How busy are you at the moment

[Ty Korrigan]

9 hours ago, doobin said:

Huge uptick in the amount of people (well, wives and girlfriends) responding to ‘recommend a tradesman’ posts on FB. 

That is how it works on the Brittany expat pages with the female partners pushing their handyman husband at anything going and for mere centimes.

[Ty Korrigan]

Aside from my local council work, larger jobs have generally been thin on the ground which also being down a climber suits me well enough as it has pushed me into climbing more.

I was so low on April work that in March I canceled the next work experience lad.

Then these last two weeks the enquiries have picked up.

I've just won a €5k single tree job, I get one or two most years.

A large dead purple beech.

MEWP job this one.

The client told me I wasn't the lowest quote but he felt I was the best man for the job.

Frenchmen don't normally say nice things to Brits so that rather made my week.

 

[Dan Maynard]

1 hour ago, pleasant said:

dragging their mowers out with stale fuel in them

This might make you laugh then, I dragged mine out today for first cut this year, it's an over 20 year old Honda, left nearly full of fuel from last year (Esso super).

 

Started first pull.

[daveatdave]

might be to do with the high street shops and banks closing down and the higher fuel bills 

council tax and water rate bill have just come through the letterbox and increased in price never mind holidays  

[AHPP]

1 hour ago, Ty Korrigan said:

 

The client told me I wasn't the lowest quote but he felt I was the best man for the job.

Frenchmen don't normally say nice things to Brits so that rather made my week.

 

 

You're insured and he's teeing you up to pay for something that's already broken, rosbif scum.

[gand]

2 hours ago, pleasant said:

Flat out at the moment, earning lots to cover for the July and August period when people go away for half term and the grass stops growing, so it's generally quiet and we can then allocate staff holidays during that time.

 

If I could work 24 hours a day 7 days a week I could it's that busy with weekend warriors, dragging their mowers out with stale fuel in them ringing me up on Thursday morning before Easter weekend and want it serviced and repaired for the Saturday morning!!! When I point out we have a two nearing three week workload in at the moment...oh and it's Bank holiday Friday and Monday, I'm often met with ok, but I need it for Saturday I'm having a party. 'Are you off over Easter sir?'

 

'Yes'

 

'Well, so are my staff'

 

Same people that want to end Sunday shops and supermarkets opening to give 'hard working staff a break' yet are the same people who drive out on a Sunday to a pub for lunch, wander around a garden centre or go to the beach for an ice cream, fish and chips and go to the amusements, then stop for a costa coffee on way home whilst topping up the fuel tank in a petrol station......all premises of course staffed by people working on a Sunday.

 

Idiots

 

 

Sounds very familiar. Everybody wants their stuff back either the same day or the next! Some folks don't understand that we're flat out. We've got a couple of signs up saying it's a 3 week turn around, but yet they ring up 2 days after asking if it's fixed. This is usually domestic/semi pro customers/builders though.

[pleasant]

2 hours ago, Dan Maynard said:

This might make you laugh then, I dragged mine out today for first cut this year, it's an over 20 year old Honda, left nearly full of fuel from last year (Esso super).

 

Started first pull.

Esso super, although marked as e5 actually doesnt contain any ethanol at all so that probably helped. So if you want ethanol free fuel without going down the more expensive aspen route there is an option.

 

Here you go; read esso synergy supreme.

 

Synergy Fuels | Esso

WWW.ESSO.CO.UK

---

Esso branded service stations have a variety of Synergy fuel blends (grades) to help you get to where you're going...

 

Edited April 8, 2023 by pleasant

[Muddy42]

6 hours ago, pleasant said:

Esso super, although marked as e5 actually doesnt contain any ethanol at all so that probably helped. So if you want ethanol free fuel without going down the more expensive aspen route there is an option.

 

Here you go; read esso synergy supreme.

 

Synergy Fuels | Esso

WWW.ESSO.CO.UK

---

Esso branded service stations have a variety of Synergy fuel blends (grades) to help you get to where you're going...

 

Yes I take my jerry cans if I need to drive to England. I’d love to know where ‘North England’ starts. The forecourt people Ive asked dont seem to have a clue where their fuel comes from.

[Dan Maynard]

7 hours ago, pleasant said:

Esso super, although marked as e5 actually doesnt contain any ethanol at all

Yup, that's why I go for it. 

 

1 hour ago, Muddy42 said:

I’d love to know where ‘North England’ starts

I was born by the sea on the south coast so anything north of Basingstoke can be the north to me. More seriously I guess the petrol pipelines must run to Liverpool/Manchester/Leeds and probably Teeside, but maybe don't run across the Pennines to Lake District or Carlisle as not the population density.

[william127]

10 hours ago, Dan Maynard said:

This might make you laugh then, I dragged mine out today for first cut this year, it's an over 20 year old Honda, left nearly full of fuel from last year (Esso super).

 

Started first pull.

Had my generator out for the first time in a year last week, still full of fuel, half a pull and it was away👌👌

If a honda petrol doesn't start in a couple of pulls, somethings not right...

 

 

Work wise I've got more than enough on for my 1 man band landscaping 👍👍 

Not quite as busy as I was in the covid boom when I was turning away as much as I was doing, but not far off.

Not noticed a real change in attitude to quotes for big or small, but I have the advantage that people only come to me through recommendation or repeat business so they're normally pretty much decided before we start talking.