NEWS/OPINION: Status of Gas Service to 122; Testing to E, G and H Lines; Destruction in Apartments

The Facts

As noted in yesterday's entry, gas has been restored to all of the apartment lines in 122 except for the E, G and H units.

I spoke at length with several of the plumbers of Stellmar Plumbing & Mechanical Corp., which is the outfit University Towers has retained to service our building. I do not know if we have an ongoing contract with them, but I understand that they have frequently serviced our co-op.

To recap some of Saturday's entry, TimeWarner ruptured the main gas line to 122 early Thursday morning. As a result, gas service to the building was stopped.

According to Stellmar, once a building becomes de-pressurized, the entire system must be tested and pass inspection before service can be restored.

Each apartment line has a dedicated pipe called a "riser," which must be tested individually.

I'm going to use the word "riser" to refer to this special pipe, which runs the length of the building. At each apartment level, a riser has a branch pipe which connects it to the apartment's stove.

Basically, they test the riser and branch pipes by pressurizing the system (like inflating a tire, I figure). If the pressure holds (i.e. stays inflated) for the test duration, then all is well. If the pressure goes down, then there's a leak.

Now, before the test could be done, all of the valves leading to the stoves had to be replaced with newer valves which are better able to withstand pressure than the old ones, which might leak. That was the reason they had to go into our apartments on Friday.

Ten of the lines passed; three failed.

Sadly for me, my apartment is on one of the risers that failed. So I got another visit this afternoon -- this time to remove the pipe leading from the riser to the stove and fully seal the riser.

This had to be done to rule out the possibility of a leak in the pipe to the stove. Hopefully, it will turn out that the riser itself is intact, and there was only a leak in someone's pipe.

If there is a leak in the riser itself, the entire riser -- yes all fifteen stories of it -- will have to be removed. And I can only imagine the hell that will wreak on us.

And speaking of the hell this has created in our lives, I would now like to talk about...


The Feelings

Since I retrieved my key from Management, and will not return it until they come up with a system of accountability when accessing our apartments, I arranged to be home this afternoon when the gentlemen from Stellmar came to visit.

They explained that, in order to remove and cap the pipe leading from the riser, they would have to cut a hole in the wall behind the stove -- not the most desirable situation, but necessary.

After banging away for 15 minutes, one said that I should check the room on the other side of the wall -- my bedroom!!

I asked why, and he said he had to go through the wall. I ran into the bedroom, where I had "safely" stashed my cats so they wouldn't be underfoot, or exposed to dust and plaster fragments.

And what do I find less than three inches from a very expensive, irreplaceable dresser? A HUGE hole in my wall! A 10" x 18" space had been smashed through, scuffing up the base of my floor lamp and leaving a ton of debris on the carpet.

I nearly broke down in tears.

Interesting, that until that point, they had been very cavalier about doing this damage. I asked them, repeatedly, why they didn't tell me before they started hammering that they might go through the wall??

The plumber who had done the damage seemed to feel very bad about this, but he couldn't really give me an answer beyond that it was something that had to be done.

He showed me how the pipe was angled directly into the plasterboard of my bedroom wall, so the only way to dig it out was to go through.

OK. Fine. But still why didn't they tell me this could happen? I would have moved or protected my furniture -- and certainly my cats!!

Finally, one plumber, told me that they "usually don't say anything" because they try not to go through.

If this is their company policy, it is completely unacceptable. Notice should always be given regarding any damage that might occur during a repair procedure.

Fortunately, because I was present, they we're very diligent about cleaning up the mess and covering the hole, more or less (duct-taped with my own Hefty kitchen bags!), but that doesn't change the fact that I have a hole in my bedroom wall!

Drafts blow the bag in and out, and I have to wonder, if it is windy, will it hold?!?

Others, I have learned, have been less fortunate. The kitchen of one woman on the E line was similarly damaged when she wasn't home. I am told that a mess was left, but this is just hearsay, so any confirmation or denial would be welcome.

The kitchen of another resident in G was left in disarray, with the plaster chips dumped in his own private garbage.

The plumbers themselves told me that, for certain kitchen configurations, the entire sink and cabinet unit must be pulled away from the wall.

So please, please, heed this warning if they have not worked on your apartment already: Do not let them work in your absence.

Technically, the plumbers seem to be very skilled and competent but, for the sake of nicety, I'll say they are somewhat inept house guests.