Mom Versus Pool: Questionable Plumber

The city of Colorado Springs doesn’t know this, but in 2014, The Swimmery repaired one of their water lines.

You have to understand, this pool had sat empty for three years and been brutally vandalized during that time. The pump room had been stripped of all its copper piping and electrical wiring, and the thieves even got away with the actual pump, which is like a thousand pounds of cast iron. I was in problem solving mode all day everyday.

On Day One, the first phone call I made was to Handyman Connection. I needed a plumber, and they sent me the next guy available. “Chuck,” not his real name, replaced the piping in the pump room, and once we got that done, he wanted to work for me directly. No middle man. Fine. Chuck was great at first. He was kind and willing to take on anything.

My second call was to get the utilities turned back on. Not an hour later, I got a call from Chuck saying we had a water spout shooting six feet out of the ground on the other side of my property line near a walking path. He asked if I wanted him to fix it. Of course I needed it fixed. I had a pool to open. So Chuck rented a backhoe and dug a massive hole several feet down into the ground where the water was spewing and repaired the leak. He filled the earth back up and I plowed ahead with other repairs.

One day Chuck approached me, sheepishly, to say that he was going to have his utilities cut off if he didn’t pay them by 4:00 that day. He wanted to borrow money. Sure. I lent him the money, about $900. Being a social worker, I couldn't say no. It didn’t take long though for me to see that Chuck not only had financial problems, he had other issues that might have involved alcohol. But it didn’t seem to interfere with his work and that’s all I cared about; however, his poor judgment was on full display when it was time to put water in the pool.

The deep end gradually filled, and water was slowly creeping into the lap lanes when I got a phone call from Chuck. He wanted to let me know that he, his son, and his son’s friend, were swimming, having "a little party," he said.

Um. This was not okay. The water was freezing cold, there were no sanitizing chemicals, and I didn’t even have liability insurance yet. So, from my table in the restaurant, I let him know I’d prefer they didn’t swim in the pool at this point.

Chuck said, “What are you so worried about? It’s not a big deal.” I explained my safety and liability concerns again, and it was clear Chuck couldn’t take no for an answer. He argued with me repeatedly. Now the gloves were off. In plain language I said firmly, “Chuck, the answer is no because I don’t want your butt germs in my pool.” There it was. Caught off guard, he rambled a few choice words and hung up on me. It didn't matter why--I didn't want him having a pool party. I left my meal early and made a bee line for the pool.

Chuck had taken all his tools and left. I never saw or spoke to him again, and that was okay with me. I didn’t care if he never paid me back. Good riddance.

I’ve since had a lot of experience with Colorado Springs Utilities (who have been great to work with), and I now understand that I should have called them so they could repair the waterspout because it was their pipe. At the time, I thought it was my pipe, my responsibility. Having worked with plumbers over the last 14 years now, a good plumber would never touch a public water line. Ever.

So, Colorado Springs, if you’re just now hearing about this, I’m sorry for messing with your pipe. I really thought it was mine. Also, in my defense, I was running on adrenaline, panic, and the advice of a man with a backhoe.