A guy in a Denver hotel lobby told me my glue down method was wrong, and it still bugs me.

This was about three years ago, I was finishing up a big VCT job in a commercial building. I was in the lobby taking a break and this older guy, said he'd been installing for 40 years, walked over. He pointed at my work and said, 'You're spreading that adhesive way too thin, kid. It'll fail in a year.' I was using a 1/16 inch trowel like the spec sheet said. Ever had someone just come at you like that on a job site? How do you usually handle it?

4 comments

4 Comments

the_alice1mo ago

Classic job site expert (who probably hasn't read a spec sheet since 1985). Should've asked him if his method includes psychic adhesive failure predictions.

rileyprice1mo ago

Psychic adhesive failure predictions sound like my last contractor's excuse.

owens.jenny1mo ago

Ugh, I mean that type is the worst. Had a guy last month swear his "feel" for the material was better than the cure time on the label. Like, my dude, science wrote that label. It's just wild how they get away with it for so long.

thea6022d ago

@owens.jenny nailed it with the science thing. That guy sounds like he read one instruction sheet wrong back in '92 and built a whole career on it. The 1/16 trowel is literally the standard for VCT, so he was just flexing his ego. Next time someone pulls that, just nod and say "I'll check that with the rep" and move on. These guys hate when you don't argue back.