Money Pit

There are times in life that may not be enjoyable at the time but in hindsight are humorous.  I would like to share such a story.  In the 1986 movie "The Money Pit" a couple purchases a home only to have it have require a never ending number of repairs and renovations.  At times we felt we were living the movie.  There were many occasions whence we scratched our heads in bewilderment at the people and events involved.

The story begins in July of 2016 when my wife and I traveled to France to secure a dwelling place.  Rental places are tough to come across under normal circumstances but summer holidays are even worse.  We had three homes to consider.  The first home was large with a vast garden (yard), but was was out in the country away from civilization.  The second home was in a different village and would not allow dogs.  The third home was in town, nice neighborhood and was bright and roomy.  While we walked through the house we saw evidence of work being done and were assured by the real estate agent that the house would be ready by August.  The house was furnished but the owner would be willing to remove the furniture and belongings so that we could use our furniture and belongings.  All things considered the third house was the best option for us.

On a related note renting in France is different than in North America.  A rental place may have next to nothing--no kitchen counters, stove, fridge, kitchen cabinets, etc.  Conversely furnished rentals include pretty much everything including furniture, bedding, dishes, TV, etc.

On our possession day we entered the house to find it in an unacceptable state of occupancy.  Sawdust, mold and dust were everywhere.  The bedding was dirty and one bed harbored a pair of used children's underwear.  Moths inhabited the kitchen.  The dishwasher had items that had long surpassed the stinky, furry and green and hazmat stages and were rapidly approaching the soon to be a rock stage.  Some work had been done:  doors had been replaced but not painted, damaged toilet seats replaced with 4.99€ models, walls painted with primer but not a finishing coat and woodwork repairs that would embarrass a junior high shop student.  I tested the washing machine which started to flood (it was replaced that day).  Simply put the house was a mess.  A cleaning crew came in at the owner's expense; first a team of four worked half a day on the kitchen and a few days later a team of three worked another half day on the bathrooms to get them to the acceptable level.  Half a week after our intended move in date we moved in to an acceptably clean house.

The house was a decent enough house:  three stories, front of the house at street level, lower level at ground level, terrace, balcony on the top floor with sunset view, fair size back yard, double car garage (but regular street curb in front, not sloped to drive in), charcoal grill, ping-pong table, large fridge/freezer and a new washing machine.  The house was roughly ten years old with the owner (Mr. R) living in London.  The son (M) lived in Paris and was going to be our contact should we need anything or have problems.

Back yard

View from the balcony

For the most part the first month in the house went well with the only snags being a slow draining kitchen sink and arranging to get owner's furniture removed from the house and garage.  We purchased a dehumidifier and moth strips bringing down the humidity and ridding the house of moths.  M's sister N came from London to look over the belonging for items of importance and to write down the issues that we were told would be ready for our move in but were not completed.  Shortly after N's visit we received a spreadsheet with items to be completed, who would do the work and tentative completion dates.

All of the water in the house drained to the bottom floor which is below street level and the sewer line.  A pump in the utility room pumped the waste water up to the sewer.  In September our kitchen sink was draining at a slower and slower rate.  A plumber was brought in to check out the situation.  He cleaned out some of the sewer lines but said the filter in the pump was clogged and would require a thorough cleaning.  M was made aware of the recommendations but the plumber was never asked to return.

Sample of mold around the house

October brought cooler weather prompting us to turn on the heat.  The house was heated by radiators using hot water from the same water heater/boiler as for sinks and showers.  After a few weeks of use the water heater would randomly shut down, but could be remedied by hitting the reset button.  The interruptions in hot water supply increased in frequency.  I often had to wake up an hour before the rest of the family to make sure we had heat for the house and hot water for showers.  During one stretch when the boiler was not working at all I had to heat water on the stove, coffee boiler and microwave and pour it into a large cooler to dump into the bathtub so my wife could have a luke-warm bath.  Unfortunately my efforts placed stress on the electrical circuit and I had to reduce my heating apparatuses by 50%.  At the peak the boiler would have to be reset eight to ten times a day.  The boiler maintenance company inspected the boiler and said it was a chimney problem.  The chimney service company said it was a boiler problem.  Several rounds of blame tennis were played with no resolve even dragging the electrician into the match.  An exhaust fan was installed at the top of the chimney, but to no avail.  After returning from a two week trip out of the country for business we returned to a house that was 8° C (46° F) while it was 6° C (43° F) outside.  With all the boiler resets it took two days for the house to return to a normal temperature.

Boiler F2 Error Message

Mold behind the washing machine in the kitchen

Plugged sewer pipe

During the months of September and October the pump would increasingly make a screeching noise and stop working which a reset would remedy.  Late one Sunday night in November the pump embellished the screeching with a guttural grinding noise followed by the power going off to the pump, boiler and portions of the house on all three levels.  M was immediately informed and a late night emergency plumber was called, arriving at midnight.  The prognosis was that the pump would have to be replaced and to expedite matters the plumber would require a down payment of 2500€ (cash or cheque/check) before he left.  M asked if we could pay the plumber and then be reimbursed, an offer which I declined.

With no clear solution to the boiler issue and the pump transforming into a paperweight a new approach was deemed in order, bring in Nickson (notice that the name of the hero has not been changed).  Upon his initial visit Nickson did something none of the other experts/specialists/repairmen did--he thoroughly conducted tests, examined equipment, crawled under things, etc.  The next thing Nickson did was turn on the electricity and provide instructions on temporary operations of the boiler and pump.  Several days later M came down from Paris to meet with Nickson at the house to confirm the conditions and discuss repairs.  During the visit the sewer backed up flooding much of the lower level of the house.  It was a relief having M at the house during this catastrophe to see that we were really in dire circumstances.  A week and half later the sewer backed up again flooding the lower level again.  Nickson's proposal was to install ventilation in the kitchen and bathrooms (poor ventilation was a primary cause of the all the mold and the boiler problems) and replace balcony tiles, the entire chimney and sewer pump. All operations were tentatively to be completed in a week to ten days.

Flood in the kitchen

Mopping up flood water

Ea du toilette--not the nice kind

Work began in late November.  For each item that was repaired two more problems were found and the one week project stretched into six weeks.  The drain pipe from the kitchen sink rose uphill to the pump and was plugged two-thirds with what can best be described as gray ground beef.  Mold was more extensive than first realized.  The electrical circuits were improper with several circuits having improper loads (i.e. the pump was on the same circuit as half of the house whereas it should have had its own circuit).  The exhaust from the boiler was not aligned with the chimney.  Many times Nickson would shake his head and comment how he couldn't believe how haphazardly the house had been built.  Nickson became such a fixture in our home that he had his own key and the dog would not bark when he arrived as she figured he belonged at the house.

New chimney being installed

Sewer line replacement

Sewer line replacement

From the first week of November until the first week of January we spent six weeks away from our house living in hotels and a B&B.  On our last stay at one hotel the desk clerk asked where our dog was.  When a hotel in your home town knows you and they ask about your dog you know have had problems.

During the first full week of January we were finally able to move back into our house.  The short version was that ventilation units had been installed in the bathrooms and kitchens, the balcony had its tiles replaced, a new chimney was installed, virtually all of the lower level sewage pipes were replaced and a new pump had been installed.  We had heat, hot water and could flush toilets and drain sinks... at least for a little while.  Once every one or two weeks the boiler would have to be reset.  The pump continued to screech and require a reset, not as frequently as before but often enough to be of concern.  At this juncture our patience expired.  We had given the house repairs a chance even after the lengthy and inconvenient repairs of December but the consistent demand of resetting the pump was the straw that broke the camel's back and we decided to start looking for a new place to live.  Nickson devised further tests for the pump but by then it was too late.

The NEW pump

Searching for a new place to live was not any easier than when we first arrived.  Very few places were available and the one place we looked at was not suitable.  My wife's boss had become familiar with our woes and suggested we consider renting the house he and his family were renting since they had purchased a home of their own and would be moving out in May.  The house was wonderful!

During the ordeal we learned more about the history of the house and its proprietor.  The house was built in the cheapest and quickest manner.  Mr. R was not around during the construction to keep an eye on things, and official inspections appear to have been random at best.  For a while M lived alone in the house and he would spend time with a buddy smoking, playing their music loud, and who knows what else.  The previous tenants had flushed disposable diapers down the toilets, and vacated the premises without notice.  The only maintenance was removing the diapers from the pump otherwise the house and grounds were untouched.  Mr. R came by for our final walk-through, he was late arriving because he forgot where his house was and told the taxi driver the wrong address.  During the walk-through it became evident that Mr. R had not been made aware that his son had moved and/or sold some of the furniture that belonged to the house.  Nickson determined what hopefully was to be the final resolution for the pump but was never asked to return and complete the work after our departure.  The reason the house was the way it was had became clear.

We harbor no ill will to the parties involved.  When the house worked it was a decent house and we could have resided there the duration of our term in France.  We had great neighbors and a balcony with a sunset view.  However; had we not gone through what we did we would not have ended up in a much better house.  In hindsight we have had a few laughs.  To help us keep our perspective we know another expat family that moved into a four month old house only to be forced to move out because the house failed all safety inspections.  No word as if the same contractor was used at our old house.