To not give builders food

[ThiswillDoItsfine]

Help me settle this difference of opinion. I have a company coming out in 3 weeks time to install a lot of fencing. I mentioned to dh that I will get them coffee, tea, and biscuits/cookies in to have with drinks. Dh is saying just the drinks is fine, and for me to just offer it as and when. The job is going to take 2 days. I want to give the men something to eat as well, at the very least.
DH is then saying he doesn't want them trailing through the house, which I do understand. However, I was going to set a table outside with a flask, tea bags, coffee, milk & sugar, and bowl of biscuits so that they could help themselves. I thought this would be less restricting and mean that they can get it when they want, without waiting for me to ask. I also think it saves me running around when i have a child to look after. DH is saying that this is well over the top.

Is this okay? Or is it wrong i set this up outside for them? It is an outdoor job, so I thought it would be easier all around, and they'll be working hard.

Thank you.

In their own home I bet they are very careful not to spray the floor or pebble dash the toilet, but for some reason, when in the client's toilets, most are not hygienic. I know they are not all like that, but it only takes a few to ruin it, and I’ve no intention of acting as a toilet attendant!

If you have the time, crack on! The flask would be refilled where necessary, and keeps hot for hours. It is hardly the depths of winter 😂

Yes well if workmen knew how to use customers toilets appropriately there wouldn't be this problem.

We've all experienced it, 'can I use your loo' yes course, to then go in and find a disgusting stink and mess. Wives of workmen, tell them if they opened windows, didn't piss all over the seat and used a bog brush if they'd had an explosive crap they wouldn't face this reluctance.

I don't tell visiting friends and family they can't use the loo, just workmen.

wtf! That can’t be usual 😳

That’s not my experience at al, they are all very clean.

No I’ve never experienced that, and have fully renovated this place,

I hate it though.. the thought of going in to clean after..

My DH was Scaffolding a elderly couples semi , the elderly lady came out just before the lads knocked off for lunch, she insisted the guys had lunch with her and her Husband, they were treated to a full roast beef dinner served on the best china plates

Drinks or drinks and biscuits fine. Also use of a loo

You can offer but don’t be offended if they ignore your spread! I’ve had loads of tradies in and they just want to sit in the van for their break drinking cans of monster. Haven’t had anyone accept a cuppa in years! Maybe the gaffer takes a coffee from time to time. Very rarely get anyone wanting to use the loo either, must have amazing bladders!

😂 No OP. You sound lovely but seriously, you are going above and beyond already. Have a chat with them in the morning, tell them about the downstairs loo (and to take boots off) and show them the tea/coffee station. They’ll hugely appreciate it. One pack of basic biscuits is plenty and just crack on with your day. You are way better than me (my DH has a building company) and I’ll occasionally do a coffee round if I’m in but they are pretty good at sorting themselves out if I’m not.

Although make sure you leave sugar as well. I can’t bear it in any hot drink but all of the trades we use have at least 2 spoons in each drink!

I'd find the discomfort of saying no, worse than the clean up. But I wouldn't expect to have to excavate the bathroom.

I once offered workmen, my cleaner and gardeners a piece of cake which dd's friend had made for her whilst recovering from an op.

Fast forward a couple of hours and they were all talking gibberish. Turns out it was a 'magic cake'. After a lot of pearl clutching I was just happy no one died and we weren't sued..

Other posters back me up! For whatever reason, most do not follow decent toilet etiquette at work. My toilet is clean, I expect it to be left like that. If I was having major work done, they’d have to arrange and clean their own portaloo!
In Spain, many years ago, builders shit in the wardrobe( empty!) of the new build. It was common practice to pee against the garden wall as well. Dirty sods!

Good job they weren’t building walls, might have ended up like the wonky pub!

They probably went in the garden!

Aww, they might have been lonely, that is really lovely. I'm not sure there would have been much work done though, and doing a big job after a huge meal like that would be difficult! I'd be half a sleep 😂

I do the outside setup thing if they are going to be there for more than an hour or two. Definitely biscuits and I make sure they are the good biscuits. If the job is a grubby one, I get individually wrapped ones so none get wasted. I have found that all the people I have had in to do work notice and are appreciative.

I provided tea, coffee and orange squash, plus digestive biscuits. On the final day I went to local creamery and bought a cream tea for six, two scones each, clotted cream and jam. I didn't do it every day of the six weeks they were working.

They used the cloakroom with no problems. But a recent visit by an engineer to have DH's stairlift serviced was awful. Grim BO and peed over DH's elevated loo seat and dribbled on the floor. Disgusting.

the last bloke I had in left the loo spotless and used the airfreshener.

good grief. Tradesmen are people you know. Not some seperate lower race. The ones I have had I habe always been fortunate they have been polite and clean.

I'm a hot drinks and snacks but no meals person with people in for the whole day.

People just in for an hour or two will only get offered tea/coffee because I can't keep biscuits in the house because I just eat them.

I can't imagine having anyone round and not offering a hot or cold drink. Even the window cleaner if I'm in. It's just common courtesy. Maybe biscuits. We've had a lot of tradespeople recently doing a fairly big refurb so I bought some cheap chunky mugs that I wasn't bothered about breaking. And of course they can use the loo. Honestly how inhospitable must you be to lock them out

Wouldn't provide anything else usually although when we had the same team for several weeks I did a Greg's brekkie run a couple of Fridays. They were lovely workers and deserved a treat

My dad always made tea for builders 🤷‍♀️ it’s just polite imo

Looks like you’ve just been unlucky, thats not been my experience at all