3500 baht for 2 hours work?

[baansgr]

Did you provide ladders,  scaffold etc.... People need to forget this 300 baht a day bs...the man needs  a vehicle,  travel time,  maybe pays tax and other staff etc... Seems a bit much but not overly excessive. 

[wombat]

On a moonless night send someone up into the ceiling cavity with a torch, if your standing outside and can't see any pin holes of light on your roof then maybe your problem has been solved....plus
As another poster suggested, check up there for mould. 

[baansgr]

14 hours ago, FarangDoingHisThing69 said:

That rate is even higher than top flight American roofers. 1750/hr is 60$/hour. For what is a simple fix. You got ripped off.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

 

The price includes initial inspection, sourcing and purchasing materials,  travel time and it's repair all leaks if one or ten.  So it's by far more than the quoted two hours work. I've worked for companies providing house maintenance., people expect a garden cleared grass cut rubbish  taken away for a few hundred baht.  Madness all because 300.300.300 a day.... It just doesn't work like that 

[richard_smith237]

It seems you are not paying for 2 hours of his time. You are paying for the 20 or however many years he has and the assurances (warranty) he is prepared to offer. 

 

In short - you are paying to get the job done right.

 

The issue here is trust which is difficult because we have not encountered them ourselves we have all heard of horror stories with tradesmen.

 

 

 

 

[puukao]

you came to Thailand for cheap living and save money!!!  3500, never!!!  Tell him 900 baht and 5 year warranty.  Hire some kids and have them try something, better than nothing, 100 baht each.  3500 is lots of noodle soup.  3500 destroys my yearly budget.... money is yours, don't give it up.  you won't make that 3500 back....  

 

i'll do it for 3000 baht over the phone..... you have paypal?  send me the money!!!  

[richard_smith237]

5 minutes ago, puukao said:

you came to Thailand for cheap living and save money!!!  3500, never!!!  Tell him 900 baht and 5 year warranty.  Hire some kids and have them try something, better than nothing, 100 baht each.  3500 is lots of noodle soup.  3500 destroys my yearly budget.... money is yours, don't give it up.  you won't make that 3500 back....  

 

i'll do it for 3000 baht over the phone..... you have paypal?  send me the money!!!  

Not all of us came here to live on 40B street noodles.... 

 

Quality of life costs something - this case quality of life costs relying on someones experience to get the job done properly once and for all...  that cost is 3500 baht. 

 

The Op has tried the cheap option it didn't work. In your scenario - getting some kids to do you are guaranteeing zero experience and further problems - its not better than nothing, its worse than nothing. 

[giddyup]

23 minutes ago, wombat said:

On a moonless night send someone up into the ceiling cavity with a torch, if your standing outside and can't see any pin holes of light on your roof then maybe your problem has been solved....plus
As another poster suggested, check up there for mould. 

He said there was mould on the tiles (outside) but never mentioned anything about mold inside roof cavity, not sure how you would eliminate that anyway. he offered to clean the tiles for a price, but that's mainly cosmetic.

[giddyup]

2 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Not all of us came here to live on 40B street noodles.... 

 

Quality of life costs something - this case quality of life costs relying on someones experience to get the job done properly once and for all...  that cost is 3500 baht. 

 

The Op has tried the cheap option it didn't work. In your scenario - getting some kids to do you are guaranteeing zero experience and further problems - its not better than nothing, its worse than nothing. 

Already had one young guy fall off the roof and lucky to only break a couple of toes, and that was his first day on the job, so paid him 500 baht compensation for time off work plus the 1000 baht for the boss to fix the leak, which wasn't done. So had enough of the amateurs.

[kokesaat]

20 years ago we hired a company to drill a well.  Set price was 18000 for drilling, pvc, and a good quality pump.   He agreed to drill 5 holes if needed to find water, up to 30m.  Our neighbor hired the same folks as well.....and it took 2 days for them to find water.  Then they came to our house.  Set up the machine.....30 minutes....and within another 50 minutes, punched through a thin layer of rock 3 meters down.....and hit crystal clear water.  He was a happy man!!  We were happy and continue to be happy to have such good water.

 

[giddyup]

Just looking at some of the work he did, this part looks half finished to me.

[donim]

1 hour ago, wombat said:

On a moonless night send someone up into the ceiling cavity with a torch, if your standing outside and can't see any pin holes of light on your roof then maybe your problem has been solved....plus
As another poster suggested, check up there for mould. 

It's much better on daytime, just to check on a sunfull day in the ceiling cavity, you will then see all the possible pinholes.  Many ceilings don't have a light source from outside, then it should be dark in here.

The mold, good advice. No airgaps, no light, possible mold growing. But, many townhouses have airgaps along the roof, they are built on this purpose, yes , to damp the little leakages.

Really do check for mold if you use isolation mats on the ceiling panels.

 

Rgds,

[catman20]

3 hours ago, giddyup said:

 

 

Why would you be surprised? Are you suggesting that no matter who I get the problem will never be fixed, that all Thais change phone numbers once they have your money, or are you just a guy who's glass is always half empty?

been here 19 years and i go on the history of the way Thai people are.

Edited March 1, 2019 by catman20

[donim]

41 minutes ago, giddyup said:

Just looking at some of the work he did, this part looks half finished to me.

I , my opinion as it is side protected and half under a upper roof, would leave it like that. It then purpose as air circulation vent. Fixing it would, if any moisture goes in, be a cause for growing mold and rot.

 

Rain comes hardly from beneath, only horizontal when the mousoon is here with swindling winds, and close your upper floor windows so that rain won't sucked into the holes. Vacumation.

 

rgds,

 

[catman20]

47 minutes ago, giddyup said:

Just looking at some of the work he did, this part looks half finished to me.

no problem you have a 12 month guarantee just give him a call ????

[donim]

1 minute ago, catman20 said:

no just been here 19 years and i go on the history of the way Thai people are.

True, not just because the business.. But other do that too.. Even me, it's not a big concern. Change with the promotions that the providers are offering. Like, you get a new wifi box at home, they will give free sim with that package, use it.. oh.. number changed.

There are so many free/expiring sim cards around, they will use that till the day.

 

The best is; use their Line ID and if this really bothers you then choose people with ''bonus/lucky'' phonenumbers, like 0888888888.. They will never change that.

 

For me, just, QR number. And Line is the way to go.

 

Rgds,

[giddyup]

17 minutes ago, catman20 said:

been here 19 years and i go on the history of the way Thai people are.

I've only been here 9 years, but can say I've had good and bad, sometimes the cheapest has been the best. Used to be a handyman in our village, he laid paths, installed water pump, water heaters, built fish pond, did an extension for the carport, too many jobs to mention, and all was quality work that has stood the test of time, and he was cheap.

Edited March 1, 2019 by giddyup

[warrima]

This post reminds me of this old story;

 

A giant ship engine failed. The ship’s owners tried one expert after another, but none of them could figure but how to fix the engine.

Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was a young.

He carried a large bag of tools with him, and when he arrived, he immediately went to work. He inspected the engine very carefully, top to bottom.
Two of the ship’s owners were there, watching this man, hoping he would know what to do. After looking things over, the old man reached into his bag and pulled out a small hammer. He gently tapped something.
Instantly, the engine lurched into life. He carefully put his hammer away. The engine was fixed!

A week later, the owners received a bill from the old man for ten thousand dollars. “What?!” the owners exclaimed. “He hardly did anything!” So they wrote the old man a note saying, “Please send us an itemized bill.”

The man sent a bill that read:
Tapping with a hammer…… …… ……… $ 2.00
Knowing where to tap……… …… ……… $ 9,998.00

“MORAL:- Effort is important, but knowing where to make an effort makes all the difference! Keep studying hard. Don’t give up!”

[catman20]

11 minutes ago, giddyup said:

I've only been here 9 years, but can say I've had good and bad, sometimes the cheapest has been the best. Used to be a handyman in our village, he laid paths, installed water pump, water heaters, built fish pond, did an extension for the carport, too many jobs to mention, and all was quality work that has stood the test of time, and he was cheap.

sounds like you got lucky, your a newbie give it a bit more time, ull see.

[lanng khao]

2 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

It seems you are not paying for 2 hours of his time. You are paying for the 20 or however many years he has and the assurances (warranty) he is prepared to offer. 

 

In short - you are paying to get the job done right.

 

The issue here is trust which is difficult because we have not encountered them ourselves we have all heard of horror stories with tradesmen.

 

 

 

 

Spot on Richard, your paying for what he knows, not the amount he  does, been a bricky for 40 years, back to England in may to get back on the trowel, always get a good days graft off the brickys... Roofers kid the kecks off ya.

[giddyup]

8 minutes ago, catman20 said:

sounds like you got lucky, your a newbie give it a bit more time, ull see.

9 years is a newbie? How many people you think I've used in that time for jobs to the house? Think I've been here long enough to know that it's a crap shoot trying to get reliable and proficient workers who will stand by their work.

[Sheryl]

22 hours ago, giddyup said:

Not sure you can compare Aussie prices when the daily rate for Thais is around 300 baht. As long as the job has been done correctly I can wear 3500 baht, and I knew the price going in.

That is the minimum wage.

 

It's the least you should expect to pay for completely unskilled labor.

 

Skilled work, e.g. electrical work, roofing, earns much more.

 

As for roofs - When my house was first built I had huge problems with leaks (design flaw) and went through every so called "roofer" in the area in succession, none of them fixed it (one outdid himself by removing a large section of roof just before a thunderstorm then taking off without either putting up a tarp or alerting me to the fact the roof was off...you can imagine the consequences). These clowns charged me just a little over the minimum wage plus materials (the latter being a waste since they had no clue what they were doing. Seemed to just remove arbitrary tiles and replace them for no particular reason).

 

Finally guy #6 or #7, who did indeed charge much more, actually identified and fixed the problem. He charged many fold more than the earlier clowns and it was money well spent. Only wish I had been able to find him to start with.

 

Anyone who will work for minimum wage or even close to it, does not have the necessary skill to fix a roof leak IMO.

 

 

[Sheryl]

38 minutes ago, warrima said:

This post reminds me of this old story;

 

A giant ship engine failed. The ship’s owners tried one expert after another, but none of them could figure but how to fix the engine.

Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was a young.

He carried a large bag of tools with him, and when he arrived, he immediately went to work. He inspected the engine very carefully, top to bottom.
Two of the ship’s owners were there, watching this man, hoping he would know what to do. After looking things over, the old man reached into his bag and pulled out a small hammer. He gently tapped something.
Instantly, the engine lurched into life. He carefully put his hammer away. The engine was fixed!

A week later, the owners received a bill from the old man for ten thousand dollars. “What?!” the owners exclaimed. “He hardly did anything!” So they wrote the old man a note saying, “Please send us an itemized bill.”

The man sent a bill that read:
Tapping with a hammer…… …… ……… $ 2.00
Knowing where to tap……… …… ……… $ 9,998.00

“MORAL:- Effort is important, but knowing where to make an effort makes all the difference! Keep studying hard. Don’t give up!”

????

 

the medical equivalent story is of the miserly old man who had to have a major operation. he was outraged when quoted the price and demanded a breakdown. Among the items was some $10,000 anesthetist fee.

 

As is customary, the night before the surgery the anesthetist came to see the man. When he introduced himself the man snapped "So you're the %^$* who's charging $10k just to knock me out !"

 

To which the anesthetist replied "Oh no sir. I've charging you 10k to knock you out and then and wake you back up again!".

[1FinickyOne]

There is an old joke about a plumber coming in and fixing a drain and charging $700 for an hours job... the customer complains, "I'm a doctor and I don't make $700 an hour." 

 

And the plumber replies. "neither did I when I was a doctor." 

[khunPer]

On 2/28/2019 at 7:38 AM, giddyup said:

...I get so sick of throwing good money after bad here that I just wanted the job done right.

So 3,500 baht was a fair price then, as he did the job, and you knew the price in advance and accepted it, so no overcharging.

[giddyup]

3 minutes ago, khunPer said:

So 3,500 baht was a fair price then, as he did the job, and you knew the price in advance and accepted it, so no overcharging.

It will be a fair price if I no longer have a leak when it rains.

[CGW]

2 hours ago, giddyup said:

I've only been here 9 years, but can say I've had good and bad, sometimes the cheapest has been the best. Used to be a handyman in our village, he laid paths, installed water pump, water heaters, built fish pond, did an extension for the carport, too many jobs to mention, and all was quality work that has stood the test of time, and he was cheap.

I've found a few of these "types" in my years here, problem is word spreads fast and they quickly become unavailable ???? 

[giddyup]

13 minutes ago, CGW said:

I've found a few of these "types" in my years here, problem is word spreads fast and they quickly become unavailable ???? 

In this guys case it all got too much for him. So many people wanted his service he just got burnt out and now just sells Lao Khao in the evenings from a little stall.

Edited March 1, 2019 by giddyup

[CGW]

38 minutes ago, giddyup said:

In this guys case it all got too much for him. So many people wanted his service he just got burnt out and now just sells Lao Khao in the evenings from a little stall.

The last one I had did similar - he opened a bar (did all the work himself ???? )

[catman20]

3 hours ago, giddyup said:

9 years is a newbie? How many people you think I've used in that time for jobs to the house? Think I've been here long enough to know that it's a crap shoot trying to get reliable and proficient workers who will stand by their work.

9 years ? yes newbie your still wet behind the ears. as for the rest,thats what ive been trying to say to you all day and all i got from you was............................................

 

 Are you suggesting that no matter who I get the problem will never be fixed, that all Thais change phone numbers once they have your money, or are you just a guy who's glass is always half empty?

[giddyup]

43 minutes ago, catman20 said:

9 years ? yes newbie your still wet behind the ears. as for the rest,thats what ive been trying to say to you all day and all i got from you was............................................

 

 Are you suggesting that no matter who I get the problem will never be fixed, that all Thais change phone numbers once they have your money, or are you just a guy who's glass is always half empty?

Go away you're too full of yourself. Do you think I haven't learnt anything after 9 years, or does the knowledge only kick in after 19 years?

Edited March 1, 2019 by giddyup