Holidays Disaster Hit us!!

S

skater

New member
That looks like polybutelene pipe. If that shit is infesting your house, watch out - there was a huge lawsuit and the manufacturer paid to re-plumb everyone's house. (I think the time for claims has ended, however.) It was used in the late-80s through mid-90s, I think.

It gets brittle and starts leaking, especially at the joints. Be careful around it; try not to move it, touch it, etc.

Our travel trailer has it, and I'm just waiting for the day when something breaks on it. Actually, it already happened - a washer at the water pump went bad, so I now have a Sharkbite fitting with a short piece of Pex and a Pex/polybutelene Sharkbite adapter. At some point I'm going to have to re-plumb the entire camper. (RVs weren't covered by the lawsuit.)
 
Whiskeyman

Whiskeyman

Senior Member
I know it's easy to blame the electricians for such work as we're seeing at Bill's water heater, but I'm not going to stop there. Maybe, in fact, it wasn't even an electrician that did this. A lot of the problem is on the builders who cut corners in hiring people and in materials, and the building inspectors who don't know how to, or just don't do their job! Elected officials even get in on the issue: not far from me, it has come to light that the county allowed a contractor building a large housing tract to perform their own inspections after paying a substantial fee to the county to do so. Now why would a builder do that? A contractor that I know and trust implicitly recently found out about another contractor near here who has a electrical contractors license, but allows non-electrical workmen to do electrical work even when he isn't on the job site, and then makes little effort to check their work. It's a wonder nothing has burned down, and/or no ones been electrocuted by this guys work!

Sorry about my rant.

WM
 
K

Kevin H

Senior Member
Whiskeyman said:
I know it's easy to blame the electricians for such work as we're seeing at Bill's water heater, but I'm not going to stop there. Maybe, in fact, it wasn't even an electrician that did this. A lot of the problem is on the builders who cut corners in hiring people and in materials, and the building inspectors who don't know how to, or just don't do their job! Elected officials even get in on the issue: not far from me, it has come to light that the county allowed a contractor building a large housing tract to perform their own inspections after paying a substantial fee to the county to do so. Now why would a builder do that? A contractor that I know and trust implicitly recently found out about another contractor near here who has a electrical contractors license, but allows non-electrical workmen to do electrical work even when he isn't on the job site, and then makes little effort to check their work. It's a wonder nothing has burned down, and/or no ones been electrocuted by this guys work!

Sorry about my rant.

WM
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Home owners too Wayne DIY Electricians
 
cwgrizz

cwgrizz

Senior Member
Challenge Team
Kevin H said:
Home owners too Wayne DIY Electricians
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Like me. Hahaha! The house I am living in was built entirely by unlicensed contractors. I would be willing to bet that it exceeds all minimum building code requirements.


It was built by "Me, Myself, and I" building company. Ha! If interested in a photo journal of the build feel free to browse here. All photos were taken using a C.....N point and shoot prior to my Nikon purchase.

I will add that having a good knowledge of the construction trades and building codes is a big plus.
 
Whiskeyman

Whiskeyman

Senior Member
Kevin H said:
Home owners too Wayne DIY Electricians
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Yes, us too!

cwgrizz said:
Like me. Hahaha! The house I am living in was built entirely by unlicensed contractors. I would be willing to bet that it exceeds all minimum building code requirements.


It was built by "Me, Myself, and I" building company. Ha! If interested in a photo journal of the build feel free to browse here. All photos were taken using a C.....N point and shoot prior to my Nikon purchase.

I will add that having a good knowledge of the construction trades and building codes is a big plus.
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I'm willing to bet that it is very well built, because you had and have a vested interest in it being so. Neither of my grandfathers completed sixth grade, one getting there and the other not making it out of the fourth grade because they were required to work. Neither of them worked in the trades, either. In the 1940's, one of them built a house with indoor plumbing and an electrical generator to use in case of a power outage. That house is now being used as a commercial property outside Jacksonville, Florida, and it is in great shape. My point here is that you don't have to be a "professional" to get things done. You do need to know what you're doing and care enough to do a good job. The lack of either of these can cause problems in any building project.

There, I've dropped my mouth on the floor again, and it's gone off again!

WM
 
Whiskeyman

Whiskeyman

Senior Member
Hey, Bill. I hope that this is going ok for you and that it is fixed by now. Since I know that misery loves company, I'll share my own "holiday disaster, four wheels version"! :p

I've spent over $2300 on repair bills for my car in the last two weeks. Now, I'm going to have to shell out nearly that much again on my wife's van, for new rear shocks, front struts and new tires, a four wheel alignment and a couple of other things that need fixing. The shop gave me the estimate this afternoon and it came out just short of $2000. The owner then said something about me spending so much on cars in the shop in the last month, so he offered me a 10% discount to lessen the sting somewhat. Last week I was thinking that I was out a D750; now it looks like I'm out two of them.

Oh, well, what can you do? Even a horse would cost plenty in veterinarian fees! ;)

WM
 
B

Bill16

Senior Member
Leak is plugged up, but we have to wait a week to get the hot water tank and get it installed!

Sorry to hear about your expenses buddy! :(

Whiskeyman said:
Hey, Bill. I hope that this is going ok for you and that it is fixed by now. Since I know that misery loves company, I'll share my own "holiday disaster, four wheels version"! :p

I've spent over $2300 on repair bills for my car in the last two weeks. Now, I'm going to have to shell out nearly that much again on my wife's van, for new rear shocks, front struts and new tires, a four wheel alignment and a couple of other things that need fixing. The shop gave me the estimate this afternoon and it came out just short of $2000. The owner then said something about me spending so much on cars in the shop in the last month, so he offered me a 10% discount to lessen the sting somewhat. Last week I was thinking that I was out a D750; now it looks like I'm out two of them.

Oh, well, what can you do? Even a horse would cost plenty in veterinarian fees! ;)

WM
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hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
Bill16 said:
Leak is plugged up, but we have to wait a week to get the hot water tank and get it installed!

Sorry to hear about your expenses buddy! :(
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Ugh. So does that mean no hot water or heat for a week until it is installed? :confused:
 
M

mikew_RIP

Senior Member
Bill16 said:
No hot water. We have to wait, and heat water on the stove if we have to have hot water.:(
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As you know from recent problems this year Bill this is nothing compared with what you and your dear wife where going through,ime sure you will both pull together and get through this minor hiccup.
 
hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
So I take it you don't need hot water for your heat? We have oil for our heat, but because we have baseboard heat, the hot water circulates through the house for warmth. In other words, we need both oil and hot water. Hope you are hanging in there, Bill. We hit 70° today so I'm hoping it was at least as warm for you...if not warmer. ;)
 
B

Bill16

Senior Member
No worries about heat Cindy buddy! We use fuel oil to run our furnace!:)

hark said:
So I take it you don't need hot water for your heat? We have oil for our heat, but because we have baseboard heat, the hot water circulates through the house for warmth. In other words, we need both oil and hot water. Hope you are hanging in there, Bill. We hit 70° today so I'm hoping it was at least as warm for you...if not warmer. ;)
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R

Rick M

Senior Member
I'm all for going overboard on gear purchases,but sometimes you need to have a slush fund for important things in life.
 
B

Bill16

Senior Member
I didn't buy gear with a slush fund, and this hot water heater has to be solved before we even have a chance to get our taxes done.
But I thank you for your caring input my friend! :)

Rick M said:
I'm all for going overboard on gear purchases,but sometimes you need to have a slush fund for important things in life.
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R

Rick M

Senior Member
Bill16 said:
I didn't buy gear with a slush fund, and this hot water heater has to be solved before we even have a chance to get our taxes done.
But I thank you for your caring input my friend! :)
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Some day I'll take my advice :), but not until I have all the toys I need!
 
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