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We went to the board of meeting yesterday to report washing machine drain suds overflowing problem.
We had to! The club manager apparently ignores the problem. Now the overflowing is growing a bigger problem and affecting the other floors.
We are at the 2nd floor, live in a high rise condos.
We have had several flooding incidents since April this year (2014).
The foamy water comes out from the laundry drain line and floods our laminated floor.
We have had several flooding incidents since April this year (2014).
The foamy water comes out from the laundry drain line and floods our laminated floor.
The first flooding of this year happened when I was just done with the laundry, my hubby thought I was not using the washing machine properly. I made sure I properly operated the laundry machine.
A few occurrences were found when I returned home from outside. When I was not home and not doing the laundry, there came a wet floor and the smell of laundry scent.
My hubby recalled the very 1st incidence back in 2009(I has not moved in yet). When my hubby was traveling away from home, he got a phone call from the club manager Mr. P that said the 1st floor reported a leaking ceiling and asked if it was ok to access hubby's home to assess the problem source. Found out that the floor of our unit was wet and damaged. After that, there were also a few flooding incidents. The manager eventually got plumbers to investigate the pipes, cleared out the powder soap debris, and initiated an annual clean up plan (actually they do the kitchen drain line clean up every year but not the separate laundry line. they said the laundry drain line eventually joined in with kitchen drain line so it was good enough to just clean the kitchen drain line). The problem had been in control and no flooding until 2014. --oh! NO! is it me that brings the trouble!? Coincidentally, 2 computers got broken and went dead since 2013 when I moved in and the flooding came back in 2014? *.*
Anyway, the washing machine drain suds overflowing in 2014:
1st flooding: my hubby suspected that I overdosed the laundry liquid but I did not. My hubby was reminded of the 2009 old flooding. He asked me to report it to the management if it happens again.
2nd: went to the club management and reported to Ms. S. Ms. S confirmed the office kept the old flooding filing of our unit and she would talk with the manager about this.
3rd: Ms. S was not there. I then reported the flooding to the building operation staff Mr. H. Mr. H wanted to see it but I only had the picture. I had already mopped the floor dry. I told Mr. H about my hubby's assumption that the other floor might be using excessive laundry detergent or using laundry powder instead of liquid. Mr. H agreed to survey other floors and see who was doing the laundry at the time of the flooding. He said he would come back to me if heard anything but he never did.
My hubby got angry and called the manager himself. Mr. H later sent the plumber to our unit a few days later. The plumber inspected the laundry drain line but found nothing wrong. The plumber tested our washer machine to rule out the possible leaking from our washer machine and concluded no fault found in the machine. The plumber left without giving any constructive measure as he did not see anything wrong with the drain pipe neither the washer machine. The plumber said, "Everything looks fine. I cleaned the pipe. If this happens again, go ask the management to tell us" (and they will send someone to check again).
4th: happened again, I went to the club office and reported to Mr. H.
Mr. H went into a small cube to talk with the club manager Mr. P.
Mr. H ensured me that they will be investigating the problem. I requested to have the plumber to re-check the pipe but did not get the positive response.
Next week, I ran into Mr. H when I was taking a walk.
I asked him how was the progress and when they would send someone to check again because the plumber did say that the management would send him again if the problem persisted.
This time, Mr. H was less friendly and questioned me that I should probably check my own washer machine for leaking because my washer machine seems old.
Mr. H said, "Maybe you should get a new washer machine".
I was getting agitated now that he was not taking it seriously.
I reminded him that the plumber already concluded it was not the fault of my washer machine. The plumber ran a full cycle and not even a water drop found on the floor.
I said,'If it is my own machine problem, would I not notice it every time I use it", I continued, "Usually, the flooding happens when I am out. In the past few flooding, I always found them when I got home, I was not using the washer machine".
Ironically, Mr. H suggested me "Maybe you should go home now to see if there is a flooding happening".
What is he thinking!??
I replied, "Are you telling me that I should stay home 24 hours to wait for the flooding to happen?"
Mr. H responded, "Because you said it always happened when you were not home, so maybe you should go and see it now."
Seriously, it is not funny at all, it just shows his incivility and incapability to manage issues.
I told him I was just out in a few minutes and it was alright.
I said the flooding really bothered us and I hope the management will do something with it.
Mr. H defended for himself, "are you blaming on me (not doing anything)? we already sent the plumber to your unit and there was nothing found". He added, "We did not hear other floor or unit reports the flooding, only your unit reported this problem. If you need to check the problem, you could find a plumber of your own any time".
I said, "So, it is our bad luck to live at 2nd floor and have flooding? This is really not just 'my' problem, it is the problem of the facility. The water comes out from the drain pipe, maybe the pipe is blocked and needs a clean up work. Be honest, I don't know why it is not happening to other household but I know it is happening to me".
I went on, "Last time you said you were going to ask other floors if someone was doing the laundry. It might be the overuse of the detergent or useing the laundry powder (compared with the use of the liquid detergent, powder creates heavier foams and may leave residue in pipe)".
Mr. H: "Last time, I asked 'each floor' but no one was using the laundry around the time of your flooding. I cannot go into each house and see if they are lying. Do you think I should?"
Though my emotion was hitting the boiling point I gracefully replied that I did not mean it that way.
I said "Maybe the management could help educate the residents. This flooding really bothers us and we hope to see a solution soon. How would you like to live in a place like this? right?"
Mr. H then said he did not mean to be not helpful but he could not do more, it is about the management level.
I said, "I thought this had been brought up to the manager. If the management is not doing the job right, he might not be suitable to hold that position."
Mr. H laughed and said "Oh, if you say so, why don't you go to the board of meeting?"
The conversation ended but without satisfying answer.
I later realized that I just missed the board of meeting. It was the day just before this talk...Weird, if you, as an operation leader cannot provide satisfying solution and sensed that the manager was not doing anything, why don't you suggest me soon enough to go to the board of meeting? I trusted you to do your job well and then you turned me down.
I was really angry and upset about Mr.H's defensive attitude. My hubby said Mr. H was just an operation leader, not the manager, I should directly talk to the manager Mr. P who was present when the 1st flooding happened back in 2009 and knew the whole story.
I then went to the management office talking to Mr. P but our conversation was not going well.
Mr. P firstly said he was fully aware of what happened. However, when I asked if he would send a plumber to check the problem he did not give a direct answer. He said he would arrange the plumber. When I asked about when the plumber visit might be arranged so I could reserve my time to stay home, he kept saying he already knew the problem and implied I was being too pushy. He then ensured me that he of course would have the plumber contact me before the visit, but he cannot tell me when.
I told my hubby about the conversation with Mr. P.
My hubby called Mr. P the next morning. Mr. P told my hubby that the annual kitchen drain line clean up had been delayed for about 1.5 month this year and it might be the reason affecting the laundry drain flow. The kitchen drain line clean was scheduled in early June. Mr. P asked us to wait and that it may solve the flooding problem. Mr. P also told my hubby that the management was drafting a public announcement letter to notify every household of this problem and to cautiously choose the type of detergent. I complained to my hubby, why did Mr. P not tell me all of this when I visited him yesterday?
In the meantime, my hubby personally wrote a letter mailed to each household of this stack to share the story and how they might could help to stop the flooding with the use of proper detergent. Besides, we bought a test plug from Home Depot to seal the drain pipe when we are not doing the laundry.
I have to say, using the test plug is a fantastic idea. It stops the water back up from the drain line. It works! Since we plugged the drain pipe, we have not yet suffered the flooding. Actually, the water goes to other floors when we use the test plug.
5th: One afternoon in June, the management sent a few staffs to my unit and asked if I just had a flooding. I said no, why? They told me that 1st floor and 3rd floor reported the flooding from the laundry drain pipe. I let them come into my house to check. I told them, I did not have the flooding any more because I used the plug to seal the port of the pipe. However, when I looked up, there was this water print on the ceiling of the laundry room because the 3rd floor was flooded and the water penetrated to our ceiling.
Not that I was happy about other floor's flooding but this did help the management and the neighbors take this issue carefully. It is not just our problem! This flooding happened a few days after the kitchen drain line clean up was completed. Obviously, the kitchen drain line clean up does not solve the problem this time.
Nevertheless, the test plug is a temporary solution.
I've observed that the flooding usually take place in the morning around 9 am. to 11 a.m.
6th: In early July, I carefully picked my time to do the laundry in the afternoon around 3 p.m. When the last load was finished, I was sitting on the couch watching TV, I smelled something, something like detergent. I uneasily looked toward the laundry room and there it was, the foamy water on the floor! In the past, I caught only the water on the floor but this time, I saw the 'foamy' water. I never witnessed the foamy water in the past. This time, the occurrence was 'fresh', just happened when I was home. I immediately called the management office. No one answered and I left a message. During dinner time, the 1st floor lady knocked the door and asked if we had the flooding. Her ceiling was getting damaged because of the flood. I showed her the picture of what just happened this afternoon. We are all victims.
Someone returned my call the next morning but just said they were investigating it.
Then, we learnt that the manager Mr. P just resigned in the end of June. Mr. H was promoted as an associate manager. My hubby had a chance to talk with Mr. H and Mr. H still suggested to change a washer machine. How absurd!!
7th: Two weeks passed by, we had not heard anything from the management. We bumped into 3rd floor lady on a Sunday afternoon and learnt that they had a recent flooding. This incidence affected 5th, 4th, and 3rd floor. My hubby told the 3rd floor lady how we avoided the flooding and gave her a test plug (we had just purchased an new one to replace the old so we gave the lady the old plug).
I noticed a board of meeting soon to held on 7/28. Even though we were not much bothered now because of the test plug, I suggested hubby to report this in the board of meeting. I also wanted to see how Mr. H reacted to this issue since he now was the manager...
On 7/28, we distributed the power point handouts to the board members. Hubby gave a brief presentation in the board of meeting. I complimented my hubby's composure for not emotionally blamed the poor handling of Mr. H, and gave an overall fact and proposed possible solutions. I peeked Mr. H while my hubby was talking, I could sense his uneasiness. My hubby emphasized leaving the problem unfixed the maintenance fee would definitely go up higher when the small problem becomes a big problem that needs a large sums of money to fix. The board members are the residents of this building and they would not be happy to allow this problem cost every household's money.
We will see...
Despite of the fact that we really enjoy living here for its beautiful setting and convenient pool access, we are seriously thinking about to move to an affordable individual house if the maintenance fee continues to raise.
8/4/2014: While I was going out for grocery shopping, the management Ms. S called me if I was home to allow the plumber come to check the washer drain line. I was like...what? I told her I was just leaving to shop. I said I just got the notice and I was not going to return until 1 p.m. She asked me to hold on line and in a few seconds she said OK, then the plumber will go see it at 1 p.m. Turned out that it's not really a plumber, it's just one of the operation staff. He was just checking where the washer drain line location and needed to bring this information back to the management. .....Hello? I thought they should have known the location since the management sent staff to my unit several times. Well, never mind, good that I did not cancel my plan just for this situation. Before the staff was gone, he said the management would call me and schedule a plumber soon.
8/6: The associate manager Mr. H called and scheduled 8/14 to send the plumber to do the washer drain line cleaning work. Hopefully it will work...]
8/14: The plumber and the staff knocked my door at 8:45 a.m. I didn't answer the door because I was still washing up. The schedule said the plumber would come at 9 a.m. so I thought I still had a little time. I heard the knocks at 8:50 but I was not ready yet. My husband called me at 8:55 that people were at the door already waiting for me to open the door and I said, it was not yet 9 o'clock. Then, 8:58 they vigorously knocked the door and I opened the door. However I told them that they were here earlier and knocked the door at 8:45 that was really ahead of the schedule time. It might not be a problem if I was already up and all set but I slept in a little late today. I don't mind them pounding my doors if it passed 9 a.m. and I did not open the door. But I was a little annoyed (well, probably just woke up) by their several big knocks before 9 a.m.
Anyway, looks like it is a thorough clean work this time. I asked the plumber if anything big was found he said not really, it's just that it was never done the cleaning so stuff piled up. So I guess the permanent solution would be regular annual clean up of the washer drain line. This would be done separately from the kitchen drain line. Toward the end, Mr. H came to visit and thanked me for my time & cooperation. He's got this smile that mixed with a little bitterness. I have to say that everything seems going well and I'm happy with it. I said to him that this was probably the very 1st big task since his promotion as a manager, I also appreciated his input. I said "hopefully you won't hear our complaints again~", haha.
8th: 8/17: The 3rd floor called my hubby while we were out for lunch. The lady said there was a flooding and asked if we had it. We told her we were not home and suggested her to report it to the building manager. Very interesting, I did not think it would happen so quickly since the plumber just clean the pipe 3 days ago. My hubby suggested the 3rd floor to use the test plug we gave to her but she did not seem interested in using it and said she would ask her nephew who's a plumber to check the problem. ....Well, good luck~ I really don't think this is going to be a simple easy problem. From now on, I will continue to use the test plug until no longer heard flooding incidence over 5 months.]
8/31: My husband worked on his own and modified the laundry hose to pressured valve(? I'm not sure what exactly to name it) to avoid the backflow of water. Awesome! Since then we haven't had the flooding, don't need to put the test plug on every time after laundry! Do not need to worry if there would be a flooding while I am doing the laundry.
2/4/2015: the building management called and asked if there's flooding at my unit. It happened again. Luckily, our unit was not affected since my husband modified the laundry line. I saw the new water spot on the ceiling indicating the water flooding at upper floor.
9th: 2015/12/4: 2 days ago I spotted the wet water print on the ceiling. Today the building staff knocked my door and asked if I had flooding these days. I said no and told him we had found permanent solution using check plug(actually, the modified laundry line made by my husband).
2016/4: SOLUTION?! HOWEVER, the modified laundry line my husband made apparently appears not to be the ultimate solution. While we were saved from a few floodings in 2015, our washer broke in 2016 April, a week prior to our planned oversea trip. It leaked, flooded whole floor and damaged the ceiling of 1st floor. We ended up paying the damage of 1st floor as it's true that our washer caused this flooding. Later my husband suspected the washer's faulty function may be a result of his modified laundry line and the kinked laundry hose attached on the washer that causing the pressure built inside of the washer caused the hose detached to the washer and therefore the water leaked out from the bottom of the washer...Be honest, I hated to admit to the building manager that it's our washing machine causing this flooding!
We purchased a new washer/dryer combination and went back to the check plug.
10th: 2016/5/12, I unplugged the test plug, was going to dump the pile of clothes in the washer. Just a few seconds, the suds came back up from the drain overflowing the wall, floor. I was kind of panic but quickly put back the test plug on to stop the overflow. I was not yet starting any washing. Called the management. They sent a plumber who snaked the drain and found nothing wrong. I asked the plumber if any solution and he suggested the backwater valve. The operation manager Mr. H was present and I asked him if it's ok for us to install the backwater valve and he said we as home owner could absolutely do whatever we want to do to our house. The estimate of backwater valve installation is probably $200 something. We decided to spend some money to do the backwater valve.
5/17, Unfortunately, the plumber who came on installation date said there's no enough room to do the backwater valve as P trap too close to the stack pipe, the laundry pipe area was simply too tight . The backwater valve needs horizontal space for successful installation but we don't have that room. OMG! What should I do now?? I told the plumber my frustration and he's nice and willing to come with me to the manager office and talk about this issue.
Steven, the 1 year old manager, leaned back in his comfy chair, repeated nothing he was able to do because he cannot change the building structure and that we bought it as it is, he cannot help any further regarding the installation of the backwater valve. However Steven said he was already thinking about to do pipe cleaning twice a year from once a year and hope it would help the situation. I said if the maintenance could help I certainly would be happy and nothing to complain. After the meeting, I called my husband about what Steven said. My husband told Steven it is totally about the maintenance because he's lived in this unit over 15 years and the flooding incidences began a few years ago, it was not about the building structure problem. A few minutes later, Steven called me and asked if I would be home in the afternoon because he's going to call a plumber to come to my unit and check again.
When my husband came home, he told me that Steven said that I "was very difficult to ignore". But my husband was happy to see I showed the aggresive part on this issue.
Mystery Resolved!
The plumber came and tried to figure out what's happening. This plumber is a saver!!! He cut an opening on the joint wall in between the laundry room and the other room, then found out that our main pipe has never been cleaned and the diameter of the pipe has shrunk that's the reason the flow is bad and we encounter the backflow. I was like ...what?! All the time, every manager said the maintenance was done and nothing they could do because it all looked clean...but the most important thing, the main pipe has never been included in the cleaning job. In the past, they just cleaned the pipe from our floor (2nd) to the ground level and never check the pipe's condition above 2nd floor.
The plumber cleaned it and ensured that we should be good as long as the maintenance is regularly done. Out of my curiosity I asked him why only he was able to find the problem...He said every plumber probably received different messages and was told the maintenance is done so they would not think it's anything to do with the main pipe cleaning. His company is the contractor for this building's maintenance and he knows the main pipe cleaning is not part of the contract so he took a look at and the result also confirmed his thoughts.
How absurd, how could the manager not know this??
Anyway, I'm glad the this put up a good ending. Hopefully from now on, everything is good. Though the plumber suggested that the main pipe cleaning should be performed every 7 floors due to the limitation of the length of cleaning tool, however we should be good for a couple of years for now. I'm really trilled, but I will continue to use test plug. By the way, until now I still feel compulsive checking the laundry whenever I am doing the laundry, I am nervous about seeing backflow and flooding. I just cannot simply forget all those incidences... exhausting mindful.
自8月份管委經理人清理了管線後, 陸續仍有淹水事件. 12月初, 又有人來敲門問我家有沒有淹水. 慶幸的是, 老公稍早已決定採取終極行動, 去Home Depot買了水管和 pressured valve(不太確定是不是這個名稱), 大動作花時間把原本的洗衣機水管換了,也裝上防止水回流的壓力栓(test plug). 這樣, 我就不用每次洗衣後還要記得鎖緊栓塞(test plug), 也不用擔心正在洗衣服時剛好發生淹水---可惜, pressured valve雖然止住水回流的問題, 卻可能讓壓力累積在浩衣機內, 導致洗衣機內部的水管脫軌, 在一次洗衣服時, 我發現了地上全是水, 但水不是從排水管口出來, 而是不斷地從洗衣機底部流出.... :'( 為此, 我們也誠實以告樓下住戶, 並賠償他們修繕天花板的費用..... 而我們自己則必須換一台新洗衣機.... 最討厭的是, 我必須向大樓管理人承認這次是我們洗衣機的問題.
我們另外也建議3樓住戶也用test plug, 還送她一個, 她似乎沒興趣使用, 一直說她的姪子是水電工, 會協助她找出問題. 但問題不是出在她家啊! 怎麼樣也找不出問題的. 我又想起公寓管理人那副嘴臉, 一開始只會把問題推給住戶. 沒有積極想找出問題來源. 還不願接納老公的推測和建議. 只有我們一戶受害時, 就只會拖, 當不只一戶抱怨, 以為經理人那麼好當嗎??
Anyway, the washing machine drain suds overflowing in 2014:
1st flooding: my hubby suspected that I overdosed the laundry liquid but I did not. My hubby was reminded of the 2009 old flooding. He asked me to report it to the management if it happens again.
2nd: went to the club management and reported to Ms. S. Ms. S confirmed the office kept the old flooding filing of our unit and she would talk with the manager about this.
3rd: Ms. S was not there. I then reported the flooding to the building operation staff Mr. H. Mr. H wanted to see it but I only had the picture. I had already mopped the floor dry. I told Mr. H about my hubby's assumption that the other floor might be using excessive laundry detergent or using laundry powder instead of liquid. Mr. H agreed to survey other floors and see who was doing the laundry at the time of the flooding. He said he would come back to me if heard anything but he never did.
My hubby got angry and called the manager himself. Mr. H later sent the plumber to our unit a few days later. The plumber inspected the laundry drain line but found nothing wrong. The plumber tested our washer machine to rule out the possible leaking from our washer machine and concluded no fault found in the machine. The plumber left without giving any constructive measure as he did not see anything wrong with the drain pipe neither the washer machine. The plumber said, "Everything looks fine. I cleaned the pipe. If this happens again, go ask the management to tell us" (and they will send someone to check again).
4th: happened again, I went to the club office and reported to Mr. H.
Mr. H went into a small cube to talk with the club manager Mr. P.
Mr. H ensured me that they will be investigating the problem. I requested to have the plumber to re-check the pipe but did not get the positive response.
Next week, I ran into Mr. H when I was taking a walk.
I asked him how was the progress and when they would send someone to check again because the plumber did say that the management would send him again if the problem persisted.
This time, Mr. H was less friendly and questioned me that I should probably check my own washer machine for leaking because my washer machine seems old.
Mr. H said, "Maybe you should get a new washer machine".
I was getting agitated now that he was not taking it seriously.
I reminded him that the plumber already concluded it was not the fault of my washer machine. The plumber ran a full cycle and not even a water drop found on the floor.
I said,'If it is my own machine problem, would I not notice it every time I use it", I continued, "Usually, the flooding happens when I am out. In the past few flooding, I always found them when I got home, I was not using the washer machine".
Ironically, Mr. H suggested me "Maybe you should go home now to see if there is a flooding happening".
What is he thinking!??
I replied, "Are you telling me that I should stay home 24 hours to wait for the flooding to happen?"
Mr. H responded, "Because you said it always happened when you were not home, so maybe you should go and see it now."
Seriously, it is not funny at all, it just shows his incivility and incapability to manage issues.
I told him I was just out in a few minutes and it was alright.
I said the flooding really bothered us and I hope the management will do something with it.
Mr. H defended for himself, "are you blaming on me (not doing anything)? we already sent the plumber to your unit and there was nothing found". He added, "We did not hear other floor or unit reports the flooding, only your unit reported this problem. If you need to check the problem, you could find a plumber of your own any time".
I said, "So, it is our bad luck to live at 2nd floor and have flooding? This is really not just 'my' problem, it is the problem of the facility. The water comes out from the drain pipe, maybe the pipe is blocked and needs a clean up work. Be honest, I don't know why it is not happening to other household but I know it is happening to me".
I went on, "Last time you said you were going to ask other floors if someone was doing the laundry. It might be the overuse of the detergent or useing the laundry powder (compared with the use of the liquid detergent, powder creates heavier foams and may leave residue in pipe)".
Mr. H: "Last time, I asked 'each floor' but no one was using the laundry around the time of your flooding. I cannot go into each house and see if they are lying. Do you think I should?"
Though my emotion was hitting the boiling point I gracefully replied that I did not mean it that way.
I said "Maybe the management could help educate the residents. This flooding really bothers us and we hope to see a solution soon. How would you like to live in a place like this? right?"
Mr. H then said he did not mean to be not helpful but he could not do more, it is about the management level.
I said, "I thought this had been brought up to the manager. If the management is not doing the job right, he might not be suitable to hold that position."
Mr. H laughed and said "Oh, if you say so, why don't you go to the board of meeting?"
The conversation ended but without satisfying answer.
I later realized that I just missed the board of meeting. It was the day just before this talk...Weird, if you, as an operation leader cannot provide satisfying solution and sensed that the manager was not doing anything, why don't you suggest me soon enough to go to the board of meeting? I trusted you to do your job well and then you turned me down.
I was really angry and upset about Mr.H's defensive attitude. My hubby said Mr. H was just an operation leader, not the manager, I should directly talk to the manager Mr. P who was present when the 1st flooding happened back in 2009 and knew the whole story.
I then went to the management office talking to Mr. P but our conversation was not going well.
Mr. P firstly said he was fully aware of what happened. However, when I asked if he would send a plumber to check the problem he did not give a direct answer. He said he would arrange the plumber. When I asked about when the plumber visit might be arranged so I could reserve my time to stay home, he kept saying he already knew the problem and implied I was being too pushy. He then ensured me that he of course would have the plumber contact me before the visit, but he cannot tell me when.
I told my hubby about the conversation with Mr. P.
My hubby called Mr. P the next morning. Mr. P told my hubby that the annual kitchen drain line clean up had been delayed for about 1.5 month this year and it might be the reason affecting the laundry drain flow. The kitchen drain line clean was scheduled in early June. Mr. P asked us to wait and that it may solve the flooding problem. Mr. P also told my hubby that the management was drafting a public announcement letter to notify every household of this problem and to cautiously choose the type of detergent. I complained to my hubby, why did Mr. P not tell me all of this when I visited him yesterday?
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| 管委會張貼公告, 提醒住戶使用液態洗衣粉並酌量使用洗衣精. |
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| 我們寄出請求信給這一棟各樓層用戶, 請大家配合使用適當的洗衣精. |
I have to say, using the test plug is a fantastic idea. It stops the water back up from the drain line. It works! Since we plugged the drain pipe, we have not yet suffered the flooding. Actually, the water goes to other floors when we use the test plug.
5th: One afternoon in June, the management sent a few staffs to my unit and asked if I just had a flooding. I said no, why? They told me that 1st floor and 3rd floor reported the flooding from the laundry drain pipe. I let them come into my house to check. I told them, I did not have the flooding any more because I used the plug to seal the port of the pipe. However, when I looked up, there was this water print on the ceiling of the laundry room because the 3rd floor was flooded and the water penetrated to our ceiling.
Not that I was happy about other floor's flooding but this did help the management and the neighbors take this issue carefully. It is not just our problem! This flooding happened a few days after the kitchen drain line clean up was completed. Obviously, the kitchen drain line clean up does not solve the problem this time.
Nevertheless, the test plug is a temporary solution.
I've observed that the flooding usually take place in the morning around 9 am. to 11 a.m.
6th: In early July, I carefully picked my time to do the laundry in the afternoon around 3 p.m. When the last load was finished, I was sitting on the couch watching TV, I smelled something, something like detergent. I uneasily looked toward the laundry room and there it was, the foamy water on the floor! In the past, I caught only the water on the floor but this time, I saw the 'foamy' water. I never witnessed the foamy water in the past. This time, the occurrence was 'fresh', just happened when I was home. I immediately called the management office. No one answered and I left a message. During dinner time, the 1st floor lady knocked the door and asked if we had the flooding. Her ceiling was getting damaged because of the flood. I showed her the picture of what just happened this afternoon. We are all victims.
Someone returned my call the next morning but just said they were investigating it.
Then, we learnt that the manager Mr. P just resigned in the end of June. Mr. H was promoted as an associate manager. My hubby had a chance to talk with Mr. H and Mr. H still suggested to change a washer machine. How absurd!!
7th: Two weeks passed by, we had not heard anything from the management. We bumped into 3rd floor lady on a Sunday afternoon and learnt that they had a recent flooding. This incidence affected 5th, 4th, and 3rd floor. My hubby told the 3rd floor lady how we avoided the flooding and gave her a test plug (we had just purchased an new one to replace the old so we gave the lady the old plug).
I noticed a board of meeting soon to held on 7/28. Even though we were not much bothered now because of the test plug, I suggested hubby to report this in the board of meeting. I also wanted to see how Mr. H reacted to this issue since he now was the manager...
On 7/28, we distributed the power point handouts to the board members. Hubby gave a brief presentation in the board of meeting. I complimented my hubby's composure for not emotionally blamed the poor handling of Mr. H, and gave an overall fact and proposed possible solutions. I peeked Mr. H while my hubby was talking, I could sense his uneasiness. My hubby emphasized leaving the problem unfixed the maintenance fee would definitely go up higher when the small problem becomes a big problem that needs a large sums of money to fix. The board members are the residents of this building and they would not be happy to allow this problem cost every household's money.
We will see...
Despite of the fact that we really enjoy living here for its beautiful setting and convenient pool access, we are seriously thinking about to move to an affordable individual house if the maintenance fee continues to raise.
8/4/2014: While I was going out for grocery shopping, the management Ms. S called me if I was home to allow the plumber come to check the washer drain line. I was like...what? I told her I was just leaving to shop. I said I just got the notice and I was not going to return until 1 p.m. She asked me to hold on line and in a few seconds she said OK, then the plumber will go see it at 1 p.m. Turned out that it's not really a plumber, it's just one of the operation staff. He was just checking where the washer drain line location and needed to bring this information back to the management. .....Hello? I thought they should have known the location since the management sent staff to my unit several times. Well, never mind, good that I did not cancel my plan just for this situation. Before the staff was gone, he said the management would call me and schedule a plumber soon.
8/6: The associate manager Mr. H called and scheduled 8/14 to send the plumber to do the washer drain line cleaning work. Hopefully it will work...]
8/14: The plumber and the staff knocked my door at 8:45 a.m. I didn't answer the door because I was still washing up. The schedule said the plumber would come at 9 a.m. so I thought I still had a little time. I heard the knocks at 8:50 but I was not ready yet. My husband called me at 8:55 that people were at the door already waiting for me to open the door and I said, it was not yet 9 o'clock. Then, 8:58 they vigorously knocked the door and I opened the door. However I told them that they were here earlier and knocked the door at 8:45 that was really ahead of the schedule time. It might not be a problem if I was already up and all set but I slept in a little late today. I don't mind them pounding my doors if it passed 9 a.m. and I did not open the door. But I was a little annoyed (well, probably just woke up) by their several big knocks before 9 a.m.
Anyway, looks like it is a thorough clean work this time. I asked the plumber if anything big was found he said not really, it's just that it was never done the cleaning so stuff piled up. So I guess the permanent solution would be regular annual clean up of the washer drain line. This would be done separately from the kitchen drain line. Toward the end, Mr. H came to visit and thanked me for my time & cooperation. He's got this smile that mixed with a little bitterness. I have to say that everything seems going well and I'm happy with it. I said to him that this was probably the very 1st big task since his promotion as a manager, I also appreciated his input. I said "hopefully you won't hear our complaints again~", haha.
8th: 8/17: The 3rd floor called my hubby while we were out for lunch. The lady said there was a flooding and asked if we had it. We told her we were not home and suggested her to report it to the building manager. Very interesting, I did not think it would happen so quickly since the plumber just clean the pipe 3 days ago. My hubby suggested the 3rd floor to use the test plug we gave to her but she did not seem interested in using it and said she would ask her nephew who's a plumber to check the problem. ....Well, good luck~ I really don't think this is going to be a simple easy problem. From now on, I will continue to use the test plug until no longer heard flooding incidence over 5 months.]
8/31: My husband worked on his own and modified the laundry hose to pressured valve(? I'm not sure what exactly to name it) to avoid the backflow of water. Awesome! Since then we haven't had the flooding, don't need to put the test plug on every time after laundry! Do not need to worry if there would be a flooding while I am doing the laundry.
2/4/2015: the building management called and asked if there's flooding at my unit. It happened again. Luckily, our unit was not affected since my husband modified the laundry line. I saw the new water spot on the ceiling indicating the water flooding at upper floor.
9th: 2015/12/4: 2 days ago I spotted the wet water print on the ceiling. Today the building staff knocked my door and asked if I had flooding these days. I said no and told him we had found permanent solution using check plug(actually, the modified laundry line made by my husband).
2016/4: SOLUTION?! HOWEVER, the modified laundry line my husband made apparently appears not to be the ultimate solution. While we were saved from a few floodings in 2015, our washer broke in 2016 April, a week prior to our planned oversea trip. It leaked, flooded whole floor and damaged the ceiling of 1st floor. We ended up paying the damage of 1st floor as it's true that our washer caused this flooding. Later my husband suspected the washer's faulty function may be a result of his modified laundry line and the kinked laundry hose attached on the washer that causing the pressure built inside of the washer caused the hose detached to the washer and therefore the water leaked out from the bottom of the washer...Be honest, I hated to admit to the building manager that it's our washing machine causing this flooding!
We purchased a new washer/dryer combination and went back to the check plug.
10th: 2016/5/12, I unplugged the test plug, was going to dump the pile of clothes in the washer. Just a few seconds, the suds came back up from the drain overflowing the wall, floor. I was kind of panic but quickly put back the test plug on to stop the overflow. I was not yet starting any washing. Called the management. They sent a plumber who snaked the drain and found nothing wrong. I asked the plumber if any solution and he suggested the backwater valve. The operation manager Mr. H was present and I asked him if it's ok for us to install the backwater valve and he said we as home owner could absolutely do whatever we want to do to our house. The estimate of backwater valve installation is probably $200 something. We decided to spend some money to do the backwater valve.
5/17, Unfortunately, the plumber who came on installation date said there's no enough room to do the backwater valve as P trap too close to the stack pipe, the laundry pipe area was simply too tight . The backwater valve needs horizontal space for successful installation but we don't have that room. OMG! What should I do now?? I told the plumber my frustration and he's nice and willing to come with me to the manager office and talk about this issue.
Steven, the 1 year old manager, leaned back in his comfy chair, repeated nothing he was able to do because he cannot change the building structure and that we bought it as it is, he cannot help any further regarding the installation of the backwater valve. However Steven said he was already thinking about to do pipe cleaning twice a year from once a year and hope it would help the situation. I said if the maintenance could help I certainly would be happy and nothing to complain. After the meeting, I called my husband about what Steven said. My husband told Steven it is totally about the maintenance because he's lived in this unit over 15 years and the flooding incidences began a few years ago, it was not about the building structure problem. A few minutes later, Steven called me and asked if I would be home in the afternoon because he's going to call a plumber to come to my unit and check again.
When my husband came home, he told me that Steven said that I "was very difficult to ignore". But my husband was happy to see I showed the aggresive part on this issue.
Mystery Resolved!
The plumber came and tried to figure out what's happening. This plumber is a saver!!! He cut an opening on the joint wall in between the laundry room and the other room, then found out that our main pipe has never been cleaned and the diameter of the pipe has shrunk that's the reason the flow is bad and we encounter the backflow. I was like ...what?! All the time, every manager said the maintenance was done and nothing they could do because it all looked clean...but the most important thing, the main pipe has never been included in the cleaning job. In the past, they just cleaned the pipe from our floor (2nd) to the ground level and never check the pipe's condition above 2nd floor.
 |
| See how much residual built up in the pipe |
The plumber cleaned it and ensured that we should be good as long as the maintenance is regularly done. Out of my curiosity I asked him why only he was able to find the problem...He said every plumber probably received different messages and was told the maintenance is done so they would not think it's anything to do with the main pipe cleaning. His company is the contractor for this building's maintenance and he knows the main pipe cleaning is not part of the contract so he took a look at and the result also confirmed his thoughts.
How absurd, how could the manager not know this??
Anyway, I'm glad the this put up a good ending. Hopefully from now on, everything is good. Though the plumber suggested that the main pipe cleaning should be performed every 7 floors due to the limitation of the length of cleaning tool, however we should be good for a couple of years for now. I'm really trilled, but I will continue to use test plug. By the way, until now I still feel compulsive checking the laundry whenever I am doing the laundry, I am nervous about seeing backflow and flooding. I just cannot simply forget all those incidences... exhausting mindful.
2014年4月起, 發生好幾次淹水事件. 淹水來源為洗衣機的排水口. 一開始, 老公以為是我沒有適當使用洗衣機. 後來幾次, 我沒洗衣服時, 地上仍出現一堆水.幾乎每次都是外出時發生.
本棟大樓建於 1996年, 屋齡約20年. 老公回憶, 住了十來年, 第一次的淹水最早發生於2009年, 當時他通報過管委經理人, 管委會也有2009年的處理資料.
2009年的淹水, 經水電工人清理洗衣機線道後發現了一堆洗衣粉殘餘, 最後由保險給付各受害樓層地板更新的費用. 管理人當時說會啟動每年定期清理管道的計劃. 不過, 所謂的每年清理, 主要是清理廚房排放管線. 只是, 根據管理人, 廚房管線和洗衣排水管線最後結合成一個管線, 所以, 管理人的說法, 每年清理廚房管線時也同時清理了洗衣機的排放管線 . 但, 顯然地, 舊管委經理人今年想要用拖延戰術. 而新管委經理人缺乏積極動作, 還一再怪罪於我們自己使用洗衣機不當, 並接二連三的建議我們應該要換新洗衣機.
自8月份管委經理人清理了管線後, 陸續仍有淹水事件. 12月初, 又有人來敲門問我家有沒有淹水. 慶幸的是, 老公稍早已決定採取終極行動, 去Home Depot買了水管和 pressured valve(不太確定是不是這個名稱), 大動作花時間把原本的洗衣機水管換了,也裝上防止水回流的壓力栓(test plug). 這樣, 我就不用每次洗衣後還要記得鎖緊栓塞(test plug), 也不用擔心正在洗衣服時剛好發生淹水---可惜, pressured valve雖然止住水回流的問題, 卻可能讓壓力累積在浩衣機內, 導致洗衣機內部的水管脫軌, 在一次洗衣服時, 我發現了地上全是水, 但水不是從排水管口出來, 而是不斷地從洗衣機底部流出.... :'( 為此, 我們也誠實以告樓下住戶, 並賠償他們修繕天花板的費用..... 而我們自己則必須換一台新洗衣機.... 最討厭的是, 我必須向大樓管理人承認這次是我們洗衣機的問題.
我們另外也建議3樓住戶也用test plug, 還送她一個, 她似乎沒興趣使用, 一直說她的姪子是水電工, 會協助她找出問題. 但問題不是出在她家啊! 怎麼樣也找不出問題的. 我又想起公寓管理人那副嘴臉, 一開始只會把問題推給住戶. 沒有積極想找出問題來源. 還不願接納老公的推測和建議. 只有我們一戶受害時, 就只會拖, 當不只一戶抱怨, 以為經理人那麼好當嗎??
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