DOB vs Insurance vs Just Do It


Hello

Our neighbor has an obvious violation in regards to his roof drainage (short of it all- it’s draining into our building). This has been causing us a myriad of problems and damage (to all our building units), thus far covered by our individual homeowners policies. No damage has occurred to the exterior of our building, so our building’s insurance will not get involved.

We’ve informed the owner of the issue repeatedly, basically he’s never going to fix it. He does not live in the building.

A roofer that we trust has told us to just fix it at our expense (around 2k), as getting the city to force compliance with building code will take forever.

While we know this may be true, it’s also true that the roofer wants to earn an income.

Does anyone have any experience with getting DOB to force compliance with the law? How long does it typically take? Is there a better route than filing 311 complaints?

Are we better off paying for the repair and going to small claims court?

Or, should we just bite the bullet, pay for the repair and call it a day?

Thanks in advance.

Categories: DOB
By mrfox | 05/24/2011 10:49 AM | Comment

Neighbor’s Leaky Gutter


Hello all

Background-
Over the winter, the ice storm created a leak in our neighbor’s gutter and downspout. The junction of the gutter and downspout rests firmly against our building (our building goes back further, the downspout runs down the inside corner created where the two buildings merge). This caused a huge leak during the winter into our building, and massive water damage to our entire building, all 5 stories. We notified the owner in the winter of the problem, showed his super the issue, showed his contractor the issue, and did so again last month. He has still not fixed it and every-time we have a big rain we are getting small leaks. Whenever I call him and tell him we have a leak and if there is damage he will be liable he calls me and assures me it will be fixed right away. He is extremely slow to react to things (its a rent controlled building and he’s not at all motivated to address any issue of ownership that costs him money).

Now the question(s)-
Are there any building codes that would require the downspout to not be touching the side of our building?

Can we do anything to protect our exterior wall from this leak?

If we do put something on our wall to protect it, his downspout would have to come off our building. Can we do this work without his permission (as in just inform him that we are doing repairs and will be removing the pipe from our building)?

Are there any avenues we should pursue to apply pressure on him to fix the issue?

Thank you.

Categories: Waterproofing
By mrfox | 05/02/2011 12:06 PM | Comment

Water damage to floor


We had a water leak which has caused a large area of cupping on our floor. Does this usually go away after the floor dries completely or is it permanent? If it is a question of wait and see, typically how long should I wait (a week, a month, 3 months)?

Thank you.

Categories: Floors
By mrfox | 06/10/2010 10:45 AM | Comment

Loose Trash Question


I have an apartment building near me that is horrible about its garbage. The cans are stored on the sidewalk, not in any container, typically with no lids, with garbage piling up beside them. Needless to say the trash gets everywhere, and passersby feel fine about adding their own litter to the mix (loose trash begets more trash, and new yorkers love to use their own city as a garbage can).

I have called 311 and made a report about the offending building, but I have two questions I’m hoping you can help me with.

The offender’s (building A in the drawing) trash, spreads behind building B. B is a commercial building that does not have an entrance on the same street as A. There is typically trash (non-household) thrown on the sidewalk behind B, adding to the blown household garbage. Who is responsible for keeping that clean? I don’t want to punish building B unfairly for a situation that seems to be started by building A, but the situation is ridiculous.

What is the most effective way to utilize 311 to get this building to comply with sanitation laws? Loose trash and containers with no lids, and never sweeping the sidewalk are against the law, period. It’s a daily problem with this building, and it affects our entire block. I have thus far only made one call to report it, and I have a report number. I have photos, but 311 says those are of no use to them. Should I make a new report every time I see a violation? This would mean basically I am calling once a day.

Thank you for any help.

Categories: Etiquette
By mrfox | 05/28/2010 1:50 PM | Comment

Low Voltage MR16 Hum Part 2


Hey thanks for the help everyone. I discovered something last night that may be of interest with this hum. To recap, I have seven zones (each on its own dimmer switch) of brand spankin’ new low voltage mr16 lighting, three of witch hum under full output.

I have now found, in each case, it’s coming from one fixture (out of 5 fixtures). Removing the bulb from the buzzy fixture reveals that the hum is coming from above the recessed can. Plugging the bulb in changes the pitch of the hum slightly (and makes the bulb hum a bit too). All the bulbs throughout the entire house are the same exact type: 50w 120v mr16, which is what the stickers inside the cans say is the max bulb.

I am not an electrician and have a healthy respect for something that can kill me, so I don’t want to poke further. Is this something my electrician should be doing? He said originally it was line noise and that it’s unavoidable. I think he has done something wrong, or a brand new part is not operating correctly and he just doesn’t want to deal with it.

Any thoughts as to what I should do next?

Categories: Lighting
By mrfox | 05/13/2010 12:11 PM | Comment

Low Voltage MR16 Hum


Hello all-

I have a few fixtures (all recessed low voltage halogen MR16 bulb) that are humming.

I know the ones with cheap transformers are susceptible to hum when dimmed, but mine seem to do it under full intensity. The dimmers are Lutron Maestro, I don’t know what the fixtures are but its safe to say they are not super cheap.

Is this a bad transformer in one of the housings or can I change the bulb type? Someone told me there are different types of bulbs. Any ideas?

Thank you

Categories: Lighting
By mrfox | 05/12/2010 10:27 AM | Comment

Rec for Soundproofing


I am looking for someone to build a soundproofing enclosure for a pressure pump system. The pump is water cooled, obviously something that enabled simple access would be ideal. Any recommendations?

Categories: Plumbing
By mrfox | 04/28/2010 1:14 PM | Comment

Sidewalk Tree Question


There is a dead tree in front of the building next to ours. I’d love to see a live one there. Does the city plant these? Will they replace it? If so, who would I contact?

Any information would be appreciated.

Thank you.

Categories: Sidewalks
By mrfox | 04/15/2010 1:51 PM | Comment

Free Crate and Barrel Walnut Bed


Hi

I have a very nice queen bed frame (headboard, foot and sides)from Crate and Barrel, its walnut and is complete except it is missing its slats (if you use a box spring you don’t need them). It has been in storage for about 3 years at Manhattan Mini storage, and is wrapped in black plastic. Sitting outside 219 St Johns Pl (btw 7&8) if anyone wants it.

Categories: Announcements
By mrfox | 04/07/2010 9:56 AM | Comment

LWP Home Products?


Has anyone had experience with them regarding shades and or screens?

Regards

Categories: Windows
By mrfox | 03/17/2010 12:09 PM | Comment