Photo By kurhan at Shutterstock
Before agreeing to any plumbing jobs in Fort Lauderdale, FL, you must sign a contract with a plumbing company that specifies all of the details that are involved with the job. This is to protect not only you, but also the company. The contract will give both parties more information on what’s expected and what’s appropriate.
Many people only spend time looking at the costs involved with the project and what type of jobs will be completed by the contractor. They often neglect to look at the clauses specifying delays and the approximate timeline that the plumbing company has provided. This is actually a very important part of the contract. After all, you wouldn’t want to hire a company to unclog your drains, but get that job delayed for weeks.
If you’re remodeling your home, you may not have the luxury of waiting if you are planning on putting your home up on the market or if the plumbing job is so large that you have to move into a hotel for the time being.
Specify a Reasonable Timeline
Every plumbing contract should specify the timeline for when different parts of the job will be done. For more complicated projects, like repiping the entire home, the plumbing company may choose to complete the work in different parts. For example, they may repipe the washroom first or the basement first. The contractors should give you an expected timeframe for how long everything will take, so you can better plan ahead. For example, if they’re repiping the bedrooms, you may want to move to a hotel for a couple of days or you may want to purchase water mattresses for the basement.
On the other hand, if the job is a fairly simple one like a drain cleaning, the contract will usually specify the hours when the plumbers will arrive. Most of these jobs will take less than a day to complete. It won’t really interfere or affect your life.
Figuring out what is reasonable and what isn’t reasonable can be difficult if you have no plumbing knowledge. This is why you should always get multiple quotes. The more insight that you have on the situation, the more informed of a decision you’ll be able to make. Some companies may say that they can get the job done in a week whereas others may get the same job done within a day depending on the amount of contractors that they have onsite.
Factors to Consider
There are many factors that can affect the timeline that you receive. For example, some of the more common factors that will come into play include:
- The amount of work that needs to be done versus the amount of contractors that are available. If you are repiping your entire home, having a crew of plumbers onsite will mean that the job gets done much more quickly. You may end up paying more for labor; however, you’ll save a lot on time.
- Whether any parts are needed. Jobs that don’t require any replacement parts at all tend to have a quicker completion date than those that require parts. Some plumbing companies in Fort Lauderdale, FL may already have certain parts in stock. They won’t need to order the parts in, so they’ll be able to get the job done quicker.
- The amount of work that needs to be done. Naturally, repiping your entire home will take a lot longer than a simple drain cleaning.
- The structure of your home. Some homes are naturally more complicated to work in. This is why most plumbers will want to visit your home to see what they’re working with first to determine how long the job will take.
- The amount of experience that the plumbers have. More experienced plumbers will tend to get the job done much more quickly.
Consider all of these factors to determine what may sound reasonable and what you can accept.
Specifying Appropriate Delays
Things will not always go to plan. It’s important to know that almost all plumbing jobs may come with delays. When signing a contract with a plumbing company, make sure you specify what delays are appropriate and how the plumbing company will respond or react to the delays. Some common delays that may happen include:
- Poor weather. Not everyone may be able to work in poor weather, especially if the plumbing job requires the contractors to be outside. The contract should specify what type of weather is appropriate and what type of weather will cause delays.
- Product unavailability or backordering. Depending on the type of project that the plumbing company is working on, they may need to order parts from manufacturers or certain brands. Not all products are always available and some may be backordered. The plumbing company may choose to put the project on hold until all parts have come in.
- Sick contractors. If a job requires more than one contractor, you may want to have a clause in the contract that will specify what happens if one of the contractors gets sick. For example, the plumbing company may send in a replacement or they may push back the work until all contractors are able to come work on your project.
This part of the clause should include how long the delays should be and what actions should be taken next. If you are in a time crunch, you really need to pay attention to these delays and see if there are any alternatives that you can add to the clause. For example, if certain parts are unavailable, you may ask the plumbing company to purchase another brand. Make sure that you have a lot of room to work with.
Give Us a Call for More Information
bluefrog Plumbing & Drain of Fort Lauderdale is a highly reputable company and has a lot of experience in dealing with all types of plumbing problems and projects. They can install new pipes throughout your entire home, fix your water heaters and even unclog your drains. Before every project, they’ll walk you through the contract, so you know exactly what to expect, especially the type of timeline that is expected with each project.
Free Diagnostic - With Paid Repair
