Noon Wednesday.
The plumbers have been here for over an hour. We are getting a new commode. This one is only two or three years old. The jets in the bottom of the commode are clogged, so that the least bit of solid will not go out unless the commode is flushed up to six times. The water on the floor is from a worn-out gasket between tank and bowl. The alternative to purchasing a new commode was as expensive as the new commode. The bill today was $800. On Dec. 28th it was $389, so right at $1200 in less than a month.
We agreed to get an American Standard last time in order to get it done and over with. Well, this time, I told him we only wanted a Kohler. He is not going to want to replace this commode in another two or three years.
He abuses commodes! He will listen to me from now on.
On Tuesday night, I lay down a little after 6 pm. I told him to wake me a little before 7 pm. I really wanted to watch The Night of the Hunter. I was motivated to get up. Well, he called me at 7:30, 8:30, and 9 pm. I awoke at midnight with 6 hours sleep. It is noon on Wednesday, and I have still not slept. Ugh! This is a problem for me. Of course, I have nowhere to go.
They have the water off, installing the commode, so I cannot eat what I want. I had tuna salad with no eggs. I washed the celery with bottled water.
Thursday
I was exhausted yesterday. I took a long nap right at dinnertime, sleeping for another six hours right before bedtime. So, I slept none on Wednesday night. Today, I lay down at 2 pm and got up at 4 pm all on my own. Maybe I will be able to sleep tonight. I certainly need more sleep.
The guy who put the sealer around the base of the commode left the product smeared all over the floor. I have no idea how to get it off. It does not matter since I cannot get down there to get it off. The first time I sat on the seat, it creaked, so I wonder if it is breakable! It continues to creak, certainly not Kohler standards.
This weather is wonderful. It has been 68F for hours today or above. Of course, as soon as I arrived at Publix, it started pouring. Thankfully, it was only sprinkles by the time someone brought me a cart. Everything I went to buy was bogo--frozen broccoli florets, Chobani low-fat Greek yogurt. Bread and bananas were not on sale. My a2 milk was on sale, but will get that another day--$3.99 for half gallon. We did not look at ads yet. Nor did we collect the ads from The Pig, and Food Giant.
I just received a book I ordered--Jesus and John Wayne--How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation.
"Jesus and John Wayne is a sweeping, revisionist history of the last seventy-five years of white evangelicalism, revealing how evangelicals have worked to replace the Jesus of the Gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism―or in the words of one modern chaplain, with “a spiritual badass.” from the back of the book."
It looks to be a page-turner. Have you heard of this book?
The weather prediction tonight has temps in 50s next week and NO RAIN? I can handle that!
I'm glad you were able to get the commode replaced and with a great brand like Kohler. Sounds like you are not getting enough sleep or rest, and I hope that changes for you and you do get enough rest. I've not looked at the sale ads this week either, but will look at them next week for sure.
ReplyDeleteBelinda,
DeleteKohler is the brand I always bought for my house. Well, I only had to replace commodes once, and those were still working 25 years later.
You are correct that I am not getting enough sleep. Well, lately I get enough sleep, just not all at once. Of course, there are the days that I only get two hours of sleep. Today, we will get the ads from the other two stores.
White evangelical nationalists should terrify us all. The only cure, is to grab them by the BALLot. When they lose, they show what scared, crying, fragile lying buggers they really are. Currently, we have an evangelical church here active in trying to tell people that handing your ballot to complete strangers in their building is safer than putting it in the ballot drop off. As for John Wayne, my parents pointed him out to us in the 1970's as the bigot he was. Of course, I had the fortune to be raised in good old fashioned secular humanism, so magical thinking/religious dogma doesn't fool me.
ReplyDeleteMeg,
DeleteI hope someone can stop the evangelicals from collecting ballots. That is illegal, and they know it. Being religious, illegal actions do not bother them. I was reared by a non-believing father who tried his best to not allow us to go to church with my very religious mother. Magical thinking left me when I went to a Bible college for two years where the purpose was to educated preacher and make preacher's wives. The one thing that I learned and took to heart was "question everything" and examine it to prove or disprove." Well, I learned exegesis of scriptures. Now, I am never fooled or not for long.
Sorry to be a Debbie Downer, but I don't think that toilet "fix" went well at all!
ReplyDeleteToilets have two sets of jets:
rim (under the rim)
siphon (at the bottom)
From what you say your siphon jet was clogged. It does happen, and can be cleaned out manually with something like a nail set tool or by soaking CLR (calcium, lime, & rust remover) in the bowl overnight.
At only 3 years old, your toilet almost certainly didn't need replacing.
Now yes, the leaking had to be addressed. But I really doubt the gasket was "worn". I think the gasket might have been improperly placed originally, or it might have shifted if the toilet wasn't firmly seated. At any rate, he merely should have removed the old gasket, installed a new one, and waited.
So that plumber should have tried cleaning the siphon jet AND should have replaced the gasket. Instead, he sold sold you a brand-new toilet.
I think he pulled a fast one on you. I surely wouldn't call him back, ever, unless it's to fix that squeak.
BTW, if the toilet squeaks even if you sit on the rim itself, and NOT the seat (I know, it will feel weird, but hit the rim with a sanitizing wipe and try it) then you know it wasn't installed right. The toilet itself shouldn't make any noise/movement when you sit on it.
And yet another thing: I've been told that there should not be sealer around the base of the commode. Yes, it would seem to keep dirt out, but if a leak develops (like you had) the sealer prevents the water from leaking out and showing. Meaning that all the water goes into the subfloor and causes rot. So that could be another potential problem...
I have learned the hard way that if i am gong to have work done by a contractor, I have to Google the hell out of the subject and learn as much as I can to prevent poor work. It's very, very sad that I have to educate myself to such an extent to get any work done properly, but unfortunately, professionals just aren't that "professional" anymore. Very few contractors take enormous pride in their professional knowledge anymore. They just wanna make a buck any way they can, and substandard work is just fine by them.
PS: Here is a link that will show you how your toilet problem SHOULD have been addressed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVPoN8efFSM
Both sets of jets were so clogged that barely anything came through. Tommy refused to clean them upper ones when he cleaned the commode. He is the one who cleans the commode because he is the one who leaves residue in the commode. He does it without me even mentioning it. There was a yellow residue creeping from under the rim. I mentioned he might clean that while he was at it. He said it was not hurting anything, so it did not need cleaning. Well, that was where the upper jets were clogged. The whole inside of the bowl under the water was yellowish and Tommy said it was okay, to leave it alone. I bought a commode brush that had a little edge to clean under the rim. Eventually, he did start using that. It was too late.
DeleteThe plumber did say he could clean the jets for us. I was the one who said to just give us a new commode. Tommy said whatever I thought was best. Plumber said he could clean the jets, but we both just wanted it done and done right.
The leak was between tank and bowl. I saw the cracked piece. I have saved it for when I call to question and complain.
I don't think this guy does substandard work. Like I said, for fifty years I have singlehandedly managed two commodes in my house. Because I was in charge and we did not have hard water, my problems were few.
Snakes, bugs, fleas, and air and stuff can come in the house. The guy did not want to seal the commode to floor. I insisted. The water was running out of the tank and down the outside of the commode. Funny, I did not see that, just soaked mat/rug.
If either of us could get down that far, we could take a dental mirror and ream those jets out with the CLR we have,
There is not one thing I have told Tommy about the problem or fix with things in this house that has not been correct. Remember, for forty years I managed things like commodes, faucets and air leaks around the house.
However, I did have guy friends, never boyfriends that told me stuff and educated me. You should have seen the array of tools I owned to use myself or to have someone else use to help me.
Well I am very glad to know I was wrong, and I will be the first to admit that!
DeleteIt's good to learn the new toilet was YOUR choice, and not the plumber trying to rip you off. And good to know that sealing the toilet to the floor was YOUR choice, not the plumber doing shady work.
I am relieved to learn I was wrong!
I have been subjected to so many shady/inept home contractors that I am resentful and highly wary.
Sue,
DeleteI do understand about contractors! Remember, this has been going on for forty years with me. One guy told me how he was going to do the job to save me money. I told him that would not work, and told him I would get someone else. Stupidly, I did call him for something else--same stupid fix. So, I never called him for anything else.
I've not heard of the book, I hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
Jan,
DeleteI have only read a few pages and it is very interesting.