22
Overheard a guy at the hardware store say 'a door contact is a door contact, how different can they be?'
Honestly, it made me think about how often we might assume a part is generic, but then you get a call back for a false alarm from a cheap $4 sensor that can't handle a drafty doorframe.
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
faith_palmer513mo ago
Oh, that's a perfect example of the "you get what you pay for" trap. It makes me wonder, how do you even begin to explain the difference in quality to a customer who just sees the price tag? They might not understand that a good sensor has better seals, a more reliable switch, and can handle real world conditions. That false alarm call back costs more in time and gas than the sensor ever saved.
6
elliot_miller222mo ago
you get what you pay for" is such a perfect way to put it, and honestly, it took me awhile to really get it. I used to be one of those guys who would just grab the cheapest sensor on the shelf and think I was being smart with the budget. But that 3 AM call from a customer, plus the drive out there, plus the egg on my face? @faith_palmer51 you're spot on, it costs way more than the sensor ever saved. Seeing that invisible value of a part that just quietly works is a tough lesson, but it sticks with you after you get burned a couple times.
4
the_joel3mo ago
Exactly, and that call back isn't just a trip out. It chips away at their trust in the whole system. You start to look like the problem, not the cheap part that failed. It's tough because the good sensor just sits there working, so its value is invisible until the bad one makes a mess. How do you put a price on not getting woken up at 3 AM?
6