How many rules do you have?

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360Youth

360Youth

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Location
Newport, NC
I had a meeting with a decorator the other day on an upcoming housing project. We chatted about a few various ideas and then we got to the bathrooms and she started hinting around to the dreaded, "We still haven't picked out the vanity fixtures...." I told her, as delicately as possible, or so I thought :roll: , that I am pretty easy to work with, butI have one rule, and that I have to have a bath vanity location and box placement at rough-in. I had done enough guess work and patch work over the years that I was done with it. She leaned back and folded her arms and asked, "Are there any other rules I should know about?" "No that's it." I said. :grin: I don't think it is too much to ask from an EC's perspective. We had just had the conversation of how much she hates to deal with patched/repaired sheetrock in kitchens and under cabinet lighting, so why create the potential for more?? Oh, well, I guess this was my turn to vent a little, but I thought that was an amusing meeting. It all went well, but she said, "I'm just not used to people giving me rules."
 
That's a great rule 360. Freaking designers wait till the last minute to select fixtures and because proportion is so important the jb's have to be dead on.


"The mirror we selected is a little bigger so can you JUST move it/them up/down/over a little bit"....riiiiight. Just figure it out ahead Einstein. It's your JOB!

I HATE when the designers just point in a general direction and say "over there". I call them on it right then. "Where EXACTLY would you like it?" I'll offer my 2 cents, hold the tape and mark it for them ut I won't make the call.
 
jjhoward said:
I have page envy (I am not talking those pages in DC!)
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You're referring to these kind of pages? :grin:
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220/221 said:
That's a great rule 360. Freaking designers wait till the last minute to select fixtures and because proportion is so important the jb's have to be dead on.


"The mirror we selected is a little bigger so can you JUST move it/them up/down/over a little bit"....riiiiight. Just figure it out ahead Einstein. It's your JOB!

I HATE when the designers just point in a general direction and say "over there". I call them on it right then. "Where EXACTLY would you like it?" I'll offer my 2 cents, hold the tape and mark it for them ut I won't make the call.
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Why bother just moving the fixture an inch or two? Why not completely redesign the entire kitchen, and move all the appliances to boot. Of course, that only happens after the walls are painted.....
 
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480sparky said:
Why bother just moving the fixture an inch or two? Why not completely redesign the entire kitchen, and move all the appliances to boot. Of course, that only happens after the walls are painted.....
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I have had to add huricane shutters after sheetrock and primer.
 
360Youth said:
"We still haven't picked out the vanity fixtures...." I told her, as delicately as possible, or so I thought :roll: , that I am pretty easy to work with, but I have one rule, and that I have to have a bath vanity location and box placement at rough-in. ~ She leaned back and folded her arms and asked, "Are there any other rules I should know about?" "No that's it." I said. :grin: ~ It all went well, but she said, "I'm just not used to people giving me rules."
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WOW! I thought I lacked the sense of subtle.... (This from the King of Tact....)

Dude - I think she was comming on to ya.... :wink: (Kidding :grin: )

Sure she's not used to rules - because at the end of this there will be some finger pointing, and when it's not done, or done right (whatever that may be) the finger will be pointing at you. And she's used to people waiting around for her to do her job. And used to people accepting it. Sure she's maybe waiting for some input from the client or such.... And you in turn get to wait for her. But put like that, it might be the last piece of information you get.

In a large job - some vanity fixtures are small potatoes - but I wouldn't tell her you had a 'rule' about it, or sweat about it. Say something like, "Well it's not delaying the job yet... Got plenty other things to do in the mean time - I'll remind you about it later...." :) :wink: :cool: (They don't have smiley for the grin I intend)

Then on your proposal put:

Vanity fixture, quanity, and location TBD - To be installed when determined by Whoever she is (Allowance subject to change) $XXX.XX

And if you get the job - then you can hound them by using that same wording with this undetermined item, who's responcable for it, and the vauge cost of said item until you get an answer. (In writing of course)

I usually do a set of lists of "open questions/RFI" at the start of rough, room by room - update it and distribute it to everyone! Sometimes once a week, depending on the speed and scale of the job.

If it is still on the 'Open Question / RFI' list the day the rockers start stocking, the list gets retitled "Job/Progress Delay". And there is that vauge item with the vague cost, and her name again and again...
 
220/221 said:
"The mirror we selected is a little bigger so can you JUST move it/them up/down/over a little bit"....riiiiight. Just figure it out ahead Einstein. It's your JOB!

I HATE when the designers just point in a general direction and say "over there". I call them on it right then. "Where EXACTLY would you like it?" I'll offer my 2 cents, hold the tape and mark it for them ut I won't make the call.
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Heres a silent rule - "Install it once for a set price, and install it twice for another set price" :grin:
 
There was a recent thread about vanity light installation. I never ever rough in a box unless I have clear and prcise info on where exactly it is going. As we all know that doesn't happen (see op in this thread :) ) I just leave a bunch of wire in the wall, cut it in at finish, and presto no mistakes.

As I've said before, nobody will care why you had to move the box and the wall needs to be patched, they will only know that you screwed up.
 
I thought the only rule is the customer is always right?

I agree with 'e'.

"Install it once for a set price, and install it twice for another set price"

As far as I know we earn a living installing electrical things and that should apply no matter how many times we install the same item more then once. :)
 
iwire said:
I thought the only rule is the customer is always right?
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I'm feeling frisky this morning so I'll just say that the customer may not always be right, but the customer is always the customer.

I agree with 'e'.

"Install it once for a set price, and install it twice for another set price"

As far as I know we earn a living installing electrical things and that should apply no matter how many times we install the same item more then once. :)
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I agree also.
 
I loop the wires at 86 inches above vanity in the wall in each possible bay for a vanity light. In finish we install a cut in 3/0 or pancake directly over the sink and mirror, after they are installed. This way I don't get stuck with a fixture in the wrong place even with cabinet changes. This works well for us.
 
iwire said:
As far as I know we earn a living installing electrical things and that should apply no matter how many times we install the same item more then once. :)
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hardworkingstiff said:
I'm feeling frisky this morning so I'll just say that the customer may not always be right, but the customer is always the customer.
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Both are valid points, and I have told customers if there is no way to know at this moment and time, then we will do what we have to do. But I do not think it is that difficult to come up with a fixture in time leading up to rough-in inspection. I tell them that a wire can be looped in the wall (I've done it a hundred times), butwhen it is explained what it takes to get that wire and box in place when they just have to have it right where that stud or plumbing line is, or the corner wall on the other side of the bathroom, then they usually agree. (Okay, I may exagerate a little for my benefit, but that is just between us :grin: .) That being said, if they can spend 400k on cabinets and cabinet layout, they can give me a fixture location!!
 
"Install it once for a set price, and install it twice for another set price"
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I have ALWAYS had trouble with this line of thought. The frustration of doing things twice is generally NOT worth the money to me.


If it's just "one of those things", I will deal with it. If it is someone's stupidity or laziness, I tend to get a little miffed.
 
220/221 said:
I have ALWAYS had trouble with this line of thought. The frustration of doing things twice is generally NOT worth the money to me.
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That makes little sense to me, it's money.


If it's just "one of those things", I will deal with it. If it is someone's stupidity or laziness, I tend to get a little miffed.
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So charge accordingly. :)
 
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