What should a tradesman do in the event of screwing up?

[WhiteSteve]

I was cleaning one day (last January😂) when I flushed a large wad of toilet paper I had used to wipe up whiskers from shaving from around my sink. I mindlessly threw it in and immediately flushed, and it clogged up the toilet. Managed to partially clear it with chemicals but it still wouldn’t flush. But I have two other bathrooms so it’s non-essential.

Finally called in a plumber, and they fixed it…. I thought. Went away for the weekend and came back to water on the floor, from a seemingly slow leak.

On further inspection, the toilet has a crack in it, on the front side of the bowl, below the water line, that goes all the way through. And I washed the outside of the toilet before the plumbers came so I wouldn’t look like a scrub, lmao. But it wasn’t there before. So they definitely did it. They were also trying to sell me on a new one, because it’s the original from when the house was built. I don’t want to get accusatory, but I’m just saying that happened.

I dropped $450 getting ELECTIVE service. They quoted me $1,250 for a new toilet and installation, to think about for the future. But now I may NEED a new toilet, BECAUSE of them. There was no leak before, so it was no problem. Now there is one, and that IS a problem. I feel like they owe me a new toilet in this situation. Trying to decide how much right I have to pound the table in this situation.

What do you think? If a tradesman breaks something, are they obligated to replace it for no charge? Or at very least prorate a new toilet and give me a free install? I understand mine is old, but it was watertight before they got here. I’m not trying to rip them off for a brand new toilet, but theoretically, I’d accept a cheaper 1995 toilet if they could get it. But it’s not my fault that they broke an irreplaceable model.

I don’t typically like being a hard-ass in situations like this, but these guys are looking to cost me damn near $2K when I could’ve just spent nothing and been totally fine.

[NathanDavis]

there's two things here... the toilet and the installation are as old as time, if an old house, and the one thing they could argue is something like... "the toilet and the installation were 95% broken already... so the servicing was the last karate chop" and... that would be difficult to argue against, because yes...

toilets are hollow, not solid... and there could be many "cracks and fractures" internally and on the structure, and anywhere in the old installation there would also be many issues that just happen over time and we won't just notice it because... what you see of your toilet, is just the tiny outer layer that has to look nice and easier to clean, but it is in no way the best sign of how good or how bad in shape it is, lol

so, you just can't prove they broke it, and you cannot claim that they broke it to scam you either... and, at the end of the day... if your old toilet got in trouble only with toilet paper, which is by the way, designed to mostly dissolve on its own, and not even chemicals were able to fix it, that is just a signal that there were a few things already wrong with that toilet, the installation or both...

so just get a new one... and have it installed by someone else, screw those guys... lol

[WhiteSteve]

Not sure if the house is old. 30 years. We have houses around here that people who literally rode on the Mayflower lived in, so this house is just a toddler by New England standards, lmao. Plumbers did say the toilet was old and recommended an upgrade, but if possible breakage is a factor in the repair process, that’s really something they should mention ahead of time. Wouldn’t have bothered with it.

[NathanDavis]

newer houses have cheaper installations... and three decades is a long time, yes

think about it... how many things you both 30 years ago, were built to last this long, hardly anything... lmao

30 years with the wrong installation would be a definitive problem... and yes, if there was a risk for the service to cause more damage than a fix, they would still have charged you differently because of the risk involved

[WhiteSteve]

Yeah, the augering service was higher because it was a “1995 toilet” (apparently narrower pipes). So they charged me extra AND fucked it up, lmao. What a racket.

I definitely expect 30 years out of things, I have lots of stuff from when I was a teenager that still works. One of the main reasons I don’t buy electronics. Five years passes in the blink of an eye for me, I can’t be buying phones more than once a decade, but man, they’re trying to force me….

[NathanDavis]

I'm sure another company will do the same work, for less... find someone else, lol

[WhiteSteve]

Yeah, done with these clowns

[Massageman]

A new Eljer or American Standard baseline toilet runs $150. (Avoid Kohler- over-priced and made with the cheapest parts available. Even a Tojo is better). You can install it yourself (with a helper just for the lifting part). A new feed line (with a 1/4 turn shutoff valve) and wax ring will run $20-$50. Throw in $10 for a pizza for your helper. The actually install goes very quickly unless if there is (that notorious "something else") which needs to be done. I've seated a toilet with a friend, and if I can do it, darn near ANYone can, since plumbing is one of my weakest areas of home repair.

To test vitreous china, including toilets. Drain any water. Give it a gentle tap with a coin or similar small, solid object. If it is fully intact with no breaks or cracks, you will get a clear "ring". If there is a crack or break in the china, you will hear a muffled "thonk" or "thud", but no "ring".

[WhiteSteve]

Yeah, my buddy has done like three of them and he’s an idiot, lmao, I can probably handle it with him. Thanks!

[Massageman]

You can always on-line a watch a couple of videos on the topic. I replaced a transmission in a washing machine, and an ignitor in my stove at home (perfect timing - that was a couple days before Christmas a few years ago), both based only on "how-to's" I found on-line. I had no problems. The how-to's helped me understand the written directions given with the parts, since they were made in other countries. And resist the temptation to 100% caulk-seal the toilet to the floor. If there is a leak, the water will just collect internally. Leave some opening in the caulk at the rear so you will see any water that is trickling out. Good luck with your project. Just be patient, and work carefully.

[sage2021]

This reminds me of two things or three.

1. Auto mechanics are notorious for breaking things in your car when you take it in to get something fixed.
Once you are gone and leave your car with them, well they can pretty much do something else to your car so you will take it in to them for another reason/repair.

2. It could be like the old cars that have a big hose under the hood.
It looks perfectly fine from the outside, but it's rotten on the inside and your can't tell that just by giving the house a cursory look on the outside of the house

3. The toilets in the apartment building that I live in are from the 1980's and they still work. They aren't broken unless you have abused it in some way.
My boyfriend accidentally (?) had a bar of soap slip out of his hand and it landed in the toilet.
The maintenance guy couldn't get it out. He had to replace the entire toilet.
He added that if it happens to break again it would cost me $409 to replace.

Food for thought 🤔

[sage2021]

Thank you for the MHO 🙂🧁🌷

[exitseven]

You did not see them break your toilet although it looks like what you suspect is true. Tell this to the plumber and maybe they will give you a break on a new toilet. Otherwise it is not too difficult to do the install yourself. You can buy a toilet. for 2 or 3 hundred bucks plus a little more for the wax ring and other stuff. There re lots of videos on You Tube that will show you how to do it. I have 3 bathrooms and I have replaced them all.
After a few years toilets get calcium deposits on the inside that are hard to clean and eventually they need to be replaced anyway.

[spartan55]

Man, that sucks dude. I guess it comes down to if you can prove it. re-state//background_color_rgba (0, 0, 0, 0), font_color_rgb (77, 77, 77), justifyLeft

[WhiteSteve]

Yeah, is what it is. I can ultimately afford it, but it’s frustrating that the guys you call to fix it might fuck it up worse and then be like “prove it” when you say “what the hell, man?”🙄😒

[msc545]

You can talk to them about it but I think they will just deny doing it, and there will be nothing you can do about it really. The ONLY thing they might be afraid of would be a really bad Yelp review recounting what happened.

[WhiteSteve]

SCORCHING Yelp review coming lmao

[msc545]

Talk to them first before you publish it. Maybe give them a copy of it.

[In_Trance]

fix it

[WhiteSteve]

Fuckin’ A right