Melissa2007B
Member
Some of you have seen my posts about this - many times before, unfortunately. But to recap:
We have a "UBC" modular house on a foundation in the west Denver area, since 2005. The builder who installed it, was, in our opinion, HORRIBLE! He was supposed to finish the place in 6 months, but instead, didn't start it for a year, while we had to live in an apartment and pay a construction loan. It turned out that the reason that happened ( when we asked the building department ) was that he didn't want to follow codes and get permits based on them, and he kept getting engineering letters to excuse what he wanted to do, which ALSO involved telling them that HE was the OWNER! So they were just holding up the permits.
One day towards the end, I arrived for a look, and he was coming out of the crawl space, I asked what he was doing and he said he was looking at the plumbing. I asked where the plumber was, and he said he'd "just left". It later turned out that he was likely doing the plumbing and getting a friend of his, in another town, to sign off on it. ( was told this by someone at the building department! ) He also signed the house tag, which didn't require as much inspection back then, because it was a UBC, and because he said he was the owner.When I asked the building department for all the records later, they said, "they couldn't find them - they were lost!"
So anyway, about every 6 to 24 months since then, we've had a clogged up line and have to call a rooter guy. In May of 2018, we had to replace the Y shown here, with the curved around piping, instead. That helped some, as it’s been almost 2 years with it being OK.
But then it happened again last night. I'm in the shower at the west end ( top of the drawing here ) and suddenly BLOOP...BLOOP, in the toilet. From there, a TOTALLY predictable pattern. That toilet clogs, then the one on the east end, and the one in the middle, and by the next AM we have to call rooter guy and hope that we don’t have a floor mess by the time they come. Stress...
So they come over and we figured ( I was so stressed out, with this “pandemic” BS, AND clogged toilets, that I forgot to ASK! ) that a rooter job was $100-$150. But it turned out, when they got here, it’s $350. My jaw dropped. But he tells me it included the camera, and he would totally go over the place and tell me decisively what was going on, and why we’ve had these problems for so long. Ok, well we were in dire need of using the toilets by then, so… But COME ON, I’m essentially paying $200 for an estimate of more work?
Well that was exactly it. He told me everything that I’d heard bits and pieces of before, from other rooter guys, but in one big estimate. There’s some warp due to lack of support hangers, in some of the main line, causing some of it to slope backwards a little, causing stagnant water and waste. Some of it slopes downward at such an angle, that there’s too much velocity, causing TP to stick to the upper parts of the pipes, and eventual clogs ( forgot the term he used ). Oh, and the routing that he showed me, which sounds crazy, like it was done by a crooked builder, or something.
There’s a 2” line apparently coming from the sink at the east ( bottom of dwg ) end, but the 4” line looks like it’s running up the other way, before going back towards the sewer end. ( He THINKS, because there’s still plastic under there. But he HOPES the 2” line isn’t being used for the rub & toilet in that bottom bath. ) THEN, at the very end, there’s a 90 degree downward turn, hitting another 90 degree outward turn, to join the line to the sewer! What?! ( been told something like THIS before too! )
Oh, and the vents are there, but not in very good places, which he'd change by routing the lines properly.
So if everything is true, ( which how the heck would I know? ) and he’s not JUST upselling me, on my own money, he finally breaks the news, that he suggests replacing all the drain plumbing under there, which will take 3 days of us not being able to use it in the daytime, and cost at LEAST $6700. Whoops, cant afford that. But he says that, because of these problems, we only have a 30 day warranty now, on the rooter job for $350.
So the only possible solution ( if he’s telling the truth, and YES we need more estimates, but NOT for $350 each! ) would seem to be to refi the house to pay for this. Our mortgage is around 4.4% and we hear they go for 3% now.
But what a mess. And on top of that, due to the virus Panic, our house has dropped in value by tens of thousands.
But does this sound rational, or like we were charged about $200 more for up-selling us whole new drain plumbing?
OH, and are there any readers here, in the Denver area, who might recommend GOOD, reputable, yet AFFORDABLE plumbing companies to get estimates from, and have work done by? Or is it better to find a good, reputable and affordable lone plumber, and cut out the middle company?
We have a "UBC" modular house on a foundation in the west Denver area, since 2005. The builder who installed it, was, in our opinion, HORRIBLE! He was supposed to finish the place in 6 months, but instead, didn't start it for a year, while we had to live in an apartment and pay a construction loan. It turned out that the reason that happened ( when we asked the building department ) was that he didn't want to follow codes and get permits based on them, and he kept getting engineering letters to excuse what he wanted to do, which ALSO involved telling them that HE was the OWNER! So they were just holding up the permits.
One day towards the end, I arrived for a look, and he was coming out of the crawl space, I asked what he was doing and he said he was looking at the plumbing. I asked where the plumber was, and he said he'd "just left". It later turned out that he was likely doing the plumbing and getting a friend of his, in another town, to sign off on it. ( was told this by someone at the building department! ) He also signed the house tag, which didn't require as much inspection back then, because it was a UBC, and because he said he was the owner.When I asked the building department for all the records later, they said, "they couldn't find them - they were lost!"
So anyway, about every 6 to 24 months since then, we've had a clogged up line and have to call a rooter guy. In May of 2018, we had to replace the Y shown here, with the curved around piping, instead. That helped some, as it’s been almost 2 years with it being OK.
But then it happened again last night. I'm in the shower at the west end ( top of the drawing here ) and suddenly BLOOP...BLOOP, in the toilet. From there, a TOTALLY predictable pattern. That toilet clogs, then the one on the east end, and the one in the middle, and by the next AM we have to call rooter guy and hope that we don’t have a floor mess by the time they come. Stress...
So they come over and we figured ( I was so stressed out, with this “pandemic” BS, AND clogged toilets, that I forgot to ASK! ) that a rooter job was $100-$150. But it turned out, when they got here, it’s $350. My jaw dropped. But he tells me it included the camera, and he would totally go over the place and tell me decisively what was going on, and why we’ve had these problems for so long. Ok, well we were in dire need of using the toilets by then, so… But COME ON, I’m essentially paying $200 for an estimate of more work?
Well that was exactly it. He told me everything that I’d heard bits and pieces of before, from other rooter guys, but in one big estimate. There’s some warp due to lack of support hangers, in some of the main line, causing some of it to slope backwards a little, causing stagnant water and waste. Some of it slopes downward at such an angle, that there’s too much velocity, causing TP to stick to the upper parts of the pipes, and eventual clogs ( forgot the term he used ). Oh, and the routing that he showed me, which sounds crazy, like it was done by a crooked builder, or something.
There’s a 2” line apparently coming from the sink at the east ( bottom of dwg ) end, but the 4” line looks like it’s running up the other way, before going back towards the sewer end. ( He THINKS, because there’s still plastic under there. But he HOPES the 2” line isn’t being used for the rub & toilet in that bottom bath. ) THEN, at the very end, there’s a 90 degree downward turn, hitting another 90 degree outward turn, to join the line to the sewer! What?! ( been told something like THIS before too! )
Oh, and the vents are there, but not in very good places, which he'd change by routing the lines properly.
So if everything is true, ( which how the heck would I know? ) and he’s not JUST upselling me, on my own money, he finally breaks the news, that he suggests replacing all the drain plumbing under there, which will take 3 days of us not being able to use it in the daytime, and cost at LEAST $6700. Whoops, cant afford that. But he says that, because of these problems, we only have a 30 day warranty now, on the rooter job for $350.
So the only possible solution ( if he’s telling the truth, and YES we need more estimates, but NOT for $350 each! ) would seem to be to refi the house to pay for this. Our mortgage is around 4.4% and we hear they go for 3% now.
But what a mess. And on top of that, due to the virus Panic, our house has dropped in value by tens of thousands.
But does this sound rational, or like we were charged about $200 more for up-selling us whole new drain plumbing?
OH, and are there any readers here, in the Denver area, who might recommend GOOD, reputable, yet AFFORDABLE plumbing companies to get estimates from, and have work done by? Or is it better to find a good, reputable and affordable lone plumber, and cut out the middle company?
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