How long did he say the work would take to complete? Why are you
afraid to answer this simple, yet revealing question, Steve?


He didn't say how long it would take him. Probably because he knew I could
use a calculator.

Steve

"dpb" wrote in message ...
Doug Miller wrote:
In article , "SteveB"
wrote:
...
... I consider over $300 a day for very simple work to be unreasonable.
I guess he considers working for less than $300 a day to be
unreasonable, so he sits at home and makes zero.

$300 / 8 hours = $37.50/hour. ...

Or, if he does work 2000 hrs/year on average, that's only 75K gross --
certainly not an extravagant standard of living. Wonder what the OP takes
home and if that's too much (or maybe his work isn't "very simple")...

I'm retired. Life is structured. Living trusts, family trusts, LLCs. If I
need or want something, I just go put it on a credit card. The accountant
takes care of it. I'm conservative on spending, so the principal keeps
working. I avoid things that are wastes of money. As long as I don't get
stupid, the principal keeps snowballing.

Stupid like paying people $50 an hour to do monkey work. I saved about a
thousand on this job by my calculations. I saved $1400 on the drywall by
running off the stupid Mexicans someone had doing the work at an inflated
price and hiring an experienced rocker who is a retired friend of mine.
Paid him his asking price, and it was $1400 less than a contractor. All
together, saved a good bit on the project. Enough to do some substantial
upgrades, buy a new Nikon, and probably spend two weeks at Pueblo Bonito in
Mazatlan.

When I do choose to work at what I do, I earn between $50 and $200 an hour.
Notice I said earn and not charge? (I paid myself the $50 an hour the grunt
wanted to hang wallboard.) If it's real grunt work, I hire real grunts.

Steve

On Sat, 26 Jan 2008 14:39:49 GMT, (Doug Miller)
wrote:

He agreed. And what I learned from watching and listening was easily worth the
price of the repair.

This is why I love my plumber: he always says, "You're welcome to
watch!" and I end up learning things, even when I hadn't expected to.
One of several important lessons I have learned is that there are
times when hiring a pro who has all the tools and especially the
experience is just the only way to go, given time and $$ constraints.

On Jan 26, 10:02 am, (Doug Miller) wrote:
In article , "JoeSpareBedroom" wrote:
Drywall? Your original list only mentioned these procedures:

Hang six interior doors
Install baseboard in a 1,000 sf addition
Install door knobs and locks
Install door trim

Is this a different project you're talking about now, with the drywall?

Yes, it's a different project. He was whining about here some six months ago.

Funny thing about Steve... every time he thinks somebody's trying to screw
him, he bitches and moans for weeks. He's also the same guy who, about a year
ago, was bragging here about how he screwed Home Depot on a couple of doors.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

Yeah, Doug, wasn't he the guy who was blaming the sheetrock hangers
for hanging rock before he had the roof on (even though he was the
general?) And how they overcharged him for hanging 23 sheets of rock
which magically was enough to do a 2000 sq ft addition? Yep, I bet
the folks around there have his number and are charging him
accordingly.

On Jan 26, 3:10 am, "SteveB" wrote:
"marson" wrote in message

On the other had, judging from the tone of your post, they may have
smelled that you are a jerk and charged accordingly. That's what I
would have done.

Jerk? Hardly. Just someone who can smell a rat. I'm a jerk for asking him
to come into my home, and do work for money? And then I'm a jerk for not
paying a lot of money for a little work?

No, you're a jerk because you never had the intention of hiring the
guy in the first place.

For future reference, life is too short to work with crappy
materials. As another, more perspicacious poster mentioned, it's a
good idea to use your 'cost' savings to upgrade the materials.
Otherwise you're just a hack hacking on your own house.

R

"marson" wrote in message
...
On Jan 26, 10:02 am, (Doug Miller) wrote:
In article , "JoeSpareBedroom"
wrote:
Drywall? Your original list only mentioned these procedures:

Hang six interior doors
Install baseboard in a 1,000 sf addition
Install door knobs and locks
Install door trim

Is this a different project you're talking about now, with the drywall?

Yes, it's a different project. He was whining about here some six months
ago.

Funny thing about Steve... every time he thinks somebody's trying to
screw
him, he bitches and moans for weeks. He's also the same guy who, about a
year
ago, was bragging here about how he screwed Home Depot on a couple of
doors.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

Yeah, Doug, wasn't he the guy who was blaming the sheetrock hangers
for hanging rock before he had the roof on (even though he was the
general?) And how they overcharged him for hanging 23 sheets of rock
which magically was enough to do a 2000 sq ft addition? Yep, I bet
the folks around there have his number and are charging him
accordingly.

Holy ****, if you're going to dredge up history, at least be accurate.

Steve

In article , "SteveB" wrote:

"marson" wrote in message
...
On Jan 26, 10:02 am, (Doug Miller) wrote:
In article , "JoeSpareBedroom"
wrote:
Drywall? Your original list only mentioned these procedures:

Hang six interior doors
Install baseboard in a 1,000 sf addition
Install door knobs and locks
Install door trim

Is this a different project you're talking about now, with the drywall?

Yes, it's a different project. He was whining about here some six months
ago.

Funny thing about Steve... every time he thinks somebody's trying to screw
him, he bitches and moans for weeks. He's also the same guy who, about a year
ago, was bragging here about how he screwed Home Depot on a couple of doors.

Yeah, Doug, wasn't he the guy who was blaming the sheetrock hangers
for hanging rock before he had the roof on (even though he was the
general?) And how they overcharged him for hanging 23 sheets of rock
which magically was enough to do a 2000 sq ft addition? Yep, I bet
the folks around there have his number and are charging him
accordingly.

Holy ****, if you're going to dredge up history, at least be accurate.

It's close enough. People here know what you are. It seems your neighbors do,
too.

"SteveB" wrote in message
...

"RicodJour" wrote in message
...
On Jan 26, 3:10 am, "SteveB" wrote:
"marson" wrote in message

On the other had, judging from the tone of your post, they may have
smelled that you are a jerk and charged accordingly. That's what I
would have done.

Jerk? Hardly. Just someone who can smell a rat. I'm a jerk for asking
him
to come into my home, and do work for money? And then I'm a jerk for
not
paying a lot of money for a little work?

No, you're a jerk because you never had the intention of hiring the
guy in the first place.

For future reference, life is too short to work with crappy
materials. As another, more perspicacious poster mentioned, it's a
good idea to use your 'cost' savings to upgrade the materials.
Otherwise you're just a hack hacking on your own house.

R

Thank you for your erroneous assessment of the situation. I would have
hired him had he not been so high. And FYI, we did multiple upgrades.
And still came in quite a bit under budget.

Steve



There are two versions of "too high":

1) More than you wanted to pay
2) More than you think he should make.

The first is reasonable. It's an opinion. The second is vapor and can safely
be ignored. I'm not saying you claimed #2. I'm just pointing out that there
are multiple variables.

"RicodJour" wrote in message
...
On Jan 26, 3:10 am, "SteveB" wrote:
"marson" wrote in message

On the other had, judging from the tone of your post, they may have
smelled that you are a jerk and charged accordingly. That's what I
would have done.

Jerk? Hardly. Just someone who can smell a rat. I'm a jerk for asking
him
to come into my home, and do work for money? And then I'm a jerk for not
paying a lot of money for a little work?

No, you're a jerk because you never had the intention of hiring the
guy in the first place.

For future reference, life is too short to work with crappy
materials. As another, more perspicacious poster mentioned, it's a
good idea to use your 'cost' savings to upgrade the materials.
Otherwise you're just a hack hacking on your own house.

R

Thank you for your erroneous assessment of the situation. I would have
hired him had he not been so high. And FYI, we did multiple upgrades. And
still came in quite a bit under budget.

Steve

"RicodJour" wrote in message
...
On Jan 26, 3:10 am, "SteveB" wrote:
"marson" wrote in message

On the other had, judging from the tone of your post, they may have
smelled that you are a jerk and charged accordingly. That's what I
would have done.

Jerk? Hardly. Just someone who can smell a rat. I'm a jerk for asking
him
to come into my home, and do work for money? And then I'm a jerk for not
paying a lot of money for a little work?

No, you're a jerk because you never had the intention of hiring the
guy in the first place.

For future reference, life is too short to work with crappy
materials. As another, more perspicacious poster mentioned, it's a
good idea to use your 'cost' savings to upgrade the materials.
Otherwise you're just a hack hacking on your own house.

R

Why do you hang on my every post? Don't the up or down arrows work on your
computer? Are you drug or alcohol impaired, and possess no reading
comprehension?

First, you prattle on in the newsgroup to drag out the discussion where you
need not. Then, you get the sequence and facts screwed up. And what's this
with the e mail inviting me to the Interstate rest area men's room? If you
want to kick my ass, just meet at the west parking lot of the truck stop.

Sheesh. You and marson should get a room.

Steve

On Jan 25, 7:06 pm, "U.L. Tested" wrote:

I'm not in the construction business, but, even I know there is more to a
wall than being straight. Plumb comes to mind.


Agreed. And I've seen many built by contractors that were none of the
above. Surely there are DIY screwups as well, but the incentive is
there when it's your own wall.


You sir, are an idiot. You either do not work, or have never held
meaningful employment.


I just sit on a street corner all day with a 40oz bottle of malt
liquor.


You entirely miss Kirk's point of being a
professional.


No matter what industry, it is nearly impossible to get anything done
right. Ever.


I'm not a contractor, but I smell a wannabe.


Nope. Couldn't and wouldn't want to.

"The Reverend Natural Light" wrote in message
...
On Jan 25, 7:06 pm, "U.L. Tested" wrote:

I'm not in the construction business, but, even I know there is more to a
wall than being straight. Plumb comes to mind.


Agreed. And I've seen many built by contractors that were none of the
above. Surely there are DIY screwups as well, but the incentive is
there when it's your own wall.


And still, with settling, warpage, and other factors even the best can make
a wall that is neither straight, plumb, or square.

Steve