Almost Aviation

Yeah, this is what they should have used. This took me literally 10 minutes web surfing to find and order. It just turned up this afternoon. (This is the other end of the garden, BTW!)

Yeah, it's probably too late for that. I did make a cursory effort to contact Thames Water but they don't make it easy unless there's an emergency. Perhaps I will email them.

I paid on a credit card, so I have the option of making a section 75 claim against the CC company and the contractor. I am trying to establish (a) whether people think it would be a legitimate claim, and (b) on what grounds to claim. (Also (c), whether to claim the entire fee or part of it.) My current feeling is to claim the whole fee, on three different grounds: It's not a like-for-like replacement. The installation wasn't done with 'reasonable care and skill'. It's not even approximately airtight. On point 3, restoring it to airtight condition was something I mentioned in an email exchange with them (including pictures) as information for them to offer a quote. (You will also see that the original lid is embossed with 'air tight inspection cover', which they would have been aware of before quoting.)

As requested, I am posting some pictures to give an idea of the landscape. From a distance, this might look better than it did, but the devil is in the details. Aftermath:

I will post some pictures in a bit, although I'm not sure how dramatic they will be. It's hard to show an out-of-level frame as anything other than a bubble on a spirit level!

I did get more than one quote. The price isn't the issue, I was prepared to pay that for a job done quickly and to a good standard. The problem is it wasn't done to a good standard. If they had charged me £250 I would just write it off, but the discrepancy between the price and what they delivered is vast.

Well I've done the first part, so I'm due the hardware by tomorrow! Assuming it's as expected, I'm confident I can do a better job with a couple of hours and some Wickes premix mortar. The main reason I opted for a 'professional' job was that the manhole will shortly be buried under a deck, so even with an access panel it will be very difficult to work on if there are any problems.

Sorry, I don't understand your point.

I agreed a price to complete the work, and we agreed a date. So yes, I think?

But they have an obligation to do it to a reasonable standard, I think.

They quoted a fixed price, to remove the old frame and top layer of bricks, then supply and install a new frame and lid with all the mortaring that entails.

I just had a manhole replaced by a 'reputable' company and I am not satisfied. It cost £963 and the work was done in less than a hour. I had them redo it (see below for why), which they did by fitting a different manhole, taking just 30 minutes that time. It's still not right. I am thinking about making a Section 75 claim for a refund, or a claim through Checkatrade, but I want a reality check from someone more knowledgeable than I am... Without going into too much detail, I had a cast-iron manhole over my foul waste inspection chamber, which is in the main patio area outside my kitchen window. The old frame was rusted out and had big holes, so it was letting out unpleasant smells. I agreed a fixed price to replace it with a new one, to include dropping it down a bit as the top course of bricks was in poor condition. The price was, to me, an eye-watering £963, but I agreed it in advance, so there it is. The first time they fitted a manhole that was too small and so set it diagonally on the bricks. It was a cheap steel manhole from B&Q, with a plastic frame and, predictably, once I put weight on it the whole frame was flexing like a trampoline and the mortar cracked along both long sides. This entire job - including breaking out the old cover and removing a course of bricks - was done in less than a hour. Take 2, and the (same) contractor fitted a larger (60cm square) cover of similar type. It took him 30 minutes to remove the first manhole and install the second one. BUT, the frame is not square so the lid doesn't fit unless you force it on. It only fits at all because the contractor has bashed it along two complete sides with a hammer to bend the rim. It also doesn't sit flat, but wobbles from corner to corner. A quick check with a spirit level shows that this is because it's been set with a vertical twist in the frame. I also think the frame is still too small lengthwise, as it leaves one end of the frame overhanging a bit. The frame is steel (but bendy) and flexes at two sides when you walk on it, which it shouldn't. Needless to say, the new manhole doesn't seal and I still get smells from the drain, which is a shared line for the street. I had a second contractor from the same company come to look (so 3rd visit overall). He said it's all fine and that all of my concerns were about things that are 'normal'. He suggested I just seal the cover with silicone sealant. I could do this, of course, but that's not really the point. He told me they didn't supply a cast-iron manhole in the correct size because 'you can't get them', but with ten minutes of internet searching I was able to source a 1.5 ton cast-iron manhole of the correct size from manholecovers.co.uk for about £90. It seems to me that £963 is a lot of money in the first place for a job such as this (the actual quote was £1014, but they gave me an 'NHS discount'). But surely it is inconceivable that you can expect to do such a job to a decent standard in 30 minutes (or in 50 minutes with the demolition part)? Pragmatically, what they've left for me will 'do', assuming I seal it with silicone, and although I would really prefer to install the cast-iron cover myself or get someone else to do it properly, I am loath to do so because it has already held up my deck project for 3 weeks. But I am not happy having paid so much for a bodge job, so I feel justified in trying to reclaim some or all of my money. What do people think?

🙂 Their gutter does actually go around two sides of the extension, so all it's missing is a downpipe. The neighbour has agreed in principle to add a downpipe, although he hasn't yet acknowledged that the gutter will need repositioning with the right fall.

Well maybe, if my gutter and downpipe will cope with the volume. (There's also no drain, so the water just dumps onto the ground.)