commercial gutters

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

Not really a matter of right or wrong Boars, matter of opinion.

Perhaps what I have failed to impress is that when the client asks for the gutters to be cleaned, they (the client) as a layman in this industry do not have the mental capacity to understand not only what they are asking for but also what they can expect to get done.

In her mind the gutters will look as shiny in and out as all of the 'after' photos us window cleaners use on our web sites and leaflets.

In reality you're going to simply remove all the debris and make sure there's no blockages.

What you (the gutter cleaner / window cleaner) need to do prior to commencement is make sure that the client (clueless Joe Bloggs) FULLY UNDERSTANDS what will and what wont be done.

I have always offered two services, Gutter Clearing -- Clearing of all debris and ensuring no blockages in the downpipes -- and Gutter Cleaning -- breaking out the scrubbing brush and G101 / Ubik etc and making them sparkle.

I find the split is about 50/50 in clearing and cleaning jobs, 'Keeping up with the Jonses' always wants the full clear and clean whilst 'Slum lord landlord' will always go for just clearing so they're functional.

I stand by my previous comment that upon 'completion' in your eyes, once you had done what you physically could you should have sent an employee of the company up to see there and then what the issues were and I'm pretty confident you may have even gotten a 'thank you' for bringing the issues to her attention.

Once you and crew have done it and scarpered and she has then sent someone up a few days later it could more than easily come across as you are simply making excuses for shoddy workmanship to cover your backside. See the point?

I am not saying you didn't do all that you could do, just that you should have informed them right there on the spot that you had achieved all that could be due to their 'shoddy workmanship'

To quote the classics 'What we have here is a failure to communicate'

Hows that Jake? Eloquent enough for you?

Thank F*^k for that!

 

[Jake]

Whatever green, a few people are gonna set you to ignore, I may well join them,

Have fun swearing all day /emoticons/tongue.png

 

[norm]

fcuking go up there and pour big jar of gelatine in to it /emoticons/tongue.png they will have jelly muck in no time /emoticons/biggrin.png thats how u take the water out lol

thought ya said gelegnite their peter rogers that would have sorted it :thumbsup:

 

[Eviestevie]

I've done fair few commercial gutters doing halfords very soon 6 foot high plants growing

I actually remove all the down pipes and power wash out then once cleaned I access the gutter flow when rinsing gutters out

Then like green said without the swearing hahaha il go ask for manager and explain what we've done and any potential fall issues with the guttering and explain all downspouts removed and cleared so they will flow at the potential they have been fitted at

I did a massive church last month like always checked the 45degree bends for blockage I then filmed the tidal waves as I unblocked the bends very impressive.half hour later gutters totally cleared and the contract for all the St. Peter's churches in the area

 

[TolishAPurd]

I've got no problem with getting stuck into an argument on here, but in this case Boar and Green are both in the right IMHO.

I know exactly where boar is coming from as I would do the same- clear the shite, leave the water. Although I do have a tool that will slowly get out a bit of the standing water....one of those orange gutter scoops, or if its a big gutter you can even use a large hooded dustpan. I would not take a before/after pic as it looks ****, and I would prey the owner doesnt go up there, but if they did I reckon I would be able to talk him down and explain the problems faced.

Green is right in what I think he is trying to get across by saying that you can turn this about by handling things better. I often encounter issues on handyman jobs where I am better off by just making a light mention of a problem faced rather than them find it themselves later down the line. So long as you maintain a good attitude, and stay friendly then you can get away with a lot more then you would think, but they would be a lot less reasonable if they were to discover the problem themselves, even if its no fault of your own.

 

[boarcity]

its rained a lot this weekend the gutters will now be half full of water of thats there no doubt. in hindsight thats why the gutters smelled so foul [my lads were heaving] cos the rotting water had been in them for months on end due to the incorrect slope

iv not been paid yet [tho thats not unusual with this firm] and theyv not asked me to go back after i explained what i think the problem is

Although it cost me a days wages for my crew i wont be arguing my case to and fro, i just know that lady wont be happy unless she sees us spend another day slopping out the unsloppable and i wont waste more wages on it . iv drawn a line under it now

 

[boarcity]

View attachment 5036 if the building had been a box shape the gutter water would have ran either left or right. but cos the building has this bit jutting out the water cant run right,this is how i see it anyway

 

[boarcity]

update on this - i never got paid. they didnt tell me they werent going to pay but thats whats happened

so where do i go from here? i could go to small claims court but im up against a firm of builders who make million pound houses whats the chance of it coming off .

what id rather do is get revenge on the office lady who im pretty sure decided i wasnt going to get paid. any good ideas ? one of my lads wants to sh/t on her doorstep !

im going to wait a while till i "strike"

 

[Dave B]

Small claims is good

They are at fault so you deserve to get paid

 

[Tuffers]

there was 4 of us spent 3 hours on the gutters got 90% of everything out but not every bit of dirty water due to the gutter angle holding it in . then it rained over the weekend i spose it now looks bad full of water. i explained this to the lady in question ,course she just thinks im snowing her and she just wanted me to return and "clean it all out"
iv reckon its best to do nowt now

Smurf woulda sorted it :thumbsup:

 

[Jjamie]

View attachment 5336 If this is the same I usely take a sweeping brush up on the the roof with me most of my commercial buildings I do have metal roofs so I just walk along them ...

But yes all mine are all ways full off water so I sweap it to the down pipe and at the down pipe I'll have one off the other lads with some mesh over down pipe, he will be cleaning the mesh to let the water go down so take ages due to the water

 

[Tuffers]

'Once you and crew have done it and scarpered'

Bit harsh @Green




What did you quote for the job out of interest @boarcity? Maybe they thought you were too quick? I'm struggling to understand why they would go up and check your work.

 

[boarcity]

'Once you and crew have done it and scarpered'
Bit harsh @Green




What did you quote for the job out of interest @boarcity? Maybe they thought you were too quick? I'm struggling to understand why they would go up and check your work.

it was 2 industrial buildings next to each other total was £270 or thereabouts they knew we did it cos they sat in the offices watching, it took 4 of us about 5 hours , mostly was baling out gloop [ because the slope of guttering was incorrect ] so it was mix of water n crud. we did our best effort but it was like baling out a dinghy , if youve ever done that its very hard to get it all out

they asked me to do the job because there was a rusty stain on rear of building and their workman thought he needed to remove a bit of gutter to get at the problem, i spose he then climbed up to fix the problem saw gloop in gutter and reported down

in hindsight i guess the rusty stain was from a gutter full of water

 

[Dave B]

Definitely take em to court if you have to

Then claim loss of earnings for time spent there and court costs off them too

Would be a nice bit of payback

Ffs they would write it off on tax anyway so why not pay you

 

[boarcity]

i think [with hindsight] that this building should have had a downpipe on each end of the guttering then it wouldnt matter which way it sloped but for whatever reason it had only a downpipe on one end and the slope was slightly off to the other way, which meant 3 or 4 inch deep water at all times

 

[Tuffers]

it was 2 industrial buildings next to each other total was £270 or thereabouts they knew we did it cos they sat in the offices watching, it took 4 of us about 5 hours , mostly was baling out gloop [ because the slope of guttering was incorrect ] so it was mix of water n crud. we did our best effort but it was like baling out a dinghy , if youve ever done that its very hard to get it all outthey asked me to do the job because there was a rusty stain on rear of building and their workman thought he needed to remove a bit of gutter to get at the problem, i spose he then climbed up to fix the problem saw gloop in gutter and reported down

in hindsight i guess the rusty stain was from a gutter full of water

i think [with hindsight] that this building should have had a downpipe on each end of the guttering then it wouldnt matter which way it sloped but for whatever reason it had only a downpipe on one end and the slope was slightly off to the other way, which meant 3 or 4 inch deep water at all times

Should have used your marbles boar :rofl:

 

[boarcity]

i know how small claims works as i once took somebody to it and i won. but im now thinking that somehow i must get revenge on the lady, to put my mind at rest. in an ideal world id like to scare her or worry her somehow so she ends up a gibbering wreck . its very rare for me to get diddled enough to feel like this

 

[Dave B]

Post a :turd: through her letterbox

Somebody elses so they can't dna you lol

 

[boarcity]

Post a :turd: through her letterboxSomebody elses so they can't dna you lol

i suppose thatd worry her for ages, it would me !

 

[Scots lad]

I'd have made sure someone from the company seen the state they were in regarding the slope but I would have hoovered òut the standing water then pics of empty