Is it ok to tell a customer where to go?

[timhoward]

I forgot the pertinent bit! I always wondered if they used a standard lead and a DIY double-male adapter or made their own lead....

Alas, there is no lower limit on stupid!

Yes one company I do work for has an overly creative maintenance guy who is overly confident in their electrical abilities.
There is now a standard saying that the facilities manager and I regularly say to each other - "Never forget - nothing is fool proof for a sufficiently talented fool".

 

[Lister1987]

I find ---- works; Tight Wad Arrogant ---- ?

 

[brianmoooore]

So a guy comes in and wants a 120V double male adaptor. I tell him there's no such thing, and it would be extremely dangerous.

There was a major loss of power around my area for about two weeks, a few years ago, when freezing rain built up on the 11kV distribution lines and brought several miles of them down.
I came across loads of people using double male extension leads to plug small generators into the nearest convenient 13A socket.

 

[Simon47]

In a previous job, we got a call from one of our customers one day asking if it would work to plug a lead from a generator into a socket - because they'd got a notice about a planned outage. In the past I'd been up there with my small portable genny and run an extension lead up to the server room to keep the key equipment running, but this time they'd been given another option ...
I carefully explained that such a cable is called a widowmaker for a very good reason, and in any case they had a 3 phase supply and the socket would only power 1 phase. I think I had them with "widow maker" and "very dangerous" so the next bit was an easy sell - get your electrician to fit a power inlet and a changeover switch, which they arranged at very short notice.

Anyhow, I can't say too much as it would instantly identify the businesses concerned, our client's neighbour has a rather handy trailed diesel genny (around 80kVA IIRC) that they used to power some machinery if there wasn't a suitable site supply available. And the neighbour had offered to let them have some juice from it while they would be running their own office. And it turned out that said neighbour was in the habit of using this genny with a widowmaker lead (2off 32A 5 pin red BS4343 plugs) for their own premises.

On the day of the outage we got a call - the power inlet idea hadn't worked. So I set off, picking up my genny from home on the way. By the time I got there they'd sorted it - a combination of the inlet not having been wired correctly (no, no idea of details, this was just second hand via a non-technical person) and I noticed a somewhat bodged together cable in use (safe, but two cables into the BS4343 plug and socket).
I ended up chatting with one of the guys from next door. It turns out that their equipment only needs a 3 wire supply (no neutral), so all their cables only have 4 cores (3P+E) even though they had 5 pin plugs & sockets. So that explained why they'd had to bodge two cables into the plug & socket to get our client working - lucky not to blow any kit up I guess. I think I probably made some comment that this was dangerous, but his attitude was that only they'd use the cables for their own equipment so there was no problem. At the time they were still using a widowmaker in their own premises - and I definitely made a thing about the dangers in that (I think I saw them with an inlet fitted some time later)
I was really tempted to raise a RIDDOR about both the windowmaker and the 4 core cables - but at the time it would have caused big problems for us and our client, and I already had something of a reputation for putting noses out of joint.

 

[brianmoooore]

At least the BS4343 has a shroud around the live pins, although they're still readily touchable at the end, of course. The leads I wrote about had ordinary domestic 13A plugs on each end........
Four core cables with 5 pin plugs sounds a very good way to blow up something at some point.

 

[Andrew Hunter]

Also, Can someone set up a database of customers to avoid pleeeeeease!

Lol do you not know? “All costumers ar B——-d’s”

 

[Vortigern]

To answer your question, No! It is part of being a professional that we remain polite and ready to listen even if the dialogue is put to us in an unacceptable way. I feel that being polite is always the best course and is good for business. Having said that, it does not preclude saying firmly and politely that you would not be happy doing this job as it would not be a good outcome or words to that effect. But, no never be rude, there are all sorts of repercussions in doing so and it is best not to go there imho.

 

[baldelectrician]

To answer your question, No! It is part of being a professional that we remain polite and ready to listen even if the dialogue is put to us in an unacceptable way. I feel that being polite is always the best course and is good for business. Having said that, it does not preclude saying firmly and politely that you would not be happy doing this job as it would not be a good outcome or words to that effect. But, no never be rude, there are all sorts of repercussions in doing so and it is best not to go there imho.

I am the same, although I do comment on things I find on a quote to cover my back

Other times I just walk away and 'forget' to quote if I get a feeling

 

[Timbo]

There is now a standard saying that the facilities manager and I regularly say to each other - "Never forget - nothing is fool proof for a sufficiently talented fool".

We have a saying "Make something idiot-proof and they'll make a better class of idiot!"