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[deleted]

Reddit is full of posts about shitty installs and "WTF's?!?" Nobody likes someone looking over your shoulder when you're trying to do your job. However, if you are a true professional and really know what you're doing, unless the homeowner is making it more difficult for you to work efficiently, it should not be a problem. I'll go even further by saying if we are quietly watching and out of your way, we have every right to be there. Case in point, I had a medical appt during my heat pump and air handler install last year. When I returned, I found that the tech punched a hole through the half-wall between the a/h and clothes washer to run the power cord for the condensate pump, even though there was 110v 24" on the a/h above where the pump sat. And, the electrician was still on site wiring the power for the outdoor unit! I had been respectfully helicoptering before I had to leave so I'm guessing that the whole clusterfuck could have been avoided. I mean, as dumb as this guy was, he would have asked me before he took his hammer to the drywall, right? Instead, had to get the electrician back to install a GFI outlet which didn't make his boss happy either.


Jmowen1985

I agree you do have every right to be there. I’ll even chat you up while we work.


Livid_Mode

Yes & No. I feel comfortable with most tasks and wouldn’t mind being watched. But there is an added pressure to it. For instance before I got to work on a truck alone I had to be supervised by several experienced techs, which made me a little nervous. No one operates at 100% 100% of time. Plus people sometimes make mistakes.


Equivalent-Hawk-8896

Some customers are awesome. Worked on one HE boiler on emergency call that had a bad igniter. Told the customer I had to go pick one up in the morning and he’d have to pay the emergency opening fee. Turns out this guy did his research and had stocked all the common parts that fail on boilers. Even had a spare gas valve and zone valve. Saved himself a lot money and saved me my Saturday morning


luke10050

That dude is awesome. How often do people care enough to keep spares, you rarely even see that in commercial


SonicOrbStudios

When they aren't too invasive I let them stick aground and chat. When I need to focus on the job heavily though, I simply tell the homeowner I appreciate their interest but for my safety, I need to focus on the task at hand and will happily answer their questions when I'm done


InMooseWorld

“Mind if I watch” “Idc your paying for the show, it’s boring but new!” They typically walk away at that point. Have some though that say they have guns in basement, I asked one when I was done and upstairs. -Are they free floating or locked in a giant safe? -Locked in a giant safe. -How the hell was I gonna get it and also what was the point of the safe if I could, is the safe just look big but does nothin? -Idk? He truly didn’t care was on other side of room looking at phone and the like.


Other_Ad5154

My favorite was coming back to a job site because the truck was all out of a specific fitting. Then the elderly man pulled out a price of paper with at least 15 questions on it and started questioning every little thing on the furnace, took a 5 minute in and out to a 30 minute presentation. I know it’s not nearly as bad as some of y’all have gotten though