Sounds like you have a bad landlord. I do work for quite a few who are good - hell, I had to go out on an emergency call tonight for a tenant whose main sewer line was plugged. For everyone who is good though there is always that one who either slow pays or wants me to wait "till something else breaks" before I go by. If the guy is doing the work himself he either isn't doing that well in the market or is a severe tight-wad. Personally, I definitely would not pay someone else to fix it - you are asking for trouble as there could be a clause in your lease that excludes him from having to re-imburse you. Plus, if you don't know what your doing and make the problem worse you will most definitely be held responsible for the damages.
