course I am nuts , I am a contractor. I deal with real estate and Tenants  I have ti be nuts . If i was sane i would get a regular job .

I like being a bit proactive , I hate suprises , getting called for a problem while i am away for a fun weekend sucks.  If i am going to have crap on my clothes i would rather do it once a year than once a month .  i mentioned in another post that I hate writing checks . It gives me writers cramp . ( funny how endorsing checks doesnt ) . I make a great living keeping my customers happy . my tenants are my customers too . I delegate a lot , but I am still able bodied and I cant sit still. So I could sub all that to my  plumber for $2 grand or do it myself for a long day . And keep that in my pocket , Damn right , new boots , New jeans , New shirt . $ $200 bucks .  Still a good day .

It isnt how much you make , its how much you keep.

Erik B. · Answer

You just made 3000 bucks in one day, and prevented who knows how many tens of thousands in backup damage. Awesome job.

Cast iron house traps are notorious for catching all sorts of stuff creating a dam which leads to a backup. that backup can make its way up the stack and out into liveable  areas.

Matthew Paul · Answer

@Joel Owens Hey Joel , I am a contractor , my time is about $ 300 an hour at the end of the day . And the high point of my week is getting shiX all over my clothes , its what I live for . LOL .

At 56 years old I still love working its fun . Dirty work doesnt bother me a bit . It suprises people when they find out I am the owner when I am on the job .

Joel Owens · Answer

That depends on 2 main factors.

1. If you enjoy that sort of thing

2. If your time is worth 300 bucks an hour or less

The days of being hands on with labor items are past me. Had enough of that. Paid 2,500 for a day of a tree company coming out. They were like the Super Bowl of tree cutting companies. Once your return per hour goes up to a certain level than anything below that I find the best I can at what they do and usually choose that option. In the past I tried to find a better deal but then you get 50/50 on the results and sometimes causes more headache than it is worth.

Wayne Brooks · Answer

@Matthew Paul You really need to become more actively involved with your properties....come on, step it up man.

Thomas S. · Answer

I also have my own 50' industrial snake I purchased after having rented one many times. I have also spent many adventurous days down inside septic tanks working on replacing lift pumps with sludge up to my knees. Nothing fun about a leaky boot.

Account Closed · Answer

Sounds good. I too sometimes use my investments as a source of wage work. Just got done refinishing 9 rooms of hardwood flooring - gee, how hard could it be I thought, right? LOL - I have a whole new respect for the folks who run those damn sanders all day - I lost 20 pounds in a couple weeks!!! I might prefer to snake out drains. OMG I hope I can afford to hire that one out next time!!! But, I saved a few G's, so that's easing my aching muscles. LOL - every job I have left on this rehab looks like cake after that one.

Account Closed · Answer

LOL. Am I the only one who thinks your nuts? I dunno...no basement? Finished basement? Just trying to grasp why on Earth you would run around and "maintain" something that maintains itself. If you have roots, cut down the trees and run some root killer down there (and yes you need to snake out the roots in that case). If you have tenants who clog your drains, get rid of them (it is a law here that tenants must not clog drains).

Water, the most destructive force on the planet, the stuff the pipes are intended to carry away in the first place, will clean the lines as it goes my friend. Poo and TP will each get cleaned away with the water. Unless you do not have a basement and are worried about poo in the living areas, it is my opinion your efforts are over-kill. But you go ahead and enjoy yourself - lol.

Matthew Paul · Answer

@Erik BaumerThats why i do it , the cast iron pipes and the 1 gallon per flush toilets and houses with 100 feet of sewer lines . I want to loosen any rust and stuff that lost momentum on its way out

Jay Hinrichs · Answer

always good to get into the house for a deep check on condition and I suspect that allowed you to do that.

although my style would have been go to home depot and get a few day labor's  and monitor them..

Any way thanks for sharing.. when we owned hundreds of homes.. sewer was the number one issue hands down.

and when we bought a new property for the portfolio if it was not a new waste line we put one in during rehab so at least we started with a new waste line. and not one filled with roots etc.

What a crappy day doing maintenance

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