How much is that going to cost?

[mikester]

Through my work as a land surveyor I worked for a civil engineering firm. We often had people come in with a project in mind with no understanding of the scope or cost. The one that comes to mind was the chief of police who wanted to expand his gun range. He wanted hundreds of feet of berms fifteen feet high. He thought a guy with a bulldozer would come in and do it in a day. I did a rough earthwork calculation and assigned a rough dollar amount per cubic yard of earth, it was a several hundred thousand dollar project. I explained to him the scope of the project and cost. His reaction? Never mind.

Anybody else have good examples of this. I picture Eddie Walker and others who do remodels having some good ones. Same for those that do construction.

Unfortunately I get people all the time thinking I should deliver products for free, work for free, and give them a discount from wholesale prices for a one time sale on a low dollar value item. Usually it's the people who have never done any kind of manual labour in their lives and don't know which end of the hammer to hold driving a new Mercedes or BMW SUV they are making payents on they can't afford.

 

[BleedingOrange]

Interesting thread. I have heard from a few friends that are in the trades that the two hardest and most frustrating professional groups to deal with are lawyers and teachers. Very tough to get final payments, for some strange reasons.

 

[4570Man]

But valleys in lake effect snow county are problems. Penetrations or not. Jon

If ice dams are a routine problem you need more insulation in the attic.

 

[ponytug]

If ice dams are a routine problem you need more insulation in the attic.

True, but you can get ice dams lost of ways. I think it isn't just ice dams though, it is that the dormers and other roof features act as snow barriers and accumulate extra snow on the roof adding to the snow load. Lake effect snow can be intense.

Ice dams and sliding snow are another whole can of worms. I have watched folks put up "solar roofs" that are smooth glass shingles, and yes, you guessed it, sliding snow and ice are now a real hazard.

YMMV...

All the best,

Peter