Supposed to start a job for a client on 4/14. Strip wallcovering, from 3 rooms, wash walls, prime and paint. Client informs me he wants me now to just strip walls, he and his crew will paint ( he is an electrician going through a slow period ) . I told him to find someone else. Any opinions.
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Depends on how the contract was let.
You go off and set conditions and prices, and agree to them, then that's what they are.
If one of the parties wants to change the conditions, that changes the price (usually).
Depends if this guy may be worth more or good business elsewhere, too.
The timing gets in there-too.
So, mean person that I am, I'd likely gone out and gotten a blank invoice form and showed him what the "new" cost would be (no A+B+C+D=E, "I'm only paying A"; well here, the price is E/2, you want that itemized?
(Used to work for a skinflint who'd take his ride in for oil, filter, & lube, then come back after it was done and say he didn't have cash--how much for just the oil?)
If you had a contract for X amount of work and now he wants to reduce the scope of work, I would at least bill him for a change order fee because he has now caused your schedule to be moved up Y days, which you may or may not have the option of doing the next job on.
OTOH, if stripping the paper is a poor-paying portion of the job (or you just really don't wanna do it and have other better paying work you can fill in with), stick to your guns and tell him to kiss off.Jason Pharez Construction
Framing Contractor
He should do the grunt work himself and have you do the skilled part.
exactly! If somebody wants me to do all the hard work so they can have the fun, I say there's chain gangs available for that routine.
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I would'nt discount the job enough to make it worth his while. Bad enough he screwed up your work schedule. now he wants you to bottom feed
I'm in total agreement with your assessment. I'd knock about $10 off the price and walk away.View Image
But you already told him to find someone else. Correct me if I'm wrong but it sounds like there's some hostility there. If that's the case I'd say keep walking and don't look back, assuming you have other work lined up, like hanging paper. To my experience bad feelings only linger and disagreement after you're elbow deep in wallpaper past is inevitable. Just my nickels worth.
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I think you done right as far as I can see.
You presumably have the wherewithall to strip paper, given yer moniker, and know that sometimes, what you find behind the paper is far from pleasing from the painterish point of view. Ergo, if you had stripped the paper, and they had painted, any fault in finish could have been pointed back to you for failing to do the job properly. Clearly a place you has likely been before and don't wanna be agin.
You was assuming all of the risks associated, with the first proposal, and you would be assuming some of the risks with the second proposal.
As you know, oftentimes, prep time is 75% of the job, so just let these underemployed electricans do the whole damn stripping painting thing. If it turns to crap, and you is involved, all you two can do is point fingers at each other and swear. Life's too short for that.
OTOH, I betcha you ain't gonna be passing his card around.....
The deed has been done, told him it was whole job or no job at all. He said that he didn't understand, I told him it was clear to me. You changed the job description, and I bid on the whole job. He told me that this happens to him all the time, I laughed and said that I would walk, rather then work for and with you and your crew. I do not know where this guy was coming from. I work alone 100% of the time, do a lot of commercial and high end residential work, and Mr Sparky wants me to work with him and his "crew" to strip the walls so they can paint. Thanks for all the replys guys, I knew I was doing the right thing by taking the walk, and everybody reinforced my decision. Jim Z
Edited 4/6/2006 6:40 am ET by paperhanger
Is he your prime electrician? If he is, you may want to give and take a little.
If not, walk.
Grunge on.
"Is he your prime electrician? If he is, you may want to give and take a little."
why? Just because U may need someone's services in the future U should let them try to screw ya now?
there's more than one electrician in the world ...
more than one of anything! No sense working for/with jerks.
U can always find another jerk ...
Jeff Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
To make matters worse, this POS's daughter goes to the same school as my daughter. They wanted me there at 7am so she and her daughters could go to Cow Hampshire for the week. The unemployed electrician was not going to be there. I had no contact with the sparky till he called me Monday and wanted to " ask " me a question, which he preceded to TELL me that all he wanted to me to do was strip all wallcovering. I then told him to have his "crew " do the whole job. This guy does not have a crew, he works alone . He and his old lady are the only two involved with the failing electrical business. If only if they could have told the truth, which is, jes, Jim, we don't want you to do the job as you bid on it. We really want you to strip all old paper, prep walls and just paint the staircase walls, ( they told me that they did not have the ladder and extension plank to do the stair work ). The sparky told me he would do me a favor and help me out, since I am always busy, and do the other work with his phantom crew. After his call on Monday , the 7 days I allotted for the job was given to a client who I gave a price to earlier that day, She wanted it done asap, so I had a cushion to work from in the negotiation with sparky. Then he tells me, that HE, does not like the way I do business. Who is the one scrambling for work. What a POS. Jim Z
Edited 4/7/2006 7:01 am ET by paperhanger
Can you bid wallpaper removal ? I see your handle indicates you can but that is one item I never liked to price.
Along with a reduction scope of work comes a new price. I frequently complete decks, and I have a "rough" s.f. price for some of them. The larger the deck, the more it seems like the homeowner will save. You have a family to feed, and you have to make things worth your while. Then again, sometimes I'd rather have a small piece of the pie, than no pie at all!
All in all, he is an electrictian, a tradesman, he know's what he's doing to your schedule. Homeowners in S.E. Mass. (yankees) try this game all of the time!
millsie
if they're that slow let them do it.... ever try fabric softener for removing paper? I tried it... worked pretty good. place smelled good also. heard it by watchin tom silva on TOH.
Besides, if he ain't working how's he gonna pay ya'? No, just kidding, I assume he's got something in the bank. But seriously, with the construction market the way it is right now, I can't imagine how an electrician could be slow on work. If anything, he should be working overtime just to keep up. This to me, along with wanting his guys to paint and you to do scrub work, tells me a whole lot about how he doe's business. he's BS. Be glad you're outta there. ;o)--------------------------------------------------------
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