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re: FIL Dealing With Contractors
Posted on 2/24/25 at 10:56 am to Skip Winkman
Posted on 2/24/25 at 10:56 am to Skip Winkman
He might or might not acting like a dick. Depending on the situation at hand. The no. 1 problem is I'm sure all this work is being done with a handshake deal without any set parameters. Handshake deals need to die off, nothing good ever comes from a handshake deal unless its a trade deal.
Its 2025, no one is doing any work for me without a signed contract that defines exactly what is expected of the contractor. If contractor won't sign a negotiated contract, then they aren't capable to complete the work appropriately and legally. You WILL pay more but you'll get less fricked at the end. Win Win.
Its 2025, no one is doing any work for me without a signed contract that defines exactly what is expected of the contractor. If contractor won't sign a negotiated contract, then they aren't capable to complete the work appropriately and legally. You WILL pay more but you'll get less fricked at the end. Win Win.
0
Posted on 2/24/25 at 10:59 am to Skip Winkman
This is what happens when all the Mexicans get ran off, sub par work.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 11:03 am to BilbeauTBaggins
I’d go for cheap and quality
Posted on 2/24/25 at 11:03 am to canyon
Whatever he can find to fit his narrative, just like always three different sites or videos three different opinions
Posted on 2/24/25 at 11:12 am to X123F45
quote:
electrician was slow as shite and did a quality job even if he drink no less than two dozen beers while he wired my house
We share an electrician?
Posted on 2/24/25 at 11:21 am to Zakatak
quote:
We share an electrician?
What's difference between an electrician and a plumber?
An electrician can chew his fingernails.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 11:21 am to X123F45
quote:
...the painters were fast but fricking stoned.
fixed
Posted on 2/24/25 at 11:37 am to Skip Winkman
quote:
Wrong he hovers over the contractor, instead of voicing concerns while they’re working he usually complains one they are done and gone
People who do this usually end up getting fricked, either intentionally or unintentionally. Hovering over someone’s shoulder while they’re trying to focus and do a good job does absolutely nothing but piss them off or distract them, and you’re getting less than perfect work either way.
I’ve found that the boomer generation, along with Louisiana good ole boy rednecks, don’t seem to understand that being polite and simply communicating like a normal person with their contractor gets them exactly what they want every time. As a customer base, those people know better than every single person that works on their house even though they’re generally dumbasses and don’t actually know anything.
Almost no legitimate, successful businesses are out looking to do a subpar job or screw people, but I’ll say from my experience that contractors who are smart want to work with people who are easy to work with and don’t nitpick petty shite.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 12:09 pm to Skip Winkman
I used to be in residential construction and I would have weekly if not bi weekly meetings with the client to discuss progress. Would also say look if you see anything that is not right or you question during construction, ask us. Don’t wait til it’s done and ask us to rip a bunch of shite out because it’s not EXACTLY what was in your head. Set the expectation
Posted on 2/24/25 at 3:37 pm to Geauxld Finger
quote:
I used to be in residential construction and I would have weekly if not bi weekly meetings with the client to discuss progress.
Same. I am also a designer and spend a LOT of time with the customer on the electrical and plumbing plan. We also have a mandatory customer walk thru right before insulation and drywall as a last chance (before an arse rape of a change order) to have things added/moved.
80% of the time, the customer still incurs the change order by wanting something else added moved after cover up. Including my own wife when I built our home.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 3:40 pm to Skip Winkman
The quality of construction work, with very limited exception, has fricking cratered in the past ten years.
Louisiana’s court system is quite literally inundated with contractor issues. I don’t have stats for it, but construction litigation has exploded in the past five years or so—from basic residential remodels to huge industrial jobs. No one does good work, on time and on budget anymore.
Louisiana’s court system is quite literally inundated with contractor issues. I don’t have stats for it, but construction litigation has exploded in the past five years or so—from basic residential remodels to huge industrial jobs. No one does good work, on time and on budget anymore.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 3:41 pm to X123F45
quote:
the electrician was slow as shite and did a quality job even if he drink no less than two dozen beers while he wired my house
My man!
Posted on 2/24/25 at 3:43 pm to BuckyCheese
quote:
remember when quality was expected.
This. “Overpay out the arse to get something built to acceptable standards” is such an absurd reality.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 3:46 pm to Forever
quote:
don’t nitpick petty shite.
I agree with your entire premise and post, but if you are building my house, there’s nothing “petty” involved. I want it how I want it. It’s what I’m paying for.
This post was edited on 2/24/25 at 3:47 pm
Posted on 2/24/25 at 7:27 pm to Indefatigable
quote:
I agree with your entire premise and post, but if you are building my house, there’s nothing “petty” involved. I want it how I want it. It’s what I’m paying for.
I get where you’re coming from but there are a LOT of people out there that “want it their way” and their way could lead to an insurance claim or shitty work. The best policy is to just do a great job consistently and run off customers who aren’t happy with that. I’m definitely not saying that pointing out actual mistakes is a petty move, I’m pointing more towards people who make things up to be upset about, which does happen.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 7:51 pm to Skip Winkman
My FIL needed a generator. I upgraded one of my own at a property using my AC/Generator installer I have used for the past 15 years. I am a highly valued customer, and they accommodated me/him by taking the old generator to their warehouse for storage when the FIL was ready. I also gave him a business card to the Generac rep who comes out to bless the generator and makes it useable. Generac requires this to prevent shoddy installs.
Weeks later my FIL calls me and asks me about the generator install process. He tells me he called the guy on that card I gave him and got into a fight with him about the generator assuming he had it. I could only imagine that convo. FIL called him a total jerk. In reality the guy was nothing but super nice and professional in his work. As I start telling him about the process, I asked "why don't you just call the ac company and tell them you are ready for the generator install. They will take care of the entire process." He told me the way you do things and the way I do things are two different things
He tells me he is going to do the bidding out himself. I told him good luck with that.
A couple weeks later the AC guy I have known for 15 years tells me that my FIL called him and was a total a-hole as soon as he answered the phone, telling him "you have my generator." The ac guy refused to prolong the convo unless he identified himself, which he only did after several minutes of a standoff. I told him to handle it the way he wanted and it won't affect my relationship with you. No updates since.
He still does not have the generator installed. It has been 6 months waiting.
Some people simply don't have professional/business skills. Anytime I do a renovation I provide lunch everyday for the workers as an example of being a team player. They appreciate it and reciprocate and go above and beyond to provide a service for me.
That being said, if I was ever a contractor I would only follow the money. Its so much easier to deal with people who are successful but busy as hell and have delegation skills to solve issues, and want to solve problems hastily. I would not waste time with someone with a bland 1800SF house. They would be such a PIA.
My father is like that too. Your FIL and my FIL should start hanging out.
Weeks later my FIL calls me and asks me about the generator install process. He tells me he called the guy on that card I gave him and got into a fight with him about the generator assuming he had it. I could only imagine that convo. FIL called him a total jerk. In reality the guy was nothing but super nice and professional in his work. As I start telling him about the process, I asked "why don't you just call the ac company and tell them you are ready for the generator install. They will take care of the entire process." He told me the way you do things and the way I do things are two different things
He tells me he is going to do the bidding out himself. I told him good luck with that.
A couple weeks later the AC guy I have known for 15 years tells me that my FIL called him and was a total a-hole as soon as he answered the phone, telling him "you have my generator." The ac guy refused to prolong the convo unless he identified himself, which he only did after several minutes of a standoff. I told him to handle it the way he wanted and it won't affect my relationship with you. No updates since.
He still does not have the generator installed. It has been 6 months waiting.
Some people simply don't have professional/business skills. Anytime I do a renovation I provide lunch everyday for the workers as an example of being a team player. They appreciate it and reciprocate and go above and beyond to provide a service for me.
That being said, if I was ever a contractor I would only follow the money. Its so much easier to deal with people who are successful but busy as hell and have delegation skills to solve issues, and want to solve problems hastily. I would not waste time with someone with a bland 1800SF house. They would be such a PIA.
My father is like that too. Your FIL and my FIL should start hanging out.
This post was edited on 2/24/25 at 7:52 pm
Posted on 2/24/25 at 7:58 pm to X123F45
quote:
Are you seeing a trend?
Yes, had a lot of work done on the house lately and I detest most contractors.
You ask them to quote X, and they come back with a quote for a heck of a lot more and try to scare my wife into thinking the house is going to collapse if we dont' immediately sign a check for the price of a new car.
Then I have to spend a week talking her off the ledge and getting the evil eye.
Once you have them come out to do the work they do a poor job of it. My painter said it would be two weeks, he took 6 and did a shitty job.
And it's not like these cats are poor, my roof guy was telling me about his obscenely expensive boat the other day. My pops taught me not to show up to a jobsite in a nice car nor talk about expensive stuff we own, but I guess that lesson is out the window.
Posted on 2/24/25 at 7:58 pm to Forever
quote:
’ve found that the boomer generation, along with Louisiana good ole boy rednecks, don’t seem to understand that being polite and simply communicating like a normal person with their contractor gets them exactly what they want every time. As a customer base, those people know better than every single person that works on their house even though they’re generally dumbasses and don’t actually know anything.
Almost no legitimate, successful businesses are out looking to do a subpar job or screw people, but I’ll say from my experience that contractors who are smart want to work with people who are easy to work with and don’t nitpick petty shite.
SO FRIGGIN TRUE
Posted on 2/24/25 at 10:16 pm to Indefatigable
quote:
quote:
the electrician was slow as shite and did a quality job even if he drink no less than two dozen beers while he wired my house
My man!
No lie, I filmed a 4k video before insulation went in so I can view every wire and outlet in the house if I need to. And in the video you hear me say no less than a dozen times... Goddamn because he did something not just because it was code, but because it made sense for the home owner down the line if they needed to add an outlet or relocate something.
Posted on 2/25/25 at 1:41 am to Skip Winkman
I have had good luck finding various trade folks on Yelp. Just be aware that the best ones screen you first by looking at the reviews you left for other people.
This post was edited on 2/25/25 at 4:54 am
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