Bad Day Jobs!!

[WarrenG]

I thought I would start a thread for Bad Day Jobs because I know there are plenty of tales out there to tell. So here goes:

Today I went to change a 5ft Fluorescent fitting in a kitchen. A job that should have been straight forward - like for like quick change over.

It was an old fitting and the ballast was knackered so the customer wanted to change the whole fitting for a new one.

Go to the job, isolated the supply, up steps, unscrewed the screws holding the fitting up and gave the fitting a tug...........oops!

The customer had recently had the kitchen ceiling skimmed with new plaster and sure enough it isn't looking that newly skimmed now!

Turns out that the so called plasterer hadn't bothered to take the fitting down when skimming the ceiling and had just skimmed around the fluorescent light by about a quarter of an inch of plaster so the fitting was technically plastered in!

Of course with a tug the plaster was going to start cracking more. I called the customer looking and feeling like a ---- and explained to them what had happened.

The customer was very supportive and said 'well I have paid them but they can come back around and sort this out, this isn't on we need a light!' and with that ripped the fitting off the ceiling for themselves. What a mess!

They asked me to put up the new fitting for them (which I did) and said that the plasterer will have to take it back down again, skim the ceiling and replace the fitting.

By the way the connection to the ballast of the old fitting was via live and earth only.

There's mine for today!

Warren

 

[bahco]

haha that sounds like a knightmare day!

i had a bad day last week....went to install some downlights in a bedroom, the whole room had just been plastered got my lazer out marked out where i wanted them drilled the first hole, the ceiling was only bloody double boarded, you had new board lat 12" gap then old board...... what a knightmare! worst job i have ever had to do put me off downlights for life!

 

[CUDABOY]

been doing a load of electrical work for this guy in his house,{BUILDER HAS BUILT HIS EXTENTION AND IM TRYING TO KEEP IN WITH HIM,guys house im wiring also his neibhour}was 2 c/units.wylex 4 and 6 way rewirables as house previously flats.lots of black rubberised poo that got ripped out etc...i wired his new extention month back and fitted new ring and upped in c/u to mcb and mcb on shower as was on rewirable {NOTE SOMONE HAD FITTED SHOWER,8.5KW SO THAT CAN ONLY BE FEW YEARS OLD AND NOT SOME 20YR OLD TYPE} on the promise on when sort rest of electrics change c/u.......basically sorted all the power<sockets>with exception of 1 room he didnt want touching<that was another "later date"job...by the way..yes i did quote the guy for comp rewire!!!...changed the board finally today,that went sweet but the sockets in front room he didnt want touching turned out to be radial,twin and no earth........the lighting has gone on non rcd side mcb as singles with no earthing<gulp.....>again a later date job......talk about compromise.......insulation test all good mind! moral of story, rip it all out!!! no certs .......had a plasterer on another job<fkn good plasterer mind>plastered a few light switches that were loose rady for him to skim behind,1 was at 45 degrees and had to chip it out when dry!!!

oh and my dear old dad who again im doing bits here there loft conversion etc{rewires/ tear out start again so much easier!!!> anyway working in bathroom,all plastered/painted etc,finished extract fan and he wanders in with a towel rail that would look good on "that wall over there" and "its ok son, just pop a hole in wall and poke the cable through to socket on other side...........

 

[WarrenG]

CUDABOY, I take it you didn't fit the towel rail then?

I decided some time ago that I will only do rewires with the property empty, far to much hassel trying to do it with people living in the property.

For extension type work I plan what needs to be done and put dates on the area's that I need for access to the other parts of the property so that the customer knows that those area's need to be cleaned out (i.e. no furniture or carpet) if boards have got to come up etc to work.

You can spend far to much time doing other things than your electrical work if you don't draw the line somewhere!

Put it all in writing with the quote and get them to sign it first, then jobs for later or additions has got some agreed terms to them.

 

[CUDABOY]

hi mate, im going to, been sparking for years,only recently gone it alone,job in question is the electrical part of many extentions a mates brother whos a builder has in store so hopfully get more work....i think a schedule is a good idea if not a must! the guy had allowed £££ for everything then lost his job so wasnt spending then last week got another<contracted computer somthing?>and was spending again! next job that i do will be scheduled not only for me but builder too,my problem is im too easy going and say.."just let me know when you want me back"ie 2nd fix.no more compramises either,i know what ive been doing on this job not comply but 100x safer than rewirable fuses! cheers for the advice, learning all the time!!!