Thinkng of calling it a day

[aejrd]

I Know What Its Like When Jobs Take Longer Than Expected. Not Having A Problem Getting The Work But Am Obviously Too Cheap. I Have Had No Breaks In My Work Schedule For 5 Months Now And All My Work Is Coming Via Recommendation. The Thing Is, I Have Been Working For The Last 3 Months Mainly With Porcelain Which Has Usually All Had To Be Cut With The Wet Saw. It Takes Ages And Is Also Very Tiring As They Are Usually Large Format And Are Going On Walls And Floors And Obviously I Am Using Cement Based Adhesives Which Are More Expensive Than The Tub Stuff And You Have To Mix It Yourself. I Am On My 9th Day Doing 30 Square Metres On Walls And Floors With Window And Door Framing With Metal Trim, Mosaic Borders And Mosaic Panel Inlay Inlay And Have Had To Drill And Cut Holes Everywhere Dril Drilling Holes Everywhere For Pipes Etc. I Am Going To Make Crap Money On This Job And Should Have Quoted Much More Than I Did (£700.00) All This Has Left Me Pondering Whether I Want To Do This For The Rest Of My Working Life. I Suppose I Should Be Grateful As I Am Kept Busy. Incidentally I Am The Only Female Tiler That I Knowof In My Area And Maybe Shouldn't Be Tackling Such Heavy Jobs But I Hate To Turn Down Work As You Never Know When You Might Hit A Quiet Spell.

why r u wet cutting porcelain? its horrible wen yr doing work for crap money mosaic borders are a pain in the a*** at the best of times, slow u rite down , u sound totally fed up. i did a 21mtr kitchen floor yesterday 45x45 black porcelain got up to make a cup of tea felt like an old old man my back was aching and the pain in the back of my thighs was unbelievable..and am used to it!!!

 

[busyalready]

hi aejrd

I am wet cutting porcelain as the blighters wont cut any other way. Kept trying on manual cutter but wouldn't break clean and 2 rubi wheels broke and they were brand new so no choice really. Usually ok with 600 x 300 but these are 660 x 330 and they are too expensive to risk wasting a tile at £50 a square metre. I am soooooooo knackered I just want to run away!!!!

 

[aejrd]

rubi cutters r gud but the breakers arnt the best i was in westerhope tile centre last week and they were cutting 25mm strips of 700mm porcelaine tiles easily with a foreign machine av forget the name of ..i wil let u no wot it was asap. cheaper than rubi 2!! u must hav the proper tools, mine cuts anything, but av had it years an dont know if they still make them!!
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hi me again. that cutter is made by husqvarna cuts up to 670mm its got 650kg breaking pressure as opposed to the rubi ts60s 400kg..

 

[jeremy burlton]

The problem is that tiling is just another job! Years ago it was a trade that you had to learn over many years. Now you can pick up a cheap look a like tile cutter from any diy store, and if you have abit of common sense you can cut tiles. 15 years ago rubis were still quite new to the uk. before you used a scriber or hand held glass cutter to cut tiles even a hammer and carbide tip chisel. LADS NOW WOULD not know what you are talking about. I too get the hump tiling now a days but ive made a lot of money over the years from tiling. however times have changed . large format tiles instead of 150 x 150s give the best of us problems. so how the hell can a man who's been on a 3 week course get it right. knowledge is speed nowadays not youthful energy. if you know what you are doing you will make a good living. I see bad tiling and bad tilers everday they dont last long!
Not in this game.
PS who gets all the cream.

 

[Binoir]

Hi Tysfoot,

I hope you've not completely jacked it in because I might have some work to throw your way. I just posted in the new members section and was given your name.

I'm a plumber by trade and have been doing all my own tiling but to get a good finish takes me too long and I'd prefer to get someone in while I go off and first fix another bathroom.

I can't promise enough work to keep you in business but every little helps. Where abouts in Manchester are you?

Get in touch if you're interested.

Jeff
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Oh and I meant to say regarding getting undercut for jobs.

I always say to customers, "I won't be the cheapest quote you get and I'd never want to be. I do a quality job for a fair price and I won't just disappear like the cheap cowboys if there are any problems". A lot of people make the right decision. Some won't but that's the way it goes. They're usually the ones that call 2 months later begging for my help because the other guy f****d it up and then disappeared.

And the worst thing you can do is quote low to get a job and then spend the whole time doing it feeling miserable because your not getting paid enough.

Jeff

 

[busyalready]

Hi Jeremy And Aejrd

First Off, Thanks For The Tip Re The Cutter Aejrd, I Will Save Up My Pennies!

So Jeremy, I Know There Are A Lot Of Rubbish Tilers Out There Now And You Obviously Dont Think Much Of Anyone Who Has Done A Short Tiling Course. My Course Lasted 5 Days Intensive But I Had Been Tiling For 15 Years Self Taught But Not For Money. I Am Still Improving And Am Always Reading The Forum Asking Questions And Taking Advice. I Would Say Now Though That My Tiling Stands Up Well Against More Experienced Tilers And I Have Got Some Jobs Lately Ahead Of Some Guys Who Have Been Tiling For Many Years. But I Do Acknowledge Your Undoubted Knowledge And Experience...no Real Substitute For That.