A few months I realized our hot water heater was 25 years old.
Mr. Proactive thought it would be a good idea to replace it before disaster struck.
I called a few local plumbers to get an estimate.
The first plumber surveyed the situation and gave me a quote of $5000.
Stunned, I told him I'd get back to him.
Plumber #2 gives me a quote for $6000.
This is not going well.
The hot water heater is around $600, so they're charging me $5400 for an hour or two of their time?
I need to raise my rates.
A lot.
Since we have solar, I thought it would be a good time to switch to an electric model.
I called my friend Steve, a retired electrician, who's been my go-to guy for years, to install a 220v line.
He charges me $40 an hour, which is a fraction of what other electricians charge.
For months, we couldn't sync up for a variety of reasons.
Last week, I noticed our hot water heater was starting to leak.
Am I going to have to pay the piper and get ripped off?
Steve was finally available, so he came over on Monday.
The hot water heater is about 20 feet from the electrical panel, so it's a pretty easy job.
Steve said he didn't want to do the work because he's retiring.
Why didn't he tell me that when we were playing phone tag?
I called a highly recommended handyman who said he could install the new circuit and water heater.
He said he could come on Tuesday.
Tuesday morning, he called and said his van broke down.
That same day, a postcard arrives in the mail from a local firm that does electrical and plumbing.
I called their number and no answer.
Voicemail full.
Why did they send a postcard offering a discount, and then not answer the phone?
Finally, they answered the phone, but they can't make it until Monday.
I tried to be proactive but...
- Ted
P.S. When you launch a marketing campaign, make sure you respond to people who are trying to give you money.
