Builder and back door - who is BU?

[CollieFIower]

There's a builder working on a room in downstairs of the house. It's a hot day. The house is old and has thick stone walls so stays quite cool in summer.

The builder wants to prop the back door open as he is coming in and out every few minutes with wheelbarrows/tools/buckets etc.

Person A wants the builder to open and shut the door behind him every time he needs to go in or out to keep the house cool. This is not without merit, as the house does stay a bit cooler with the door shut.

Person B thinks the builder should be allowed to leave the door open because it makes his work much easier and if he is doing manual labour on a day like this then his clients should be doing everything they can to make his work easier, including putting up with the house being a bit warmer than it would be otherwise.

Who is BU?

Person A just needs to suck it up really. Whilst I don't necessarily agree a person should be 'doing everything they can to make his work easier' and I wouldn't be thrilled if someone working on my property spoke to me in those exact words- in this case insisting on the door closed is making the job much harder than it needs to be, which is unnecessary.

A

I would need to know more about why he needs to go in and out so often

is there a reason why he’s going in and out for tools
wheelbarrows ? Is he mixing cement ? He can’t be doing that all the time

I think you could make a compromise

Give him space to store his equipment each day so he just needs to offload once when he arrives then pack up when he goes

Allow the door to stay open if he’s mixing anything that needs to be done outside

Otherwise the door stays shut which will benefit you all including the builder as it’s hard work doing manual Labour in this heat

Those aren't the builder's words, they're Person B's words. The builder just said he would do his best when Person A asked him to keep the door shut. He is a very nice respectful builder and will oblige I'm sure.

Person A is BU.

And given the difficulty of finding a half-decent builder these days, pissing them off might not be a good idea.

A is BU

Both have valid points, I think I would prefer the door closed to prevent flying creatures from getting in.

B could stand by the door opening and closing it as required, builder gets to get on with his work, B gets to keep house cool. If it then becomes too much bother for B they might understand how difficult it can be trying to get through doors hands full whilst also being observant of walls, decorations builder will be trying not to touch too. B could also help get materials inside and out, cutting down on door opening times

Person A's an idiot.

You’re person A aren’t you?

A is being vwry unreasonable. Expect another days labour added for creating unnecessary time and effort to the job if you go with option A.

A is unreasonable. Builder makes note, dont take on anymore work for them, they are a bloody nightmare 😳

I am not Person A!

Person A is my dad, who has a builder in doing work ATM. I'm staying to help out while there's ongoing building-work-related disruption as my mum is recovering from surgery and my dad is quite...inflexible and easily stressed out...

Person A needs to stand by the back door and open/close it for the builder each time he goes through.

Person A could also help builder to swap outside shoes for slippers at the same time

A is BU

Could your husband sit by the back door opening and closing it for the builder all day?

I mean I sort of get his point but I also think it makes the builder’s life disproportionately difficult.

So I’m with you (person B)

Oh sorry I see it’s your Dad! Well same thing applies.

I took a while to press post!

My Dad would also get stressed about this

A is totally unreasonable.

We’ve had a lot of building work recently and the workmen always ask if they can keep the door open and although it’s annoying as we have dogs who can get out, I’ve always said yes and it makes their life a lot easier.

In which case
older and vulnerable people suffer from excess heat
The door needs to be shut

A

Well. You say that. But my parents are in their 60s and so is the builder! Though the builder is obviously fitter than either of them.

My mum is upstairs in a room on the shady side of the house, with a fan, and with the blinds down. I am as certain as I can be that she is unaffected by the status of the back door.

A is BU, of course.

Builders work fucking hard and in this heat. Make it easy for them if you can.

Seems I'm in the minority who thinks that the builder is on site as a presumably well paid contractor and as such, should, where possible, follow the polite request of the customer.

If he's a volunteer doing a massive favour then yeah, it would BU to make such a request - but this is highly unlikely in this situation.

What if a customer/client had a housecat that couldn't be allowed to get out? Or security concerns for a myriad of reasons? Contractors have to close doors behind them all the time, one would imagine. I don't see how this request is outside the realms of reality, really.

Person A clearly, definitely OP is B :p

I would expect the family to keep the cat secured in a different room/area of the house. Would you really expect a builder to be responsible for the cat running out passed him anytime he need to open the door? That's not very fair or safe for the cat :/