For steamhead

Dave0176

Steamhead

GreenGene

I like

Yes you can get it cheaper.

Then you can pay me to fix it.

ChrisJ

GreenGene said:

I like

Yes you can get it cheaper.

Then you can pay me to fix it.

I've yet to see any correlation between quality of work and pricing.

If it was only that easy.....................

GreenGene

That's how people think, I went to a bid opening for a chiller project that was engineered, we all had to buy the same chiller package from Carrier.

The bids opened I was 94k, others were from 92k-112k and then this one guy is like 68k and they pick him.

Then there was the guy that got AC installed in his house for 4 grand cheaper than everyone else but it didn't work, seems they used 16" flex duct for the supply and then spliced into it with 6" flex for the take offs to each room, I was like ????????, for starters a load calc showed they had the wrong size system too.

They actually tried to slice the 16" and stuff a boot in and tape it on.

"so how much did you save Mr. Homeowner?"

GreenGene

It's up to the company that does it right to explain why they are more, and that was sarcasm, they have alternatives, it's up to the consumer to be an educated consumer, if all they do through life is buy cheap, have problems and keep buying cheap they have a learning disability.

There are countless resources for them on the net including reviews of companies, Angie's List, their state govt, licensing, etc etc etc etc, they can make an effort.

ChrisJ

GreenGene said:

It's up to the company that does it right to explain why they are more, and that was sarcasm, they have alternatives, it's up to the consumer to be an educated consumer, if all they do through life is buy cheap, have problems and keep buying cheap they have a learning disability.

There are countless resources for them on the net including reviews of companies, Angie's List, their state govt, licensing, etc etc etc etc, they can make an effort.

Yeah....
I did back in 2011 and it resulted in a professional that was far from the lowest bidder ripping me off and almost killing me and my family even after I expressed my concerns about lack of draft.

That's when, and why I started doing my own work.

It's not as simple as you claim.

It was easier, and more sure for me to install my own steam boiler and gas piping, never had done any of it before, than to try and hire someone to do it. Cheaper? Honestly, the prices I paid for materials along with my time likely cost me more in the long run.

But it works, and it works well. I'll put it against any single pipe system out there for balance and efficiency.

Please look at my pictures by clicking on the link at the bottom of this message to see the work a homeowner can do. You'll also get to see pictures of the boiler the professional told me was in great shape that was actually rotted out. The third picture shows why we almost died.

The only guys I'd ever hire are on this forum and the only reason I would is because I've repeatedly seen the kind of work they do and luckily know what I'm looking at now. Without that, you're helpless.

Dave0176

Hatterasguy said:

GreenGene said:

I
There are countless resources for them on the net including reviews of companies, Angie's List, their state govt, licensing, etc etc etc etc, they can make an effort.

Can you point me to the resource that will allow the H/O to determine if the contractor will utilize 10" flex duct on the trunk line rather than properly sized steel ducting? And, if properly sized steel ducting is utilized and insulated, can you show me where the H/O can get positive confirmation that the size of that duct is correct?

Would that information be on Angie's List?

Would the state government have it in their licensing information?

I've run across many if not most improperly sized ducted systems. And most always seem to undersize the returns. However many of these systems I see run without a hiccup for 20-30 years. We're only running into problems now with the higher SEER ratings that the systems seem to underperform. In a lot of cases the duct upgrades have to be part of the system upgrades in order for the stuff to work right.

But we always have Mr Stupid come in tell the customer "I'll get you more cooling" by putting in an extra ton on the condenser, when the duct work can't handle what's there already. Smh.......

SWEI

This is why I continue to pray for performance-based codes.

EzzyT

It's not just the codes that need to be written it's the lack of enforcement by the inspectors, 90% of them have no idea what there looking at and don't even enforce the codes that there supposed to because they don't even know the codes themselves

GreenGene

OK people before I snap and ................

all I said was they need to be an informed consumer, do a little checking TRY, APPLY YOURSELVES

what do you think the internet is for? porn?

ask for references, ask to see license if applicable in your state, ask to see insurance, do an internet search, put in the company name and the word complaint after, if all you go by is their word and their price on a job costing several thousand dollars good luck to you

ChrisJ

GreenGene said:

OK people before I snap and ................

all I said was they need to be an informed consumer, do a little checking TRY, APPLY YOURSELVES

what do you think the internet is for? porn?

ask for references, ask to see license if applicable in your state, ask to see insurance, do an internet search, put in the company name and the word complaint after, if all you go by is their word and their price on a job costing several thousand dollars good luck to you

Yes?
Or was that a rhetorical question.

Rich_49

@GreenGene

After several years of telling folks exactly what would happen to their newly installed systems before they were installed and why they should use us . Fact still remains that they will look at the bottom line and call us later to fix . Sometimes we can sometimes we can't . Funniest thing is that when you give them a price to fix right after they made a wrong decision they still ask , " well can't you skip this or that .

Ignorance is reparable , stupid is forever . They refuse to learn from their mistakes , much less take a cue from reading others mistakes . If you have a different experience you are a lucky man or are just dealing with more intelligent folks .

Steamhead

GreenGene said:

what do you think the internet is for? porn?

Well, aside from the Wall........