Help! I've been searching online trying to find specific health codes for housing. I can't find anything on the NC or Wake county department of public health pages. Basically, I'm looking for specific items concerning plumbing that will get my landlord's attention. There is a maintenance issue that has been taking over 2 months to "fix" and I would like to threaten my landlord with calling the health department tomorrow, but can't find anything specific saying "this this and this must be in working order for this to be a safe living environment."

All I've been able to find so far are NC general statutes about landlord responsibilities and the general "fit and habitable conditions" line that is very vague.

I would assume that they have some health codes about housing but I have no idea. I guess appropriate building codes about plumbing would be nice to know too.

[Edited on May 30, 2011 at 5:04 PM. Reason : .]

5/30/2011 4:55:23 PM

Building codes are irrelevant since it's existing. Doesn't matter what's there now in relation to the code unless something is getting ripped out and replaced.

I don't know where to find the statutes concerning plumbing in rental units (if there is anything) but an explanation of the problem might help figure out what the requirements are.

5/30/2011 7:23:12 PM

Water is consistently backing up into my kitchen sink. The plumbing is atrocious here and somehow my upstairs neighbor is connected to me in this way. Anyway, the sink fills all the way up and brings with it everything that is in the drain, leaving food (there's a garbage disposal), oils, and just disgusting gunk in the sink.

They have:
1. poured industrial strength drain cleaner in the drain
2. replaced the garbage disposal
3. snaked the drain
4. found that my upstairs neighbor drains his washing machine into either the dishwasher or kitchen sink
5. snaked the drain again
6. promised a plumber to actually come in and fix the problem 3 times now...every time the plumber is a no-show.

It's been at least 2 months since this problem first started. I think my plan now is to go to the student legal services office tomorrow and see what exactly I can do, but some knowledge of any specific codes/ordinances would help me out. I have pictures, video, and have written down exact dates of maintenance requests. I would just think something like this has got to be a health concern at some point, and I have a cat that lives here too.

5/30/2011 7:43:55 PM

Quote :

"Maintain in good and safe working order and promptly repair all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and other facilities and appliances supplied or required to be supplied by him provided that notification of needed repairs is made to the landlord in writing by the tenant except in emergency situations."

Quote :

"PART FIVE: WRITTEN NOTICE TO THE LANDLORD. The landlord’s duty to repair promptly all plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and other appliances and facilities does not begin until the tenant has given written notice to the landlord of needed repairs. The written notice requirement does not apply in emergency situations, such as loss of heat in mid-winter or sudden leaks in the plumbing that are going to cause damage to the premises or injury to the tenant if a repair service is not called right away. As a practical matter, the best thing to do when a refrigerator, oven, or air conditioner breaks down is to call or visit the landlord immediately to report the problem. Follow up the conversation with a note or letter to the landlord which mentions the earlier oral request for repairs. For instance, “Dear Landlord: This is just a reminder of the request I made by phone this morning for repairs to the furnace at 344 Center Drive.” Sign and date the note and keep a copy. If you have to hire a repair person yourself because the landlord will not do anything, a copy of the written notice will be very helpful if you go to Small Claims Court seeking reimbursement for the repair bill you paid."

5/30/2011 7:57:02 PM

HAWT!

5/31/2011 10:24:18 PM

don't pay rent until its done. get your neighbor on board too

5/31/2011 10:30:23 PM