Choosing the right fencer
Reading time: 6 minutes
When choosing the rightfencing specialist在美国，有一些关键问题你需要考虑。在本文中，我们将逐步介绍它们。
- Arm yourself with some basic knowledge first
- Choose a fencing specialist rather than a general handyman
- Avoid tradespeople who are only experienced in erecting one type of fencing
- Get a detailed quote from each tradesperson you’re considering
- Never hire a tradesperson who demands the full cost of the job upfront
- Ask about materials early on
- Ask who will actually be doing the work
Let’s look at each of these in a bit more depth.
Arm yourself with some basic knowledge first
Before you speak to any tradesperson, find out about the types of fencing typically used for domestic projects in the UK. This will help you understand what each specialist is telling you when he does arrive to quote on your project - and work out which approach is most appropriate for your situation.
Choose a fencing specialist rather than a general handyman
Fencing jobs vary dramatically - from the erection of industrial security barriers to agricultural fencing for livestock and more delicate, traditional trellis work around private gardens.
Each type of project requires a different skills set, so it’s important you choose a tradesperson who has plenty of recent experience of doing your sort of job. The more specific a tradesperson's experience, the more likely it is they will be able to quickly and efficiently deal with any snags that arise.
MyBuilder member James Tibbles - ofJ&M Fencing-已经专门在击剑超过十年，并有一个奇妙的客户反馈评级。He explains:
It’s a good idea to choose someone who specialises in their trade. If you go to a landscape company that does drives, fencing, everything else - they aren’t likely to be as skilled at your particular job.
People sometimes get handymen to do their fencing, because they think it will be cheaper. But someone who doesn’t have the right tools or experience can end up taking twice as long - and if they’re charging on a per-day basis, this means the homeowner ends up paying more overall.
除了评论，要求查看一个商人以前做过的击剑工作的照片，并与他们以前的一两个客户交谈。以及他们的工艺质量，这将让你知道他们喜欢你的财产周围。
For example, did the person’s neighbours raise any boundary issues with them? How did they deal with that?
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Avoid tradespeople who are only experienced in erecting one type of fencing
Michael Dunning ofMD Fencinghas been in the trade for over 15 years, and has fantastic MyBuilder customer feedback. He explains that while it’s good to hire afencing specialist, it’s best to avoid tradespeople who are only experienced in erecting a single type of fencing:
A decentfencershould be able to fit pretty much every style of fencing out there, so look through their photos to make sure they have recent experience of this.
A lot of customers tend to want the wooden panels with the concrete fence posts. However, these aren’t right for every situation, so a tradesperson needs to have the skill to properly fit alternative types of fencing if need be.
In the case of domestic fencing projects, key issues typically include the pros and cons of timber posts and concrete posts, how long different types of fencing will last, how each type of fencing should be maintained during its lifetime, and who (you or your neighbours) is responsible for maintaining which sections of fence.
A good tradesperson should be happy to answer questions you have about any of these topics.
Get a detailed quote from each tradesperson you’re considering
If possible, try to get at least three tradespeople to look at your job, and ask each of them to give you a detailed quote, in writing, that breaks everything down. That way, you’ll be able to compare like with like, and see exactly where your money is going. Michael explains:
The cheapest quote isn’t always the right one to go for. If someone is offering to do the job at a really low price, I’d suggest you ask them, in detail, what their process is going to be. Then you can compare that description to what other tradespeople are offering to do.
As well as covering materials and labour, the quote should also highlight any possible additional expenses - like parking charges or the disposal of waste.
Never hire a tradesperson who demands the full cost of the job upfront
For large projects a fencing specialist might ask for a deposit at the beginning of a project, to contribute to the cost of materials.
However, full payment shouldn’t be made until the project is completely finished, and you’ve thoroughly inspected all the work. Never hire a tradesperson who demands the full cost of the job upfront. James comments:
We don’t take any deposits off anyone. We just take payment on completion of a job. My view is, if it’s a proper business with accounts for materials and so on, you shouldn’t really be needing to take money from anyone upfront.
Ask about materials early on
Make sure you ask each tradesperson what their policy on materials is. James explains:
We prefer to supply all the materials ourselves. If the homeowner provides them, you tend to turn up to find the incorrect materials, or the wrong number of fence posts, or something like that. If we supply everything, we can take full responsibility if anything does go wrong.
He adds that tradespeople can often get better deals on supplies:
The quality of materials from a saw mill is often so much better than materials bought by DIYers. And we can get good deals from our suppliers, too, which saves customers money.
Before you hire a tradesperson, you should also check what they plan to do with old fencing materials that are removed or replaced.
每个栅栏公司都应该准备好把旧的栅栏带走。这应该是标准的，不需要额外收费。这应该清楚地包含在交易过程一开始的书面报价中。
Ask who will actually be doing the work
When each tradesperson comes to quote on your project, make sure you ask them who will actually be doing the work. You need to find out which aspects of the job will be carried out by the tradesperson himself, and which elements will be undertaken by other members of his team, or sub-contractors.
许多优秀的商人将某些工作分包出去——这未必是个问题。但重要的是，你要弄清楚哪些工作将被外包，最关键的是，如果出现任何问题，谁将承担责任。
