Like the old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Recently, Mr Fix It Plumbing’s estimate to repair a shower valve and patch the ceramic tile wall was cast aside by a landlord anxious to save money.
The low bidder got the job. After he opened up the tile shower wall and repaired the shower valve, he put the tile back on the wall and held it in place with peel and stick labels from the post office.
As far as we know, post office peel and stick labels have not been tested and found to be an adequate waterproofing system for shower walls. Probably we just missed the research report and the post office is branching out into other fields in order to try to turn a profit and maintain their 220,000 nationwide employee base.
But as far as saving money goes, the tenant resumed showering; all was well, the landlord saved money, case closed. That is until the tenant complained about a funny smell and kept pestering the landlord. When we were called back to have a look, we found the peel and stick labels. So, that was nice; it made it easy to open up the wall again.
We found two water leaks. The shower valve was leaking inside the wall and, amazingly, shower water was working its way through the peel and stick labels and into the wall also. So maybe the research on the water proofing ability of post office peel and stick needed a little review. In any case, significant damage was done to the wooden floor joists, the sub floor, studs, and structural beam by all of this water leaking inside the wall, $21,719 cost to repair.
Mold and mildew were creating the smell. As far as a landlord is concerned, that is not the smell of money, unless you consider the landlord getting a whiff of money leaving his bank account in large sums.
We never did catch the name of the “plumber” who performed the original money-saving miracle. Lickety Stickety Slippery Slacker Plumbing might work. Sounds like an M&M rap song. Our customer informs us that Lickety Stickety’s telephone number was disconnected.
Call Mr Fix It Plumbing and you will have our guarantee of a job well done. We have been in the same location since 1988.
