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Hi. I have sticky situation. I am about done havibg a house built for my family. It is a ranch with a full basement. Right now, the upstairs is virtually complete with the basement almost done. My problem is this: my carpenter finishing the basement uses the hall bathroom upstairs. I mean he USES it. Skid marks and all. I wouldn’t mind #1, but opening the lid and finding stains is uncalled for. Couldn’t he clean it up after himself? I live in the woods, he could go outside. Oh, maybe I wasn’t clear: my family has moved into the house. The basement will have a working bathroom in a couple of weeks, but what should I do until then?
Thanks for your opinions,
Ted
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Unless you are willing to rent a port-a-potty, you need to make the rules of the house VERY clear. If you act wishy-washy about confronting the problem, nothing will be resolved. Make a list of how you expect your carpenter to use the bathroom, review it with him fully, be firm about what you expect and make it clear this home is lived in and used by all the family.
You set the tone and the rules of the job. You're the client paying the bill.
Bill Swales
*Be polite, or you may be unhappy where he leaves his last dump. You don't seriously expect him to do it in the woods? People do have widely varying standards of hygeine; a friendly talk should take care of it. (Heck, blame it on your spouse, you know, good cop-bad cop.)2 weeks is nothing -- you'll be living with his work product for a long time.
*Okay, I can see where this is going so I guess I'll throw in to balance it all out. Honestly, what do you expect? I think I have met you once or twice. You, or others like you, don't want me there to begin with and you think I, or others like me, could keep the nailing, etc. to an almost unnoticeable decibal level. Heaven forbid we should answer the call of nature at your residence.However, remember I have been invited by you into your home. We have entered into an agreement which means I'm going to be spending some time at your house. That you moved in before work is completed does not curtail my responsibilites. In other words, you can expect me to stay at your home until my work is finished. As for that crack about going outside, that was a joke, right? That is, I'd like to believe it was a joke, yet it has been my experience that there are some folks who think this type of arrangement is fine and dandy. You probably believe I wouldn't mind driving down the hill to the gas station whenever I need to use the bathroom. Next, I suppose you'd want me to get my water out of the dogdish. I could go on, but I think I made my point. Do I get points for leaving the muddy boots and loud radio in the truck?
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Good points. Yea, I was joking about the woods. I know everybody goes, it's just annoying when it's in a new toilet that hasn't been used yet.
Like I said, the house is just being completed. We broke ground last June, and shortly before that I discovered FHB and then Breaktime. I have been lurking here since about August, reading all I can but not posting any questions. I have learned a lot about the building process, and I want to thank you for your educated opinions on the subject.
I really don't mind the bathroom use, my carpenter is a family friend. i just got bold and posted a situation to see what your responses would be. thanks again for this fine board. Wish it was faster, though.
Ted
Power To The People!
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? a decoy question test ? not kosher
*Pretty sure OSHA requires a toilet on the job site.Something about treating the help as if they really were people. Put up a sign...notice how clean the toilet is, make it that way before you leave. That should get everyone's attention. If it were me and someone hinted I use the woods, I'd use my truck to leave.Jeff
*Mixed his meat with his dairy?
*Well i like the woods suggestion it certainly suits me. When i'm walking out to the back forty with a shovel don't ask. Bottom line everybody else's stinks i can't imagine using a toilet that my client s@@#$ in just minutes before me.This reminds me of the time i was working on a friends house. My friend is drop dead gorgeous did i mention that? Anyway i went into the bathroom and the bowl was absolutely full when i got there. Kinda knocks the shine off the glamour, know what i mean?joe d
*So, the carp is a family friend? Somehow, this reminds me of a joke about picking one's friends... Anyway, now that we've been had, I guess this is a fine time to ask you about those avocado trees on the other side of the road.BTW: your brand new toilet has been used, first rights seemingly given to the carp, rightfully so.
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From my point of view its pretty simple.
1) No skid marks. If its a friend worse yet. Wait, flush twice, whatever. Make them go away.
2) In the bush? Certainly, to urinate only, I'd rather do that than use the toilet any day.
Finally. It isn't a heirarchical (sp) thing. Don't leave the toilet and room looking like it shouldn't. I note what I think are a lot of chips on shoulders where we are making this into an I'm better than you thing. Not! Just common courtesy. Lift the toilet, wipe up, double flush if you have to. IMHO
And last if I can't use their can. I'll use my truck to go to the nearest public toilet, and grab a coffee on the way back. But, I have to admit, over the last year I billed hourly almost all of the time.
Scott
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.....we write our starting time and finish time right into the contract (700 to 330) and a clause that says the Owner will provide washroom facilities, if there is aproblem I want to know about it going in... if they don't want us using their facilities, then we're going to rent and it becomes an extra...
If there is abuse of the facilities , I want to know right away from the Owner... I don't have any problem politely or otherwise discussing it with my caprpenters and subs... it ain't as if they haven't heard the same thing from their mom or their wife, and I ain't neither....
If the job is long term, we'll rent the facilities, too much problem with moving mud and construction dirt into the living area.........
*I remember a job a few years ago where I went into the bathroom designated for our use and found that somebody's aim way off the mark. Now, this is not my forte, but I was damn sure not going to have the homeowner see this because it reflected on me, and this was not how I wanted to be described by people.So I got down on my knees and hugged the bowl for a while, scrubbing up what needed to be scrubbed. I then went to the crew, called them all together with a big smile on my face, and let loose with the meanest, angriest tirade I ever gave. I told them that I was not their maid. I was not their mother, and I had no intention of EVER cleaning up somebody else's mess again. I didn't care what their hygene was at home, but on my job, they treat that bowl like a temple. I think they understood I was pissed (forgive the pun), but it never happened again.SHG
*You have hit a sore spot with me. In all jobs I explain that me and my people will need to use the bathroom or kitchen for water, and will need to use the bathroom sink to wash our hands at lunch and when we leave, and will need to use the toilet facilities. Period. We get fairly dirty and sometimes the sink is not as clean as it should be, but if there are towels or rags, or cleaning supplies out, then we will clean up. I explain this to the homeowner, and expect his or her cooperation, or I will rent a porta potty and will charge the homeowner for it. I have had real jerks that insist that we not use any facilities in the home, and generally balk at the portapotty for the expense, and I will pass on the job. These people are jerks.Most of the people I work for are fabulous. They offer us coffe in the morning, pop during the day, and ice for water. Clean up is no problem. We respond by keeping the place as clean as we possibly can, and at 4:00, we stop and clean up, sweeping, shaking out the poly covers, and vacuuming with a shop vac. All tools are stacked for the next day in an out of the way corner. Clean up can take as long as 45 minutes and I find the homeowners appreciate that as much as anything.Anyway, one man's opinion.
*Just as I suspected, because we wear blue collars they think of us as animals. Go to a gas station, but don't use my facilities. How would they feel if in their employer made the same demands? GIVE ME A BREAK. When I was back in remodeling(iiick) I began to dread bathroom remodels and soon dropped them because it seemed that as soon as they knew it was going to be remodeled, they quit cleaning it. One house I put on my laminate glue respirator, and rubber gloves to pull that toilet, and the customer walked in on the operation!I don't know who was more embarressed. Soon I began to NOT get embarressed, just pissed. Then I quit it all together. And these people(most of my clients) had bucks, which proves that money does not exactly mean cleanliness or class, it means just more money. Keith
*Reading threads like this is kinda like watching Candid Camera; it's pretty funny to see people's reactions to same question.At a party one night, years ago, there was a discussion about ne houses. One person said: I'd like a place with a toilet no one else has ever shit in! And several others said: Yeah, yeah! Strange but true.A coupla years ago, my realtor in Oregon told me this story: her husband is a custom home builder. He was building a really fancy place for a young software yup and his wife,who took to dropping by the site many mornings and strolling around, drinking their Starbucks coffee and not particularly interacting with any of the crew. The realtor--very straight-forward British gal--happened to be there and witness this behavior one morning. She called them aside and dressed them down. (She'd sold them the property.) She said everyone on that crew was a personal friend, and if Mr and Miz Software were going to come around, getting in the way, they could at least offer coffee, and acknowledge the human beings there.Well, they took it to heart, and were good sports. They not only started bringing coffee, they occasionally took orders for lunch. They learned the names of everyone on the crew, and I'm willing to bet they got a slightly nicer house.
*Always good when you can beat on an ignorant client and get away with it--especially if they reward you with coffee and food.Gotta go yell at my client-coffee time!
*We were framing a new home around Christmas time . The buider did the right thing and had the Porto Potty delivered,as soon as it got unloaded out come the Nabors making a stink that they cant have THAT THING on there street for the holidays its will not look good to the holiday guest. HMMMM !! Next day I brought in some xmas lites and decorated the potty , Santa had no trouble a Johny if he needed one .Never heard a word from the Nabors after that.Ed
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Hi. I have sticky situation. I am about done havibg a house built for my family. It is a ranch with a full basement. Right now, the upstairs is virtually complete with the basement almost done. My problem is this: my carpenter finishing the basement uses the hall bathroom upstairs. I mean he USES it. Skid marks and all. I wouldn't mind #1, but opening the lid and finding stains is uncalled for. Couldn't he clean it up after himself? I live in the woods, he could go outside. Oh, maybe I wasn't clear: my family has moved into the house. The basement will have a working bathroom in a couple of weeks, but what should I do until then?
Thanks for your opinions,
Ted