Anyone else having trouble finding tradesmen??

[Phil C. McNasty]

Anyone else having trouble finding reliable tradesmen for a decent price??
Its getting so bad some of them arent even returning emails.

I needed to have the drain pan replaced in my HVAC.
I emailed 5 different repair companies, and none of them got back to me.
And this despite I had never done business with any of them before

 

[thumper18474]

Depends on what your definition of a "decent price" is..
Most trades nowadays are in the $60-80/hr range..depending on the discipline.
I have an
Electrician..Plumber..Painter..Reno guy
All good
All reliable and all at or over $60/hr.

 

[onomatopoeia]

Three tips for a plumber:

1. Shit flows down.

2. Payday is Friday.

3. Don't bite your fingernails.

 

[Butler1000]

Anyone else having trouble finding reliable tradesmen for a decent price??
Its getting so bad some of them arent even returning emails.

I needed to have the drain pan replaced in my HVAC.
I emailed 5 different repair companies, and none of them got back to me.
And this despite I had never done business with any of them before

Its about size of job. Its not worth it to them. So you need to check with friends etc for local handyman types for cash. I ran into the same thing for small jobs before. Its usually a "I know a guy" situation where they do under the table on weekends.

 

[Ponderling]

The trick with AC drain pans is the need to lift the coil sitting on it.

And then the chance some pinhole in the old tubing starts to let all coolant gradually leak out.
Then you are on their case because they are the last trade that touched it.

I would be inclined to bite the bullet and change the whole pan and coil on top of it.
Then trade knows they vac out the coolant, cut the old rotted affair out, braze new condenser on, evac the system , verify vac holds, then add correct coolant amount back in.

 

[xix]

The trick with AC drain pans is the need to lift the coil sitting on it.

And then the chance some pinhole in the old tubing starts to let all coolant gradually leak out.
Then you are on their case because they are the last trade that touched it.

I would be inclined to bite the bullet and change the whole pan and coil on top of it.
Then trade knows they vac out the coolant, cut the old rotted affair out, braze new condenser on, evac the system , verify vac holds, then add correct coolant amount back in.

Wow thanks for the info. So that might cost over $800

Now in my area Trades charge 100 - 150 + hr.
So ... sometimes you will find retired guys in Homedepot searching for small jobs for weekends or so. But I heard you must be there on weekdays.

Trades people don't want to deal with women... heard it straight from an old guy trades men. So don't bitch at me for this remark.

 

[BobbyRyan81]

Anyone else having trouble finding reliable tradesmen for a decent price??
Its getting so bad some of them arent even returning emails.

I needed to have the drain pan replaced in my HVAC.
I emailed 5 different repair companies, and none of them got back to me.
And this despite I had never done business with any of them before

Work is really slow this summer for the trades. You shouldn't have a problem finding someone. Try calling or texting instead of email. A lot of us don't check email very often including myself. What do you mean by decent price? When you contact us there are red flags that stand out.

1#The biggest one is if your located in Brampton. Most of us wont even bother responding.

2# if you tell us how much it should be or how long it should take. It inducate a problem client right off the bat. I don't even respond to these as it's a waste of my time.

3# We use a app that gives us info on you when you text/call us similar to SPs and red flags showed up. If you don't use a real number, known scammer or dead beat( not paying)

4# not wanting to pay deposits for materials up front for bigger job. Huge red flag..

 

[BobbyRyan81]

Wow thanks for the info. So that might cost over $800

Now in my area Trades charge 100 - 150 + hr.
So ... sometimes you will find retired guys in Homedepot searching for small jobs for weekends or so. But I heard you must be there on weekdays.

Trades people don't want to deal with women... heard it straight from an old guy trades men. So don't bitch at me for this remark.

Most don't are if it's a man or women. A paying customer is a paying customer. I do prefer when I show up to look at a job for both to be home

 

[Phil C. McNasty]

Wow thanks for the info. So that might cost over $800

I finally got it done, and it cost me $640.00 + GST.
They didnt have to replace the drain pan, they only had to remove the rust and repaint it

 

[Phil C. McNasty]

Work is really slow this summer for the trades. You shouldn't have a problem finding someone. Try calling or texting instead of email. A lot of us don't check email very often including myself. What do you mean by decent price? When you contact us there are red flags that stand out

I just wanna pay a fair market price, and not more.
But its kinda hard to get different estimates when nobody responds to your email

1#The biggest one is if your located in Brampton. Most of us wont even bother responding

I live in a condo DT toronto, and I think that may have been the problem cause its hard to find parking here.
Then again, I had no problem getting plumbers and electricians to show up.........so

3# We use a app that gives us info on you when you text/call us similar to SPs and red flags showed up. If you don't use a real number, known scammer or dead beat( not paying)

I used email, not text.
Even then, I always use my real number and not a burner

 

[Phil C. McNasty]

The trick with AC drain pans is the need to lift the coil sitting on it.

And then the chance some pinhole in the old tubing starts to let all coolant gradually leak out.
Then you are on their case because they are the last trade that touched it.

I would be inclined to bite the bullet and change the whole pan and coil on top of it.
Then trade knows they vac out the coolant, cut the old rotted affair out, braze new condenser on, evac the system , verify vac holds, then add correct coolant amount back in.

Turns out they didnt have to replace the drain pan, they only had to remove the rust and repaint it.

Total cost $640 +GST

 

[Ceiling Cat]

 

[The Mechanic]

People forget the time and the money a trademen man puts into his craft. I as a licensed Millwright both industrial and construction, certified CWB welder structural steel and machinist. As a Millwright it’s a 4 year apprenticeship I finished mine in 3 years due to previous experience, the rest I did while working at night school. People complain about the cost, I have $150,000 worth of tools you might ask why so much because when you have a job to do you have to do it you can’t just say sorry I can’t tighten this screwbecause I don’t have a screwdriver. I also have automotive experienced though not licensed talked the neighbour a good lesson he had to have his brakes done on his car. He went to a well-known muffler shop and they quoted him 750-$800 to do the brakes! He came over to me asked if I could do it I said let me a day or 2 to get a cost for parts and I’ll get back to you. Well it was about $300 on parts and I dinged him for 150 for my time, he made a slide remark about me charging them 150 for my time! Well a few years pass time to do the brakes again told him the muffler shops up at Bramlea and Highway 7 have a good time there, and he was pissed off because now the quote is about 1000 see you know he’s gonna get screwed. I worked at one place where the ladies on the floor were pissed off at skilled trades because I get paid more, I told them well if you want get paid more go into an apprenticeship get your hands dirty choice is up to you. As for tradesmen in Brampton ( home construction renovation) sorry I’ll pass I rather pay a little more and know it’s done correct then save a few bucks and redo it in a few years.

 

[Troubadour121]

Anyone else having trouble finding reliable tradesmen for a decent price??
Its getting so bad some of them arent even returning emails.

I needed to have the drain pan replaced in my HVAC.
I emailed 5 different repair companies, and none of them got back to me.
And this despite I had never done business with any of them before

I'm finding other companies as well not replying either. I emailed some some rim wheel fixers and they never got back to me either. And they say email me for a quote. I'm not counting on emails anymore you have to call them or go there.

 

[LTO_3]

I learned long ago that the best way to get an answer from any trades people is to call or better yet go to them directly (If possible). You might get an email response but the trades are so busy that emails, especially for the older trades people, is the last thing they look at, if they look at them at all. I asked a few times myself after I went to their offices when emails weren't being answered and that's what they told me.

LTO_3

 

[K Douglas]

I just wanna pay a fair market price, and not more.
But its kinda hard to get different estimates when nobody responds to your email


I live in a condo DT toronto, and I think that may have been the problem cause its hard to find parking here.
Then again, I had no problem getting plumbers and electricians to show up.........so


I used email, not text.
Even then, I always use my real number and not a burner

Fair market price is based on supply and demand of labor. And the demand is clearly outstripping supply. That job likely would have cost you well under $500 prior to Covid.

 

[SinnamonFairbanks]

I need mudding and some small renovations. I've contacted 3 people. One guy keeps saying hes coming in a week or two I swear its been at least 3 months of him saying that its awful.

Anyone else having trouble finding reliable tradesmen for a decent price??
Its getting so bad some of them arent even returning emails.

I needed to have the drain pan replaced in my HVAC.
I emailed 5 different repair companies, and none of them got back to me.
And this despite I had never done business with any of them before

 

[Phil C. McNasty]

I need mudding and some small renovations. I've contacted 3 people. One guy keeps saying hes coming in a week or two I swear its been at least 3 months of him saying that its awful

My dad lives in Florida and I told him about this, he said that in Florida tradesmen literally line up around the block to take your money.

I think in Canada we have too much money and too little competition for it, but in the US there's too much competition and not enough money to go around

 

[SchlongConery]

Turns out they didnt have to replace the drain pan, they only had to remove the rust and repaint it.

Total cost $640 +GST

You wasted your money

If you have a typical condo chilled water fan coil, and it was leaking, all they did was put a coat of thick paint over it.

Those pans rust through. You can’t paint over a hole and expect it to last. If you had a single incident flood, itvwas more likely a biological clog in the drain tube or some insulation facing that blocked the drain

Has your Manager or Board brought the need for fan coil replacement up to owners? It is the only lasting solution

 

[mrfluffypoo]

I've been trying for 3 yrs to find a carpenter to do a small, highly detailed job. Mostly no responses. The ones who do respond are either guys who bang out decks and don't have skills/desire to do a job with precision and 1000 cuts. The one or two that had skills only wanted large jobs and wouldn't take on the project