To be at the end of my tether with tradies

[hereismydog]

I’ve had three occasions recently where I’ve needed a tradesperson to do some work in my home. Several have come out and had a look, said they’d be in touch with a quote and then absolutely ghosted me. Three have given quotes, arranged a date to do the work and then not turned up at all, or cancelled 10 minutes after they were due to arrive. One started the job, left a gaping hole in my roof (in early December, when I was 38 weeks pregnant!) and then went AWOL for a week. He also refused to speak to me and would only ever speak to DP, even though I would be the one at home to let him in. He would ring DP at work and ask him to pass on a message to me, even though he had my number

I’m always very clear about the work I need doing so it’s not like I keep changing my mind and messing them about, and none of the jobs have been especially complex, nor too small to bother taking on.

Is it me? Or do I just live in an area with REALLY shit tradies? Not limited to one trade either; I’ve had similarly shit experiences with builders, roofers and plumbers so far!

It's not just you. Almost all tradies do this, all the time, everywhere. I wish I was joking.

Yanbu. I keep looking at things that need doing in my house and thinking I need to get it sorted. Then I remember I emailed various tradies and never heard back from them.

The one who did pop round forgot a relevant bit of info I told him then when he got here realised it would mean he couldn't do the job.
Give-me-fucking-strength.

"Tradies"? what a vile term - maybe treat the contractors that you are using as people rather than some kind of sub species.

I have 3 close relatives who all describe themselves as tradies. I don’t understand what’s “vile” about it?

That didn’t take long 😂 my Dad was a carpenter and always referred to himself and other tradespeople as ‘tradies’. It’s just shorthand for ‘tradesperson’. I wouldn’t worry yourself too much on their behalf.

It's definitely not just you. We've reached a point where we're so used to being let down by tradespeople we're genuinely shocked when they actually turn up.

Send ‘em to me! You can tell them off if they don’t turn up

@hereismydog😂 They’re all in Scotland or I could keep them well busy!

The problem is we stopped training trades (plumbers, electricians, builders, bricklayers etc). So now we simply don't have enough of them, there's very little competition. This means that even if they are poor and provide shit service, we have no choice but to use them.

I live in a pricey part of the country and tradespeople tend to earn good money working short hours as there's such a shortage of them.

Its one factor contributing to rising property prices.

We’ve had similar problems with tradespeople. Also quoting ridicule amounts. Painter decorator has just quoted me £3000 a week, for approx 8 weeks work…so £24,000 in total to paint interior of 3 bed semi 🤷‍♀️wtf.

😳😳😳😳😳 I’m in the wrong job!

"Tradies"? what a vile term - maybe treat the contractors that you are using as people rather than some kind of sub species.

Meanwhile every tradesperson i know refers to themselves and peers as "tradies". Why is it vile? Its just a casual abbreviation of "tradesperson".

I know more and more people investing in courses to learn how to do the basics themselves as its simply not viable to spend on trades. We used to pay for painting and have stopped as it got ridiculous what they wanted to charge and its not difficult to do.

I wonder if that poster takes umbrage to the terms ‘chippie’, ‘sparkie’ and ’brickie’, all of which have been in use by the tradespeople themselves since the jobs came into existence 😩

I hope they pick her, though 🙄

Yep, DP watched a YouTube tutorial on how to paint scalloping for the nursery, I came home from work and he had done it to surprise me. He did it to the most beautiful standard (using an eyeshadow brush, my patience could never!) but I don’t think watching a YouTube video on how to replumb some pipes would have the same effect.

I’m fairly handy with woodwork as my Dad used to take me on jobs when I was a kid during school holidays and showed me how to do various useful things, but that’s probably my limit

@hereismydog I have always done the diy in my house. my dh is useless. the only things I dont touch are plumbing and gas! anything else is fair game. painting, papering, repairing washing machines with new brushes and door seals, repairing cookers with new knobs and interior fans, wall and floor tiling with underfloor heating all perfectly matching!! laminate floors and replacing the skirting boards. I am a dab hand using electric saws and tile saws. my dh was never forgiven by my dad for painting internal doors using white emulsion!! (maybe he did that deliberately)

Also locksmiths…quote for new front door lock…£1800 😱 Why?! Who pays this?? I have an expensive car, so I can only think that they see this on the driveway and think they will have a go overcharging. Infuriating.

I swear if I ever get done for murder it will be a tradesperson.

After years of dealing with them while renovating a house, I have sworn to never EVER deal with one again.

One random example - the plasterer who charged 1700 quid for a 2 day job, made more mess than any human would have thought possible, then several months later we discovered he'd used the wrong sort of plaster and we had to have it all done again.

What are you on about???

That's a fuck off quote - they don't want to do that job.

£3000 A WEEK?! WTAF?!

It's not just you. We've been struggling for 27 years since we bought our house. As a result, we do most things ourselves. OH has the garage and two garden sheds full of tools, materials and equipment. He's even bought a scaffolding tower so that he can get high enough to the gutters, etc. Spent a small fortune over the years, but still a lot cheaper than paying for trades, and far better quality of workmanship as we take our time, etc.

It's not just that tradies are unreliable, don't turn up, etc., but they waste inordinate amounts of time by not bringing the right equipment, materials, etc., so disappear for an hour or two "to go to the builders' merchants" for materials that was blatantly obvious they'd need, so you have to assume they're either incompetent or they're off to do something else on your dime, i.e. quoting for other jobs, doing other small jobs, etc.

We've had a few really good, genuine, tradesmen over the years, but they've all retired now which has left a vacuum behind as decent ones are really hard to find these days. The latest attempt was a reputable local firm to replace our decking on a "like for like" basis - they absolutely botched it and it was so bad, not even level and bounced as we walked on it - we refused to pay, and they came and took the wood away! OH did it in a weekend after buying the wood and an electric mitre saw - and it's absolutely perfect.

Ugh don't get me started. It took almost a year to find a contractor to do a medium sized job. In the end I found them on Age UK's list of trusted traders. I can't say there were amazing, but they showed up and did an ok job. Though as a project manager myself I found it very hard to watch them project 'manage' - eg install the new wood floors before all the painting was done, and then proceed to get paint all over the new floors...

I had to check behind a vanity unit in my downstairs loo the other day. The plumber who installed it (and I recently noticed is a twat on facebook) had shoved unwanted DIY rubbish and cloths behind it and banged the cupboard in front. Why was it beyond his intelligence to put it in the bin. Knob.

Yes this. Dh watched YouTube videos and installed a whole new toilet, a shower, and replaced parts in our washer and dishwasher. He said it's not as difficult as it appears. We also do our own decorating. It is only bigger jobs that we absolutely couldn't do, that we would then call on companies.