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Theft pays.

ICE

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Staff member
Joined
Jun 23, 2011
Messages
13,804
Location
California
The inspection was for a water heater. The T&P drains to the pan. I wrote a correction to extend the T&P to the exterior. It isn't far or difficult and will be hidden by foliage. The lady said that the contractor had mentioned that I might require that. He was even nice enough to give her a $600.00 estimate. for two sticks of pipe, four elbows and an hours work if he takes a thirty minute break.


28767728718_df1985dbcf_b.jpg



The company is large and services Home Depot customers. They sell an expansion tank with nearly every water heater. Now and then a homeowner will ask me if the code really requires the expansion tank. And wouldn't ya know it, the tanks are $600.00. They must work on commission.


The biggest plumbing contractor around here has hundreds of trucks that are manned with one to two workmen. At the end of the shift the truck is returned to a warehouse. Everything in the truck is counted. Anything that is missing must show up as sold on a work order. If not, the workmen must pay for it.
The radio/internet ad gets the company on your property because your sewer is backed up or there's a water leak. Now they work you over. If the truck doesn't sell $20,000.00 every week the company will send the workmen to a sales school. If that fails well perhaps thievery just isn't a good fit. The company has a few hundred two man crews.

I met a man that retired from that company. He owned a hobby store in Paradise California. The man told me that the company rented an amusement park for a party. During a speech the company owner said this: "There's ten million houses in SoCal and we'll never get to them all so don't worry about our reputation"
 
The inspection was for a water heater. The T&P drains to the pan. I wrote a correction to extend the T&P to the exterior. It isn't far or difficult and will be hidden by foliage. The lady said that the contractor had mentioned that I might require that. He was even nice enough to give her a $600.00 estimate. for two sticks of pipe, four elbows and an hours work if he takes a thirty minute break.


28767728718_df1985dbcf_b.jpg



The company is large and services Home Depot customers. They sell an expansion tank with nearly every water heater. Now and then a homeowner will ask me if the code really requires the expansion tank. And wouldn't ya know it, the tanks are $600.00. They must work on commission.


The biggest plumbing contractor around here has hundreds of trucks that are manned with one to two workmen. At the end of the shift the truck is returned to a warehouse. Everything in the truck is counted. Anything that is missing must show up as sold on a work order. If not, the workmen must pay for it.
The radio/internet ad gets the company on your property because your sewer is backed up or there's a water leak. Now they work you over. If the truck doesn't sell $20,000.00 every week the company will send the workmen to a sales school. If that fails well perhaps thievery just isn't a good fit. The company has a few hundred two man crews.

I met a man that retired from that company. He owned a hobby store in Paradise California. The man told me that the company rented an amusement park for a party. During a speech the company owner said this: "There's ten million houses in SoCal and we'll never get to them all so don't worry about our reputation"
I know of severely companies in the Washington Dc area with the same attitude.

A statement made by an owner to me when I pointed out a customer that had 7 dehumidifiers replaced " I do not care how many call backs we have, It gives us one more opportunity in front of the customer to sell something," The first dehumidifier was installed incorrectly, and they replaced 6 others in the same way, no changes to the installation and they all died.
 
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