Why do so many people hate plumbers?

[flatlander]

I have had cause to use quite a few over the years had to use a few as they are invariably useless dishonest tossers who like to spend most of their time telling you how hard their two day week is

Latest has quoted 800-1k to move the bathroo
... Fair enough that's the going rate until he sends an invoice for that amount for the first fix !

[GregD-UK]

Hi all,

Just because you have had ONE bad experience with a tradesman, doesn't mean ALL of them are "scum!" Same in all trades and jobs all over the world. There are good, bad and indifferent professionals

I am a Gas Engineer, there are good and bad in my trade

Relax and get any trade in your house by personal recommendation. That is where most of my work comes from.... Proof in the pudding so too speak....

Hope you get your bathroom sorted anyway.

[flatlander]

if it was just one I would agree but I cant recall the last time I had a good plumber or even heard of one ...

my mate the joiner is a bit pi55ed off with the current one too as he recommended him

...another friend the builder has long since stopped using them wherever possible ... why because they don't need some bleating pikey fresh from a two week course telling them their tales of woe just before they cock up another job.

There are good and bad in all trades agreed... just like not everyone who drives a BMW is a gimp ... just that a higher percentage of gimps are attracted to BMW's same with plumbing in my experience...

sparky's only had to sack one otherwise all pretty decent just difficult to get the good ones sometimes as they are always busy
joiners never had any problems of any major sort
builders not too many issues really considering
brick layers generally no issues one or two who werent ads good as they thought they were and a bit messy in their work
ground workers never had a problem yet
drainage all decent
roofers generally ok and some I still go and look at their work as it is a real pleasure to see a well done job of theirs especially with reclaimed or older style materials
land drainage all ok
contract farm workers all good and tidy...

...and youll be glad to hear gas engineer current one is British gas contract and a very decent bloke who is happy to come back on the same call out if we have a problem


there is the one that came about 10-11 for an hour and left his granddad working whilst he ran off to an emergency ... every day more or less and insisted that all the other trades had to work to his spec and then tried to double charge ... he was recommended

another ex British Gas OK didn't know how to drill holes or knock out flue holes or hire a core drill loved putting extra unnecessary bends in stuff but couldn'tt make a straight connection decent bloke though once you had let him go on for an hour of your time about how hard the life of a plumber was
emergency plumber we have multiple leaks here whats the best thing to do I know lets turn everything on and go for a brew

another well I told you I would be busy in September
you started the two week job in beginning of August and Its November we haven't heard a word from you and you are wondering why we carried on without you ? .... hmnnn the word off came up a lot in that conversation along with invoice itemized bill vat receipt vat man funny never heard from him again about the money he reckoned he was owed

and I have at least a few more plumber related mishaps including the one that ripped off the octagenerian neighbour and then threatened to burn his house down if he went to the police ... oh and my brother is a pipe fitter and they don't appear like plumbers much either though to be fair it does seem to be more the domestic / residential ones


plumbers ... higher percentile of cock monkeys than other walks of life in my experience

[BikerGran]

Have to admit I've had more bad experiences than good - with plumbers that is!

There was the one who came to fix the flushing mechanism of the loo and left me with a leak I didn't have before - then claimed it must have been like that already. He tried very hard to walk away from the problem till I made it clear I might be old but wasn't stupid.

There was the one who plumbed the new shower in and left us with an airlock. Came back and took a look and said we needed a tap put in somewhere and he'df be back with it on Monday - never saw him again, we sorted the airlock ourselves with the aid of the Reader's Digest DIY Manual!

There was the one who said it wasn't possible to get a replacement mechanism for the failed one in our almost brand new loo - no, that wasn't a plumber, that was Wickes where I'd bought the loo from!

And every plumber who's ever been in the house has tutted over the work done by the last one, right back to the original installation when the house was built!

[GregD-UK]

Hi all,

Guess "Plumbers" get a hiding because they really don't need formal qualifications or experience to start-up a business Sorry you have had bad experiences. By the most part, I inform my clients a couple of observations to guess they may be worth some....

a. If he turns up in a clean van, with clean tools and his arse isn't hanging out of his under-sized trousers (covered in silicon) he may take pride in his work.

b. If he starts work before having a cup of tea, he may enjoy his work and crack-on doing it

c. I personally hate 8mm plastic pipe and slate anyone who works with the damn stuff, oh, and 10mm as well. Crap flow in my eyes.

Also, I guarantee my pipe-work for 12 months for any install defects

[flatlander]

Well just to prove I am not a complete git I decided ro call the plumber in question and avoid any misunderstanding through lack of communication. And to be fair he seems to have responded well for the moment in reducing materials to cost and confirming he should only be slightly over budget which I had already allowed for now if he is as good as his word I won't be so hard on him individually but that said I will stick to the opinion that plumbers in general are theiving scum (except the good ones that I haven't met ) ;)

[D-Rider]

TBH I do most of my own plumbing but on the odd occasion i've used someone in the trade he was pretty good (although the problem that I suspected, he told me wouldn't be the case .... until it did prove to be a large part of the problem ... but it was a hard one to diagnose - but that was boiler repair not plumbing as such)

My youngest lad is part way through his plumbing qualifications - to go alongside his bricklaying quals .... so I'm sticking up for the plumbers.

As with all trades, make sure you get someone by recommendation - and that recommendation from someone who can tell a good job from a bad one.

Let's face it, you wouldn't go to a nurse to get good advice on a problem with a Falco - you'd choose an Engineer or a mechanic.

[Aladinsaneuk]

roflmao

[Dusty]

The only tradesmen I ever engage are roofers and plasterers because I don't like working at height and I can't plaster anything beyond a small repair. Everything else, I do myself, so I can't really comment on plumbers. Most plumbing jobs nowadays are easy and quite satisfying to do thanks to modern fittings; no need for wiped lead joints nowadays, thank goodness!
I do, however, have little time for roofers;on one occasion, he was unable to work out that water flows downhill and, in desperation, I sorted it out myself. I also now make sure that they know I'll go onto the roof to see the job as I think they pull the wool if you appear reluctant to go up.
Oops; I forgot that I do use Scottish Gas to service my boiler and they're OK.

[BikerGran]

We don't have to get the boiler serviced - we don't have one!

[Aladinsaneuk]

.... if i type what I am thinking, i could get punched this week end.....

[D-Rider]

So it wasn't just me then