I just had a plumber come to my house and install a new faucet in my bathroom... Unfortunately he did not install it correcftly- there is a probelm. I told him this and he says nothing is wroing with it.. It is a very expensive faucet and it should have been installed diferent, as I contacted the manufacturer and they said the plumber did not install correctly. In situations like this what can I do? Since I buy a lot of plumbing faucets from this company- do you think they can have a company rep come over to see what the problem is?
plumber installed faucet wrong way- refuses to fix it, do I have recourse?
May 03, 2011
26 Replies
Hmmm, How wrong? You just said wrong. How can a faucet go wrong way?
The easiest thing to do is not pay him until it's correct. You didn't pay him with it installed wrong, did you? If you did, then as Tony says, the next issue is exactly what is wrong with the way he installed it? If it's something that is obvious from a picture, interferes with the use of it, etc. then you could sue him in small claims court. That only works it you have a good case and he isn't a judgement proof skunk.
You need to clarify "wrong". If it's clearly wrong as in cold water comes out when you turn on the hot then you've got a legitimate gripe.
How much can be wrong? I can only think of three things:
- Hot & cold switched. Fix by either switching water inlets or handles.
- You don't like how the handles are positioned. Fix by removing screw that holds them on removing and re-positioning.
- It leaks. Fix by tightening the nuts on the under side with a spud wrench.
I suspect the plumber is right. If he isn't, you can fix it yourself, hire another plumber or convince the original plumber he is wrong. In either of the first two cases, you could sue the original plumber; that's more trouble than it is worth.
if OP paid with credit card he could file a complaint with them...
He could but the plumber would probably just deny accepting the credit and it would get charged again. The credit card company is not going to pick a side if the problem isn't pretty clear.
Sounds troll-ish...
a. You can't describe how the plumber installed the faucet "incorrectly"
b. You seem to purchase faucets frequently -- do they break or do you have some sort of "problem" which requires you to replace a perfectly good faucet for no reason
re: "1. Hot & cold switched. Fix by either switching water inlets or handles."
I don't think that switching the handles is a good - or safe - idea. It might not even be "legal".
If I'm not mistaken, IRC 2722.2 of the plumbing code requires that the flow of the hot water corresponds to the left hand side of a fixture.
Consider guests, small children and the elderly expecting cold water and instead getting scalded.
e quoted text -
The charge card company electronically debits the $ from the business. Normally the card companies side with their customer
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You'd be surprised. Company can dispute the credit. In this case the plumber would have a pretty good case.
re: "1. Hot & cold switched. Fix by either switching water inlets or handles."
I don't think that switching the handles is a good - or safe - idea. It might not even be "legal".
If I'm not mistaken, IRC 2722.2 of the plumbing code requires that the flow of the hot water corresponds to the left hand side of a fixture.
Consider guests, small children and the elderly expecting cold water and instead getting scalded.
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Sounds troll-ish...
a. You can't describe how the plumber installed the faucet "incorrectly"
b. You seem to purchase faucets frequently -- do they break or do you have some sort of "problem" which requires you to replace a perfectly good faucet for no reason
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Good point considering the number of trolls we've seen here lately. It is rather odd to avoid describing any part of the problem other than it's installed incorrectly. While I am reluctant to label people and posts trolls without compelling evidence, my "spidey sense" is tingling.
-- Bobby G.
Depends where one is. In some countries hot on right is normal.
re: "In some countries hot on right is normal."
Not arguing, just curious...
Do you know of any countries where hot on right is normal?
I found this on the all-knowing interweb at:
formatting link
If it's covered in the International Plumbing Code, does that mean that there are some countries that don't follow the code?
*** Begin Included Text ***
There was an old saying that has been passed all around the plumbing industry and one version of it was =93All a plumber needs to know was hot on the left, cold on the right and waste flows downhill=94 Section
607.4 is where it requires hot water to flow from the left side of a fixture. However, since the time of that old saying, we have come out with whirlpool tubs and bathtubs that have the faucets mounted on a deck. The question is then, Does the left hand side apply to the person adjusting the controls standing outside the tub or does it apply to the person sitting inside the tub? Well the answer to that question is in the exception listed below section 607.4. It requires markings on the faucet to correspond to the hot and cold temperature flowing from the faucet.607.4 Flow of hot water to fixtures. Fixture fittings, faucets and diverters shall be installed and adjusted so that the flow of hot water from the fittings corresponds to the left-hand side of the fixture fitting.
Exception: Shower and tub/shower mixing valves conforming to ASSE 1016 or ASME A112.18.1/CSA B125.1, where the flow of hot water corresponds to the markings on the device.
*** End Included text ***
re: "Imagine the flood with suficient OP info "
Nah...it easier (and more fun) to speculate.
Once we get real info we'll just ignore him.
NO!
HB
I don't recall which but one (or more) of these...
Mexico Costa Rica Venezuela Numerous Carribean islands Tahiti Japan China
Also, it may not have been normal but *was* common.
Remember the American plumbers credo, all journeymen know this: "s**t runs downhill, hot is on the left and payday is Friday". Obviously the plumber was a handyman type.
Joe
Exactly! I reversed them accidentally for the basement laundry tub. Told myself "no biggee, I'll remember"...nope. Being surprised 3 times with hot instead of cold water I bit the bullet and re-ran the piping to correct the problem.
Harry K
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