Flashing

[The Medway Handyman]

Went to give an estimate today on a local industrial estate. On of the jobs was to replace the lead flashing over the porch area.

"Why does it need replacing?" I asked the client. "Because it's been stolen" he replied.

Sure enough it had been, and from the unit next door, and the one next to that.....

Apparently the local pikeys, if short of beer vouchers, come around at night and pinch the flashing from the porches. 400 units with 10 metres of porch flashing, stolen apparently twice a year?

I feel a flyer coming on..............

[Owain]

what, "cheap lead flashing wanted", for distribution round the pikey sites?

Owain

[John Rumm]

"Dear Pikey, if you have any cheap lead to flog I can find a real good use for it..." ;-)

[Jon]

[e-mail] declared for all the world to hear...

My father in law worked for the local council and he regularly has to visit the permanent traveller sites to replace the copper piping from the toilet blocks which are provided to them free of charge.

Presumably they sell the piping for scrap or something. It beggars belief that people would rip out pipes from buildings which have been provided to them free of charge at taxpayers expense, but they do.

[Andy Burns]

*if* that is so, you'd think the council would have cottoned-on and replaced with plastic pipe by now ...

[Andy Hall]

Yes, but you may want to give it a different title to the one of this thread. Some of your little-old-lady customers might think that it's part of your entertainment repertoire. ;-)

[Andy Hall]

Well you would... but....

A business acquaintance in Johannesburg told me of the problems of telecommunication cabling.

For many years there has been a common practice of stealing sections of underground copper cable that are run through the sewers. The method is to drive up to a manhole cover using a vehicle with appropriate tow hood etc. and to attach that to the cable in some way and drive off. A reasonable length of cable follows. Insulation is burnt off and the copper gathered and sold.

More recently it was hoped that the introduction of fibre optic cables would dissuade such thieves. Not a bit of it - the practice continues

- except this time, the fibre bundles are apparently cut and incorporated into fibre optic lamps sold by traders at the roadside or at traffic lights. It seems that the margin is higher than for copper.

[Dave Liquorice]

Free money. Don't see why they should be replaced more than once a year with at least a 6 month delay from damage to replacement. Let the pikeys carry water from a standpipe a mile from the caravan site.

Plastic? They'd just set fire to it or try to.

[meow2222]

might be a new line of business for him :)

Sounds like you need to sell them security cams too.

NT

[nightjar]

I would feel a need to recommend an alternative material, with a low scrap value.

Colin Bignell

[Ian Stirling]

Don't forget 'Please number on removal".

[meow2222]

or maybe stamp an identifiable code all over the lead, so either theyve got a lot of extra work to do or they get nicked as its traceable. Photos of lead needed, kept offsite.

NT

[The Medway Handyman]

As I have done.

[Ian Stirling]

Because lead is widely known for being so hard to melt down...

[meow2222]

It takes time to melt lead down, and creates smoke and a burnt patch. Between the time of melting it all, and we're talking a large quantity, and theft the culprit is identifiable, the led is identifiable. That means possibility of getting caught. and that is offputting to any criminal.

Even once melted theyre not entirely away clean, as the melt site for such a large quantity will be very visible. And the police need only ask the local metal scrap merchants to find the lead.

Its not foolproof, but it does encurage them to not take it, and may get them caught. With plain lead, the burden of proof is almost impossible. I also prefer another covering, but its not what the customers have chosen so far.

NT

[nightjar]

Reputable scrap dealers wouldn't be buying the lead anyway and the other sort wouldn't be worried.

Colin Bignell