# Typical Arkansas Customer



## plumbpro (Mar 10, 2010)

Went on a call last Tuesday afternoon to a retired couples house for a leaky tub/shower faucet. It was a 3 handle sterling with a water notch in one of the seats, and I didn't have any seats that would fit. It's a 40 year old faucet and they had copper plumbing with easy access, so I told them I could resurface the seat there, or replace with a Delta single handle that I had on the truck. They decided to just fix what was there. I fix the seat, replace the washers, everything is good again. He mentions there is another one in the other bathroom that has the same problem, but his son in law is coming over tomorrow to "fix it". I said are you sure, I can fix it now, no problem. No, no he'll fix it tomorrow. Get paid and leave. 
Thursday night at 6pm they call me and say I need to come right away because the one the son in law fixed will not shut off. So I go out at an overtime rate and take apart the other one. It's a broken stem that isn't seating properly, nothing I can do to stop it completely. On top of this the cheapo seats that the son in law put in are lead free brass that were overtightened and snapped at the shoulder. I tell them I can replace this one with the delta I have and probrably be done in an hour, but I have to cut a hole in the sheetrock on the otherside of the wall. 
They don't want that, just order another stem and come back to put it in. So I take the old seats and put them back in and am on my way in 10 min. They were still charged for an hour of course. 
This is pretty typical tightwadery in Arkansas. They are going to end up in the same boat again, and for the same price in the end that they could have had a new faucet. 
Irritating is what it is.


----------



## breid1903 (Feb 8, 2009)

in indiana i get that also. i tell them that it can't be fixed, new is where it's at. if they say no, well i still get an 1 hour service call. breid................:rockon:


----------



## SlickRick (Sep 3, 2009)

I'm glad I don't live in Arkansas.


----------



## Associated Plum (Nov 4, 2008)

breid1903 said:


> in indiana i get that also. i tell them that it can't be fixed, new is where it's at. if they say no, well i still get an 1 hour service call. breid................:rockon:


And what are they going to think and tell other people when someone else comes in a repairs it? Or can get the parts when someone tells them they are no longer available?


----------



## Epox (Sep 19, 2010)

Associated Plum said:


> And what are they going to think and tell other people when someone else comes in a repairs it? Or can get the parts when someone tells them they are no longer available?


I never tell them it can't be fixed, I do tell them the money spent on finding and getting parts for an OLD unit would be better used if towards a new fixture. They most always agree and let me do it.


----------



## bartnc37 (Feb 24, 2009)

On shower valves its an easy sell. That little pressure balance feature has sold me countless new shower valves, especially in older house piped in all 1/2. Just ask if they ever get burned/frozen when someone turns on the ks or flushes a w.c and if they would like that to stop happening. In one house I ended up changing all three after i changed the first one because they liked it so much. 
Even with lavs many of the older customers really prefer the single handle over the small knobs and handles of their old faucets. I often end up going back and changing them all after i do the first one.


----------



## greenscoutII (Aug 27, 2008)

Pueblo is the same way. Pueblo is also FULL of old three handle Sterling and Union Brass as well. Folks down here seldom want to change em' out for a modern single lever even when they're having the tub re-tiled. Strange....


----------



## ckoch407 (Sep 30, 2009)

bartnc37 said:


> On shower valves its an easy sell. That little pressure balance feature has sold me countless new shower valves, especially in older house piped in all 1/2. Just ask if they ever get burned/frozen when someone turns on the ks or flushes a w.c and if they would like that to stop happening. In one house I ended up changing all three after i changed the first one because they liked it so much.
> Even with lavs many of the older customers really prefer the single handle over the small knobs and handles of their old faucets. I often end up going back and changing them all after i do the first one.


Ditto. Works like a charm. Communicating product features that benefit the client. So easy a caveman could do it.


----------



## plumbpro (Mar 10, 2010)

bartnc37 said:


> On shower valves its an easy sell. That little pressure balance feature has sold me countless new shower valves, especially in older house piped in all 1/2. Just ask if they ever get burned/frozen when someone turns on the ks or flushes a w.c and if they would like that to stop happening. In one house I ended up changing all three after i changed the first one because they liked it so much.
> Even with lavs many of the older customers really prefer the single handle over the small knobs and handles of their old faucets. I often end up going back and changing them all after i do the first one.


Went through the exact pitch, no go. The wife didn't want me to cut a hole in sheetrock to pull the old 3 handle. I even showed her an access panel that would cover the hole.


----------



## bartnc37 (Feb 24, 2009)

I use those oatey 9 by 11 inch access panels, they work like a charm and actually look pretty goos when its all said and done.


----------



## Master Mark (Aug 14, 2009)

*Indiana south side hole*

get a call from a lady today, and I knew it was going to be bad because she says
 dont comeover before noon cause she has to clean the place up a little and move 
some stuff around so I can get to the water heater.....

basically she had to hose all the cat crap from the summer
down the drain so I can reach the water heater, then when 
she gets it clean enough she see that its only the faucet on
the bottom of the heater leaking............:laughing::laughing:

the smell was enough to knock you down , and my price to
repair it was high as hell too..... 


so we got the heck out of there in 3 minutes.....
told her to call us back if she wanted it fixed..:thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## breid1903 (Feb 8, 2009)

ap in all honesty i can not remember when it didn't get replaced. breid................:rockon:


----------



## plumbpro (Mar 10, 2010)

breid1903 said:


> ap in all honesty i can not remember when it didn't get replaced. breid................:rockon:


I'll replace it now, went over there today and replaced the broken stem, and it still leaks. If I shine a bright light back into the faucet body, at just the right angle, I can make out a hairline nick right where the seat "seats". The old seat from last time was overtightened by the son inlaw an broke at the shoulder. Apparently from then until I changed the seat last week, water grooved the body. He still wanted me to see if I could grind it down and make it work. No, at this point I will only replace the faucet. Not messin with this 40 yr old sterling no mo.


----------



## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

plumbpro said:


> Went on a call last Tuesday afternoon to a retired couples house for a leaky tub/shower faucet. It was a 3 handle sterling with a water notch in one of the seats, and I didn't have any seats that would fit. It's a 40 year old faucet and they had copper plumbing with easy access, so I told them I could resurface the seat there, or replace with a Delta single handle that I had on the truck. They decided to just fix what was there. I fix the seat, replace the washers, everything is good again. He mentions there is another one in the other bathroom that has the same problem, but his son in law is coming over tomorrow to "fix it". I said are you sure, I can fix it now, no problem. No, no he'll fix it tomorrow. Get paid and leave.
> Thursday night at 6pm they call me and say I need to come right away because the one the son in law fixed will not shut off. So I go out at an overtime rate and take apart the other one. It's a broken stem that isn't seating properly, nothing I can do to stop it completely. On top of this the cheapo seats that the son in law put in are lead free brass that were overtightened and snapped at the shoulder. I tell them I can replace this one with the delta I have and probrably be done in an hour, but I have to cut a hole in the sheetrock on the otherside of the wall.
> They don't want that, just order another stem and come back to put it in. So I take the old seats and put them back in and am on my way in 10 min. They were still charged for an hour of course.
> This is pretty typical tightwadery in Arkansas. They are going to end up in the same boat again, and for the same price in the end that they could have had a new faucet.
> Irritating is what it is.


 
My advice: Never, I mean never tell a customer 'no problem' with regard to a task. If they hear 'no problem' then get the bill, they'll ask, "why is the price this high? You said Mr. Plumber it was no problem."


----------



## plumbpro (Mar 10, 2010)

No problem to continue getting paid, sir.


----------

