There are days when I wish i could charge a gross surcharge
By saundyl
@saundyl (9783)
Canada
April 17, 2008 1:11pm CST
There are days when people bring computers in to be fixed and I wish i could charge a oh god thats so gross i dont even want to pick it up surcharge.
What brought this on? The last two days I've had people bring in pcs that are covered in dust and other things an inch thick (gross) that if you even brush against it you're filthy. THEN when you open the cover up you find its packed with dirt, dust, dust bunnies and even dead bugs.
This is the point where I'm searching for paper towels to wipe the outsides down THEN i'm taking them outside with the air compresser and blowing them out from a distance. Then after all that i have to wash.
I honestly wish people that bring these machines in would realize that it would be considerate to atleast wipe the spilt whatever off the case before expecting someone else to work on it. I'm sure my boss wouldnt let me get away with that surcharge but Its sometimes so tempting to ask if we can.
2 people like this
4 responses
@cmm2020 (63)
• United States
18 Apr 08
I know exactly what you're saying. I've opened computers that had so much cat hair inside that I thought I would eventually find the cat in there as well. Stores do sell computer desks and such with a place for the computer to sit off of the floor, why not at least look into that. If you are going to spend the money to bring it somewhere because it doesn't run as well as before, then obviously you somewhat care about the computer...might as well make the investment to take care of it in a preventive manner rather than wait for it to choke on all the garbage caught inside of it.
@saundyl (9783)
• Canada
18 Apr 08
i totally agree.
I will admit that when i had my siamese cat in the house my computer would get bad within a couple days because he liked to get up on the desk and sleep on top of the computer when it was running. I made a point of using canned air to blow out the hair once a week.
I had once customer come in that they kept their computer in the same room as the dryer and it was filled with dryer lint. And they wondered why it was over heating.
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
18 Apr 08
You should talk to your boss, you should at least be charging them for cleaning the PC out. Canned air can get pricey.
1 person likes this
@saundyl (9783)
• Canada
19 Apr 08
Oh we thought of that about a year ago...a "basic" cleaning includes blowing out the dust but most pcs arent that bad. Its just the extra gross ones that drive me nuts.
We did invest in a small air compressor designed to use on pcs that we use the majority of the time. Sometimes though the canned air has much better success so we use it occasionally
@theproperator (2429)
• United States
18 Apr 08
Well, maybe you just need to word it different; "excessive cleaning fee" as opposed to "gross." I sometimes have to do this to people who come in and rent the building I work at for events. The rental includes a cleaning fee, but I tell them this is for a reasonable amount of trash disposal and vacuuming afterwards. If they leave trash all over the dressing rooms or grind a bunch of food into the lobby carpet, I charge them accordingly for the extra time it takes to clean it up.
I used to work with a guy who would charge a "pain-in-the-a**" fee if someone kept changing their minds and making him go back and forth to get stuff (though, I don't think he actually listed as such on the invoice to the client, he would just say it to me as he went to get yet another item).
1 person likes this
@saundyl (9783)
• Canada
18 Apr 08
excessive cleaning fee..thats a good one. There are people my co-worker has stated she'd love to charge a pain in the a** fee as well...if they bring a ton of stuff back (especially if its been special ordered for them) she charges them a restocking fee which has been approved by the boss.
1 person likes this
@drknlvly6781 (6246)
• United States
17 Apr 08
And people wonder why their computer doesn't work. Maybe its the spilled kool-aid, dust and roaches in the system!!! It couldn't be me, I wouldn't even charge the "Gross" surcharge. I would just simply tell them "I'm sorry sir/ma'am, but we will not be able to work on your computer until you clean it. I am allergic to dust as well, so I probably couldn't work in your shop at all. Even still, I would probably get fired for being mean to those people with nasty PCs
1 person likes this
