Don't get ripped off

[puggit]

Mrs Puggit is away on business. She's asked me to sand the wooden floorboards of the entire downstairs of the house this weekend.

So I rang a certain hire shop (the blue and yellow one) - £150 for 2 sanders for the weekend. AND I couldn't go to my local one, I'd have to go to the other one in town... the other side of Reading Festival.

Now I love Mrs Puggit a lot, but I'm not prepared to do battle with the great gothic unwashed and their muddy leftovers.

So I opened up yell.com, found some local places. One in a small village just outside Reading... on my side of Reading! £50 he says helpfully... Oh hang on, it's a bank holiday weekend. Nevermind, £50 anyway.

Done deal.

I'm very happy, and he gave me plenty of advice on the phone (although I've done it before, so I have some experience).

Also, our local butcher is vastly superiour and vastly cheaper then the supermarkets.

Try your local enterprise, instead of the big companies. You'll be pleasantly surprised :)

[small]PS Mrs Puggit is in Sydney - would you rather be in Sydney, or sanding floors?

[KITT]

puggit said:

Try your local enterprise, instead of the big companies. You'll be pleasantly surprised

I always like to use local businesses if possible. I use the local opticians for my checkups, my local hardware place for the odd nail or paint and the local hire shop is a great place and much cheaper and closer than the big boys.

[IS200RJR]

I never used local places until my father in law pointed out with out the little local timber mercant, garage, sweet shop the super markets would have a monopoly and prices could be what ever they wanted to charge. No business competition no choice.

[cotty]

puggit said:

PS Mrs Puggit is in Sydney - would you rather be in Sydney, or sanding floors?

Sanding floors, but then im strange like that

Had one proper holiday in 8 years but the house looks good

[timtonal]

2 6"x9" 100W RMS 3 way speakers

Halfords (Infinity) - £99.99
Mate bought the same speakers off bloke on EBay £26.00
I got a pair of equivalent JBLs from a little place in Langley Mill (Notts) - £35.


>> Edited by timtonal on Wednesday 24th August 14:27

[T5-R]

How much you wanna bet Mrs. Puggit will be on Bondi Beach this weekend while you're up to your ankles in sawdust?

[jasandjules]

Agree, support the smaller local businesses. Otherwise every town high street will look the same.

I actually refuse to use the local tesco (just opened in our quaint town) and drive 15 miles to use the superstore........ It was a local shop that the Tesco replaced.....

[arh]

We always buy from local shops wherever possible, the butchers is far cheaper than a supermarket, and much better quaility as is the fruit and veg from the greengrocer. My jag parts come from a little outfit about 5 miles from home, as many car parts as possible come from local factors. Electrical goods are generally purchased at very competitive prices from a small shop just up the road from my parents house. It is often far quicker to shop in these places than venture out to a supermarket.

Alas this is not always possible but when it is I will support these local outfits.

[simpo two]

Another good example is KwakFut tyre fitters.

Saw special offer in paper: 'free puncture repairs'

I drive 10 miles to the nearest depot...

Simpo: 'Please repair my puncture for free liek it says in your advert'

KF geezer: 'That's not a puncture, it's a split. But we've got these tyres in stock for £130 each'.

Simpo:

And my local tyre place fixes the puncture for £6

[Mr Whippy]

Me and my other half did this last summer and we said never again!
We paid £100 for an edge sander and a big drum sander for the weekend!

Just so much bloody dust, but them edge sanders are mint... well viscious

Yup, support your local businesses, I always try to do as much as possible. No good when all the choice is gone and what is left is overpriced crap at supermarkets!

Dave

[slikk]

puggit said:

PS Mrs Puggit is in Sydney - would you rather be in Sydney, or sanding floors?

I'll sand the floor if its all the same to you.. .. ..

kim



>> Edited by slikk on Wednesday 24th August 15:51

[jas xjr]

i like to use local businesses where possible. usually someone who can offer advice too,unlike the big sheds where the " if its not on the shelf we havent got any," attitude really hacks me off.
and is it just me but everytime i buy wood , skirting boards or architrave from a big diy place it always damaged warped etc?

[mr_tony]

puggit said:

Also, our local butcher is vastly superiour and vastly cheaper then the supermarkets. Try your local enterprise, instead of the big companies. You'll be pleasantly surprised PS Mrs Puggit is in Sydney - would you rather be in Sydney, or sanding floors?

Local Butchers Rock!

Also mrs Tony is in Sydney at the moment (Not there on the Tri-Annual World Pain Forum is she?)

[ARH]

jas xjr said:

i like to use local businesses where possible. usually someone who can offer advice too,unlike the big sheds where the " if its not on the shelf we havent got any," attitude really hacks me off. and is it just me but everytime i buy wood , skirting boards or architrave from a big diy place it always damaged warped etc?

DIY shop wood is no use at all, find a good local builders yard, and they will deliver for free most of them. The people who buy from these places won't buy rubbish, so they don't stock it.

[LongQ]

mr_tony said:

Also mrs Tony is in Sydney at the moment (Not there on the Tri-Annual World Pain Forum is she?)

Seems like a long way to go for some pain ... something that I would imagine is readily available locally ...

The bigguns are fighting back around here. Butchers closing due to the cost of EC regulations and problems of succession in family businesses. No greengrocers left but a couple of small Co-op stores - not the same at all. One or two corner shops - but I find videos indigestible. Even the local 3 branch builder's merchant - excellent place though I didn't need to use it much, has been taken over by one of the nationals.

Such is life I suppose.

[simpo two]

jas xjr said:

i like to use local businesses where possible. usually someone who can offer advice too

For just that reason I always get my plumbing bits from a particular place. As intelligent but ignorant amateur I can go in there with a digital camera and show them the offending joint/pipe/hot water cylinder and ask them which bit I need. They even explain how to do stuff. Fantastic!