Last week one of my buddies suffered a broken ankle at a construction site and he asked me to complete a job for him. He had a deadline to meet on one particular job, putting in a hardwood floor in an apartment, and I agreed to take the reins with minimal cost to him. (Read that as being for practically free.) I spent a couple days pouring in Quikrete, a fast-drying cement and trowelling it smooth, adding layer and layer to make the surface of the floor in question level, since one part of the room sank, making a slope. For far so good. Putting in the floor would be a snap.
But when I got to the site this morning, there was a crew of cement grunts pouring in a new patio, and it was my understanding that they were not to be there until this Friday. I asked the foreman why they jumped the gun, and his reply was that they decided to just do it early, why not? I pointed out that the patio was directly in front of the door to the apartment where I was working, so getting in would be a tricky proposition. I tried to improvise by suggesting that I lay a wooden plank over the wet cement to faciilitate my entry to my job, without causing any damage to their ongoing work. He said, "Nope, not going to happen."
I pointed out that I had two more days to complete my assignment before breaching a contract, and he said "Tough titty."
Now, I noticed that these clowns just poured in the cement for the patio without putting in gravel first. And not only that, they did not put in wire meshing or steel rebars, which is required for this sort of work. So....Since I knew the landlord, I went to his office and informed him of the shoddy nature of the work being done. He got on the phone and called a city engineer, and about an hour later, the landlord, the inspector, and the whole zoo were hotly debating the issue at the site.
The cement foreman was glaring at me, his face beet-red, as I was smiling whimsically while the city honcho was telling him that he would have to replace the ongoing work and do it over again and do it right this time, dammit.
The murderous looks I got from the crew as I waved goodbye from my truck is something to remember.
Poor bastards. I figure it will take them all day at their own expense to haul away the drying cement to start all over again.
Tough titty.
But when I got to the site this morning, there was a crew of cement grunts pouring in a new patio, and it was my understanding that they were not to be there until this Friday. I asked the foreman why they jumped the gun, and his reply was that they decided to just do it early, why not? I pointed out that the patio was directly in front of the door to the apartment where I was working, so getting in would be a tricky proposition. I tried to improvise by suggesting that I lay a wooden plank over the wet cement to faciilitate my entry to my job, without causing any damage to their ongoing work. He said, "Nope, not going to happen."
I pointed out that I had two more days to complete my assignment before breaching a contract, and he said "Tough titty."
Now, I noticed that these clowns just poured in the cement for the patio without putting in gravel first. And not only that, they did not put in wire meshing or steel rebars, which is required for this sort of work. So....Since I knew the landlord, I went to his office and informed him of the shoddy nature of the work being done. He got on the phone and called a city engineer, and about an hour later, the landlord, the inspector, and the whole zoo were hotly debating the issue at the site.
The cement foreman was glaring at me, his face beet-red, as I was smiling whimsically while the city honcho was telling him that he would have to replace the ongoing work and do it over again and do it right this time, dammit.
The murderous looks I got from the crew as I waved goodbye from my truck is something to remember.
Poor bastards. I figure it will take them all day at their own expense to haul away the drying cement to start all over again.
Tough titty.
Last edited:
