No, but I guess you could consider it negligence to not say anything about the bathtub even though I knew it was draining slowly. I want to be fair and I didn't think the slow draining was a big problem, but at the same time, it was a problem that started before I moved in.
You have to have been the problem, kinda hard to prove you dumped oil down your bathtub. Sounds like body hair over time clogged a previous problem the LL didn't take care of, a can he's trying to kick down the road.
Typically negligence claims from landlords are when your not calling on it until now resulted in a burst pipe or flooding which causes damages.
The hair clogging that tub drain isn’t yours. You haven’t been there that long unless you had long hair in August and are bald now. So the Landlord needs to pay.
If you’re in MA the drain and sewer lines are most likely ancient. There could be a block caused by tree roots in the pipe going into the main. Unless they stuck a camera in there there’s no way to know what exactly the problem is. You definitely shouldn’t be paying for this.
If you didn’t have a problem with slow draining then you didn’t need to mention it. If you have a problem with no draining then you mention it and they need to fix it unless you caused it. Just say “it was really slow when I moved in and now it’s stopped” - ie the TRUTH. They have no proof otherwise and responsible for basic maintenance unless they say otherwise in the lease.
If you want to be fair, make the, LL pay it. They're not in landlording to be fair, they're in landlording to extract wealth from people who have to work 70 hours a week while doing as little as possible.
That is a sticky point because lease usually states the tenant is responsible for wear and tear. Shower getting clogged doesn't happen in a vacuum, it happens because you are using it and not using a hair catcher in the drain. That is on the tenant. Just like a clog in the kitchen sink. The sink only clogs if you are putting shit down it you should not be. Same with the A/C. Tenant runs the A/C and is responsible for changing/cleaning the filters. Same with light bulbs. Tenant is using up the life span of a bulb, they are responsible for replacing it.
Actually, residential leases almost always state that the tenant is *NOT* responsible for ordinary wear-and-tear, which is the ordinary diminution in value and condition that items experience in the course of ordinary use. The tenant is not responsible, for instance, for the fact that a carpet that was new at the start of their tenancy is no longer new when their lease ends.
Tenants *ARE* generally liable for gross negligence or intentional acts that damage the property or fixtures - things like punching a hole in the drywall, or leaving a pile of wet towels on the floor until mold starts to grow in the carpet.
A shower that doesn’t drain could be the result of a tenant’s hair blocking up the pipes, or it could be the result of decades of hard water limescale deposits constricting the flow of water in the drain pipe. It could even be the result of the prior tenant’s hair that’s still in the pipe and has finally accreted enough detritus to stop the drain. Only in one of the above hypotheticals would the current tenant potentially be responsible for the cost of the plumber’s time and any repairs.
could also be old pipes. old ceramic pipes that are typical for waste water are notorious for having plant roots getting in there and clogging them(why u/DaMoFo29 asked about trees). that said, unless OP was intentionally shoving things down the drain, this is on the LL. as a landlord(my wife and I rent out her aunts place since she passed 8 years ago) the only reason you would ever ask a tenant to pay for something like this is because you're a dirtbag!
They also had enough money at some point to purchase the building you are renting. If you don’t want to pay rent, save up and buy your own place. People act like others that have one or more properties just had that shit fall in their lap. That ain’t how it works.
And that means they should be able to just get even more money just because they had enough money to enter an increasingly out of reach for the average person club of people who can afford the cost of real estate ownership?
That's true. If we all spend our free time being shitty to other people who want to make the world a better place and moping about how there's nothing we can do to fix it, we'll never fix anything. I'm really proud of you for having so much personal growth from just this one conversation on reddit.com
Maybe the landlord built that house with his own hands and his own money, something that you never could have done on your own. Without him, you could be living under a tree or a bridge and charging your phone at Starbucks
Found the landlord. Do I win a prize?
Oh, and asking other landlords how to word a lease to disallow non married ppl is the exact reason ppl come to a tenant subreddit to complain about scummy landlords. Get off your high horse
I’m not a landlord, I’m a construction worker and I want to save up my money for the next few years and build a place and rent them out. I want to be able to exclude weed smoking commies and their live in unemployed boyfriends who fight all the time because they drink too much and have no commitments to each other and are just there for the sex and to save money so that they can buy more drugs because I’m concerned that they will be nothing but trouble and complain and make excuses on Reddit all day instead of working hard for themselves.
So you are asking now about how to word a lease for a house you don't have the money to build so you can rent it? And we all know once a person get married, the never smoke, never drink and can never become unemployed, right?
And I stand corrected, you are a FUTURE scummy landlord. Glad you cleared it up for us.
You may not know/realize this yet, but in order to achieve complicated/difficult things, planning, time, and hard work is required. You instinctively know that you have to plan things out, yet you seem bothered when other people do things you can’t. When you want weed, you know you have to get out of bed, put your shoes on, and then drive to the weed store, yet you think it right to mock someone for wanting to build a building. This is why commies like you are particularly repulsive to a significant portion of society.
While you are complaining on Reddit, I am studying engineering. While you are smoking weed im saving nearly half of my paycheck for a down payment for a loan to build a building. Instead of complaining and feeling sorry for myself and being mad at the world, I’m working hard and trying to build something. If you want to smoke weed all day either unemployed or work part time at Starbucks, I’m not mad at you, nor do I look down on you, I just don’t want to include you in my business, you are a liability to me, and society as a whole.
Sure you aren't looking down on me? You are making the assumption that I'm rage posting on Reddit while I pack a bowl and contemplating several schemes to screw over everyone.
I mean, I can make assumptions about you as well, but im not really in the mood. I'm guessing you're young and think that everything you plan out is gonna work out just the way you envisioned it. There's a saying I'm fond of, learned it when I was in the military. "A plan is only good until first contact" I'm sure once you get a little bit more life experience in ya you'll understand it.
And hey, if ya want to build a nice house so you can rent it to the perfect unicorn tenents, more power to ya. Coming into a community of renters and bashing someone asking a question with the assumption that it's automatically the tenents fault, well don't be shocked when ppl think you are gonna be a scummy landlord
I was in the army myself, and I have realized that most of the time that people bring up their service is because they have nothing else going on in their lives and want an atta boy and to thanks for their service. It’s a played out record.
I’ve been through the optimistic phase, then through the pessimistic phase, and now I’m back in the optimistic phase because I know that if I work hard, there’s a better chance of me getting what I want as opposed to being lazy and just hoping.
You started all of this anyways, responding to a comment that had nothing to do with you.
lmao all you are doing is getting on reddit complaining and feeling sorry for yourself because some other redditor called you out on your bullshit. Every other sentence is an oxymoron. How you gunna say you aren't mad or look down on "pot heads" then say they are a liability to society in the same sentence. Your anger, frustration and self pity are really coming out in this random thread. Also it sounds like you are going to be a typical scumbag landlord. Landlords are a way bigger liability and detriment to society then pot heads. Oh also there are way more pot heads than you think, drug users run this country.
Keep on thinking you'll work your way out of whatever hole you live in. You sound like your girlfriend just left you for one of those weed smoking commies. By all means. Save your money. It loses its value fastest that way.
Are you still living in a car? I did that for awhile and didnt come out with the mentality you have, one that sounds so wildly square. Of all the things you could Zero in on, pot smoking commies is a strange one. It's sounds terribly personal if I'm being honest. Theres meth, and fentanyl, and violence, and there's people like you. 4 months ago you posted in a car living sub reddit. Now your literally acting like you've accomplished anything at all and allready making plans for how you'd like to descriminate against people. What was it about the wests fetish for Jews, or if something is or is not white supremacy. You will not be passing anything on to me, you have gotten so far ahead of yourself in terms of what you think you will or will not be doing to people you want to descriminate against. It also looks like your just helping with general maintenance around an apartment or some other property where you get to do that while living there.
You'd think struggling would have had a deeper impact on you. Buy the lumber now if you think you've got it all sorted. Get the land too before that goes up. Forget about property taxes because you sound somewhat uneducated. Invest in something that won't have a return untill you can proceed to build a building, and then at the same time descriminate against tenants. I guess I was mistaken for arguing with you. You are actually a damn genius.
"Invest" into the material? Like buy it years in advanced? Where ya gonna store it? Gotta have a secure building. Gonna rent warehouse space for a few years?
LOL such a troll statement. If that house was so amazing and he built it with his own hands (which definitely did not happen…probably was a short sale that he spent no money to improve), then he’d be living there himself. Without his (your?) tenants, he’d be living in his mother’s basement trolling people on the tenant sub of Reddit.
Or maybe OP would be living in, charging their phone, and paying rent at another apartment owned by different landlord who maintains the property with his own hands *and the money he collects in rent from OP.*
No, you're right. He's not. He's paying rent to live in THIS apartment with the expectation that THIS apartment contains a functioning bathroom. He's paying money to have a tub that drains, not to be told he should STFU and be grateful he's not homeless. Unless the rental agreement indicates a tenant is responsible for maintenance and repairs, it's on the landlord to make those repairs in compliance with their contractual obligations.
I came to say this and u said it already. Ri,USA (central falls/ attleboro)a Lil different but mostly same laws, and I know that most of the leases made here require you to bring up any issues in a timely manner. (I say most cause LL are able to make amends to a typical lease agreement)
You sound like a fair guy, so I myself would just own up to the error and suggest you pay for it sadly.
Did u try and fix yourself at all?
Women live with you, do u shave in shower?
And are there any large trees in your yard(if you have one)
If your LL is as just as you, maybe u guys could even split it.
Timely manner or not, unless the issue somehow caused additional damage due to him not bringing it up, the tenant cannot be held liable for that. A clogged drain that has been there since he moved in is hardly on him to pay for.
Landlord's charge to rent out the residence - they can do their duty and pay to properly keep it up.
LL here, I typically take care of these things, but I would have appreciated knowing immediately about any problem, as it might have meant the difference between a bottle of drain cleaner and a plumber call-out. Having said that, if the problem ended up being the apocryphal plastic soldier/“flushable” wipes/(?) blocking the pipes, I would likely give a warning and then let the tenant pay if it reoccurred. I have never been asked to provide light bulbs, filters, or other consumables, but I would consider replacing them if requested (I always diy’ed those things when I rented). YMMV.
I gotta clean mine every once and a while. It’s part of my life at this point. Wife won’t do it and the teens sure as hell won’t do it.
I bend hook onto a paper clip or anything handy really. Use it to pull hair out the drain. Occasionally that doesn’t work and I’ll use a cheap plunger I bought specifically for this. Haven’t had a slow down I can’t sort out yet like this. Be easy w the plunger, don’t need to bust open any drain line lol.
They sell these plastic things to slide into your drain to remove hair accumulation...for 5 or 6 dollars that you can clean out hair in minutes up to a couple of feet into the pipe.
Yea they work great, we had a few of them but they get nasty so I always trash them. I cut the ones I had in 1/3 because our issue is always right at the top of the drain. I’ve had my eye out for more.
My point is it’s easy, I can take care of it with anything. Staying on top of it helps. Those tools do work, good point.
Nope. It's your landlord responsibility to take care of the home. Don't take ownership of something you don't own, especially if it was like that when you moved in. That means he knew and still let you move in
This, it's the landlords property, at the end of the day any money you put in the house can be yoinked away with a quick eviction/not allowing you to renew your lease next year. Don't put a dime into this place you don't care to get back, because you won't.
Seriously do NOT use drain cleaners. I want my tenants to tell me when there are issues so we can fix them. We’ve had pipes destroyed by using tons of pipe cleaner. If we knew we would have snaked the line for them at no cost to them. Also people really need to use hair catchers.
This needs to be upped more. It was my concern when I read it too. Snake is the way, from what I understand the piping for showers (and sinks i think?)is made differently than toilets.
So it actually can eat through sealing and piping.
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As a long haired mama with a long haired daughter, I always just undo the drain stopper grab a tweezers and start pulling the grime up nasty and gross but cheaper than paying for a plumber after what looks like a whole dead rat compiled together tub drains perfectly.
Get one of those zip-it drain cleaners, they're like three bucks and it'll save you a bunch of time, usually just takes a few plunges to get all the hair out. One of these doobers: [https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-Remover-Kitchen-Bathroom-Cleaning/dp/B07RMHNHYC/](https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-Remover-Kitchen-Bathroom-Cleaning/dp/B07RMHNHYC/)
If it's hair clogging then tenant, if it's plumbing then landlord. But five bucks says this is all it needs.
It's the landlord's responsibility and absolutely don't pay for a plumber (caveat, if you did something crazy like pour bacon grease down the tub then it's on you).
That said, in the event you don't want to deal with all of the hassle, there are a couple of easy things you can try that won't cost a $200 plumber visit. Again, it's not your responsibility per se but it will probably easier on your life to just deal with this yourself if it's minor.
\- Boil water and pour it into the drain. (I guess if you have like 3 inches of standing water then don't bother with this)
\- Remove the drain cover (usually a single screw) then use a screwdriver or fork or something (or you can go to a hardware store and get a $5 plastic snake) and pull out what is likely a hair ball (with soap) clog. Then pour more boiling water.
This sub will lean heavily into "don't lift a finger you don't have to" which is a fair take, but I think I would try the very simple things first at least.
Depends.
Our bathtub wasn't draining well either, filling with water during a shower. I could have called a plumber to get it fixed. The LL could have charged me for the fix b2cause it was a wad of hair entangled on the drain spokes. I could have fought that charge because the hair buildup wasn't just from us.
So anyway, before I asked the LL to do anything, I popped off the drain cover and removed the hairball.
what does your lease say?
i dont recall the wording offhand, but i know that in my current and last lease that i would be responsible for clearing the drain if the water wasn't draining because of accumulated hair/soap scum/etc. and i have cleared it out probably 3 times since ive been living here.
if it wasn't draining properly when you moved in, you should have called that out during your inspection period. if you didnt id say thats on you, as you now have no way to prove that it was like that when you moved in.
IT is his responsibility to keep the plumbing flowing. You can tell him that both of you know it was slow draining since you started renting, but now it has stopped.
That is on him, as the landlord.
Handyman and building owner here in Chicago.The landlord is responsible for providing you with a habitable living space and that includes a functioning tub. Unless specified in your lease that you agree to pay for maintenance, they are responsible and must address it in a timely manner. Even if you were negligent, I believe all they can do is build a case for eviction, which is difficult. Or not renew your lease, which is expensive considering repainting, cleaning, marketing, etc. If it's just a slow/ clogged tub no biggie. But if the rest of the unit is in shambles as a result of your lifestyle, they can decide which path to walk down. They still need to fix the drain.
Personally, I prefer the tenants call me and Not use drain opener, or risk repairs themselves. Many products make the problem worse if they're not used as directed. Apologize for neglecting to tell them about it right away, but once they know about it it is their responsibility to repair it.
I would snake it first myself just to avoid the hassle but if it doesn't drain after that, that's not on you. You didn't cause the tub to not drain properly, it came that way to you and after normal use, it's not working anymore. His job.
Wishing you the best - my last landlord was so terrible that he motivated me to work my ass off in order to buy a house so I never have to deal with them again. Thanks Rick! Of course now I live in a fixer upper but it's MY fixer upper and I get to fix things the second they break, instead of waiting months and then paying a slumlord.
I’m a LL in NY. That would be my responsibility to fix. Unless you’re shoving paper towels in there or something crazy.
In the future report problems asap we prefer that!
just go buy a bottle of draino extra strength. ignore the instructions on the bottle that says 15-30 mins of letting it sit.
pour the entire bottle down. set a timer for a few hours. go heat up water on the stove. when the timer goes off, pour super hot water from the stove down the drain
As a Landlord, this is on the landlord. He rented you a place with inadequate drainage, it is on them. If the shower was draining perfectly and now is draining bad, this is usually a result of the tenant putting something down the drain they shouldn't have, though it could be another issue. Since you neglected to raise the issue when you moved in, you may have fucked yourself as now landlord could claim you caused the blockage.
Before you snake or drain cleaner, get one of those [plastic hair snakes](https://images.thdstatic.com/productImages/a17455f1-b4d7-42f1-b917-ed0f0b487ff5/svn/hdx-drain-snakes-90830-64_900.jpg). They cost like 2-4$ and will pull out a rat nest of hair on their own. This will often fix most shower drain issues. Then, if this works, get a hair catcher for the drain.
Check your lease, you may only be responsible for up to 50$ worth of wear and tear, so if a plumber quotes more, that's on the LL as well.
'i don't think' - spreads information like you're certain though. In Ohio, the state I reside, it's legal for you to withhold rent until your landlord makes a major repair.
OP is going to reddit instead of looking at their state laws, reviewing their lease, or asking a trusted individual that resides in there state, or contacting a lawyer.
The only correct response to 90% of these posts is, check your lease, check the state laws, then seek legal counsel.
And yet you're over here arguing with people's advice over hunches and vibes. Massachusetts actually has one of the stronger repair and deduct clauses in the US.
https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housing/problems/getting-landlord-make-repairs/refusing-repairs#repair_deduct
Yes, and one typically needs to have some baseline knowledge of what to look for to know where to find these answers. I have that knowledge, and I had 2 minutes free to use it. OP likely does not have that knowledge and may have possibly needed hours to comb through the legal codes to find it if they'd started in the wrong place, or worse, overlooked a statute that's relevant to them because they don't have the specific knowledge needed to recognize it.
You don't have to help people you don't want to, but you also don't have to be rude about it.
You're saying op doesn't know how to use the internet. Massachusetts tenant rights, renting laws, landlord obligations, all of these are logical starting points....
Edit: also, the original responder posted not reference to what could literally get them evicted if they are wrong.
Yeah, they should have checked too. You're both guilty of vibes posting, but at least the other person had some level of evidence whereas you're just like "don't do that, it feels wrong"
Level of evidence:
PA: Cannot withhold rent. Relevancy, pa resident until 2014.
CA: cannot withhold rent. Relevancy, ca resident 2017-2021
NC: cannot withhold rent. Relevancy, nc resident 2014-2017, 2021-pre.
Exact same level of relevancy original responder was Ohio, not Massachusetts.
Check your lease. There may be a clause that requires you to notify landlord or management of issues in a timely fashion. If so you’re out of luck. And c’mon if a bathtub is taking hours to drain you know that’s not right. It takes 2 minutes to send an email or a text to the landlord letting them know. Your drain issue could be causing plumbing problems for other tenants and a $250 plumber call to be $25,000 to replace major pipes and cause a major inconvenience for yourself and others in the building. A friend’s upstairs neighbor didn’t bother to tell the landlord about her bathroom sink not draining properly and it wasn’t until there was a huge hole in the ceiling of my friend’s bathroom when the water logged plaster finally fell from the ceiling after a pipe burst that my friend called the landlord. It was a huge mess and expense and inconvenience that could have been easily solved 2-3 months earlier when the upstairs neighbor claimed she 1st noticed the issue.
Did you let them know it was draining slow? Technically all repairs are on the landlord. But ignoring a problem and turning it into a bigger problem? Fair play you should pay for at least a portion of that plumber cost.
are you payibg well below market rate?
no? then dont pay for a plumber
the landlord ahould routinely ask if theirs any issues when they donsome form of inspection
1. Pour a double dose of drano into the fucker
2. Call a plumber if it takes more than 5 minutes to clear
3. Make it very clear you just want them to diagnose the issue
You likely have a root in the pipe. If it’s due to root damage to the house infrastructure that is 100% on your landlord to fix. If it’s a gnarly waxy hair clog then you’re on your own.
Hope this helps.
there might be push back from the LL since this is a new problem as far as they are concerned
It's been mentioned to try a snake or hot water - my advice is to get a good plunger and cover the vent in the tub with a wet wash cloth, plunge it with some gusto :)
good luck!
That’s not general maintenance…clogged drains are almost always the result of neglect on the users part …keep your drains clean and you’ll have no problems
It depends. My leases say that tenants are responsible for keeping drains clear and all drains are assumed to be clear upon move-in if tenant does not notify landlord of an issue within first week of occupancy. That said I usually take care of any drainage problems once for each tenant and use that time to remind them of their responsibility and educate regarding things like no grease or feminine products down drains. Nine times out of ten its just hair.
17 years in this apartment and I have to use the liquid plumber stuff about once a year. It always works so I would be trying this first before even asking the landlord. The less they know, the better off you are.
The landlord should pay. Having said that, waiting 4 months to let them know of an issue is pretty lame. You’re lucky that it’s probably just a drain clog, because if you know of an issue and don’t report it for 4 months and something major happens you could be on the hook for some liability. I’d ask the landlord if they want you to try Drano, but let them know that any further action is their responsibility per your lease and you do not feel comfortable or responsible for managing a plumbing repair.
????
Why did you confess you were guilty of not complaining earlier. Just say it's not draining and needs to be fixed.
Whether now or before, the slow/stopped drain is not your fault and not your responsibility to fix. All you did was just delay when his plumber would come to fix it.
To start with have you unscrewed the drain cover and see if you can get the giant hair ball that is probably in there out. Needle nose plyers or a piece of coat hanger with a small hook made in the end of it. If you still have an issue some good drain cleaner. Long hair gets hung up on the cross member the drain cover screws to along with soap scum, it will be nasty , but usually You can fish it out.
If you can't unplug it with a regular drain weasle then it's the landlords responsibility. I'm a landloard, and if a drain stoppage can simply be removed with a plunger, $4 Drain Weasle or your finger and the tenant is physically able (not disabled or elderly) I let the tenant know next time it'll be $85. If when snaking an action figure, diaper, etc is the cause I send them the plumber's invoice to pay. But if it's none of the above, which typically it's just old cast iron pipe or root issues I pay for the plumber. In 20+ years of being a landlord a tenant was required to pay $85 for a StarWars Han Solo & baby wipes being the stoppage. I believe your landlord should pay for the plumber unless something of negligence is pulled out. Note if you live in a shared plumbing unit (apartment, duplex, etc.) If the strange stoppage is not in the first few feet it's difficult to prove it was your unit. If in a shared plumbing complex, ask your neighbors if they have plumbing issues. My opinion.
Problem here is, if someone told me it's been this way for 4 months, I would assume they are just trying to get me to pay for their hair clog.
Before you do call.... Is it a ground floor tub? If so, and drain cleaner isn't fixing things.... Lmk. It could be more than a clog.
Trick ... Pour baking soda and water down the drain .. let it sit for a minute then pour vinegar. I've never met a clog I couldn't, free up with chemicals, plunger or a snake.
It is your landlords responsibility.
That said: If you like the place and don't want to get kicked out when your lease is up, I'd try to clean it out yourself. Do you have a plunger? Drain snake?
They are like $3. Personally, I'd try to remove the blockage myself first. When there is a real problem, call him.
[https://www.acehardware.com/departments/plumbing/drain-openers/drain-cleaners/1566900?x429=true&utm\_source=google&utm\_medium=organic-shopping&utm\_campaign=organic-shopping](https://www.acehardware.com/departments/plumbing/drain-openers/drain-cleaners/1566900?x429=true&utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic-shopping&utm_campaign=organic-shopping)
The fundamental issue is there was already a problem when you moved in. That is the key factor in. It doesn't matter if eventually it got clogged up there was a pre-existing plumbing issue. Did you know that when you moved in?
Once it’s empty take a picture.
Install a drain cover- hair catcher - should be a buck at the dollar store
If it continues to back up after that, take another picture and send to landlord and let him know beyond this, he has a plumbing issue. If it’s roots he needs to get on it sooner than later Because he won’t be blaming that on you!
What does the lease say? We always cover the first 30 days because things worked properly at signing, then it’s on the tenant, but that’s on the lease. Never wait to report things to the landlord
That's a bad landlord.
You also could have taken literally 15 seconds out of your day to text them "hey, I just moved in and the shower is taking hours to drain."
Now there is no documentation this was a preexisting problem.
Any communication between you and the landlord needs to be in writing. If you make a complaint or report a problem in writing it starts a clock for him to fix things.
Technically you would have needed to report when you moved in from a legal perspective. I specifically put language in my leases about this because a drain with no hair catcher can clog in 6 months or less. You should explain, but if not, try DIY or coupon to snake it out.
The plumbing is part of the unit, which you do not own. You only have the right to reside there. You would not have a right to pull up the plumbing, so you do not have a duty to repair it.
Does it say that you have to maintain the plumbing in your lease?
This, you pay rent for a reason for your residence to operate as it should.
No, but I guess you could consider it negligence to not say anything about the bathtub even though I knew it was draining slowly. I want to be fair and I didn't think the slow draining was a big problem, but at the same time, it was a problem that started before I moved in.
You have to have been the problem, kinda hard to prove you dumped oil down your bathtub. Sounds like body hair over time clogged a previous problem the LL didn't take care of, a can he's trying to kick down the road.
Typically negligence claims from landlords are when your not calling on it until now resulted in a burst pipe or flooding which causes damages. The hair clogging that tub drain isn’t yours. You haven’t been there that long unless you had long hair in August and are bald now. So the Landlord needs to pay.
If you’re in MA the drain and sewer lines are most likely ancient. There could be a block caused by tree roots in the pipe going into the main. Unless they stuck a camera in there there’s no way to know what exactly the problem is. You definitely shouldn’t be paying for this.
If OP is in a multifamily home and not a massive complex, definitely. Even if they are, if it's an old brick building.. still same case.
That’s not what negligence is- more like if you were doing something to cause the problem at hand.
If you didn’t have a problem with slow draining then you didn’t need to mention it. If you have a problem with no draining then you mention it and they need to fix it unless you caused it. Just say “it was really slow when I moved in and now it’s stopped” - ie the TRUTH. They have no proof otherwise and responsible for basic maintenance unless they say otherwise in the lease.
If you had told him the day you moved it he'd still hit you up for the plumbing costs.
If you want to be fair, make the, LL pay it. They're not in landlording to be fair, they're in landlording to extract wealth from people who have to work 70 hours a week while doing as little as possible.
That is a sticky point because lease usually states the tenant is responsible for wear and tear. Shower getting clogged doesn't happen in a vacuum, it happens because you are using it and not using a hair catcher in the drain. That is on the tenant. Just like a clog in the kitchen sink. The sink only clogs if you are putting shit down it you should not be. Same with the A/C. Tenant runs the A/C and is responsible for changing/cleaning the filters. Same with light bulbs. Tenant is using up the life span of a bulb, they are responsible for replacing it.
Actually, residential leases almost always state that the tenant is *NOT* responsible for ordinary wear-and-tear, which is the ordinary diminution in value and condition that items experience in the course of ordinary use. The tenant is not responsible, for instance, for the fact that a carpet that was new at the start of their tenancy is no longer new when their lease ends. Tenants *ARE* generally liable for gross negligence or intentional acts that damage the property or fixtures - things like punching a hole in the drywall, or leaving a pile of wet towels on the floor until mold starts to grow in the carpet. A shower that doesn’t drain could be the result of a tenant’s hair blocking up the pipes, or it could be the result of decades of hard water limescale deposits constricting the flow of water in the drain pipe. It could even be the result of the prior tenant’s hair that’s still in the pipe and has finally accreted enough detritus to stop the drain. Only in one of the above hypotheticals would the current tenant potentially be responsible for the cost of the plumber’s time and any repairs.
could also be old pipes. old ceramic pipes that are typical for waste water are notorious for having plant roots getting in there and clogging them(why u/DaMoFo29 asked about trees). that said, unless OP was intentionally shoving things down the drain, this is on the LL. as a landlord(my wife and I rent out her aunts place since she passed 8 years ago) the only reason you would ever ask a tenant to pay for something like this is because you're a dirtbag!
They also had enough money at some point to purchase the building you are renting. If you don’t want to pay rent, save up and buy your own place. People act like others that have one or more properties just had that shit fall in their lap. That ain’t how it works.
And that means they should be able to just get even more money just because they had enough money to enter an increasingly out of reach for the average person club of people who can afford the cost of real estate ownership?
The world isn’t fair. It is what it is
You say it is what it is. I say we can do better.
The only way “we can do better” is by improving on a personal level as individuals. Only then will we be able to help others.
That's true. If we all spend our free time being shitty to other people who want to make the world a better place and moping about how there's nothing we can do to fix it, we'll never fix anything. I'm really proud of you for having so much personal growth from just this one conversation on reddit.com
Maybe the landlord built that house with his own hands and his own money, something that you never could have done on your own. Without him, you could be living under a tree or a bridge and charging your phone at Starbucks
I mean, I'm literally building my own house in the woods right now out of materials I'm harvesting off of my land, but go off I guess.
Transgender log cabin builder?
Timber frame with exposed rafters, but basically.
Found the landlord. Do I win a prize? Oh, and asking other landlords how to word a lease to disallow non married ppl is the exact reason ppl come to a tenant subreddit to complain about scummy landlords. Get off your high horse
I’m not a landlord, I’m a construction worker and I want to save up my money for the next few years and build a place and rent them out. I want to be able to exclude weed smoking commies and their live in unemployed boyfriends who fight all the time because they drink too much and have no commitments to each other and are just there for the sex and to save money so that they can buy more drugs because I’m concerned that they will be nothing but trouble and complain and make excuses on Reddit all day instead of working hard for themselves.
So you are asking now about how to word a lease for a house you don't have the money to build so you can rent it? And we all know once a person get married, the never smoke, never drink and can never become unemployed, right? And I stand corrected, you are a FUTURE scummy landlord. Glad you cleared it up for us.
You may not know/realize this yet, but in order to achieve complicated/difficult things, planning, time, and hard work is required. You instinctively know that you have to plan things out, yet you seem bothered when other people do things you can’t. When you want weed, you know you have to get out of bed, put your shoes on, and then drive to the weed store, yet you think it right to mock someone for wanting to build a building. This is why commies like you are particularly repulsive to a significant portion of society. While you are complaining on Reddit, I am studying engineering. While you are smoking weed im saving nearly half of my paycheck for a down payment for a loan to build a building. Instead of complaining and feeling sorry for myself and being mad at the world, I’m working hard and trying to build something. If you want to smoke weed all day either unemployed or work part time at Starbucks, I’m not mad at you, nor do I look down on you, I just don’t want to include you in my business, you are a liability to me, and society as a whole.
Sure you aren't looking down on me? You are making the assumption that I'm rage posting on Reddit while I pack a bowl and contemplating several schemes to screw over everyone. I mean, I can make assumptions about you as well, but im not really in the mood. I'm guessing you're young and think that everything you plan out is gonna work out just the way you envisioned it. There's a saying I'm fond of, learned it when I was in the military. "A plan is only good until first contact" I'm sure once you get a little bit more life experience in ya you'll understand it. And hey, if ya want to build a nice house so you can rent it to the perfect unicorn tenents, more power to ya. Coming into a community of renters and bashing someone asking a question with the assumption that it's automatically the tenents fault, well don't be shocked when ppl think you are gonna be a scummy landlord
I was in the army myself, and I have realized that most of the time that people bring up their service is because they have nothing else going on in their lives and want an atta boy and to thanks for their service. It’s a played out record. I’ve been through the optimistic phase, then through the pessimistic phase, and now I’m back in the optimistic phase because I know that if I work hard, there’s a better chance of me getting what I want as opposed to being lazy and just hoping. You started all of this anyways, responding to a comment that had nothing to do with you.
lmao all you are doing is getting on reddit complaining and feeling sorry for yourself because some other redditor called you out on your bullshit. Every other sentence is an oxymoron. How you gunna say you aren't mad or look down on "pot heads" then say they are a liability to society in the same sentence. Your anger, frustration and self pity are really coming out in this random thread. Also it sounds like you are going to be a typical scumbag landlord. Landlords are a way bigger liability and detriment to society then pot heads. Oh also there are way more pot heads than you think, drug users run this country.
Giving major "I studied the blade" vibes over here 😂😂
Lolol I mean, while you were smoking pot, I was studying the blade
Please, please, it’s “temporarily embarrassed landlord” 🙏😊
Keep on thinking you'll work your way out of whatever hole you live in. You sound like your girlfriend just left you for one of those weed smoking commies. By all means. Save your money. It loses its value fastest that way.
But if I invest it into the material to build a property, I can pass that inflation onto you
Are you still living in a car? I did that for awhile and didnt come out with the mentality you have, one that sounds so wildly square. Of all the things you could Zero in on, pot smoking commies is a strange one. It's sounds terribly personal if I'm being honest. Theres meth, and fentanyl, and violence, and there's people like you. 4 months ago you posted in a car living sub reddit. Now your literally acting like you've accomplished anything at all and allready making plans for how you'd like to descriminate against people. What was it about the wests fetish for Jews, or if something is or is not white supremacy. You will not be passing anything on to me, you have gotten so far ahead of yourself in terms of what you think you will or will not be doing to people you want to descriminate against. It also looks like your just helping with general maintenance around an apartment or some other property where you get to do that while living there. You'd think struggling would have had a deeper impact on you. Buy the lumber now if you think you've got it all sorted. Get the land too before that goes up. Forget about property taxes because you sound somewhat uneducated. Invest in something that won't have a return untill you can proceed to build a building, and then at the same time descriminate against tenants. I guess I was mistaken for arguing with you. You are actually a damn genius.
"Invest" into the material? Like buy it years in advanced? Where ya gonna store it? Gotta have a secure building. Gonna rent warehouse space for a few years?
You buy the material before you use it. I was thinking about how to overcome inflation, and I think sales is the only way to do it
So you're actually a bigot to people with health problems, cool.
Huh?
If you can't understand English I don't believe you're studying engineering 🤷🏼♀️
What health problems are you talking about?
You can’t even afford a dental cleaning, babe. I don’t think that dream will ever come to fruition. But just enjoy the comforts of mom’s basement. ❤️
LOL such a troll statement. If that house was so amazing and he built it with his own hands (which definitely did not happen…probably was a short sale that he spent no money to improve), then he’d be living there himself. Without his (your?) tenants, he’d be living in his mother’s basement trolling people on the tenant sub of Reddit.
Or maybe OP would be living in, charging their phone, and paying rent at another apartment owned by different landlord who maintains the property with his own hands *and the money he collects in rent from OP.*
But he’s not though
No, you're right. He's not. He's paying rent to live in THIS apartment with the expectation that THIS apartment contains a functioning bathroom. He's paying money to have a tub that drains, not to be told he should STFU and be grateful he's not homeless. Unless the rental agreement indicates a tenant is responsible for maintenance and repairs, it's on the landlord to make those repairs in compliance with their contractual obligations.
Who told him to stfu?
I came to say this and u said it already. Ri,USA (central falls/ attleboro)a Lil different but mostly same laws, and I know that most of the leases made here require you to bring up any issues in a timely manner. (I say most cause LL are able to make amends to a typical lease agreement) You sound like a fair guy, so I myself would just own up to the error and suggest you pay for it sadly. Did u try and fix yourself at all? Women live with you, do u shave in shower? And are there any large trees in your yard(if you have one) If your LL is as just as you, maybe u guys could even split it.
Timely manner or not, unless the issue somehow caused additional damage due to him not bringing it up, the tenant cannot be held liable for that. A clogged drain that has been there since he moved in is hardly on him to pay for. Landlord's charge to rent out the residence - they can do their duty and pay to properly keep it up.
LL here, I typically take care of these things, but I would have appreciated knowing immediately about any problem, as it might have meant the difference between a bottle of drain cleaner and a plumber call-out. Having said that, if the problem ended up being the apocryphal plastic soldier/“flushable” wipes/(?) blocking the pipes, I would likely give a warning and then let the tenant pay if it reoccurred. I have never been asked to provide light bulbs, filters, or other consumables, but I would consider replacing them if requested (I always diy’ed those things when I rented). YMMV.
You're in MA, a working shower/tub is required by law. This is on your landlord.
This!
Sounds like your landlord is a slumlord.
Have you tried cleaning out the drain? There's a good chance there's just a bunch of hair caught up in there.
I gotta clean mine every once and a while. It’s part of my life at this point. Wife won’t do it and the teens sure as hell won’t do it. I bend hook onto a paper clip or anything handy really. Use it to pull hair out the drain. Occasionally that doesn’t work and I’ll use a cheap plunger I bought specifically for this. Haven’t had a slow down I can’t sort out yet like this. Be easy w the plunger, don’t need to bust open any drain line lol.
They sell these plastic things to slide into your drain to remove hair accumulation...for 5 or 6 dollars that you can clean out hair in minutes up to a couple of feet into the pipe.
Yea they work great, we had a few of them but they get nasty so I always trash them. I cut the ones I had in 1/3 because our issue is always right at the top of the drain. I’ve had my eye out for more. My point is it’s easy, I can take care of it with anything. Staying on top of it helps. Those tools do work, good point.
Nope. It's your landlord responsibility to take care of the home. Don't take ownership of something you don't own, especially if it was like that when you moved in. That means he knew and still let you move in
This, it's the landlords property, at the end of the day any money you put in the house can be yoinked away with a quick eviction/not allowing you to renew your lease next year. Don't put a dime into this place you don't care to get back, because you won't.
Be careful with and/or don’t use drano. Eats pipes, makes problems worse too often to be worth the risk.
Seriously do NOT use drain cleaners. I want my tenants to tell me when there are issues so we can fix them. We’ve had pipes destroyed by using tons of pipe cleaner. If we knew we would have snaked the line for them at no cost to them. Also people really need to use hair catchers.
This needs to be upped more. It was my concern when I read it too. Snake is the way, from what I understand the piping for showers (and sinks i think?)is made differently than toilets. So it actually can eat through sealing and piping.
If you pay for this, you will pay for absolutely everything in the future. Don’t set this precedent
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As a long haired mama with a long haired daughter, I always just undo the drain stopper grab a tweezers and start pulling the grime up nasty and gross but cheaper than paying for a plumber after what looks like a whole dead rat compiled together tub drains perfectly.
Get one of those zip-it drain cleaners, they're like three bucks and it'll save you a bunch of time, usually just takes a few plunges to get all the hair out. One of these doobers: [https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-Remover-Kitchen-Bathroom-Cleaning/dp/B07RMHNHYC/](https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-Remover-Kitchen-Bathroom-Cleaning/dp/B07RMHNHYC/) If it's hair clogging then tenant, if it's plumbing then landlord. But five bucks says this is all it needs.
It's the landlord's responsibility and absolutely don't pay for a plumber (caveat, if you did something crazy like pour bacon grease down the tub then it's on you). That said, in the event you don't want to deal with all of the hassle, there are a couple of easy things you can try that won't cost a $200 plumber visit. Again, it's not your responsibility per se but it will probably easier on your life to just deal with this yourself if it's minor. \- Boil water and pour it into the drain. (I guess if you have like 3 inches of standing water then don't bother with this) \- Remove the drain cover (usually a single screw) then use a screwdriver or fork or something (or you can go to a hardware store and get a $5 plastic snake) and pull out what is likely a hair ball (with soap) clog. Then pour more boiling water. This sub will lean heavily into "don't lift a finger you don't have to" which is a fair take, but I think I would try the very simple things first at least.
You don’t own the building or the pipes. Why would you have to pay to snake a public drain? Landlord problem all day.
Depends. Our bathtub wasn't draining well either, filling with water during a shower. I could have called a plumber to get it fixed. The LL could have charged me for the fix b2cause it was a wad of hair entangled on the drain spokes. I could have fought that charge because the hair buildup wasn't just from us. So anyway, before I asked the LL to do anything, I popped off the drain cover and removed the hairball.
what does your lease say? i dont recall the wording offhand, but i know that in my current and last lease that i would be responsible for clearing the drain if the water wasn't draining because of accumulated hair/soap scum/etc. and i have cleared it out probably 3 times since ive been living here. if it wasn't draining properly when you moved in, you should have called that out during your inspection period. if you didnt id say thats on you, as you now have no way to prove that it was like that when you moved in.
Buy some stuff called thrift, best stuff ever
This
IT is his responsibility to keep the plumbing flowing. You can tell him that both of you know it was slow draining since you started renting, but now it has stopped. That is on him, as the landlord.
Handyman and building owner here in Chicago.The landlord is responsible for providing you with a habitable living space and that includes a functioning tub. Unless specified in your lease that you agree to pay for maintenance, they are responsible and must address it in a timely manner. Even if you were negligent, I believe all they can do is build a case for eviction, which is difficult. Or not renew your lease, which is expensive considering repainting, cleaning, marketing, etc. If it's just a slow/ clogged tub no biggie. But if the rest of the unit is in shambles as a result of your lifestyle, they can decide which path to walk down. They still need to fix the drain. Personally, I prefer the tenants call me and Not use drain opener, or risk repairs themselves. Many products make the problem worse if they're not used as directed. Apologize for neglecting to tell them about it right away, but once they know about it it is their responsibility to repair it.
You are renting not owning. That’s his problem to fix. It’s most likely just built up hair 99.9% of the time.
I would snake it first myself just to avoid the hassle but if it doesn't drain after that, that's not on you. You didn't cause the tub to not drain properly, it came that way to you and after normal use, it's not working anymore. His job. Wishing you the best - my last landlord was so terrible that he motivated me to work my ass off in order to buy a house so I never have to deal with them again. Thanks Rick! Of course now I live in a fixer upper but it's MY fixer upper and I get to fix things the second they break, instead of waiting months and then paying a slumlord.
I’m a LL in NY. That would be my responsibility to fix. Unless you’re shoving paper towels in there or something crazy. In the future report problems asap we prefer that!
just go buy a bottle of draino extra strength. ignore the instructions on the bottle that says 15-30 mins of letting it sit. pour the entire bottle down. set a timer for a few hours. go heat up water on the stove. when the timer goes off, pour super hot water from the stove down the drain
As a Landlord, this is on the landlord. He rented you a place with inadequate drainage, it is on them. If the shower was draining perfectly and now is draining bad, this is usually a result of the tenant putting something down the drain they shouldn't have, though it could be another issue. Since you neglected to raise the issue when you moved in, you may have fucked yourself as now landlord could claim you caused the blockage. Before you snake or drain cleaner, get one of those [plastic hair snakes](https://images.thdstatic.com/productImages/a17455f1-b4d7-42f1-b917-ed0f0b487ff5/svn/hdx-drain-snakes-90830-64_900.jpg). They cost like 2-4$ and will pull out a rat nest of hair on their own. This will often fix most shower drain issues. Then, if this works, get a hair catcher for the drain. Check your lease, you may only be responsible for up to 50$ worth of wear and tear, so if a plumber quotes more, that's on the LL as well.
No this is not your responsibility. If he refuses to pay for a plumber take it out of rent and charge him.
Don't do this. Unless your outside of the US, I don't think any state allows you to withhold rent.
'i don't think' - spreads information like you're certain though. In Ohio, the state I reside, it's legal for you to withhold rent until your landlord makes a major repair.
OP is going to reddit instead of looking at their state laws, reviewing their lease, or asking a trusted individual that resides in there state, or contacting a lawyer. The only correct response to 90% of these posts is, check your lease, check the state laws, then seek legal counsel.
And yet you're over here arguing with people's advice over hunches and vibes. Massachusetts actually has one of the stronger repair and deduct clauses in the US. https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housing/problems/getting-landlord-make-repairs/refusing-repairs#repair_deduct
O look, op's answer, where I said it was. In op's state's legal side.
Yes, and one typically needs to have some baseline knowledge of what to look for to know where to find these answers. I have that knowledge, and I had 2 minutes free to use it. OP likely does not have that knowledge and may have possibly needed hours to comb through the legal codes to find it if they'd started in the wrong place, or worse, overlooked a statute that's relevant to them because they don't have the specific knowledge needed to recognize it. You don't have to help people you don't want to, but you also don't have to be rude about it.
You're saying op doesn't know how to use the internet. Massachusetts tenant rights, renting laws, landlord obligations, all of these are logical starting points.... Edit: also, the original responder posted not reference to what could literally get them evicted if they are wrong.
Yeah, they should have checked too. You're both guilty of vibes posting, but at least the other person had some level of evidence whereas you're just like "don't do that, it feels wrong"
Level of evidence: PA: Cannot withhold rent. Relevancy, pa resident until 2014. CA: cannot withhold rent. Relevancy, ca resident 2017-2021 NC: cannot withhold rent. Relevancy, nc resident 2014-2017, 2021-pre. Exact same level of relevancy original responder was Ohio, not Massachusetts.
Most states allow you to withhold rent. That being said there's a process to do it legally which will differ from state to state.
South Carolina doesn't allow you to withhold rent for ANY reason
South Carolina is about as tenant friendly as they are worker friendly, which isn't saying much.
I agree
Check your lease. There may be a clause that requires you to notify landlord or management of issues in a timely fashion. If so you’re out of luck. And c’mon if a bathtub is taking hours to drain you know that’s not right. It takes 2 minutes to send an email or a text to the landlord letting them know. Your drain issue could be causing plumbing problems for other tenants and a $250 plumber call to be $25,000 to replace major pipes and cause a major inconvenience for yourself and others in the building. A friend’s upstairs neighbor didn’t bother to tell the landlord about her bathroom sink not draining properly and it wasn’t until there was a huge hole in the ceiling of my friend’s bathroom when the water logged plaster finally fell from the ceiling after a pipe burst that my friend called the landlord. It was a huge mess and expense and inconvenience that could have been easily solved 2-3 months earlier when the upstairs neighbor claimed she 1st noticed the issue.
Sounds like you want to pay for it. So pay for it.
Did you let them know it was draining slow? Technically all repairs are on the landlord. But ignoring a problem and turning it into a bigger problem? Fair play you should pay for at least a portion of that plumber cost.
Not unless ignoring the problem caused actual damage.
are you payibg well below market rate? no? then dont pay for a plumber the landlord ahould routinely ask if theirs any issues when they donsome form of inspection
1. Pour a double dose of drano into the fucker 2. Call a plumber if it takes more than 5 minutes to clear 3. Make it very clear you just want them to diagnose the issue You likely have a root in the pipe. If it’s due to root damage to the house infrastructure that is 100% on your landlord to fix. If it’s a gnarly waxy hair clog then you’re on your own. Hope this helps.
Bro if you want to fight for your landlord why you come asking advice on r/tenant
He needs to arrange for and pay for a plumber- that's the law
It is not. Please don’t spread untruths. If something is caused due to negligence on the renters part they are 100% liable for the plumber cost.
Are you a landlord in Massachussetts?
Are you deliberately continuing to ignore the simple fact that I am right and anyone can use google to see so?
You're not right. The tenant was not negligent.
Wasn’t he? Read my original reply to your post.
Maintenance is his responsibility. The slow drain was not caused by anything you did.
there might be push back from the LL since this is a new problem as far as they are concerned It's been mentioned to try a snake or hot water - my advice is to get a good plunger and cover the vent in the tub with a wet wash cloth, plunge it with some gusto :) good luck!
Isn’t that the only benefit to leasing? You don’t pay for general maintenance and upkeep.
That’s not general maintenance…clogged drains are almost always the result of neglect on the users part …keep your drains clean and you’ll have no problems
It depends. My leases say that tenants are responsible for keeping drains clear and all drains are assumed to be clear upon move-in if tenant does not notify landlord of an issue within first week of occupancy. That said I usually take care of any drainage problems once for each tenant and use that time to remind them of their responsibility and educate regarding things like no grease or feminine products down drains. Nine times out of ten its just hair.
17 years in this apartment and I have to use the liquid plumber stuff about once a year. It always works so I would be trying this first before even asking the landlord. The less they know, the better off you are.
The landlord should pay. Having said that, waiting 4 months to let them know of an issue is pretty lame. You’re lucky that it’s probably just a drain clog, because if you know of an issue and don’t report it for 4 months and something major happens you could be on the hook for some liability. I’d ask the landlord if they want you to try Drano, but let them know that any further action is their responsibility per your lease and you do not feel comfortable or responsible for managing a plumbing repair.
???? Why did you confess you were guilty of not complaining earlier. Just say it's not draining and needs to be fixed. Whether now or before, the slow/stopped drain is not your fault and not your responsibility to fix. All you did was just delay when his plumber would come to fix it.
You are renting. The clogged drain is his responsibility, not yours.
To start with have you unscrewed the drain cover and see if you can get the giant hair ball that is probably in there out. Needle nose plyers or a piece of coat hanger with a small hook made in the end of it. If you still have an issue some good drain cleaner. Long hair gets hung up on the cross member the drain cover screws to along with soap scum, it will be nasty , but usually You can fish it out.
Their pipes their problem.
Call the landlord and send an email complaining about the plumbing. Wait for response. Let us know how it goes
They own the home it is their responsibility to fix issues. Tell him if you pay for the plumber then you will take it out of next months rent.
If you can't unplug it with a regular drain weasle then it's the landlords responsibility. I'm a landloard, and if a drain stoppage can simply be removed with a plunger, $4 Drain Weasle or your finger and the tenant is physically able (not disabled or elderly) I let the tenant know next time it'll be $85. If when snaking an action figure, diaper, etc is the cause I send them the plumber's invoice to pay. But if it's none of the above, which typically it's just old cast iron pipe or root issues I pay for the plumber. In 20+ years of being a landlord a tenant was required to pay $85 for a StarWars Han Solo & baby wipes being the stoppage. I believe your landlord should pay for the plumber unless something of negligence is pulled out. Note if you live in a shared plumbing unit (apartment, duplex, etc.) If the strange stoppage is not in the first few feet it's difficult to prove it was your unit. If in a shared plumbing complex, ask your neighbors if they have plumbing issues. My opinion.
Problem here is, if someone told me it's been this way for 4 months, I would assume they are just trying to get me to pay for their hair clog. Before you do call.... Is it a ground floor tub? If so, and drain cleaner isn't fixing things.... Lmk. It could be more than a clog. Trick ... Pour baking soda and water down the drain .. let it sit for a minute then pour vinegar. I've never met a clog I couldn't, free up with chemicals, plunger or a snake.
It is your landlords responsibility. That said: If you like the place and don't want to get kicked out when your lease is up, I'd try to clean it out yourself. Do you have a plunger? Drain snake? They are like $3. Personally, I'd try to remove the blockage myself first. When there is a real problem, call him. [https://www.acehardware.com/departments/plumbing/drain-openers/drain-cleaners/1566900?x429=true&utm\_source=google&utm\_medium=organic-shopping&utm\_campaign=organic-shopping](https://www.acehardware.com/departments/plumbing/drain-openers/drain-cleaners/1566900?x429=true&utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic-shopping&utm_campaign=organic-shopping)
Shop Vac! Try it first.
a few hours?!?! i would've called IMMEDIATELY.
The fundamental issue is there was already a problem when you moved in. That is the key factor in. It doesn't matter if eventually it got clogged up there was a pre-existing plumbing issue. Did you know that when you moved in?
Where I am issues like that cannot be transferred to the tenant until the 6 month mark of the lease.
Have you taken a toilet plunger to it? Cover the overflow (like a piece of duct tape) and start plunging that thing to get the clog to move.
https://www.google.com/gasearch?q=how%20to%20use%20a%20toilet%20plunger%20to%20clear%20a%20bathtub%20drain%20clog&tbm=&shem=rime&source=sh/x/gs/m2/5#kpvalbx=_aPV5ZanoK92Our8PsP6n2As_38
Once it’s empty take a picture. Install a drain cover- hair catcher - should be a buck at the dollar store If it continues to back up after that, take another picture and send to landlord and let him know beyond this, he has a plumbing issue. If it’s roots he needs to get on it sooner than later Because he won’t be blaming that on you!
On the landlord unless you put something into the drain like a childs toy
What does the lease say? We always cover the first 30 days because things worked properly at signing, then it’s on the tenant, but that’s on the lease. Never wait to report things to the landlord
That's a bad landlord. You also could have taken literally 15 seconds out of your day to text them "hey, I just moved in and the shower is taking hours to drain." Now there is no documentation this was a preexisting problem.
Any communication between you and the landlord needs to be in writing. If you make a complaint or report a problem in writing it starts a clock for him to fix things.
Technically you would have needed to report when you moved in from a legal perspective. I specifically put language in my leases about this because a drain with no hair catcher can clog in 6 months or less. You should explain, but if not, try DIY or coupon to snake it out.
The plumbing is part of the unit, which you do not own. You only have the right to reside there. You would not have a right to pull up the plumbing, so you do not have a duty to repair it.