... Got a new one for you all,..although,it was my helper this time,and not me.We were roughing in for a kitchen renovation,and there was plywood sheathing nailed to the tops of the ceiling joists that had to be cut out from underneath to make way for recessed cans in the ceiling.I assigned the task to my 2 yr. man,feeling confident in his ability to use a "Sawz-All",and extricate the sheathing from our lighting areas....Within a few minutes of sawing,I hear,.."Sh*t,...shut off the gas"...I almost had a coronary,..(once again) when I saw what he'd done.He managed to "Ginsu" thru a 3/4" flexible gas line [you know,that yellow stuff,plastic outside,and corrugated metal flex on the inside,..] that was run thru the ceiling,on top of the plywood,and instantly the room filled with gas.I ran and disconnected the string of temp lights we had,and made a mad dash to the basement,and met the carpenter there,who said he'd shut the gas off....O.K.,I ran back upstairs only to see the H.O.,freaking out,and gas still pouring out of the cut piping.I ran back downstairs and yelled to the Mexican carpenter,"I thought you said you shut off the gas"...he replied in broken English,.."I deed",..I then said "Where is the shut-off?",..and he brought me into the boiler room,and pointed to the boiler gas shut-off...I then ran frantically thru the basement and located the MAIN shut-off,as there was no gas-cock for the flex line,(although in my opinion,there should've been one).We were running around like a pair of Keystone Cops..[you could just hear the rag-time piano playing in the background]I returned to the 1st floor to face the music,and call my "buddy" the plumber.He came by within a half hour and told the H.O. that he could easily splice the line by installing a union...She wanted no part of that,and insisted on a replacement line.The total run was about 50',or so,and he called his supply house to order it.Then came the bad news...it only comes in 100' lengths/coils,and it was gonna cost around $350.00 just for the flex tubing..plus the special fittings that go with it.I told him to go get it,and he returned with the stuff and together we pulled a new line across the ceiling...At the end,it cost me $629.00 and I paid him then and there.My "buddy" charged me $200.00,and the stuff cost $429.00 with tax...I was fuming,...I didn't speak to my helper that day,..as I had to cool down,but the next day,I told him he'd be paying half.I'll eat half,but I'll be damned if I gotta pay the whole thing...I told him if he didn't want to pay for his mistakes,..he'd better be more careful..I think he learned his lesson.I probably could've fixed it myself,but I hate gas,and God Forbid something went wrong(er)[is there such a word??]...I let a Pro do it,and I feel better,as well as the H.O...
You just can't make this stuff up,...
Russ
[This message has been edited by Attic Rat (edited 10-30-2004).]
