How long does it take you to prep a basic Hsl, consisting of say, 12 straight stairs, 3 winders, top landing, hall. Gripper and underlay, 6 doubles, 2 singles. Not a race, a proper prep?
About an hour for me, depending on what the hall floor is like (soft/hard concrete, boards etc :smile: )
cuppa, work half hour, cuppa, work half hour, cuppa slice a cake, work half hour. So not sure really... :?
Was thinking 90-120 minute mark, done a Hsl a couple o days ago, took me around 90 mins to prep then about the same to fit, customer said the boys before only took an hour start to finish. Thought I was just getting slow in my old age.
not really get all griper cut bang it down, roll out underlay every where then go back and cut it all in, cut pads for stairs then bang down with staple hammer. obviously if it's a more difficult shape/less room to work or concrete about 1 hr or so and a nice brew :lol:
I can't see how you could prep an HSL properly in that kind of time to be honest, but each to their own. I'd say between an hour and an hour and a half to do it properly. I mitre all my gripper and tape underlay joins. I was asked to fit over some existing gripper today which was probably the worst effort I've ever seen, single pieces of gripper to run along a wall and take care of the architrave at the same time and fitted half an inch away, literally no pieces running around the corners towards the doorbars. I told the customer it would cost just £5 to replace it properly and she said she couldn't afford it so i did it anyway rather than have a crap looking carpet, when I went to get payment she gave me a £20 tip because "It looks so much better than the way it was fitted last time" :roll:
at least they've put two ringshanks in, hate when gripper is loose laid. dont think its too effective that way. How many jobs do you go into that has gripper even half proper fitted? I spend more time fixing bad prep than actually doing the bit i'm being paid for. pisses me right off. Do some fitters not realise that poorly fitted gripper gives a poor finish, or do they not give a shit. :evil:
Yeah patching in gripper or pulling it all up cos the gap is too wide does my head in. I always allow for new gripper on the stairs as its never done right.
Probably, but I've seen some seriously poor efforts from supposed carpet fitters. I went to do an inspection once for a customer I'd fitted for previously, she said she'd had her HSL fitted by someone else and wasn;t happy with it so would I see if I could do anything with it. The stairs were cut an inch too big and curling up the stringers, the hallway was so poorly fitted and gripper went past the end of the wall and six inches across the doorway so I said it can't possibly have been done by a carpet fitter, she then showed me a cheque stub with the fitters name on it, I knew him :lol: :lol: It was seriously bad so I told her to go back to where she bought it from and get them to replace the carpet and let me fit it which she did a few weeks later. That "fitter" is now a postman, says it all really.
i mitre gripper and tape joints also but usually they'res 2 of us ha ha on my own probably 1-1hr 30 min
motivation is a massive factor in being self employed when i used to work in factories i would have been strung up and sacked if i went the speed of some fitters or my apprentices
