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Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:22 am
by local patios and driveway
Ever had a month like im having?
Dig out and have to wait two days for grab lorry, no one tells me, im paying wages while my guys sit around smoking!
Grab finally arrives with a bunch of excuses, "cant get this load dan theres not enough room"
I take the risk and put the grab on neighbours driveway... Doh its sunk, gonna have to re lay that now..
Hyd pipe goes on digger, lose another day while machine is stuck.
Finally we can get laying kerbs... Hang on where is our delivery of materials. Call up "oh its booked for next week sorry" wtf! Lose another day of wages. Its now costing me money to come to work
Right materials have arrived lets get to work... Oh the battery is flat no leads and missis has gone to work.... 
Labourer puts shovel through the virgin line despite being warned that it is there and not to work around that area..
Today we are on final day, cutting in last step and sanding... Oh no we aint... Starter motor has decided to pack up. Customer thinks im a right clown... I have to agree
Hope next month is smoother.
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 12:59 pm
by GB_Groundworks
virgin is easy fix its just coax, bind it back together either just twist it or use a block connector and bind with electric tape.
but yeah we all have those weeks,i was doing a new water main through a tough dig shale/bed rock hit the electric, water and gas twice 
all in 3 days was not popular with them haha.
grin and bare it mate, but you have our sympathies
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 1:33 pm
by local patios and driveway
Thanks giles. Doing a pipe just once is bad enough... That lot in three days is soul destroying
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 5:36 pm
by dig dug dan
hit the electric, water and gas twice
whats the procedure, and more importantly, cost involved with damage to gas pipes??
Edited By dig dug dan on 1322503896
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 5:57 pm
by DNgroundworks
I bust a 55mm and a 25mm on the same job in two days the other week, i phoned the emergency number they came within the hour, the gas gave us all headaches a 100ft away
Ive not paid a penny, partly because i knew the lads that came out and because both pipes were buried less than 100mm deep.
I bust a 50mm water main once got soaked trying to sort that out!
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 7:01 pm
by lutonlagerlout
its all very sticky with services
the CAT will pick up electric no problem,but gas and water may be in plastic or copper
But LAPD ,li fe is like that mate
just when things are starting to go well you get a few swerveballs thrown at ya
i was getting ahead the other week,then:
daughter's birthday £300
wifes car bill £380
insurance £330
all in a day
just felt i was getting a little bit of bunce for snow/etc and it was ripped from my grasp
LLL :;):
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 7:17 pm
by digerjones
hit the electric back in the spring on the local playing field. they came out and fixed it. bill was £440, was going to let insurance pay but the questions was a mine field and excess was £250, so paid up in the end. the depth was questioned, only 8'' deep and no tape. you have to pay because they say the ground could have been reduced.
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 7:45 pm
by local patios and driveway
So what are the rules that services are supposed to work to regarding depths etc?
I did a gas line that was an inch under ground, they told me that was perfectly acceptable
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:27 pm
by DNgroundworks
Yes apparantley there is no minimum depth for a gas pipe on private land (if installed before such and such a date), so they told me anyhow , so a highly flammable substance can just be chucked in a trench any old depth, no level/staright dig and no tape seems mad to me. The bloke that came out i knew, only by chance, he put the 55mm down to a leaking coupling and the second down to being too shallow.
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:36 pm
by Dave_L
63mm gas service we are going to be putting in Jan 2012 has to be 600mm deep, in a perf 150mm duct with marker tape 75mm above. Know the feeling about shallow moled-in gas service pipes!
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:39 pm
by GB_Groundworks
yep no depth to gas, i carry a squeeze off to jump in squeeze off gas or water, and then temp fix with water fittings to get ppl back on gas or to permantently fix water, i carry a recycling box in my truck of fittings for all sizes and off cuts of pipe right upto 100mm 
handy trust me.
Gas is trickier as you need to weld the joints although the water connectors done right dont leak, so its either call national grid out on emerengy number and get hit with like £1800 bill or phone a friend with a joint welder for £200
electric if you just catch it and dont break the cores then clean it up and use a resin repair £25 from city electrical facctors etc always worth having one in your truck, obviously be careful around the live cable or again call useless utilities and get £1500 repair bill or keep the number of the live jointing lads when they come to connect you and ring them, thats a £350 cash job now for them as they are sat tracked and have to bung some cash up to managers.
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:41 pm
by ilovesettsonmondays
my mate went through electric on a saturday morning and took out the afternoon matinee and evening performance of sister act at the london palladium ,imagine the bill for that ??? :p
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:49 pm
by Dave_L
Also Denso tape is very useful at times.
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 10:03 pm
by GB_Groundworks
denso tape is a life saver always get some rolls of it of the gas lads, those lads will sell you anything out there vans haha
its only a temp fix till the weld fix well most the time
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 11:59 pm
by lutonlagerlout
this is a public forum guys
think before you type!
LLL :;):
