Plumbing Investigation
Does anyone think this looks like the kitchen plumbing might have been altered by my tenant to accommodate a portable washer?
Does anyone think this looks like the kitchen plumbing might have been altered by my tenant to accommodate a portable washer?
Off topic but whats an anonymous thread for anyway? In the case of a catastrophic occurrence I would call these guys before my insurance company.
http://www.fennerandgravitz.com/
They have access to emergency closure companies and have somebody like ServPro there within hours to start the clean up making sure to keep important evidence intact for the insurance investigation. I guarantee, if the FDNY, NYPD or an emergency DOB team responses to a situation that you’ve had to give your name and number as responsible party you will be inundated with phone calls for emergency closings, cleanups, and lawyers no matter what time of day it is. Obviously firemen and policemen make a commission on these things.
cmu, My experience with insurance companies investigators has always been guilty until proven otherwise. It is a negotiation. The only circumstance they are interested in is how to remove their company from paying. They will “shade” the proposed settlement with implications that you have been negligent. They will also be happy to argue the “sillines” of it ad ifinitim.
There are people out there who make a living representing owners who look to settle a damage claim with their own insurance company. They routinely inflate costs based on what they know the offer to settle will be. I strongly recommend using them.
>You didn’t know because you leave the basement open? Not the best way to protect your property!
Without knowing circumstances, that’s silly. My tenant’s w/d are in the basement and short of expensive fixes, I have no way to prevent him from fiddling with stuff. One assumes that people are not out to get you until proven otherwise.
I wanted to know how easy anyone thought this kind of configuration might be to do. I guess I will need to schedule regular inspections and document tenant activity – what a shame!
I purposefully kept my question simple to avoid opening a door that would stray off topic.
The issue is much more complicated and an insurance claim is in progress.
Thank you for your insights.
“If you are going to file an insurance claim I would keep it simple and blame it on the machine and not unlicensed plumbing work by a tenant.”
What IMBY says is true. I have been the point man for several LL claims for water and fire over the years and have learned to keep my mouth shut.
Two things will come up: It will appear to the investigator that you, the LL, has been derelict in your responsibility if you blame the tenant for unauthorized plumbing modifications that you were unaware of. How could you not know that the water was turned off? You’re the owner, right?
Nest question. You didn’t know because you leave the basement open? Not the best way to protect your property!
The other issue is searching for anybody who might of jarred the plumbing. that would include a cleaning person who maybe was getting some Windex from under the sink or throwing something into the cabinet. They’ll want a copy of the cleaning person’s Cert. of Liability holding you as additionally insured. Fat chance that exists, another reason to not pay and cancel the same day.
How easy is this to do without anyone (landlord) knowing about it? Do you live in the building? Is the basement locked? Otherwise pretty simply. To put it perspective people raise full grown alligators and tigers in their apartments with out the landlord knowing knowing.
Do you suspect the flood was due to a malfunctioning washing machine or, as ridiculous as it sounds, the tenant altering the pipes while still pressurized?
If you look at the supply line on the left (hot?) you will see an elbow, a short nipple, and then a tee. As mentioned by arches, there appears to be new teflon tape above and below this tee. The supply looks as though it was removed and replaced recently Also not quite sure why that 2nd capped off perpendicular tee would have to have drains in them… Pretty much half assed plumbing using whatever parts they could make work.
To answer your question anyone with a wrench/pliers could have done this job with very little DIY experience, in this case just enough knowledge to get the water to run from point A to point B.
If you are going to file an insurance claim I would keep it simple and blame it on the machine and not unlicensed plumbing work by a tenant.
Putting the legal aspects of this act aside, my goal is to get an idea from other brownstone owners who have tenants on how easy is this to do without anyone (landlord) knowing about it? And an opinion by a plumber by profession would be awesome.
Has the tenant admitted to altering the plumbing? At this point he would be stupid to do so.
What do you want to accomplish? Remove the tenant or simply go after his insurance (if he actually had any).
So how do I separate the snark from the fact? Access to the main water shut-off valve in the basement would not have been a problem. I find this set-up very strange and parts of it do look like they “were” water shut-offs and now are not. The other question is I’m pretty sure that tenants are not allowed to alter plumbing. I’m not saying the tenant did, but it sure looks very suspicious. Doesn’t it?