Home Building Theft Ideas That Didn't Work
I was working with another carpenter about 25 years ago
and he told me a story that I would never forget. He said that he was
working in a neighborhood, where the crime rate was incredibly high.
They were instructed not to leave any of their tools outside of their
vehicles, because they wouldn't be there very long.
The first day that he worked on the job, the plumber laid all of the
copper water supply pipes in the foundation. The plumber finished the
job and by the time he returned the next day, all of the copper was
gone. Someone came in later that evening and stole all of the copper
pipe.
The builder told the plumber that it wouldn't happen again, he was going
to get a security fence installed later that day. The plumber purchased
some more materials and almost finished installing everything, but there
just wasn't enough time in the day.
The next day when the builder and the plumber arrived on the job site,
not only was the copper plumbing pipes gone, but the entire security
fence was no longer there. What the heck is going on… is this really
that bad of a neighborhood, I can't believe it.
The builder was extremely upset and told the plumber that he needed to
get the pipes in, so that he could pour the foundation and they wouldn't
have to worry about it again. The builder said that he would guarantee
that the plumbing pipes wouldn't be stolen again.
The plumber went back to work and installed the copper pipes for a third
time as he watched the builder install a new security fence. This time
the builder wasn't going to take any chances, he hired a security guard
with two guard dogs.
This ought to do it said the builder, let's see what's going to happen
tonight. The builder felt pretty confident that nothing was going to
happen, even though he didn't like paying for these extra services.
They arrived at the job site the next day, only to find out that the
guard and his dogs weren't on the property. Neither was the security
fence or the copper plumbing pipe. It's hard to imagine that something
like this happened, but the builder ended up pulling the plug on the
project and leaving the property like it was.
If you're new to the
home building,
things like these happen in some neighborhoods and you need to be aware
of it. I've heard worse stories than these, so don't expect every job to
go as planned all the time.