Ted Murphy Posted March 25, 2006 Share Posted March 25, 2006 I was working in a customer's apartment building when I realized someone had let themselves into the room the thermostat is located and turned it to 85. I turned it down to 70 and made sure they couldn't let themselves in again as easily. last night I get a panic call from the tennant, that he is freezing. After a trip to radio shack I arrive with my new handy dandy digital thermometer. It's 59 degrees outside, and 72 in his apartment. He gets all sorts of argumentative, sayin that he has no heat because the radiators are cold. Next is a 10 minute discussion where i try to explain to this idiot the basic concepts of thermodynamics, what "ambient temperature" means, what a thermostat is and why the heat will not go on when it is 72 degrees in a house where the t-stat is set at 70. I also point out this is 12 degrees warmer than my house is currently setting. He understands none of this (or pretends not to) and says that the radiators in his apartment should be red hot 24/7. He goes on and on to say that it is his "right" as a tennant to have the heat hot enough in his apartment so he can walk around naked in the dead of winter. After telling him the thought of a 60 year old man running around naked is a mental picture that I did not need to have I told him to buy an electric radiator. After all this I call the landlord and tell him all this. He goes on to say he was wondering why his gas bill for the month outstripped what he takes in in rent for the month. I hate the sense of entitlement some people get. And I hate how in the case of landlords like the above, who will move heaven and earth to make sure everyting is 100% in their properties, he continually gets stuck with a-holes like this as tennants. Ted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPatterson Posted March 25, 2006 Share Posted March 25, 2006 He's just a wussy because the thermostat in my trailer never exceeds 65 & my daughter says the way I don't dress is TMI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raz-0 Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 IT isn't just tennants, and it isn't just trying to stick it to the landlord. Every time we/I moved in, basedon bills, statements form the previous occupants, and even one time a threat from the gas company regarding investigating us for tinkering with the meter, the previous occupants must have kept the temps up around 90+ all winter long with the windows open. I'm not the only one who has noticed this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooter Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 Sounds like a roommate I had many years ago. He didn't quite understand the concept of a thermostat. In the winter, it would be turned all the way up. In the summer it would be all the way down. I was just short of screwing the lever permanently at 70 before I moved out. When I moved out during the hot 100+ degree summer, I flipped the circuit breaker for the AC compressor just to screw with him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Boudrie Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 You should read "The Care and Feeding of Tenants" by Andy Kane. One trick he recommends is a locked thermostat - but let the tenants see you carefully turn it down. This should be in series with a second thermostat which is hidden, never disclosed to the tenants, and sets the limit temperature. Tenants will turn up the visible thermostat when you are gone and will actually feel warmer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Murphy Posted March 30, 2006 Author Share Posted March 30, 2006 This particular thermostat is in a locked room that no one is supposed to have keys to. Fella jimmied the door. Typically I put the real one up in the joists in the basement and leave the old one on the wall. Not my call on this one. Ted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Round_Gun_Shooter Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 (edited) And the thing I hate is they are never spending their own money It is sure, fix the (Whatever) Landlord said to get it done. I learned a long time ago that I DON"T DEAL WITH TENNANTS. AND I DON"T DEAL WITH REALTORS. You want it fixed?? Have the guy responsible for paying the bill call me. Edited March 30, 2006 by Round_Gun_Shooter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Murphy Posted March 31, 2006 Author Share Posted March 31, 2006 And the thing I hate is they are never spending their own money It is sure, fix the (Whatever) Landlord said to get it done.I learned a long time ago that I DON"T DEAL WITH TENNANTS. AND I DON"T DEAL WITH REALTORS. You want it fixed?? Have the guy responsible for paying the bill call me. I usually do not deal with them. IN fact, tennants are kind of fun. THey don't write the checks so you can pretty much tell them what is on your mind. In this case, the property owner is very ill and I said I would help him as he is a friend. Ted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kory Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 "....and says that the radiators in his apartment should be red hot 24/7" Oh man, I lived in a building like that once, it was hell. Old building heated by steam, everybody's radiators got hot in fall, all windows were opened for winter. Why somebody would prefer that is beyond me, it was unbearable! (currently enjoying a thermostat set to 65) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Dunn Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 I used to be a handyman for a slum lord many moons ago. When I first started I was amazed at what a cheap bastard the landlord was. He wouldn't pay for screen to fix screen doors. Had me glue broken toilet seats together instead of replacing them. Everything was a baling wire and bubblegum fix for virtually no money. After one week I realized that the tennants were pretty much scum of the earth and had not a care in the world about repeatedly flushing plugged toilets, kicking out repaired screens, punching holes in walls, leaving trash everywhere. It's one thing to be poor. It's another to be a filthy, drug addled, waste of space. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Murphy Posted April 1, 2006 Author Share Posted April 1, 2006 "....and says that the radiators in his apartment should be red hot 24/7"Oh man, I lived in a building like that once, it was hell. Old building heated by steam, everybody's radiators got hot in fall, all windows were opened for winter. Why somebody would prefer that is beyond me, it was unbearable! (currently enjoying a thermostat set to 65) It is relatively economical if set up right. Some places run the heat high cause you can always open a window but it's hard to make it hotter. Ted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Brit. Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 Tennents! I'm a self employed central heating eng. I work for quite a few landlords. I'd phoned a landlords tennants in the week and arranged to visit them first thing this morning (sat) for the annual gas service and safety check as they both work till late in the week. I don't normally work Saturdays but made an exception today. Turned up at 9.30am as agreed, blinds drawn, no car on the drive, no answer to the door, no answer to my phone calls! Wasted my Saturday morning that did. Tennents! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Murphy Posted April 2, 2006 Author Share Posted April 2, 2006 I did a job like that about 2 years ago. Landlord gives me keys to the apt. The tennants changed the locks. I managed to let myself in anyway and fix the sink, relocking the deadbolt when I was done. Boy howdy did I get a nasty phone call from the tennant the next day. Then they got one from the landlord about changing the locks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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