Quite few Bodged jobs posted lately.

[DHTiling]

I have noticed quite a few threads as of late about bodged jobs that customers are having done...

Your thoughts ??

price orientated maybe .?

 

[White Room]

I think the price is a big part of it and it seems to be bottom dollar at the moment, I've seen so many vans driving round with sign writing from gardening to tiling and all maintenance on one van.
I also have the opinion that with so little work in some areas guys are taking the work on wether there capable or not and thats where the problem stems from.

 

[DHTiling]

So guys doing work that they have not done a lot of before maybe..

 

[Ajax123]

I have over the last few months seen a numberof things happening.
1. People are losing jobs and having to try and move into trades that they do not know.
2. People are taking on more than they can handle as a result presumably of fear of losing work
3. People diversifying into areas they wold Normally employ an expert to carry out.

All this is leading to "substandard" work and poor workmanship. I guess it is an inevitable consequence of the recession. Things have taken a deffinite turn for the worse over the last eight weeks or so. Even the self build ,aren't which has remained bouyant through the recession seems to have slowed recently.
..........And now it's blooming raining again

 

[Ian]

A combination of the two things, price and jack of all trades. Some people just want the cheapest price, others go with a higher price and still get a bad job from an incapable trades person. Some of you may recall a shocking floor posted a few months ago where the customer paid £50 m2 for fitting, I'll see if I can find the thread

 

[Rizzle from the Portizzle]

where are they buying there tiles .a good tile shop always has good tilers to recomend. yes sometimes cost. sometimes cant wait for the recommended person. sometimes did it myself but tell every one had a bad builder .sometimes builders saveing a few quid .sometimes just bad spec

 

[Aston]

possibly its a case of desperate times create desperate people and all that.
many builders, joiners i know etc dont rate tiling. they think anyone with half a brain can do it. all as i hear is tilings easy, tiling aint a trade, anyone can tile.....and then you see the results?? same with plastering. people think if they can skim a small room, then they are a plasterer. sign of the times i'm afraid..

 

[peteablard]

So guys doing work that they have not done a lot of before maybe..

For sure this is a part of it, someone was asking earlier on hear if he could stick hardibacker down with a 5:1 mortar mix....... It does make you wonder how many bad jobs go on that we don't hear about

 

[DHTiling]

So... are we helping the bodgers or just the ones that really want to do a good job..

 

[Bathfix Bob]

Lets face it, in a recession there's a whole lot of bodging going on by everyone both bad tradesmen and diy'ers and millions will be knocked off property prices as a result.

When boomtime comes back round again there will be a harvest of bad work to redo. Thats my hope anyway....

 

[peteablard]

So... are we helping the bodgers or just the ones that really want to do a good job..

I don't know Dave, probably both!

 

[Andrew Case]

Surely a lack of pride has something to do with it. Pride in your work, in your house. Having pride to say thats my job, I did that, I deserve paying. Or if you did it yourself, pride to say what a good job I did.
Not how quickly I did it or how cheap it was

 

[Aston]

So... are we helping the bodgers or just the ones that really want to do a good job..

i suppose we are doing a few things with our advice
1. helping the bodgers
2. helping the people who want a good job.
3. doing our bit to improve the industry and set a consistant standard to all work to
4. putting ourselves out of work by telling others how to do our job

 

[Andy Allen]

go back 4/5 yrs most plumbers/builders would of subbed the tiling out and got on with there next project, however there is no next project for a lot of them, so they have a bash at it themselfs, normally at a silly price as they have made the bulk of there money doing there work..

 

[simonb43]

I think its mainly due to pricing, especially in my area. Its getting harder to win jobs, even with giving a bit of discount. I also think people are trying to do it themselves more, which i don't blame them for, but at the end of the day, if you want a good job done, you need to get the right trades in, but it seems like tiling isn't a ' trade ', until it all goes wrong

 

[Ajax123]

where are they buying there tiles .a good tile shop always has good tilers to recomend. yes sometimes cost. sometimes cant wait for the recommended person. sometimes did it myself but tell every one had a bad builder .sometimes builders saveing a few quid .sometimes just bad spec

Whilst this is a old sentiment in practice it is not always in the tile shops interests to Recomend a "good" tiler. Dont forget they are probably just as desperate for orders as everyone else so recommending a cheap tiler is sometimes going to be more in their interests as they are more likely to win an order. Short termist approach I know but an entirely human response to very difficult times i am sad to say.

 

[Rizzle from the Portizzle]

Whilst this is a old sentiment in practice it is not always in the tile shops interests to Recomend a "good" tiler. Dont forget they are probably just as desperate for orders as everyone else so recommending a cheap tiler is sometimes going to be more in their interests as they are more likely to win an order. Short termist approach I know but an entirely human response to very difficult times i am sad to say.

a tile shop that recomends a poor tilers is on a one way street to closing for good

 

[Marksmithtiling]

I agree with Andy Allen I do work for a couple of plumbers, last few times I've called them to see if they have any thing for me they tell me they are doing it themselves doesnt stop them calling me for advice though when they have a problem.:mad2:

 

[merit]

on a normal domestic bathroom its normaly a week turn a round for us,if its the plumbers job , he would only be there couple of hours rip out ,day to first fix, day to second fix,hes not loosing work if he can have a go at tiling,if theres loads on he wont be interested in the tiling side ,just sub it out,start another one,things are tight now
so i find ill get a call of some tilers if its something they cant manage or frightened of
porcelain wet rooms ect

 

[afright]

I have been and looked at a few jobs that have been right bodged and the customer wants you to try and make it right,and you tell them its needs to be all removed and to start afresh they get the right hump,so I tell them that they should have come to me in the first place each to there own, me for one will not finish off someone else,s bad work.

 

[macten]

Some of the silly prices I've come up against around here suggests it's all price driven at the moment.
Must be bodge jobs too 'cos their price can't possibly include the correct prep and materials, unless they are working for £20 a day.

 

[martin1c]

Price will always be a consideration. The only way to combat it is to spend more time with customers at quote stage and explain exactly what you do and how you are going to go about completing their job. You can soften customers up like this as the bodgers don't know what they're doing so they won't be able to give explanations to customers. Another trick is to use your website/flyer to point out things that you always do such as use correct adhesives (not cheap ones), use water-proof backing boards, tank all wet areas. My website says that all wet areas are tanked, it's not an option and I find people ask me about it at quote stage because the feel like they are getting something extra.

 

[macten]

... but when they say, 'ooh I'm not bothered about all that just want it done cheap' you know you've wasted your time and diesel!
Some people just don't see the false economy in the service they are buying.

 

[martin1c]

... but when they say, 'ooh I'm not bothered about all that just want it done cheap' you know you've wasted your time and diesel!
Some people just don't see the false economy in the service they are buying.

I think it's better to find out about people like this as early as possible so as not to waste any more time on them. I use their telephone manner as a guide to what they are like too. Anyone who starts the call off with 'what it is....', I've lost interest or anyone who immediately tells me they want a cheap price. Some people are just not worth bothering with and that's one of the benefits to being self-employed. Anyone I don't like, I don't work for.

 

[Spud]

you are not going to drink champagne if you only are prepared to pay for a lemonade