[DechanDawa]

So the maintenance guy called me to tell me they have to come in and rip out the wall in my bathroom!

The air conditioner in the apartment under me isn't working.

They think it is because I put a nail in the wall in the bathroom and it punctured the copper tubing that connects the AC downstairs to something up to the roof.

The maintenance guy said they have already spent "big bucks" tracking the problem. And it led to my bathroom!

I do hang a lot of stuff on my walls...but I was never warned about not doing it on certain walls.

I am not going to be charged but it is major major work...knocking out the wall...the AC people coming in to fix the problem...then putting up new dry wall and painting it. I have nowhere to go during this but the lobby.

The maintenance guy said it isn't my fault. This is a new building and I think it has been weirdly constructed. I won't be charged. I mean I will fight it if they try because nothing was ever said about not being able to hang stuff up.

I feel guilty and also upset about all the workmen coming in.

But this is something I may have inadvertently caused. I feel bad.

It is also adding to my already strained mental health.

[Skeezyks]

[divine1966]

It’s irritating. I always put a lot of holes in the walls. Never thought of danger of doing so. I feel for you. Everything is so much more complicated during covid

[unaluna]

That is weird!

Ive only ever had the upstairs bathtub leak into mine thru the ceiling - gross gross gross!!! Im just glad the guy and the whole tub didnt fall thru!

I dont remember if i left or not. The bathroom is way off in a corner of my apartment.

[DechanDawa]

I forget past apartment mishaps probably because it is always traumatic. I lived in a city apartment and person on fifth floor left their water running, locked their apartment and left town. It flooded the entire building before someone could get in to turn it off.

I see a slight buckle in the wall in my bathroom so obviously air conditioning coolant is leaking. I have to get my ducks in a row and tell them they need to come in ASAP. They gave the person downstairs a portable AC so they will be comfortable during this heat wave.

I have been putting lots of holes in walls to hang things up my entire life. The most that ever happened was a hole that needed to be filled in later on.

New construction is crap...not just apartment buildings but houses, too. I will be happy to move back to the east coast where everything is old, but usually works pretty well. Back in the day copper tubing wasn't so thin it could be punctured by a small nail!

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by divine1966

It’s irritating. I always put a lot of holes in the walls. Never thought of danger of doing so. I feel for you. Everything is so much more complicated during covid

Thanks for this. I am happy to hear someone else hangs up a lot of stuff, too. I feel so guilty.

[*Beth*]

I always hang stuff on my walls, and from the ceiling. Honestly, because you put a nail in the wall...sounds kind of weird that 1 nail would cause so much damage.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by BethRags

I always hang stuff on my walls, and from the ceiling. Honestly, because you put a nail in the wall...sounds kind of weird that 1 nail would cause so much damage.

Yep, I'm with you. They should probably tell people not to hang stuff on certain walls. But the maintenance guy said that isn't really possible. Then he went on to tell me about four or five other people who caused damage to pipes, tubing etc. It must have to do with how the place is constructed.

[DechanDawa]

Supposedly it was thin copper tubing. So a small puncture could cause a leak. It would be so much easier if they just printed up something upon moving in...like don't hang things up on this wall. Stupid.

I'm over it. I mean I am not feeling as guilty. It is really causing me problems having all this going on with workmen coming in. I mean I live in a studio apartment. And they are painting the outside of the building so we can't go out on the balconies.

This is typical apartment stupid stuff. Not that it doesn't happen to homeowners. I owned an old home and the kitchen floor started sinking because of termite tunnels! Had to have the house tented and fumigated. Tented houses a very common sight in Southern California.

[divine1966]

At least in the apartment you don’t have to pay to fix things!
If you have to stay inside while they are working, put noise cancelling headphones on and watch or read something on your tablet/laptop in a chair or even on a bed.

[ArtleyWilkins]

That was either a long-*** nail or a thin-*** wall. Don’t worry about it. They aren’t holding you responsible. Sounds like a freak accident.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by divine1966

At least in the apartment you don’t have to pay to fix things!
If you have to stay inside while they are working, put noise cancelling headphones on and watch or read something on your tablet/laptop in a chair or even on a bed.

If only we all had noise cancelling headphones! I think they are pretty expensive. I've arranged for management to allow me to use a conference area in this complex that has been closed off during the pandemic. Tenants are paying for repairs via the exorbitantly high monthly rent plus storage space fee plus parking garage space fee. I hear in New York City they charge for the use of the elevator!

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by ArtleyWilkins

That was either a long-*** nail or a thin-*** wall. Don’t worry about it. They aren’t holding you responsible. Sounds like a freak accident.

Half inch nail. So must be thin*** wall, right?

[divine1966]

Originally Posted by DechanDawa

If only we all had noise cancelling headphones! I think they are pretty expensive. I've arranged for management to allow me to use a conference area in this complex that has been closed off during the pandemic. Tenants are paying for repairs via the exorbitantly high monthly rent plus storage space fee plus parking garage space fee. I hear in New York City they charge for the use of the elevator!

Any ear buds would work. Don’t know why I suggested noise cancelling ones. It was random. I don’t have any, just plain ones, I am paranoid I won’t hear something of importance lol I just know other people like noise cancelling ones.

I am glad they let you use conference room!!!

Oh I know they charge for everything arm and a leg and tenants pay for all that, better the areas more expensive all the extras. I still take that over paying thousands of dollars for house repairs! House that’s only nominally belongs to an “owner”, really it belongs to the bank.

Charge for the elevator. I am not even surprised. Insanity.

I was just trying to help re ear phones, I wasn’t implying anything.

[crystalstar]

I am living in my first apartment and last year, I caught the back patio on fire because, I was on the patio, smoking. Someone knocked on the front door and I set my cigarette down to go answer the door and I forgot about the cigarette (I have short-term memory loss). The cigarette ended up catching the patio on fire and my roommate and I where almost evicted. I had to pay for the damages and they where around $800-$900 dollars. Thank goodness my caregiver saw the fire and put it out before the whole apartment complex caught on fire. I have not picked up a disposable cigarette since. I now vape.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by divine1966

Any ear buds would work. Don’t know why I suggested noise cancelling ones. It was random. I don’t have any, just plain ones, I am paranoid I won’t hear something of importance lol I just know other people like noise cancelling ones.

I am glad they let you use conference room!!!

Oh I know they charge for everything arm and a leg and tenants pay for all that, better the areas more expensive all the extras. I still take that over paying thousands of dollars for house repairs! House that’s only nominally belongs to an “owner”, really it belongs to the bank.

Charge for the elevator. I am not even surprised. Insanity.

I was just trying to help re ear phones, I wasn’t implying anything.

Was actually surprised...went on Amazon and now they have cheap noise cancelling earphones. Used to be they were about $200 but now they have them for $40. I practically live in earbuds as am noise sensitive. I like them because they reduce but don't fully cut noise.

I was most interested to hear about others and if they accidentally damaged something in their apartment.


The worst ever story I know is when my son was in college he moved into an old building in a big city. The people above him had a party and a few people crammed out on the rickety metal fire escape - probably for a smoke. It gave way and they fell to their deaths! Everyone was immediately evacuated and housed somewhere else. The building was closed off (for official inspection) for weeks. My son couldn't get back into his apartment and lived in the same clothes, with only his computer and phone! But at least he was safe. A mother's worse nightmare that one was! Can't protect your kids forever. Horrible thing. Life (and death)...can be so random.

Last year I moved into a new apartment. They had a policy to not put nails in the walls. I had pictures to hang up. So I went to a hardware store and picked up a package of adhesive backed hooks that I can hang my pictures up. I don't know if I can name the company that puts it out. So far, it has worked out fine. No problems after 13 months. Nothing's fallen down.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by crystalstar

I am living in my first apartment and last year, I caught the back patio on fire because, I was on the patio, smoking. Someone knocked on the front door and I set my cigarette down to go answer the door and I forgot about the cigarette (I have short-term memory loss). The cigarette ended up catching the patio on fire and my roommate and I where almost evicted. I had to pay for the damages and they where around $800-$900 dollars. Thank goodness my caregiver saw the fire and put it out before the whole apartment complex caught on fire. I have not picked up a disposable cigarette since. I now vape.

Wow. That's a horrible story! But thanks for sharing it~ Thank God no one was hurt. In my complex no smoking of ANY kind is allowed...in apartments or anywhere on the grounds. This might be the wave of the future. (Of course a few people still secretly smoke. But if they caused damage they would have to pay. I am also certain that here they would be evicted.)

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by will19

Last year I moved into a new apartment. They had a policy to not put nails in the walls. I had pictures to hang up. So I went to a hardware store and picked up a package of adhesive backed hooks that I can hang my pictures up. I don't know if I can name the company that puts it out. So far, it has worked out fine. No problems after 13 months. Nothing's fallen down.

First of all I have never heard of such a thing as not being able to hang stuff with nails. When you rent an apartment it is, effectively, your home. Secondly, I imagine the adhesive could ruin the paint job. When I leave an apartment I putty up all the holes, let dry, sandpaper, then paint. I always ask maintenance for a small container of the paint that has been used in my apartment. When I leave an apartment you can't even see where there were holes. I am also surprised the adhesive is holding.

Our lease says no smoking, no candles, no incense. All well and good but people do smoke marijuana in this building. Some people think of rules as simply "guidelines"...


The worst I have heard is people here were letting their pets go to the bathroom through the slats of their balconies!!! A flyer went around saying no dogs peeing on balconies! Sheez!

[DechanDawa]

This is not a damage story but a "new renter" stupid story. So I was moving to a big east coast city. Rents were high. I finally found my very first apartment -- an inexpensive little studio. But when the manager showed it to me I saw a roach scurrying up the wall. I was horrified...having come fresh from the suburbs - I had never even seen a roach! The manager could see I was naive. I was in my twenties but looked about 16. I even had to prove to him that I wasn't a "runaway"!

So the manager says..."How to keep them away is when you unlock the door you immediately pull on your earlobes. That sets up a kind of vibration only they can sense and the will run away to somewhere else." After about three months I had a new boyfriend (soon to be fiance and husband) and the first time we went to my apartment he saw me pulling on my earlobes. He said, "What the heck are you doing?" When I told him he couldn't speak for a few minutes because of laughing so hard.

He had a great (roach-free) apartment and after a few months I moved in with him. The point of the story really is...if you move to the city do not rent an apartment over a Deli!

[divine1966]

No candles??? I love my candles! I’d have hard time with that rule. No holes? That would be insane too.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by divine1966

No candles??? I love my candles! I’d have hard time with that rule. No holes? That would be insane too.

I actually adhered to the no candles rule for three freaking years. It was hard because I love my candles, too. This past Christmas my son send me a beautiful candle and I finally caved in and used it. I am pretty sure no one here really follows all these rules. I started to use incense occasionally. All the rules are very oppressive.

[3rd rock]

Two or three years ago the mirror in my bathroom fell off the medicine cabinet door and shattered on the floor. I still haven't told the landlord.

[possum220]

Sometime last year my hot iron fell plate down onto the floor and left it's mark in the carpet, literally. No way to cover that up. The real estate agent and landlady come through this place every six months. Hard to miss this mark.

I told them about it and didn't try to cover it up with a rug. They said they would take it out of the bond whenever I moved out. I have no plans to move out at the moment.

[unaluna]

The iron is a common damage. They just cut a square of carpet out of the closet or some other hidden area and switch them.