Author Topic: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench  (Read 7566 times)

couponvan

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Put us on the wall of shame.  MMM reader for the past few months, and now analyzing every expense.

  Well, some things should be paid for.  My husband didn't want to pay $125 to have our playset dismantled and put on the curb (bad shape - no chance for the you take it route). We decided to DIY the project.  Well, he ended up dropping a socket wrench from the top into my head, which resulted in an ER visit, lots of pain, and some facial glue plus two black eyes.  Just hot the ER bill today-$100 ER copay, $500 deductible, then 20% of the remainder which is about $75.  Yes, $675...and we still have to take down the playset....Know your limits.  That $125 sounds like a BARGAIN in hindsight.  Luckily we can easily cover the costs, but ugh!

Pooperman

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #1 on: October 01, 2014, 07:54:26 PM »
Not antimustachian. You failed, but you tried. You learned something for your effort (metal tools hurt when dropped onto body parts). In the end you succeeded in taking it apart yourself. Biking is mustachian, but people fall and get hurt doing it. Doesn't make it antimustachian to bike.

LalsConstant

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #2 on: October 02, 2014, 06:16:51 AM »
Yikes!  Agree this isn't face punch worthy.

The way I look at it, the spirit of DIY is you accept a few things are going to go south on you, but your constant good habits mean you are ready to deal with those incidents.

Personal finance sites focus so much on success because that's motivational.  The flipside to success is failure.  It's going to happen, you can only control how you deal with it afterward.

This just sounds like plain old bad luck.  Hope you recover well.

GuitarStv

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #3 on: October 02, 2014, 06:38:49 AM »
You learned a valuable lesson about standing under someone who's working with tools.  This lesson should continue to pay dividends for the rest of your life!

Jack

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #4 on: October 02, 2014, 07:16:34 AM »
You learned a valuable lesson about standing under someone who's working with tools.

See also: wearing safety gear (in this case, safety goggles would have at least helped).

seanc0x0

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #5 on: October 02, 2014, 10:38:47 AM »
You learned a valuable lesson about standing under someone who's working with tools.

See also: wearing safety gear (in this case, safety goggles would have at least helped).

Yep. If you're working below someone, a hard hat is a good investment. Mine cost $35, which would be worth it even just for pain reduction!

RootofGood

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #6 on: October 02, 2014, 10:47:39 AM »
+1 on safety gear.  I happened to accidentally leave a hard hat in my car after my last job ended so I'm set.  At least some safety glasses.  Might have prevented black eyes at least. 

And yes, it cost more this time around, but you'll hopefully go another 10 DIYs saving $100+ each time without incurring any cost.  After all, your hired help may have been injured then sued you or filed worker's comp or whatever.

MandalayVA

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #7 on: October 02, 2014, 11:00:04 AM »
Judging by how you describe your injuries I think you already got a face punch from the socket wrench, no need to add another one.  As is said, live and learn.

whydavid

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #8 on: October 02, 2014, 12:30:28 PM »
We can build on this!

Use that residual spousal guilt to get all of those nagging projects done!  Need the house repainted?  Well, that nagging head injury causes headaches when you look at the current color.  Lightbulbs need changing?  You'd do it...but, are worried you might fall off the ladder and the next major head trauma might do you in.  Fall decorations need to come out of the attic?  You'd go up there, but it's dusty and you might get your wound infected.

Motivation is priceless.  $675 is a bargain.

Eric

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #9 on: October 02, 2014, 12:54:36 PM »
In your shoes, I'd advise against the sledgehammer route to get it down.

Gone Fishing

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #10 on: October 02, 2014, 01:04:16 PM »
You are certainly not alone.  I had to have a trauma opthamologist put my wife back together after some DIY action a few years ago.  He did a great job, and she had good insurance at the time so the $ damage wasn't too bad. The insurance we have now isn't as good.  Accidents happen, all we can do is learn from our mistakes and not repeat them.  I have gotten better about wearing appropriate protective gear, but I still get in a hurry from time to time.  Always a good reminder...     

Kaspian

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #11 on: October 02, 2014, 01:38:17 PM »
Ouch!  (Physically and financially.)  Sometimes the frugal route vexingly costs more but just as often the more costly route also costs more.  Something could have gone equally as unpredictably wrong if you paid for dismantling.  In the long run, you're doing it right!  :)

Dollarbill49

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #12 on: October 02, 2014, 03:27:07 PM »
Hope you have a quick recovery. 

I had to do the same thing.  All the nuts were completed rusted solid to the bolts.  I wasn't going to wait for the WD40 to work its magic, so I simply sawed the thing apart.  Took a little longer but got the job done, no injuries, and got some good bicep and tricep workouts in.

Gimesalot

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #13 on: October 03, 2014, 01:07:05 PM »
happened to accidentally leave a hard hat in my car after my last job ended so I'm set.

Please keep in mind that hard hats "expire."  The plastic they are made of breaks down upon exposure to UV light.  Make sure to check the inside of the hard hat to know when it was manufactured.  My company recommends replacement every 5 years.

RootofGood

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #14 on: October 03, 2014, 06:25:56 PM »
happened to accidentally leave a hard hat in my car after my last job ended so I'm set.

Please keep in mind that hard hats "expire."  The plastic they are made of breaks down upon exposure to UV light.  Make sure to check the inside of the hard hat to know when it was manufactured.  My company recommends replacement every 5 years.

Guess that makes sense.  I was in charge of safety for our crews and never heard anything about replacing hard hats.  Now, I store mine inside a shed so it rarely gets UV exposure.  I also tended to wear the hard hat indoors while working.  Much of the outdoor areas didn't require hard hats except one job site that required it at all times anywhere on the massive construction project (freeways). 

I'll make sure to load test my hard hat every few years to make sure the structural integrity hasn't weakened over the years.  Mine's going on 4 years but remains durable. 

BlueMR2

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #15 on: October 04, 2014, 01:07:17 PM »
Not antimustachian. You failed, but you tried. You learned something for your effort (metal tools hurt when dropped onto body parts). In the end you succeeded in taking it apart yourself. Biking is mustachian, but people fall and get hurt doing it. Doesn't make it antimustachian to bike.

Commonly called the "idiot tax".  Don't be offended, I've paid the tax a ton of times myself.  In the long run it's been worth it despite the pain/expense at the time.  It's how we learn and grow!  :-)

guitar_stitch

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #16 on: October 06, 2014, 10:15:23 AM »
You learned a valuable lesson about standing under someone who's working with tools.  This lesson should continue to pay dividends for the rest of your life!

Extreme Investing...

Sid Hoffman

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #17 on: October 07, 2014, 05:50:17 PM »
In the end you succeeded in taking it apart yourself.

Actually if you read the OP, you'll see they did NOT succeed in taking it down.  They managed to get an injury, lost time, and medical expenses with absolutely nothing to show for it.  That's really like getting a 3rd black eye in addition to the two physical black eyes!

I can certainly identify with the OP.  I've had times when I attempted a repair on something only to make it significantly worse.  Then I have to spend even more money in addition to the money I already spent in order to fix the thing that I just made worse at my own expense.  It's extremely demoralizing.  It certainly falls within the category of "know your limits."

RetiredAt63

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #18 on: October 14, 2014, 07:16:56 AM »
I am a bit paranoid about safety - I am a bit of a klutz, I am too old to want to get injured (slower to heal), plus I sat on the Health and Safety Committee at work for a year - the stories I heard!

I wear safety glasses and ear protection when I cut the lawn (riding mower or string trimmer), I wear work boots to protect the bottom of my feet when I use a spade (learned that the hard way, a bit of nerve damage to the sole of one foot), I wear work gloves/gardening gloves.  I wear safety glasses whenever I am using an electric drill.  I wear a mask and safety glasses when I am mixing dyes. I alternate sides regularly when I am digging or shoveling.    And I still have bruises, dings, nicks.

PS you can get safety sunglasses, so no excuse not to wear them outside.

couponvan

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #19 on: October 27, 2014, 06:23:37 PM »
I have an update....I have healed well - just an extra "wrinkle" along the nose line.  I was surprised there weren't more face punches to go along with my two black eyes.  You all are too kind.

I may be getting myself off the wall of shame a bit.  Our ER bill came in at $596 when all was said and done.  Today, I negotiated a 20% discount for paying in full in cash. Did you know they would discount bills if you paid cash?  I sure didn't before MMM.

So, with my 20% "discount" I reduced the bill by....drum roll please $120.  What did I do with my "savings"? I took $5 from my personal weekly allowance and CALLED THE PLAYGROUND GUY.  He is coming Friday!!!  I will stay far, far away....

All in all, a $480 lesson about knowing our limits.  From now on, I will wear safety glasses/goggles and a hard hat when warranted.  Hmmm, maybe a construction worker costume for Halloween....All my co workers would get a kick out of that one!

gimp

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Re: Know your limits - penny wise pound foolish with a socket wrench
« Reply #20 on: October 27, 2014, 08:06:12 PM »
Quote
Hmmm, maybe a construction worker costume for Halloween....All my co workers would get a kick out of that one!

Make sure you wear a hard hat. :)

In all seriousness, DIY is awesome and sometimes you get hurt and that's not the worst thing to happen.