an anti-rant :-)

15 years ago

For once I'm having a good contractor week! My plumber resurfaced (family stuff) and came by Monday to put in a Watts Intelliflow automatic washing machine shutoff in my laundry room - we're going to be stacking the w/d pretty tight to the wall and it would be almost impossible to reach a manual shutoff back there. This gadget only turns on the water at all when it senses that the washing machine is actively drawing electricity, when the machine turns off the water supply is shut off too, and it has a moisture sensor that goes on the floor for if the machine itself leaks. He had to raise his hourly rates about 15% because of the cost of fuel and supplies and apologized profusely for it, but even so the cost of the gadget plus the installation was less than the deductible on our homeowner's insurance should there be an "incident", too, and much, much less than the cost of having a floor drain put in. We're waiting for some parts so he can come back to put shutoffs on every fixture (something PO neglected to do *eyeroll*) and replace my evil horrible toilet that clogs if you look at it wrong. :-)

Electricians have been perhaps my worst bugaboo for YEARS... a really decent one who welcomes piddly little jobs, doesn't bend ya right over the table money-wise, AND doesn't P&M about old houses has been so hard to find. My plumber finally came across one that HE's happy with, who visited today to put in a new outlet/circuit for our big ole window AC (one window unit should take care of the entire downstairs), and give me an estimate for moving the very inconveniently-located dryer outlet, and discuss doing a panel expansion in the next year or so. He got the AC outlet in place in jig time, no muss, no fuss, no whining about the old horsehair plaster and lath, and that went so quickly that he said oh what the heck, let's just do the dryer outlet now, and got right to it. (One of the reasons we're sort of bustling along on the laundry room is because DH is REALLY nagging for a cat, and that's where the litterbox and such will go. The electrician's a critter person himself, so when I explained that he was just gung ho to get us one step closer to a kitty! LOL) He even patched the hole in the wall left from the old outlet, and when I said that my afternoon project was going to be patching the hole that the plumber had left from the valve installation - the wall had had to be cut back several inches to get at the plumbing - he patched that one too! Talk about going above and beyond the call of duty. I ended up being the "helper" which was actually great fun, passing tools and catching fishtape and so on, and he explained everything he was doing as he went and even seemed to welcome my interest. The bill was somewhat less than I had expected it to be which thrilled me to bits, especially given the, well, minor nightmare that darn dryer outlet turned out to be. He even gave me a HUG when he left! (Not creepy-like though.) He'll be coming back later this summer/fall to do another succession of small things - adding outlets, relocating switches, blah blah. So if anyone in SE NH, say about a half hour radius around Dover - needs a good electrician, email me.

If the weather cooperates this week, demo on the old garage and construction of the parking pad should begin next week, holiday or no holiday - DigSafe is starting to get peeved with us because we keep having setbacks which mean our dig permits run out and they have to go through the whole process again. Which reminds me, I need to have DH order the dumpster, because he knows the right guy to call.

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Comments (14)

valzone5
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Well now *I* want to hug *him*!!! Nice to hear good contractor stories!
brutuses
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Always nice to hear "good contractor" stories. Good for you!
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a bit of a disappointment, really. (a rant - beware)
Q
Comments (67)
I do think this has been a fun discussion to read, and I'm glad that folks have been so gracious in encouraging each other to stick around and continue to express opinions as just that - our individual opinions to share and learn from each other. Melissa raised an excellent point in response to my post that I did indeed state more strongly than I intended. I also don't grow antiques or even roses because I deliberately want to be different from my neighbors in some sort of anti- "keeping up with the Jones" attitude. I am at heart a lazy gardener, which is one reason I refuse to spray, since that makes something fun into unpleasant work in my world. I like old garden rose forms but something that suckers like Gallicas sounds like too much work in a contained space so I look elsewhere. I also like modern rose forms and bright colors and stripes so I grow those too and don't bother to segregate the types except by vague color relationships and zone pocket requirements. Still, there's something special about roses that appeals to my own quest for knowledge and community and history and even individualism, with each rose having its own personality and story, both in my yard and in the rest of the world, that isn't equaled by other types of garden plants. Let me slip in an analogy for where I see some of the challenge and appeal of roses beyond just their beauty, since any number of garden plants are intrinsically beautiful. When I became engaged to my husband, he asked me what kind of wedding ring I'd like. Well, my first considerations were practical (as they are in my garden), and being a klutz, with all the ways I use my hands I didn't want to have gashes in my clothes (and skin) from a solitaire like a majority of rings out there. I also look wretched in gold jewelry, so I wanted white gold, and I like the intricacy of filigree jewelry just because it's pretty. We discovered that by these three practical and aesthetic considerations, we were already beyond 99% of the rings that we could find for sale not because I wanted deliberately to be different, but because what I liked wasn't what apparently most other folks liked. After searching all over two towns, we checked the teeny jewelry store next to my husband's store and wearily said the words that made most store owners shake their heads blankly, "white gold filigree". What a joy to watch the owner pull out a huge tray of estate sale rings in nothing but white gold filigree and tell us the stories behind them. Not just because I liked this style aesthetically, but there's something richer and more powerful about having a ring from the 1920's with an intriguing history behind it. I am very grateful to that jewelry store owner for maintaining and sharing those "weirdo" rings, since I didn't even know what I wanted would be hard to find until long after they were popular (just like my gratitude to folks who maintain hard-to-find roses). It adds something indefinable to the personal sentiment that I would treasure anyway in any wedding ring my husband would have chosen, to imagine who else has loved this ring and been loved through the gift of it. So that individualism and history and sense of community is part of what appeals to me about roses, beyond the fact that I think they're beautiful and surprisingly manageable plants to care for. I love that roses have families on many levels - that I can look at a Kordes rose and see aspects that differ from a Meilland rose, that children and grandchildren of roses like "Peace" or "Souvenir de la Malmaison" share important characteristics, or that rose breeders like Rupert or Barden can be people we actually know (at least virtually on this forum). And one more thing - the same can be said of daylilies, since they are every bit as diverse with a long history of some varieties, and I have probably 40 named varieties in my yard. For me, the difference is the challenge associated with them, hence my earlier response to Suzy's initial comments. I just don't find daylilies that challenging to grow, so they don't develop as much personality or uniqueness for me as the roses do in my yard. That sentiment and this whole post starts getting off on another tangent, and since this thread is getting long I'll start a new one on the idea of what appeals to us about roses. Still, I wanted to respond to Melissa's very thoughtful comments and respect the very welcome challenge of this discussion topic. Have a good time out in the garden Lola, and BlackGavotte, and welcome back whenever you want to chime in here. Cynthia
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Q
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I can recommend a cosmetic surgeon to replace the butt you lost. Strong & tall fences make the best neighbors. Say "Hi" to Stan for us. We all have one.
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Facebook rant of the day
Q
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I didn't read all the comments yet, but I have Facebook-issues..)) I opened an account after friends and family were bugging me for a year or two to open an account.. Then I realized that with all their desire to see me more, we actually communicate less..)) Less phone calls, less everything. Why call if the person is obviously alive and kicking, why say "Happy Birthday!" if you already put a nice greeting on his wall? of course there's positive to it too:) if it's about acquaintances and such. But real friends? No..this Facebook thing creates some strange emptiness. In a paradoxical way.. Conversations-are hard to have there. You can't get back to the conversation the next day for example. You wish. But you can't find it:) You can hardly find your own posts. The format itself doesn't imply that maybe people are willing to discuss something for more than a day.. The news, and opinions, and what people say, and how they talk to others-leaves me depressed for several hours. I don't even comment, I just read, yes? Traumatic experience. And I'm a long time Internet user..either I got older or the mankind got younger, but I can't tolerate this as well as before. Another thing-it's awfully overwhelming. I don't have many friends..I didn't put my real name there so nobody can find me unless I want him to..I never post in the open..from the outside it seems there's no activity on my profile..I don't share things that mostly interest my family, with friends, and vise versa, as not to clutter their feed..I stopped reading my feed because it takes ages, I just click on the names of friends to find out how are they...and it's still awfully overwhelming. I go there less and less often..and each time I'm anxious it will ruin my day. But I can't completely stop coming there, because I'm afraid people will be offended that I don't follow their news or don't like their photos.. I feel myself mighty stupid:) But it sure feels like I'm afraid of an internet site..:)
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OT - just need to rant to other gardeners who will understand
Q
Comments (21)
Yes, most of us can certainly sympathize! I'm sorry you're dealing with this, and it's hard to ignore things like this when you work so hard on your own property. At least there's a good fence. My neighbor across the street is on disability, and something of an alcoholic I gather. The house isn't too terrible from the outside, aside from needing a good power washing and one boarded up window. What bothers me is that he has a collection of bright red, Target shopping carts that he uses to collect recyclables and transport them to the recycling center for the deposit. I wouldn't mind so much if he kept the carts reliably on the side of the house, out of view, but he regularly leaves them right square on the front lawn or his driveway, and of course they're bright red. Sometimes he abandons the carts here and there on the side of the street, to return for later I suppose. At times, he keeps other sorts of metal recycling in front of the house. Especially annoying was a refrigerator that sat out there for several months. I eventually made a comment to him about it "do you need help moving that?" and he got the hint and it was gone within the week. The only saving grace is that he is very nice and friendly, and does occasionally take the hints that I drop. My dream is to one day buy the house and flip it, or maybe retain it as a rental property. I have already visualized what I'd plant on the property, so I can look across the street and see something pretty from my front windows. Patience is key! -Chris
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User
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Wow! That's awesome! I have a horror-electrician-story (I strongly suspect that the guy stole my patio furniture on his last visit to my house), so it's wonderful to hear from someone who's had such a positive experience! Yay!
tx_happy_camper
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
That's a handy little gadget they installed. Never heard of it before. We have our washer/dryer stacked as well and would never be able to reach the shut-off without pulling it all out. I wish they had something similar for the gas connection on the dryer.

Congrats on the good contractors. We have horrible problems with electricians and plumbers as well. We finally found a good plumber--not so lucky on finding a good electrician.
teacats
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Hey -- great story -- and so happy to hear a tale about the Contractor Who Would ..... and Did .....And Finished the Job!

Time to celebrate! :)
chelone
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
My worst contractor experience was with an electrician, too, Mari! Last year, during our garage project. He didn't return calls and the helpmeet said he'd take care of it... blah, blah... . 4/5 weeks after the fact I got on the blower and left him a message stating who I was and asking why he hadn't returned the 4 prior calls (recited the dates, too!). He called me back the next morning, at 8 AM, lol. He finished up what we needed done within a couple of days and I told him to bill us. "But there's more to do...". Yes, but you aren't going to do it, I've lined up someone else and he knows the entire story. I want to pay you and be finished with you. I don't want to be angry, I want the job finished. We are now 4/5 wks. behind schedule because you don't return calls or follow up. You should have seen his face! What story do you think I tell when his name comes up in passing conversation? He's a big name in my area, but I know a lot of people, too. And the other contractors sure as hell noticed his lack of timely presence. :)

Every other local contractor we've ever used in this area has been uniformly great. We've been open, "up front" with them, willing to work with their schedules, and unflinchingly understanding when things have "taken a turn". If we've had a small, piddly job we've been willing to work with them and asked them to be honest about their willingness to do it. We happily pay money "up front" to "seal the deal", and pay the final bill promptly.

It's nice to hear such a good story from you because I know you've been through the tortures of the damned several times in the past few years. Do you suppose your recent success has anything to do with the present economic climate? I do! Times are gettin' leaner every day for contractors and the importance of returning calls and actually SHOWING UP or calling if you can't is more important than it maybe was 2-3 yrs. ago.

Excellent move on the kitty! Shelters are awash in them (result of economic downturn, too), and they make the most excellent pets. I've been lobbying for another 1 or 2, too.
daisyadair
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Happiness is . . . having a husband who worked as an electrician's apprentice as a teenager. He does't do it for a living, but he's done SO much electrical work on our houses over the years. He's so nonchalant about it, too. It's not rocket science he's always telling me.
johnmari
Original Author
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
No, Chelone, I don't think that these two particular incidents have anything to do with the current business climate... I've used this plumber off and on for a couple of years and he's always been quite reliable but he had disappeared for a bit to take care of some family stuff, as soon as he got back he was right on the phone to me. He's always been well-behaved in that department. He told me once that while he knew bazillions of electricians (since he does work as a subcontractor at times) he won't refer anyone he wouldn't hire to work on his own house, because if it goes badly for the customer it reflects negatively on him, but finally he'd gotten to know this excellent guy who's very well established so he was happy to give that referral. The electrician isn't even listed in the yellow pages, ya gotta have connections *snicker*... We talked about the problems I'd had with people not returning calls and not showing up and he grinned and said "that's why I don't even need to put my name on the side of my truck" - because he has always run his business like a sensible person, he's never hurt for work and never even had to advertise, but unfortunately it makes him impossible to find if you don't know someone who knows him!

He gave me a couple of references - more folks from the "construction underground" LOL - to come look at structural issues like the trampoline floors, but I'm going to wait until after the holiday to make those calls.

As for the kitty, it's shelter all the way for us. (We drove 14 hours RT to get our dog from a shelter in New York! Hurrah for Petfinder!) We're planning on a young adult instead of a kitten this time. Kittens are always comparatively easy to place but when they're not "cute widdle babies" anymore it gets a lot harder for them, and I'm not really up for kitten-level chaos. I admire the people who can adopt seniors but I just can't do it, even if that makes me a bad person it's the way it is. This is a "one dog, one cat" household; I don't have the energy for too many critters, Goku "overloads" rather quickly, and we want to make sure we have the financial wherewithal to care for all our pets properly. We might be coming up your way cat-hunting later in the summer - we hear there's a good shelter in West Kennebunk and Petfinder is showing a fine selection. (I don't mean that quite as clinically as it sounded!)

My DH dug graves as a teenager. (I'm not kidding. He worked in a cemetery.) Not a real useful skill. :-)
chelone
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Our entire "fleet" was removed from the welfare rolls in W. Kennebunk. Good website.

3 kittens in fall '03 (they "waived" the limit for us, lol) and the dog in the summer of '04. We adopted our first dog there, too. Way back in '91.
jaybird
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
We have rescue kitties, great electricians, plumbers and handy persons in central Texas too, if anyone needs to know :^)
I'm so glad that you are having good luck with yours Mari...life needs to be easier for you!!
We have Texas hugs too, and here is one for you!! (())
donnawb
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
So glad you had good luck with contractors. I have had some good and some really bad experiences. Seems most now don't really care what you think, they just get enough complaints at the BBB and close up shop and open with new name.
johnmari
Original Author
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Thanks for your sweet words, Jaybird - life IS getting a little easier, knock on wood. :-) A neighbor got her roof done yesterday and can't rave enough about the roofers so we're going to have them come out and see about patching the porch roof and doing a few other things to squeeze a few more years out of this roof so we can save up for the whole shebang. So there's another good one "on the spike".

A guy is coming next Wednesday to stack our washer and dryer and do the new vent for it - I have my fingers crossed. He at least returned my phone call promptly, I'll give him that much.
carriem25
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I'll add my recent "anti-rant" here, too.

8:00 ish on a Sunday night - no water in the house. We live on an acreage with a drilled well and a holding tank, and a quick glance shows water coming into the holding tank, so it's not a well issue, thank goodness. Determine the cause of the problem is likely the pressure pump on the holding tank.

Monday morning, dh calls the Water Company and relates the problem. Fellow says he will be out by 11 AM. He showed up - on time - and agrees that it is likely the pump, and mentions that they have had a rash of problems with the same pump in the past year. Installs new pump and pressure tank within one hour. The pump had a three year warranty on it, and was installed about 3 years and 3 months ago (figures!), so he took the pump back with him and told me he would try and get a warranty credit on it.

When we received the bill, he mentioned that the date of manufacture on the pump showed it was actually 4 years old (it was apparently a piece of older stock when they originally installed it). He said the company would not honour any warranty on it, so he waived the labour charges of his service call to make up for it!

A contractor that gives prompt, same day service, then charges *less* than he could! It's like a fairy tale, LOL. Actually, we've had outstanding service from quite a few small, local mom and pop companies, many that were aligned or recommended by our builder (also a small, local, mom and pop company). They really do exist.

And FTR, our local economy is still very robust.

Carrie
chelone
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
We had a chimney installed in our new garage (oil fired-furnace with an extra flue for woodstoves). The flue for the woodstove showed signs of moisture seepage around the thimble (where the stove pipe connects to the chimney) early this spring after torrential downpours. I called the mason, explained the situation/circumstances for the leakage and told him to come "scope it out". I explained what I wanted to do to smooth out the cinderblock chimney he installed, emphasising that the final finish will be painted.

Today! he was pulling out of my driveway as I was preparing to pull in. He has a plan (left me a note to that effect), and knows I'm "cool" with fitting it in to his schedule. I don't expect him to drop everything and "hop to", but told him I want to get the face of the chimney skimcoated over the summer, so there is plenty of time for the surfacing to "cure". He's a great guy; has done two chimneys for us, and, as a tradesman, I understand that sometimes you can't fix everythng as quickly as you may wish.

I also appreciate that there is definitely a "network" out there, Mari (lol). Contractors know each other, they talk to each other.

an anti-rant :-)

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an anti-rant :-)

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