# Strange Client Requests



## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

Sorry bout the sideways pics. I even rotated them and sent them again and they still came out


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## Bonzai (Dec 23, 2009)

madrina said:


> Ok forget the text messages... Heres the project Im working on for the guy I said i was going toe to toe with...
> The floor was sagging in the middle Also the corner im standing in to take this pic is 2 inches lower than the other end of the hall. The right side of the wall is an inch higher than the left and to complicate things even more they laid the tile over laminate in the bathroom and over hardy in the hall. I can get the floor level no prob. But it still wont match up to the rest because the hardy its laid on is thinner than the the one he bought and its thicker than laminate... OooOOH AND i had to pop the tile off without breaking them because he didnt want to spend money on more. and the best part is... HE GAVE ME A $50 GIFT CARD TO BUY MATERIALS.


What does your contract say about supplying materials and about resolving any hidden issues?


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## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

Bonzai said:


> What does your contract say about supplying materials and about resolving any hidden issues?


Point taken.. But this is one of those non contract jobs.. This guy was actually one of my first customers back in the day and he knew I was broke so he would throw odd jobs to me every time he had somethin. I live a street over from 6 of his rent houses so he asked me to be the property manager...{years ago} and its just kinda gone from there.. All the tenants I leased his places to are still here and I made sure to lease to the DYI people..so I havent had to do anything over here for a while. If there was anything, it was a one person job and he doesnt care WHEN i do it...just as long as it gets done. I dont mind cuz I like workin.. doin this and that.. Its my hobby to tinker ya know. Plus every job is a learning experience.. Or at least i learn how NOT to do it next time. Lol. so these ppl moved and when i did a walk thru it was just raggity.. I opened my big mouth about what all was wrong over here and there ya go. Plus over the years we have become friends and I havent forgotten that he helped me out so I help him out too. I know my budget is going to be unworkable and he knows Im going to go over it. We fight and yell and then we get over it. Lol.


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## ModernStyle (May 7, 2007)

I have had people ask that I not wear my standard uniform of Daisy Duke shorts and mesh tank top. Very odd request.


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## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

ModernStyle said:


> I have had people ask that I not wear my standard uniform of Daisy Duke shorts and mesh tank top. Very odd request.


That is odd. Maybe its offensive to see your balls squish out either side when you squat down..


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## ModernStyle (May 7, 2007)

It's not polite to stare.


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## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

Absolutely. I am embarrassed for my behavior. My parents taught me better than that.


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## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

so wow.. this may be why i am so bitter... the floor job i was working on... yeah.. told the homeowner about the difference in the levels.. difference in the material.. everytime I started to talk, he would say.. its just a rent house, it doesnt have to be perfect. dont make it more difficult than it is.. I said, um whats difficult is having to do this job the wrong way and not having enuf materials to do it the wrong way. He said, Its my property just do it.. ok i dont care if the tiles match up. SO i worked til 7 am put the subfloor as level as I could or at least tried to make the 2 inch difference not so noticable... jUST LIKE HE WANTED IT DONE and guess what?> he called me the next day and said "the tile levels are not going to be even the way you did the floor" OMG YA DONT SAY I said yes i know I tried to explain that to you yesterday. he said well what are your suggestions.. i said are you f**&&^% serious? well my suggestions are for you to keep listening to everybody but the person that is doing the work and keep telling yourself what you kept telling me "that its a rent house and it doesnt have to be perfect." 
he said, Im not complaining about the structural part, i just want to do it differently from here. I want you to pull up the hardy board and I am going to lay a thin coat of thinset on the wood and then you can lay the tile on that.

I said Im not pulling up s^%. I did it exactly like you wanted me to do it and Im not undoing it. If i pull up the hardy I have to pull up the subfloor too because I only had one sheet of plywood and the subfloor is in about 7 pieces and they dont all touch. furthermore the wood is going to suck all the water out of the thinset and that is not going to be a sound or level surface. 

he said, its my property so i am doing what i want to do to my property. pull up the hardy board. 

i said.. once again, i am not going to pull up the hardy board. but go ahead and ignore what im telling you and figure that out for yourself. I am done doing jobs in this manner for you. I understand you trying to save money but save it in the right places. From now on if you want things done the wrong way, call someone else. 

Then he said fine just leave me the tool to pull up the hardy board. 

lol..RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIGHT. if you dont know what tool was used to secure hardy to plywood, you probably should stay your a$$ out of the project.


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## tenon0774 (Feb 7, 2013)

Kick space drawers UNDER the cabinets.

http://www.contractortalk.com/images/forums/attach/jpg.gif

:thumbsup:


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## stillstoked (Sep 17, 2009)

I'm still on the liquid rubber roof. I got a call from a lady that had that done to her house. the roof wasn't leaking but as I pulled up to her place I thought "are those shingles? no, what is that?" come to find out it was a decorative metal roof with what looked like tar all over it. I think a paver came by and told them that their roof needed retaring. what a mess. 

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EXj7Lko1N0s&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DEXj7Lko1N0s

I couldn't find the video. it said The address wasn't understood.


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## Bonzai (Dec 23, 2009)

Had my electrician and remediation guys looking over a place yesterday. The lady had some "handyman" guy do a bunch of work a few years ago and she thought everything was fine. That's what he told her. So she starts telling us how surprised she is that there are 12 or more live illegal junctions in the attic (the guy told her he only did one), and she is shocked that the mould from the kitchen hood vent which isn't connected to the roof vent he installed has affected all of the attic, and when I explain that the dryer vent venting in to the crawl space under the floor or the hot water tank drywalled in behind a closet with no access is not going to be good news either ... Well we are all trying to tell her I isn't going to be a cheap fix. We proceed to give her some numbers for curing her mould problem, rewiring, etc. surprise surprise she wants a cheap fix ... Sorry there isn't one we explain.. That's how you're in this mess by years of cheap fixes by someone that didn't care or know what they were doing.
Even after all this she still doesn't get it and is asking if its such a big deal.

On to the next job lol


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## FramingPro (Jan 31, 2010)

A client for an upcoming job said we cannot work saturdays.... 7th day adventist.... WHAT AM I GONNA DO ON SATURDAYS???????


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## MarkJames (Nov 25, 2012)

I had a guy who asked if I could install an LCD TV sideways against his glass shower panel. He wanted the effect of frolicking playmates next to him as he showered. I passed on that job.


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## overanalyze (Dec 28, 2010)

MarkJames said:


> I had a guy who asked if I could install an LCD TV sideways against his glass shower panel. He wanted the effect of frolicking playmates next to him as he showered. I passed on that job.


Ha..hilarious...what a wack job!


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

I had a beautiful lady client ask me if she could take a picture of my . 
Being the business man I am, I politely denied her request.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

skyhook said:


> I had a beautiful lady client ask me if she could take a picture of my .
> Being the business man I am, I politely denied her request.


iwould hav donit if shewashott


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

Mavis Leonard said:


> iwould hav donit if shewashott


She was very hott. She was also married.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

skyhook said:


> She was very hott. She was also married.


so wat if shee justwanted to seeand haav a pictur thats not cheeting


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## heavy_d (Dec 4, 2012)

FramingPro said:


> A client for an upcoming job said we cannot work saturdays.... 7th day adventist.... WHAT AM I GONNA DO ON SATURDAYS???????


Work on your new truck!


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## MarkJames (Nov 25, 2012)

We were in the final hours of upgrading and staging a house for sale (just like on tv!). All repairs, tweaks, upgrades done. Cleaning crew done. Staging crew finishing up. Opening was next day.

In the middle of the afternoon the staging boss, who had carte blanche on decision-making, then decided she needed a chandelier over the dining room table because the look was all wrong. Table was already set in this fancy, elaborate way. But there was no center junction box since the dining area had 4 recessed lights instead. They were in disbelief when I told them there wasn't time to get it done (source the light, get electrician there, switch it separetely, patch holes, paint., etc for tomorrow morning?? Right! You know that glassy look of disbelief you see in some clients' eyes, like when what you're explaining and it's just not registering? That was the look.


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## B.Scott (Feb 1, 2013)

tenon0774 said:


> Kick space drawers UNDER the cabinets.
> 
> http://www.contractortalk.com/images/forums/attach/jpg.gif
> 
> :thumbsup:


Tenon,

That looks great.
If you could post more pictures as the job progresses that would be great. If you wanted to start a thread on that project I'd love to read more about it. Is that the new 1/2" kreg drill setup for the drawers? How do you like it? Will the cabinets sit on top and overhang the front? Looks like a kitchen am I right?

There is another guy on here named Tom that does a lot with drawers in vanities and such. 

Bob


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## tenon0774 (Feb 7, 2013)

Thanks Bob,

Yes, we used the Kreg and 1/2" pre-finished plywood with 1/4" bottoms
because the budget was so tight.

I just came across those pictures from last fall and thought they were interesting because no one had ever asked us to do anything like that before.

1 full day in the shop, 1 full day for install...all 17 of them.

Yes, kitchen cabinets.

I'll have to find the rest of the finished pictures.

http://www.contractortalk.com/images/forums/attach/jpg.gif


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## wizzer (Aug 21, 2008)

I once had a guy who said he was a pharmacist . He had a walk in closet with file cabinet type drawers, each drawer about the size of a bundle of copier paper . Stacks of drawers from counter top to about 3 ft. from the ceiling . Covering 3 walls . Filled with pills , all mixed together . A white dust covered everything . Above the drawer were about 6 desk fans screwed to the walls . And a toilet .

He explained that this was his office , and spent all of his day in there .
He kept breaking regular office chairs , so he was using the toilet as a chair . He wanted wheels put on the toilet so he could roll around , like a regular desk chair .
I said I could put the toilet on a dolly , but he wanted casters mounted onto the toilet . 
And 6 more desk fans mounted to the walls .



I was happy to get out of there ........ never returned his calls .


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

wizzer said:


> I once had a guy who said he was a pharmacist . He had a walk in closet with file cabinet type drawers, each drawer about the size of a bundle of copier paper . Stacks of drawers from counter top to about 3 ft. from the ceiling . Covering 3 walls . Filled with pills , all mixed together . A white dust covered everything . Above the drawer were about 6 desk fans screwed to the walls . And a toilet .
> 
> He explained that this was his office , and spent all of his day in there .
> He kept breaking regular office chairs , so he was using the toilet as a chair . He wanted wheels put on the toilet so he could roll around , like a regular desk chair .
> ...




Damn!


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## Carpenter eyes (Jan 10, 2012)

wizzer said:


> I once had a guy who said he was a pharmacist . He had a walk in closet with file cabinet type drawers, each drawer about the size of a bundle of copier paper . Stacks of drawers from counter top to about 3 ft. from the ceiling . Covering 3 walls . Filled with pills , all mixed together . A white dust covered everything . Above the drawer were about 6 desk fans screwed to the walls . And a toilet .
> 
> He explained that this was his office , and spent all of his day in there .
> He kept breaking regular office chairs , so he was using the toilet as a chair . He wanted wheels put on the toilet so he could roll around , like a regular desk chair .
> ...


I had to read this a few times to grasp it all


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## offshorehs (Oct 20, 2010)

I had a regular customer who regularly praises me for my honesty ask me to face nail some pressure treated strips of wood to a rotten sill plate in a basement. I don't think that she ever fully understood why I objected. I tried to explain to her that I'm normally the guy hired after that type of work to repair it properly. She eventually hired me to cut out and replace the rot


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## Metro M & L (Jun 3, 2009)

I once met with a client who wanted me to sand black tar mastic off the hardwoods of the common hallways in her 20 unit apartment building. Explained to her it's asbestos, it would need to be abated and really she should lay a new floor. "No, no no can't you just sand it off that would be cheaper right?" 

I think that was about the closest I've ever been to breaking a woman's nose.


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## littlefred811 (Dec 16, 2012)

I'd bet the cheap ***** found some idiot to sand that garbage, too....


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## Carpenter eyes (Jan 10, 2012)

Before i say anything i am an enployee. This was for a side job

My buddys uncle wanted a roof repair done, rip off some shingles, new sheating bla bla bla.

Sure i can do that i told him. Give me x amount up front and ill start this weekend i told him.

Gives me x amount and then offered me a beer. 

Its 1230pm. On a friday.

I say no thank you of course

He then tells me "if im gonna pay ya, your gonna drink with me."

Had my hired help drive me home that day


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## overanalyze (Dec 28, 2010)

Carpenter eyes said:


> Before i say anything i am an enployee. This was for a side job
> 
> My buddys uncle wanted a roof repair done, rip off some shingles, new sheating bla bla bla.
> 
> ...


Hindsight is always 20/20....not the smartest thing to do while on a side job and on a roof...if there's a next time, politely delay the drinks till your finished....


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## Carpenter eyes (Jan 10, 2012)

overanalyze said:


> Hindsight is always 20/20....not the smartest thing to do while on a side job and on a roof...if there's a next time, politely delay the drinks till your finished....


I didnt start till saturday afternoon. He just needed to let some steam off because he was goin through a rough time with his wife. Ive known the man a long time so i didnt mind knockin back a few with him. Good guy, little on the crazy side


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

I am emloyeee to one custome alwayslikd me workinon her additio afterhrs she wasusullyalmstnaked littlebikini andstuf shewnted seks w me we r gettinmarried in may:thumbsup: nt alll strange requesbad older gals know howto luvgood:thumbsup:


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## overanalyze (Dec 28, 2010)

Carpenter eyes said:


> I didnt start till saturday afternoon. He just needed to let some steam off because he was goin through a rough time with his wife. Ive known the man a long time so i didnt mind knockin back a few with him. Good guy, little on the crazy side


My bad, I just re-read your post. I thought you drank, then got up on the roof. Your drank after making the sale on Friday. Never mind....carry on.


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## Carpenter eyes (Jan 10, 2012)

overanalyze said:


> My bad, I just re-read your post. I thought you drank, then got up on the roof. Your drank after making the sale on Friday. Never mind....carry on.


Im just a dumb carpenter, not that dumb though.


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## ohiohomedoctor (Dec 26, 2010)

Mavis Leonard said:


> so wat if shee justwanted to seeand haav a pictur thats not cheeting


Yes it is. Showing your junk to some broad especially a client is not only wrong to your wife and her husband but just plain bad for business.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

ohiohomedoctor said:


> Yes it is. Showing your junk to some broad especially a client is not only wrong to your wife and her husband but just plain bad for business.


 mybe theyr swingerrs or openmariage she jus wnted to see an havea pic mabe she a artist or somthin i wouldjus mak sure she not get picof myface


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## overanalyze (Dec 28, 2010)

Carpenter eyes said:


> Im just a dumb carpenter, not that dumb though.


Me too, I can't even read posts correctly...lol!


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## ohiohomedoctor (Dec 26, 2010)

Mavis Leonard said:


> mybe theyr swingerrs or openmariage she jus wnted to see an havea pic mabe she a artist or somthin i wouldjus mak sure she not get picof myface


See bad for business section of my post.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

ohiohomedoctor said:


> See bad for business section of my post.



I didn thnk aboutthe busness prt bein employeeeis diffrent i see you r point my fianceeis a real openmind typp of gal she show mineto a gf of hers once if someone took a pic id just tellher she woul thin itws cute anfunny we not normalpeoples


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## ohiohomedoctor (Dec 26, 2010)

Mavis Leonard said:


> I didn thnk aboutthe busness prt bein employeeeis diffrent i see you r point my fianceeis a real openmind typp of gal she show mineto a gf of hers once if someone took a pic id just tellher she woul thin itws cute anfunny we not normalpeoples


This post need picture proof.:laughing:

As an employee this is even a worse idea...


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

ohiohomedoctor said:


> This post need picture proof.:laughing:
> 
> As an employee this is even a worse idea...


 be discreteabout stuff lik that like i say my gf is open about thatstuff she isa biker an much older thn me


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## Eric K (Nov 24, 2005)

Mavis Leonard said:


> be discreteabout stuff lik that like i say my gf is open about thatstuff she isa biker an much older thn me


Is your space bar and spell check broke?


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## ohiohomedoctor (Dec 26, 2010)

The guy was in an accident and is doing the best he can. Its almost football time again so watch it... :laughing:


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## Driftweed (Nov 7, 2012)

Hes actually gettin better at his typing.


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## Easy Gibson (Dec 3, 2010)

The rolling toilet post should have closed the thread.

There's no way it's getting stranger than that.

You definitely should have taken a picture, you know, for record keeping purposes.


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## Eric K (Nov 24, 2005)

ohiohomedoctor said:


> The guy was in an accident and is doing the best he can. Its almost football time again so watch it... :laughing:


I read thru his posts just now. I didn't know that. My apologizes. And as for the football thing, I ain't skeered.


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## Metro M & L (Jun 3, 2009)

Letting a client photgraph you naked would be a pretty good way to get blackmailed and or blacklisted.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

Metro M & L said:


> Letting a client photgraph you naked would be a pretty good way to get blackmailed and or blacklisted.


noface piks no prb shemay wnt inspartion fro priv tym


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

A doctor wanted me to jack up his concrete sidewalk, shore it, go underneath and dig /cut the tree root out that heaved said concrete.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

skyhook said:


> A doctor wanted me to jack up his concrete sidewalk, shore it, go underneath and dig /cut the tree root out that heaved said concrete.




:laughing:


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## B.Scott (Feb 1, 2013)

skyhook said:


> A doctor wanted me to jack up his concrete sidewalk, shore it, go underneath and dig /cut the tree root out that heaved said concrete.


You mean a simple rootectomy? That's day surgery.


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## Doctor Handyman (Mar 13, 2012)

This lady wanted a desk that would allow her small dog to stay close at her feet. 

Had to be designed so that the dog could access the backyard though a doggy door in the wall. 

She could close the inside cage so that the dog could come in during bad weather when she was gone or could leave the cage door open and allow it to roam about when she was home.

Here is my solution:


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## tenon0774 (Feb 7, 2013)

The "desk-kennel".

:thumbup:

-Scott


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## MattK (Apr 2, 2009)

Doctor Handyman said:


> This lady wanted a desk that would allow her small dog to stay close at her feet.
> 
> Had to be designed so that the dog could access the backyard though a doggy door in the wall.
> 
> ...


Hehe check that out...very creative


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## pdmig (Nov 21, 2010)

Mrmac204 said:


> The weirdest one that I can remember, a few years back I got a phone call from someone who had two leather couches that he wanted me to cut the frames, and then move them around a sharp corner to the other side of his house, then re-join the frames back together.
> 
> I tried to explain to him that it would ruin the couches, as there was no way to bring them back to original condition.


My sister in law hires special couch movers that cut the couch, move it then put it together. Funny but it is a specialty.


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## dkillianjr (Aug 28, 2006)

pdmig said:


> My sister in law hires special couch movers that cut the couch, move it then put it together. Funny but it is a specialty.




That reminds me of a job I did once. I guess you could say its a strange request. 

A customer of mine bought a huge headboard for her bed. When I say big I mean big! It wouldn't fit up the stairs to her second floor. 

So I took the brand new headboard and cut it in half then took it up stairs and reassembled it. It worked out great, you can't tell it was even cut.

Dave


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## Gbrogden (Feb 2, 2013)

The client I am currently building an addition for wanted me to build the roof and shingle it before I built the rest of the house underneath of it. He said I could just shore it up with 4x4's until the walls and floors were framed. Never could get him to understand why it was a bad idea.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

Gbrogden said:


> The client I am currently building an addition for wanted me to build the roof and shingle it before I built the rest of the house underneath of it. He said I could just shore it up with 4x4's until the walls and floors were framed. Never could get him to understand why it was a bad idea.


wy he aks that


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## Dmitry (Aug 23, 2010)

Mavis Leonard said:


> wy he aks that


Probably to keep the structure waterproof while being built.


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## Mavis Leonard (Mar 13, 2013)

Dmitry said:


> Probably to keep the structure waterproof while being built.



jus puta circus tent overth house


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