Urgent ..Please help...
 

Urgent ..Please help...

I am writing regarding a home in the Bay Area, CA.

My sister bought it NEW about 8 years ago.

There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of
money to repair.

Can anyone pls tell me what is the warranty for for such pipe leaks ?

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

Is the builder responsible for this ?

What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

Thanks
Rita

see body of text

wrote in message
oups.com...
Urgent ..Please help...

I am writing regarding a home in the Bay Area, CA.

My sister bought it NEW about 8 years ago.

There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of
money to repair.

Can anyone pls tell me what is the warranty for for such pipe leaks ?

Probably none after 8 years. Do you know what material was used for the
water system?
There are some recovery methods for certain types of PVC flexable tubing.


We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

Leak inside the wall and you caulked the tub, your joking

Is the builder responsible for this ?

Probably not after 8 years, what does the contract say



What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

What does the contract say? Where I live the structure is the only thing
guarnteed beyond 2 years.


In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

Your stand on the fault line, not strong at all.

Call a plumber ASAP and get the leak fixed. BEFORE it causes thousands of
dollars in damage.

In article .com, wrote:
Urgent ..Please help...

I am writing regarding a home in the Bay Area, CA.

My sister bought it NEW about 8 years ago.

There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of
money to repair.

Yes, it certainly could. So why are you wasting your time asking about
warranty issues on Usenet, when you should be picking up the phone and calling
a plumber to get it fixed? Your first priority is to fix the leak, before it
causes any more damage than it already has. If the problem *is* covered under
warranty -- doubtful after 8 years, but possible -- you can probably be
reimbursed later. Get it fixed now. Worry about who's going to pay for it
later.

Can anyone pls tell me what is the warranty for for such pipe leaks ?

Varies from builder to builder, and no doubt from state to state also. Maybe
even from city to city within the same state.

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

If you already know that "there is a leak in the pipes" why would you suppose
that recaulking the tub would have any effect?

Is the builder responsible for this ?

Probably not after 8 years. Especially in a seismically active area.

What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

Ummm... shouldn't you be asking a *lawyer* that question?

In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

What does the warranty paperwork say?

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

Probably not. But only a local lawyer can give you an accurate answer to that
question.

wrote in message
There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of
money to repair.

Can anyone pls tell me what is the warranty for for such pipe leaks ?

Depends on the builder and what was offered. There should be some paperwork
regaring warranty. I doubt it is 8 years though.


We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

Recaulking does not fix leaking pipes.



Is the builder responsible for this ?

Probably not after all this time. Stuff happens. things wear out. This is
part of home ownership.


What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

Never heard of such a thing. What did the warranty say from the builder?
Usually only major stgructural defects would be covered.


In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

I don't think so.
Check out http://www.hobb.org/warrantyfaq.shtml

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.


I bet the tub/shower valve is dripping inside the wall.

Most problems that I have seen and heard about come from the tub drain/trap
connection. Usually a dried out gasket in the slip joints or corrosion.


"Pat" wrote in message
...

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.


I bet the tub/shower valve is dripping inside the wall.

Urgent ..Please help...

Best thing to do is hire a lawyer to sue over the warranty.
DON'T FIX IT or you will be destroying the evidence!

(I sure hope you are trolling...)

Contractors are Liable for one year in Ca. Ain't no Toyota warranty
wrote in message
oups.com...
Urgent ..Please help...

I am writing regarding a home in the Bay Area, CA.

My sister bought it NEW about 8 years ago.

There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of
money to repair.

Can anyone pls tell me what is the warranty for for such pipe leaks ?

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

Is the builder responsible for this ?

What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

Thanks
Rita

What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

It's not a car it's a home so you can't blame a dealership or
manufacturer for wear and tear. Call a plumber and git er done.

wrote in message
oups.com...
Urgent ..Please help...

OK, lets start with a little 'netiquete. It's customary (and polite) to use
a relavant subject line, such as "Pipe leaking in wall, I need help", rather
than "Urgent ..Please help..." I almost didn't read this post because I
figured it was spam or a scam of some sort

My sister bought it NEW about 8 years ago.

It's not new anymore, things happen...

There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls

How do you know it's the pipes?
and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of
money to repair.

If left alone, it WILL be serious. Not sure what you consider "a lot of
money" but an ordinary pipe leak needen't be very expensive (more than a few
hundred dollars), unless there's a lot of rot/other water damage to repair.
Home repairs that are a few hundred dollars aren't considered "a lot of
money" in my book -- that would be reserved for things like a furnace going
out or a foundation crumbling, which would cost thousands.

Can anyone pls tell me what is the warranty for for such pipe leaks ?

Certainly not 8 years. A year would be typical, I believe.

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

Others have already beaten this point -- but if you said the pipes were
leaking why calk the tub?

Is the builder responsible for this ?

Very doubtful, unless you can somehow prove it was a faulty installation.
Even then I doubt it anymore. Things break. It's part of home ownership.

What is the law with respect to home builders and plumbing/leaks/
related warranties ? is it 10 years ?

Murphy's Law says things will break, at the worst possible time, and cost
more than you think.

In speaking with the HomeBuilders they brushed us off ...saying the
warranty is only a year or so.

There you have it.

Do we stand on legally strong grounds ?

Legally speaking you are on very strong grounds-- grounds to take care of
the repair yourself, like all of us who own a home do. You can either do
your own repair, or hire it out.

-Tim

Guys-

You all missed the most important piece of info...........Ms Goldman is
writing about a "new home" purchased 8 years ago in the BAY AREA (that
would be the San Francisco bay area).

Norhern California (esp the bay area) is the center of "no person
responsibility", it's always someone else's fault.

About her question as to the existence of a warranty
claim.........she's thinking about the ~10 year limit on construction
defects in California.

If she can prove a defect in design, material, construction or
installation perhaps she has a claim against the reponsible party but
the legal & techincal expert costs to persue such a claim would make
this a losing effort.

OP-

How long since the leak was first noticed? Get someone on the job to
find the cause & stop the leak, then look into the repairs needed to
the sub-structure & the finishes.

cheers
Bob

Gee, I'd thought in CA, you'd want to focuss group, relate to the
experience, and, like, invite all your friends over, man. Lets stay on
topic, here. She didn't ask for the way to fix the drip, she asked for
opinions as to the liability.

Now for my on topic reply. I'd think you should call the local television's
trouble shooter. And also the attorney generals office of your county.
Notify your personal attorney, or the public defenders office, if you don't
have one. In the meantime, go live in a motel, and keep the receipts. Call
the news papers, every half hour on the half.
--

Christopher A. Young
Do good work.
It's longer in the short run
but shorter in the long run.
..
..


"SQLit" wrote in message
...

Call a plumber ASAP and get the leak fixed. BEFORE it causes thousands of
dollars in damage.

BobK207 wrote:
Guys-

You all missed the most important piece of info...........Ms Goldman is
writing about a "new home" purchased 8 years ago in the BAY AREA (that
would be the San Francisco bay area).

Norhern California (esp the bay area) is the center of "no person
responsibility", it's always someone else's fault.

About her question as to the existence of a warranty
claim.........she's thinking about the ~10 year limit on construction
defects in California.

If she can prove a defect in design, material, construction or
installation perhaps she has a claim against the reponsible party but
the legal & techincal expert costs to persue such a claim would make
this a losing effort.

OP-

How long since the leak was first noticed? Get someone on the job to
find the cause & stop the leak, then look into the repairs needed to
the sub-structure & the finishes.

cheers
Bob


Excellent Bob. If she was in SoCal I'd add just one thing; appearance
is everything.

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
...
Gee, I'd thought in CA, you'd want to focuss group, relate to the
experience, and, like, invite all your friends over, man. Lets stay on
topic, here. She didn't ask for the way to fix the drip, she asked for
opinions as to the liability.

Then she was off-topic. This is alt.home.repair, not alt.free.legal.advice
or alt.sue.the.world.

-Tim

On 17 Sep 2005 11:54:46 -0700, wrote:
I am writing regarding a home in the Bay Area, CA.

Why did San Diego get all the lawyers and San Francisco get all the
homosexuals?

San Francisco got first choice!

There is a leak in the pipes (bath tub area) inside the walls and is
dripping to the first floor. This could be serious and cost a lot of

Are you sure? Maybe a drain pipe was not fitted right and water is
leaking at a coupling (or in my case a rubber sleeve was not installed
properly) and draining water is following the pipe down from the
break. I presume this is intermittent, because you would have fixed a
flood by now. A two dollar piece amounts to removing wall board, etc.

We tried recaulking the bath tub ...but it did not help.

You are farting in a space suit!

Oren
"My doctor says I have a malformed public-duty gland
and a natural deficiency in moral fiber, and that I am therefore
excused from saving Universes."

I don't know about warranties, but you need to fix the leak ASAP. Mold
can be a worse heath issue than water damage. Make sure you spray the
inside of the wall with bleach or a mold inhibitor after you fix the
leak. Is the leak on the straight section of the pipe or on the solder
joint? You need to cut out a section of the wall and see exactly how
bad the leak is so you can fix it.

Ace hardware has a clamp for about $7 for a leak on the straight
section of copper pipe. That has worked for me in the past. I used a
Instaclamp (instaclamp.com) on my 1/2' solder joint leak and fixed the
leak in 5 minutes. The $25.00 it cost me beat the cost of a plumber or
me having to solder it.

Hope this helps,

Sozoman