tradesman usage of utilities

seloc123

I'm curious as to how you would expect the work to be completed with them using electricity?
Perhaps you should have told them at the time that you weren't happy they were using your electricity?
I don't really think you have a leg to stand on to be honest.

dacouch

Dehumidifiers work best when the room temperature is highish

Beenie

When tradesmen are working at my house, I am only too happy to make tea/coffee and give them cakes and biscuits. I tell them to make tea when I am out of the house. Most of the time, they disappear off into their vans at break and lunchtimes, to read the paper and listen to the radio, with the tea I have made for them.

What I am NOT happy about is someone wandering about my house uninvited, fiddling with heating controls. They have no business doing that without the householders approval. People here seem to be deliberately mixing up the legit use of electricity for power tools etc. (which is OK, everyone agrees that) with the excessive use of the central heating (OP main gripe) which is not OK - unless invited to do so by the client.

baza52

Im guessing they had plastering done.
Without heat and a humidifier how is the plaster supposed to dry during the winter?
I doubt the OP would be happy if they plastered then came back 2 weeks later to finish the job when it had dried naturally.

The OP is claiming £300 worth of gas/leccy was used but hasn't given us any idea how long the job took to complete.

£300 buys quite a lot of Gas/leccy.

dacouch

baza52 wrote: »

Im guessing they had plastering done.
Without heat and a humidifier how is the plaster supposed to dry during the winter?
I doubt the OP would be happy if they plastered then came back 2 weeks later to finish the job when it had dried naturally.

The OP is claiming £300 worth of gas/leccy was used but hasn't given us any idea how long the job took to complete.

£300 buys quite a lot of Gas/leccy.

First post (Appears) to claim the entire months Gas/Elec bill was £300 but in further posts says the tradesmen used an extra £300 of gas...

fluffnutter

This is a load of billy-bollox. I don't think it's a complete troll post, but there's no way this job cost an extra £300 in utilities (although he didn't say it was extra at first). I heat my entire house for a year using little more than that for gas (small house to be fair).

He got a slightly bigger bill than usual, no doubt because it was an unusually cold winter and he'd been using more gas and electricity as a result. Because he's a tight wad he's decided to try to push that cost onto someone who did a bit of work for him. That's my take on it anyway *shrug*.

gener8or

It is a good one and something I have considered before.

Next door needed to dig up my garage to check some foundations, no problem as long as it was restored, however their tradesman came round and plugged his numatic drill into my socket and didn't even ask me if he can use my electricity at my cost. In affect it was stealing. I made him plug it in next door and use an extension lead.

If a tradesman goes and turns the heating up becuase he is cold instead of getting a pullover from his van he is stealing from you.
Same as if he went to your cupboard and took a pack of crisps because he was hungrary.

fluffnutter

gener8or wrote: »

It is a good one and something I have considered before.

Next door needed to dig up my garage to check some foundations, no problem as long as it was restored, however their tradesman came round and plugged his numatic drill into my socket and didn't even ask me if he can use my electricity at my cost. In affect it was stealing. I made him plug it in next door and use an extension lead.

If a tradesman goes and turns the heating up becuase he is cold instead of getting a pullover from his van he is stealing from you.
Same as if he went to your cupboard and took a pack of crisps because he was hungrary.

I'll make sure I tell that to the next guest who pops round. If they're cold I'll tell them to bring a jumper. If they fancy a cup of tea I'll ask for a contribution to the cost of boiling the kettle.

These workmen were there at the OP's request. They should be afforded the same basic courtesy as a guest, IMO. I'm not suggesting you crack open the chablis and cook them a roast dinner but, yes, they should be able to boil your kettle, work in a heated environment and use the loo.

bris

gener8or wrote: »

It is a good one and something I have considered before.

Next door needed to dig up my garage to check some foundations, no problem as long as it was restored, however their tradesman came round and plugged his numatic drill into my socket and didn't even ask me if he can use my electricity at my cost. In affect it was stealing. I made him plug it in next door and use an extension lead.

If a tradesman goes and turns the heating up becuase he is cold instead of getting a pullover from his van he is stealing from you.
Same as if he went to your cupboard and took a pack of crisps because he was hungrary.

Talk about a tight wad, plugging a drill in would use less than a half pence of electricity and letting a work man freeze on the job is just cruel, is your real name Ebonezer by any chance?

[Deleted User]

Big pet hate is when tradesmen plug their phone chargers in and radios.

We all agree they need access to electricity for tools, but charging up phones is basically stealing. We are not allowed to charge phones up at work either.