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Simple question, but I’d welcome your thoughts.
Well have tradespeople working in the house for the next 10 days or so fitting a bathroom, they’re known having done lots of work for friends and family.
The question I have is does someone need to be in the house at all times they are in? My mother in-law is adamant that we do as they may have questions and also in case they need to pop out.
I on the other hand thought as long as I’m there to let them in and back before they leave then we’ll be fine. If they need anything they can call me.
Related, she’s also adamant they should be offered tea or coffee every hour, my view is make the first round, then tell them where the kettle and teabags are and leave them to it.
Am I being to relaxed/naive?
No, no and no. Let them get on with it.
Just be aware that some house insurance policies do not cover theft/accidental damage if work people left alone in house, particularly if left with a key. I am sure that this is not a problem in almost all cases, but it came up when we were having extensive work done in our house. We trusted them, they had a key which they left at the end of the day and they got on with it with phone calls if issues arose, although I made sure I called in regularly anyway.
They brought their own tea....
If you trust them then just leave them to it. Personally I love it when I can put my radio on and just get on with it without being checked up on. They can phone you if there’s a problem.
If you’re there for ten minutes at the start of their day, go through any problems they might have then.
Can be a bit dodgy letting what are effectively a bunch of strangers into your house with no supervision.
I was having my house rewired a few years ago and came home early to discover the sparky dancing around the house in my wifes underwear. (Dirty ****er!)
Mind you..... the sparky was actually my wife so all was good after i helped her find her Big Yankee and cap of the live cable if you know what i mean!... Fnar, fnar!
#Internationalwomensday
#Womeninstemcareers
#Shewillslapmeforthis
If they have worked for family and friends before, Leave them to it and give them a key.
Show them where tea/coffee stuff is and let them crack on.
After 25 years of working with tradesmen, day in and day out, there is no way on earth that I’d leave them unattended in my house.
If I didn't trust tradesmen to get it done (and not dance around in wife's gear) without me being there I wouldn't hire them.
Depends. If it’s a day job with a new tradesman one of us will work from home.
I’ve a few trusted traders that get used semi regularly and I’ll happily leave to get on with it.
A recent 2 week bathroom fit out we just had to get on with our lives and gave them a key.
I always let them know where the brews and biscuits are if I’m not in. Half the time they don’t want one when you offer anyway!
If you trust them then no you don't have to be there. But if you are, just let them get on with it, nothing worse than having someone watching you over your shoulder as you work.
Two words...
Knicker drawer....
Two words…
Knicker drawer….
Tooth brush😯😯
Strangely i work every day in strangers houses, some are totally strange, and most are quite nice and freindly and ive never had the wish or inclination to look for a knicker drawer or a toothbrush, whatever that means.
I also never work in homes un occupied with no resident in attendance, just in case something goes missing, or is broken.
Been accused of stealing a plate from a cheap microwave once,in an empty flat,plate was found in the dishwasher,along with other pots and dishes.
If you want the work doing stay at home, dont get in the way, dont tell us how to do the job as youve seen it done on You tube, dont get upset at dust, and dont try and hoover up when im up a ladder drilling holes and banging the ladder with the hoover,ensure your kids are under control,move stuff form where we are working, and staircases are not for storage when we are working upstairs, cups of tea or a pointer top a kettle, tea bags,milk and a toilet are useful.
Finanlly have a bit of conversation, difficult if you work in IT or accountancy, as neither require the use of speech just keyboards it appears.
You also have to ask them if they are happy to work in your house if nobody is in.
I have trades people in at the moment renovating empty house.
I’ve told them they can leave their tools in the house at night if they wish , but I won’t be replacing them if they are stolen etc
Annoys me that they leave their gear around the house in full view from outside.
I pop in most nights to check on progress , and move the stuff out of sight for them 🙄
Absolutely not to be trusted, they take enough liberties when you're there, I had a bathroom fitted and they all took a dump in the toilet before I did, they kept ****ing off at 3pm and spent half the time on their phones discussing rather inappropriate things.
Who the hell needs a brew ever hour, give them one in the morning and at lunch if they haven't disappeared for an hour and half.
I recently had an extension at the back of the house, I popped out for 20 minutes and my house stunk of cigs when I got back, upstairs and down and the brand new French doors looked years old by the time they'd finished, tradesmen are totally disrespectful and untrustworthy, most are now the second generation of people who've never had a slap from an authoritative figure growing up.
Endomick you obviously just employed some scumbags. Don’t tar us all with the same brush, I treat customers homes as I’d like mine to be treated. I fully sheet down during the day and tidy up at night with tools away, we bring our own drinks, but it’s nice to have an offer every now and then.
I like the customer to be around or leave a key, sometimes you need to go and get materials or nip off.
Not sure why it’s a problem to Endomick that his tradesmen were gone at 3, unless paying them on day work. I’m often at the merchants collecting materials at 7 in the morning and have quotes to do after a day on the tools. Do you work 12hrs a day??
Back when I was decorating we used to get left in on our own all the time.
I’d happily leave a tradesperson in my house but only generally use friends or recommendations.
Absolutely not to be trusted, they take enough liberties when you’re there,
It turns out that there are good and bad tradespeople.
It turns out that there are good and bad tradespeople.
Just like customers...
Not working for Mick.... Still suffering from his endoscopy..... Probably.
Treat the gaff the same I would expect someone to treat mine.
There's nothing worse than a customer who stands there over your shoulder watching what you do.... even better if they then question why you're doing it that why....
The F-in-L does this. Turned up once when he had a tiler in doing hus bathroom. The tiler thanked me when I told F-in-L that he should go for a walk.
Just like customers…
Just like people!
For my bathroom refit I gave them a couple of spare keys and let them get on with it. I'd previously used them for a boiler change so had a modicum of trust there from that but I guess you never know - but for a business that's been around years they'd have probably been found out by now if they were stealing etc.
I did usually pop home at lunch time to check on progress and to make sure things were being done as planned and had a couple of calls querying stuff (especially when the discovered the internal walls were just 3 sheets of plasterboard bonded together...).
As for tea/coffee - I just made sure they knew to help themselves and supplied lots of biscuits
If you don't trust them, find another Tradesman. Maybe not some random bloke hanging around outside Wickes drinking a can of Monster Energy.
Be sensible and always use trusted recommendations from people that you actually know rather than an online trade checker that is paid for by the potential thief/pervert/smoker/half day worker.
Got a new bathroom fitted 3 years ago, and an ensuite built in our bedroom at same time, we went away to a cottage on Arran for the week, out the road of the mess.
Worked very well.
Revs1972 - they clearly aren’t as paranoid as you. Perhaps they’ve been leaving tools on jobs for decades with nothing ever getting nicked...
Do you really want a property in an area where a few drills etc are likely to get nicked from inside a locked house?
Ive never has a tradesman seem surprised if I left them with a key. The guy that does our boiler I drop the key through his door the night before - but he rides a bike so must be OK...
If you trust them leave them alone. If you don’t why let them work in your house. My little gang are 50/50 left alone, people stay in. If we need to ask you a question that’s what mobiles are for and we’ve already agreed on the plan and drawings. If we leave tools on site they are always out of view as this is how we pay our bills so don’t want then nicked. Plastic flooring put down from access door to room we are working in. We have no interest in your wife’s knickers or what’s in any room apart from the one we work in. The people who really seem to not trust our presence are the ones we wouldn’t leave any tools in the house as they are probably likely to steal them. No one I work with smokes,we start at 8 and leave at 3. We tell you all this in advance.
A kettle is appreciated but we carry our own. If it’s your elderly mum we make her tea along with our own. If you tell us my son in law fits bathrooms we will ask you if he’s lazy or rubbish because you’re paying us.
Sorry endomic were booked until the day after eternity.
We have no interest in your wife’s knickers
The husbands boxers on the other hand....Sniff sniff.
Haha no frank. If you suggest it you probably think about it too much.
Alpin you clearly have an anal fixation if you see the word endo on a bikers forum and think about something going up your arse 😀😯, I never watch tradesmen, I leave em to it, I just make myself or family member available incase of any problems.
Apologises to decent builders out there, but you are outnumbered by cowboys and chancers, and it is better to be safe than sorry by staying in when theres complete strangers in your house, trust needs to be earned first, the main problem is the guy you arrange the job with can be fantastic, have a good name/reputation and impressive showroom but then he sends a bunch of misfits to do the job.
I once booked a so called decent electrician to do quite a big job and never saw him again until the job was finished by his lackies, one of them drilled inside out for an outdoor socket and damaged new external brick work.
Theres a lot of sub contracting going on, so it's a gamble when you have bathrooms, kitchens, double glazing etc done by big name firms. Fensa approved should be the mark of a quality window fitter, sadly it means nothing.
Endomick, your issue is having big name firms in to do your works. They only use sub contractors on the cheapest rates so although you are paying top whack they aren’t so you get what they pay for. Any decent tradesman is busy doing their own work. It’s always been the same in the trade tbh
I'm left on my tod in all sorts of properties at work (Decorator) Treat customers houses with more respect than I treat my own TBH. Most guys I know and work with prefer to be left to it, myself included! Offer of a bru is nice, or a pointer to the kettle (Though I carry all my own brewing gear in the van)