Lack of plumbers?

[DSTOTM]

I won't mention names because I'll probably be accused of "trolling" but quite a few of the established plumbers in Thurso don't even bother responding to your call and when / if they do turn up weeks later charge a fortune and do a far from adequate job. What's going on here? We all hear these scare stories about Eastern European plumbers undercutting local plumbers, erm...... where would I manage to locate a Polish plumber who is prepared to answer my call and do the job?

I have tried the local "well known" plumbers but they don't seem to need the work.... their refusal to return calls would suggest they are either too busy or too lazy to do any work?

This really is the arse end of nowhere when you need a tradesman..... it's actually quite frustrating........ we hear so much about these tradesmen from Eastern Europe undercutting "local" tradesmen..... I wish they'd hurry up and arrive in Caithness because the local tradesmen are almost impossible to secure for a day's work.

I can't get a gardener, I can't get hold of someone who can fell 4 pine trees, I can't get hold of a plumber...... it's a damned joke!

[pat]

and if you continue like this no wonder folk do not want to deal with a complaining bar steward - if you don't like cclear off to somewhere you think folk will jump to you when you want to use one of their skills.
If you cultivate your local community you get more back - if you insult and run it down it tells by the locals reaction to you!!

[DIM1]

You will not have the local tradesmen queuing up to work for you unless you modify your attitude, but good luck anyway.

[Shaggy]

To be fair, he does have a point. I tried several times over the last couple of years to get an electrician, a joiner and someone to do harling for a friend. Despite calling loads of numbers a lot of them were either too busy or on contracts and from the few that said they could do the work and despite several "appointments" being made, only one showed up and instantly doubled the agreed price because of some obscure reason not realising i knew exactly how the job would be done so i told him to get lost. Of the rest, not one of them showed up and never returned the calls after that. One tradesman i called about doing some work gave me a price and said he would come the following week but never did, then about 3-4 months later i got a call from him asking if i still needed the work doing....I guess he had run out of better paying jobs and had nothing to do and was calling round begging for the less lucrative ones he couldn't be bothered to turn up for before. I asked two local garages for a price to fit a pair of shock absorbers and springs to my car, they never bothered to call me back. Some local shops i've asked to order in items for me just didn't bother so i got them online which does nothing to help the local economy. On the other side of the coin, there have been several local companies i've used (and will use again!) who were quick to respond, followed up the calls, made appointments and got the job done on time and for the agreed price. I'm sure there are plenty of tradesmen out there that are just too busy and have a full workload so can't fit people in but a few of them really need to learn it costs nothing to say "sorry, too busy at the moment" instead of saying "i'll be there next week" and never turn up.

[theone]

I've never once heard a "scare story" of Eastern European plumbers in Caithness.

[tonkatojo]

To be fair, he does have a point. I tried several times over the last couple of years to get an electrician, a joiner and someone to do harling for a friend. Despite calling loads of numbers a lot of them were either too busy or on contracts and from the few that said they could do the work and despite several "appointments" being made, only one showed up and instantly doubled the agreed price because of some obscure reason not realising i knew exactly how the job would be done so i told him to get lost. Of the rest, not one of them showed up and never returned the calls after that. One tradesman i called about doing some work gave me a price and said he would come the following week but never did, then about 3-4 months later i got a call from him asking if i still needed the work doing....I guess he had run out of better paying jobs and had nothing to do and was calling round begging for the less lucrative ones he couldn't be bothered to turn up for before. I asked two local garages for a price to fit a pair of shock absorbers and springs to my car, they never bothered to call me back. Some local shops i've asked to order in items for me just didn't bother so i got them online which does nothing to help the local economy. On the other side of the coin, there have been several local companies i've used (and will use again!) who were quick to respond, followed up the calls, made appointments and got the job done on time and for the agreed price. I'm sure there are plenty of tradesmen out there that are just too busy and have a full workload so can't fit people in but a few of them really need to learn it costs nothing to say "sorry, too busy at the moment" instead of saying "i'll be there next week" and never turn up.

Steady on Shaggy, surely an "incomer/or not" cannot be right and say it on here.

[DSTOTM]

and if you continue like this no wonder folk do not want to deal with a complaining bar steward - if you don't like cclear off to somewhere you think folk will jump to you when you want to use one of their skills.
If you cultivate your local community you get more back - if you insult and run it down it tells by the locals reaction to you!!

I beg your pardon?! I haven't had a chance to "complain" because Simpson and Oag simply don't bother replying to messages such as "Hi, I have a leaking tap can you please get back to me". I am not expecting anybody to "jump" when I very politely request their services but I DO expect a company to have the courtesy to return my calls if they are too busy to do the work I need doing.

If I cultivate my community I'll get more back? What on earth has that got to do with a VERY polite request to a tradesman to do some work? Are you suggesting I take a bunch of flowers into the plumbers and woo them with my charm in order to get them to reply to several very polite "phone messages"??

I don't like your tone Pat, I have had a lot of work done by local tradesmen (I'm a local myself BY THE WAY) and have put a LOT into the local tradesman community in the way of hard earned CASH........ I always give a very generous tip too.

I am NOT complaining about the standard of local skill, I am discussing the shortage of it! Try getting a gardener, try getting a plumber........ I could go on and on and on........ they are way too busy and overstretched.

I have no intention of "clearing off" anywhere, I was simply making a point that there is a shortage of tradesmen in Caithness and they can name their price.

[DSTOTM]

Steady on Shaggy, surely an "incomer/or not" cannot be right and say it on here.

Incomer? How dare you! I'm a "troll" you Hillbilly person

[DSTOTM]

Not my best side..... I really need to invest in a better selfie stick:

[IMG][/IMG]

[tonkatojo]

Not my best side..... I really need to invest in a better selfie stick:

[IMG][/IMG]

Do I know you as you appear to be the double of my brother in law.

[Bigfoot]

Just a quick word in support of Simpson and Oag, have used them for several years now for maintenance, installations and callouts, cannot fault their work and have always turned up on time, they do seem to be extremely busy though whenever i've been in the office / yard.

[DSTOTM]

Just a quick word in support of Simpson and Oag, have used them for several years now for maintenance, installations and callouts, cannot fault their work and have always turned up on time, they do seem to be extremely busy though whenever i've been in the office / yard.

Graham was always 100% spot on, cannot fault his work....... He moved to England and, ever since, it's nigh on impossible getting anybody to turn up....... extremely busy MAYBE but "milking it" is something that may well end up being their downfall.

[mi16]

If you job is as simple as a leaky tap then perhaps its not really worth them sending a guy out to look at it for you when they could be working on bigger jobs.
Maybe try the Caithness handyperson.

[DSTOTM]

If you job is as simple as a leaky tap then perhaps its not really worth them sending a guy out to look at it for you when they could be working on bigger jobs.
Maybe try the Caithness handyperson.

I'd fix a leaky tap myself....... the outside boiler had broken down, If it had been winter I would probably have got a speedy visit from S&O but ended up getting Korrie plumbers in (who came the same day) They fixed the boiler but managed to leave oil leaking out of it in the process.... I won't go into detail (life is too short) but certainly won't be entertaining their services again either

[mi16]

last time I had boiler work done I used Derek Sutherland at Forss Engineering.
Couldnt fault his work, we did have an issue but he rectified it immediately.

[2little2late]

I have to agree with DSTOTM, trades people in the far north of Scotland are ridiculous, "I'll pop round on Tuesday to give you a quote" Problem being they don't tell you which Tuesday. They obviously do not need the work, or that's what people like to think. It is more like they can't be arsed to work, if they were proper trades people they would run their businesses properly and offer a high standard of workmanship.

[DSTOTM]

I have to agree with DSTOTM, trades people in the far north of Scotland are ridiculous, "I'll pop round on Tuesday to give you a quote" Problem being they don't tell you which Tuesday. They obviously do not need the work, or that's what people like to think. It is more like they can't be arsed to work, if they were proper trades people they would run their businesses properly and offer a high standard of workmanship.

I wouldn't generalise "all" tradesmen up here as ridiculous but quite a few of them are. Had a bit of damp treatment done, the guy said it would take "about three days" to do the work...... he was here for FOUR hours. He started on a Monday (did an hour), came back on Tuesday (for an hour) and came back on Wednesday for two hours. A total comedian who was jumping between jobs and pretty much making it up as he went along. When it came to paying him I pointed out that he said the work would take three days and he replied "I've been here for three days".......

They all talk a good game when they're giving the quote but when it comes to turning up and doing what they said they would do, when they said they would do it etc. it generally turns out to be a farce.

[2little2late]

I hope you didn't pay him for 3 days work. I certainly wouldn't have.

[mi16]

I wouldn't generalise "all" tradesmen up here as ridiculous but quite a few of them are. Had a bit of damp treatment done, the guy said it would take "about three days" to do the work...... he was here for FOUR hours. He started on a Monday (did an hour), came back on Tuesday (for an hour) and came back on Wednesday for two hours. A total comedian who was jumping between jobs and pretty much making it up as he went along. When it came to paying him I pointed out that he said the work would take three days and he replied "I've been here for three days".......

They all talk a good game when they're giving the quote but when it comes to turning up and doing what they said they would do, when they said they would do it etc. it generally turns out to be a farce.

perhaps the damp treatment required time to cure between applications therefore the guy knew it would take 3 days to complete the job but in reality it was only a few hours work.

[witnessthefitness]

lol I find it hard to work with tradesmen, especially builders who say they will finish it within 2 weeks, and 6 weeks later its still not completed. I feel your pain.