Tenant Leaving Water On
I suppose the oldest tenant trick in the book is to deliberately leave hot water running so as to jack up a landlord’s heating costs. Any good advice on how to combat this and document it? I currently have access to the apartment below (but won’t for long) which I assume will help. And I’m…
I suppose the oldest tenant trick in the book is to deliberately leave hot water running so as to jack up a landlord’s heating costs. Any good advice on how to combat this and document it? I currently have access to the apartment below (but won’t for long) which I assume will help. And I’m not the least bit adverse to legal action, but am wondering exactly how to extract proof of the situation.
When I worked for a management company we would see this kind of think frequently.
We had several buildings with cat people who instisted that their cats would only drink from a running faucet so they left their faucets running 24 hours a day. We calculated this cost the owner $200 per month in water and sewer charges, and that was cold water.
We had an elderly tenant who would run the water for her bath and then forget and change her mind and go shopping or visit friends for the weekend not knowing that she had left the water on.
Something similar to your situation a guy would leave his hot water blasting. We found out when the waste line failed flooding out the tenant below. I remember the enamel had eroded clean off his cast iron tub from doing this for months/years.
If you want to check for “leaks” your water meter has a small rotating dial that indicates even the smallest of water flowing. Check it in the middle of the night.
For those that asked:
1) The tenant had become used to roof access in the building. However, when informed that liability (this is an unfinished roof with no stairway, just a latter) issues won’t not allow that anymore, he stopped paying rent, alleging that he the apartment was worth less. I took him to court and won. He is angry. Maybe I was douchy, but I don’t feel too bad about it.
2) You’re right, it probably isn’t illegal, but there is a clause in the lease calling for “due conservation of heat and water,” which I believe is pretty standard.
3) Obviously RS tenant, so my hands are somewhat tied in terms of adding new charges.
4) I know he’s doing it because the apartment below just became empty and while enacting repairs I heard the water running for over an hour. I knocked on the door. He answered clothed and perfectly dry. I could hear the water running, and he told me there was someone in the shower. Security cameras proved otherwise. When I confronted him, he suggested I take him to court again. The hot water ran for about two hours the next day.
5) I know I can take him to court, and will, but what I wonder is how you document constantly running water, from a practical perspective, or if there is a plumbing solution I am unaware of. It is difficult to simply use the water bill, because that applies to the whole building.
You would be a fool to follow advice to turn off the tenant’s water. By law, owners must provide hot water at a minimum constant temperature of 120 degrees Fahrenheit all year round. Make an appointment to enter the tenant’s apartment with your plumber and examine all faucets and appliances for leaks. Repair as necessary, or certify that no leaks exist. Consult a knowledgeable attorney or the Help Desk at Housing Court for the precise method to notify the tenant about creating a nuisance condition, and take the necessary LEGAL course of action to address the problem.
Have you actually confronted the tenant about this? This tenant could just be a jerk, but a more likely explanation is that the apartment isn’t warm enough for the tenant.
My landlord keeps the heat kind of low, and when it gets too cold I just crank the stove on (which is a heck of a lot cheaper than using a space heater, but which I still pay for). If I felt like the landlord was being unreasonable with the heat (or if I were just particularly cheap and selfish), I’d run the shower instead.
My neighbor left the water running because she wanted the rent controlled unit to be hers after her mother died. The city ruled against her. So she kept leaving the hot water on as revenge. So I and the neighbor below us often have no hot water.
SO I wrote an affidavit telling that I hear her running the water all night, which I did. 2 months later her dumb fucking ass got kicked out by the city marshal.
BTW – Rob you are a fucking idiot and destined to live in poverty because of your limited intelligence.
Excellent call MAT. I wish I had thought of this technique for my dooshy former landlord on Bergen Street.
There’s a chance it’s due to some kind of plumbing problem–I’d check to make sure the toilet doesn’t have a bad seal or the faucets aren’t leaking. Assuming, of course, you haven’t already done that.
If you really suspect it’s malicious, maybe try calling your plumber. They’ve probably seen this kind of situation before, and could have a suggestion about a fix (maybe some kind of limiter, which automatically shuts off the water after some pre-set time that it’s been running). And they can tell you if Arkady’s approach might work.
Op simply check your water meter in the basement when they are gone and if the needle is goig haywire because of activity you are protected by lease to investigate the entire building for leaks. Kick them out.
If they don’t cooperate, I’d turn off the water to that one apartment & tell them there appears to be a plumbing problem that you have to have repaired. You won’t have to do it for long, probably under a day. If they continue to run the water keep doing the same thing.