Advice

I've been working with a neighbor for the last ten to fifteen years, and he worked with my dad when he was still farming. He does my combining and I do his round baling and haul in his crops and a lot of fixing on his combine. It went great until this year. I hate to say it but he has really started to slip. On two different occasions he couldn't figure out how to put air in the combine tire, the first time he called the tire truck just to air up his tire. Also it seems to make a big difference where he's running as to how he runs on his very careful on somebody elses not very careful runs tank over, runs down a lot of corn on end rows. Then after his was done and before mine was he decided everything that broke on the combine was my fault, he wasn't going to combine any more and he wanted paid right away. Three things broke on the combine while I was running it - connector link came apart on raddle chain simple fix, water pump went out-I caught it before it got hot and I put new one on, and straw walker came apart and caught the side of the combine. I don't really think there was much I could have done to prevent any of these. But he blames all the break downs,not just these, on me and says I'm bad luck if nothing else. My questions are should I charge him for all the work I've done hauling, fixing, use of my tractor and what should I charge. Iowa custom rate survey says 11.70 for labor per hour for operating machinery, 20 cents per horsepower for tractor rent. Would $20 per hour for mechanic work mostly in my shop be fair. Iowa custom survey also says $7.50 per acre to rent a corn head. Would it be fair to take that much off the combining per acre where we used my corn head for different row spacing. Should I try to get one of his kids to be there when we settle up so he doesn't think I'm taking advantage of him. He also has quit doing business with at least four different businesses in the area because he thinks they are screwing him. Sorry about the long post, but I've worked all fall helping harvest and can't really afford to pay full price for combining and throw in all my work. Lee

Sounds like he may have developed a mental condition in his old age judging by what you said about forgetting how to air up the tires twice . It could be dementia ,etc. I'd talk to his family to determine if this might be true . Sounds as if ( especially if he does have mental needs ) he needs medical help . Just my two cents worth .

Lee, my nickels worth says to have one of his kids there when you settle up but I would talk to the kid first and tell them just what you have said here. You sound like I am if something breaks while I am operating it I feel a responsibility to fix it even if it is not my fault. I had a neighbor like that and pretty much same thing happened. Come to find out he was not feeling good and the end result was I lost a good friend and mentor within 6 months to cancer. Whatever happen I know that you will do what is right and fair to the both of you especially if friendship is involved. Good luck.

Talk to his kids. I am thinking a possible medical problem.

Hate to say it, but I would be buying a combine for myself asap. $20 per hour for mechanics labor is really cheap. Dealer likes $85. You could charge him $40 and it would still be a good deal for him. I would venture out on my own.

Mental problems can hit overnight. If you care about him, talk with someone, it may be good for both of you. OTH, the kids could be nuts also..................

Best of luck.

Dave

Ithink Its Time to hit the brakes and gently part company..,, Don'T Charge him for work you did on his machine ,,, Buy his machine or find another one to do your crops ,, This Guy needs to stop before something or someone gets messed up BAD ,,You nedd to Have a HEART To HEART , Man to Man talk with him ,, And don't play the blame game,, Neither of You... It would BE REAL PLUS IF both Of YOU know YOUR BIBLE ,, Blessings jim

Of course there is always the other side of the coin...He didn"t have the time or means to run back to the shed to air up the tire - You ARE bad luck (and/or don"t pay attention when running his equipment) - he doesn"t want you near his equipment and this is his way of telling you.
I"d say call it a day and go on your way. Forget billing him - leave with a smile and knowing (thinking) you did all you could.

Of course...I"ve been wrong before!

If it was me,I would get out of the dealings with him as ammacable as possible.He's still your neighbour,if he doesn't appreciate your work anymore,than you don't need to do it for him,if he's causing that much grief for you,than you don't need him either.Maybe you can custome bale for someone else and find someone else to do your combining?

Obviously you can no longer do business with him. Write off the past year's experiences; you won't be able to collect anything from him for your troubles. But you do have a responsibility to try to get him some help. If he has family, you need to talk to them and explain that his mental condition seems to be deteriorating.

He was already at the shed both times and had tried to put air in with just the coupler on the hose one time. I try to be careful with my own equipment and even more careful with somebody else's. In the past he always asked me to run it, especially when he couldn't be there. His repair bill was way lower this year than last on more acres, and I didn't run it any last year. It is 20 year old combine with 5000 hours. Lee

You didnt mention his age could be old age is catching up or maybe he is having a hard time with life. If he is a friend dont give up too easy good friends are hard to come by.

I decided early in the fall that it would be my last year working with him. When my son was helping he wanted to fill a big wagon that my son would have had to come down a steep slippery hill with. Thank God my 16 year old had more sense than he did and wouldn't let him fill it. I will try to get one or more of his kids to be there when we settle up, they know there's a problem already. You don't see them letting the grandkids come out to help anymore. I just don't know if I can afford to pay full price for combining and throw in all my work. I don't have an off farm job and my wife stays home with the kids. Thank you for all the replies I will consider them very carefully. Lee

I would speak with family ASAP. As the other posters have alluded to, me bet is a medical problem.

I lost a good friend; her symptom started as she could not figure out how to flush the commode.

He's probably in the early stages of Altzheimers- no point in talking to him about it until you talk to the kids, tell them what you told us- if they're reasonable people, maybe you can work out payment "through the back door" with them. If not, I'd chalk it up to experience. Believe me, the poor man is going to have enough demons as time goes on, and the last thing he needs is to have you as another one. I've kind of BTDT- my son's father in law died of early onset Altzheimers at age 57, about 4 years after contracting it. He was about the kindest, most loving and reasonable guy you ever saw, and it just killed everyone in the family to see him deteriorate. Had to put him in care center when he tried to strangle his wife in bed one night. His disease was more virulent than most- usually, it just attacks the cognative centers, and patient lives for years "on autopilot" as to bodily functions. His attacked everything, including brain stem, and in the end, his brain simply "forgot" how to make his heart beat.

When you talk to his kids/family tell them that you are really concerned about him and would like to help. Then explain what you've told us. They probably already know that he's not 100%. Sometimes the bigger problem is that when people are having problems, they get really defensive because they don't want to admit they have a problem(just like an alcoholic). You need to find a kind way to try and reason with him. If you can convince his family to have a Dr. check him out would be a good idea. Dave

Has he had an illness this year? Sometimes the medication being taken can affect how a person behaves.

Unless you are talking THOUSANDS of dollars in question, just pay him what he wants and move on(don't ever work together again). Chances are very great that you will just stir up a hornet's nest by--what he will think is--going over him to his kids.

Pay him off in full, keep your friendship intact, and move on. I'd find a time to explain to him that if it is too much work to do his farming, that you will do it for him(rent the farm). You go to his kids, p*ss him off, and no chance of that(and you will prob only negotiate him down a few dollars anyway AND have hard feelings). Is it worth all thye hassle? Wouldn't be for me. Pay him, move on, lesson learned.

It involves about $4500 if I don"t get paid for any of the stuff that I did. Lee

If I understand things, the $4500 is what you would owe him w/o being paid for your work. Then the $4500 isn't the important number at all. If you put , say, $1000 of parts and a MINIMAL labor charge into the situation, you would owe him , in my example, either $4500(if you got nothing) or $3500(if you were reimbursed. In my example, I wouldn't cause a fight for $1000, as by the time you negotiate a settlement it would be less thsn $1000 you would end up with hard feelings over.

If I AM understanding this correctly, the only amt that really matters is the $$$ you put into the situation out of your pocket. I don't think your labor is all that important if you ended up getting your crop out timely, as that is certainly worth something. The TOTAL is immaterial, as he did custom work for you and is entitled to be paid.

So, IF IF IF I understand you, I stand by my original advice.Pay him, move on, lesson learned.

If you spent $4500 of YOUR money on HIS stuff, then shame on you. Why would you do that? I would have charged all the parts to him as I picked them up, then all I would be out is my labor.

But be re-reading your reply, I see $4500 is the total for the custom work without deducting your involvement keeping the stuff running. So I stand by my first papagraph of this reply. The TOTAL $$ is unimportant, as he did custom work for you that is probably the majority of this total and needs paid. You are only potentially causing a fight over the paarts you paid for. Most certainly you SHOULD be reimbursed, but lessons are seldom free.

You understood right the 4500 would be the combining bill if I didn"t get reimbursed for my work, use of my corn head, tractor etc, they add up to about 3000. But I didn"t get my crop harvested timely, I still have 18 acres in the field I"m going to have pick in the ear now, and I didn"t get to bale stalks for myself and other people because I was helping him all fall. Lee