![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Plumb Luck
Feb. 20th, 2009 11:01 amToday I am learning how fortunate I am in my choice of landlords. You see, yesterday my shower started to have some issues, with the hot water tap refusing to shut off completely. I like being able to fix things myself (evidence: bicycle repair habit), but of course there are limits and my plumbing knowledge only goes as far as knowing how to clean out a sink trap.
So. I turned off the water at the water heater, and this morning right at 8 o'clock I called up the handyman that our landlord had requested that we use. Instant awesomeness ensued. Firstly, this guy knows the house really well already. Secondly, he's a human being and can make decisions about the urgency of different projects (i.e. leaking plumbing = relatively urgent; wacky ductwork towards the back of the house = take time to think it over). Thirdly, he was excited about the fact that I'm interested in knowing about how the plumbing works. Fourth, while he's here, he can take a look at several other projects that have come up and can work on solutions for them (and he reminded me to change the air filter, thanks, T!).
This is so much better than calling Roto-Rooter or Whatever Giant Plumbing Specialist Corporation. A generalized handyman who knows the house and does good work, who is flexible about scheduling and happy to teach his customers how to care for things.
This makes it clear that I am going to have to find an equivalent person for whatever other house I ever live in for the rest of my life. Yay!
So. I turned off the water at the water heater, and this morning right at 8 o'clock I called up the handyman that our landlord had requested that we use. Instant awesomeness ensued. Firstly, this guy knows the house really well already. Secondly, he's a human being and can make decisions about the urgency of different projects (i.e. leaking plumbing = relatively urgent; wacky ductwork towards the back of the house = take time to think it over). Thirdly, he was excited about the fact that I'm interested in knowing about how the plumbing works. Fourth, while he's here, he can take a look at several other projects that have come up and can work on solutions for them (and he reminded me to change the air filter, thanks, T!).
This is so much better than calling Roto-Rooter or Whatever Giant Plumbing Specialist Corporation. A generalized handyman who knows the house and does good work, who is flexible about scheduling and happy to teach his customers how to care for things.
This makes it clear that I am going to have to find an equivalent person for whatever other house I ever live in for the rest of my life. Yay!
