Went to the park to get some work done

"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion) 04/26/2019 at 23:28 • Filed to: None

1

13

And what do I find in the lakeside condominium next to said park?

I declined accepting the contract for this particular job about 8 months ago due to safety concerns, and a property manager who wanted it done for under $1500. Now there’s a 60+ year old guy doing it solo, dragging a 40' ladder around the entire building.

If you’ve ever manhandled a 40' solo, you understand. If you haven’t been graced with such an opportunity, count yourself among the lucky...

I’m glad I’m not doing this one. Over 100 decks to climb up, 600+ deck rails, 1600+ additional panes, and 120+ different ladder placements needed for the 40' alone. Brutal. I’m guessing if this guy really busts ass he could do it in three long days. That’s all assuming he’s only doing the exteriors, of course.

Could be worse. The entire building could be new construction 

wafflesnfalafel > AestheticsInMotion 04/26/2019 at 23:36

3

F ive bucks the dude isn’t insured either....he falls and the association is in a world of hurt.  Juanita... you know all those folks are loaded too..

AestheticsInMotion > wafflesnfalafel 04/26/2019 at 23:40

3

I don’t know, I’d guess he’s insured as an LLC. The guy I dealt with when bidding this place out initially gave me ten pages to fill out in order to meet the HOA’s guidelines. I don’t * think* they’d hire someone who posed a risk to them. 

There’s over 600 of these one-man window cleaning operations just in this area, and most of them do pretty fantastic work. They just either aren’t interested in growth or don’t know how to grow

Chariotoflove > AestheticsInMotion 04/26/2019 at 23:41

1

You can always find someone desperate enough to do a job in your price range if you look hard enough...and/or are willing to accept compromises.

Urambo Tauro > AestheticsInMotion 04/26/2019 at 23:54

2

I tried to ascend a 40' ladder once . C ouldn’t bring myself to go any higher than half-way. I just froze there , hugg ing the ladder tightly against my chest. Guess I fou nd my limit.

shop-teacher > Urambo Tauro 04/27/2019 at 00:03

2

Its no exaggeration that ladders and roofs kept me in college.

shop-teacher > AestheticsInMotion 04/27/2019 at 00:03

0

Gadamn!

DipodomysDeserti > AestheticsInMotion 04/27/2019 at 00:30

1

I was on a ladder fixing up the roof on my single story house today. It was our first 100 degree day, and there’s no way I’d do this shit on a property I didn’t own.

AestheticsInMotion > DipodomysDeserti 04/27/2019 at 01:39

0

I have no idea how crews do it in your area. 100 is the max around here, and we’ll see most summers go by without even cracking triple digits.

I've melted shoes pretty bad in 90° weather on asphalt shingles... 

AestheticsInMotion > Chariotoflove 04/27/2019 at 01:41

2

Yep. Unfortunately I’m guessing it’s a case of an older guy pricing jobs out the same way he did it 30+ years ago. I’m sure he still makes a decent living , but it hurts me to think he’s likely charging 2 0x less than the competition that would do a job 10x worse than him.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > AestheticsInMotion 04/27/2019 at 05:59

2

*looks at ladder*

my fear of heights is especially bad on ladders

Khalbali > AestheticsInMotion 04/27/2019 at 07:29

0

Our biggest ladders are 32' and that's a PITA so I can only imagine.

This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: > AestheticsInMotion 04/27/2019 at 09:20

0

I’ve solo’d 40 footers before. $1500 for an entire condo complex is an insult at best.

I'd probably counter their offer by telling them I would pay 2 grand to see them do it themselves.

DipodomysDeserti > AestheticsInMotion 04/27/2019 at 11:14

0

Working on a roof crew would absolutely suck. I was getting burned through my pants, and this was at 10:30 when it was only 80 out. I couldn’t imagine doing this in  the middle of August when it’s been 110 for weeks straight.