Past perfect / Passive voice

[MJSD]

1. We have completed the removal of light fittings, and they were cleaned & packed and kept on site.
2. We have completed the removal of light fittings, and we have cleaned, packed and kept them on site.

Is it possible to combine past perfect and passive voice together? Are they grammatically correct?

 

[grassy]

Sentence 1 is grammatically correct but it's not very good style. It's as if the two sets of actions were done by different people.

 

[Keith Bradford]

Of course it's possible, but it seems odd. You have begun by saying who did the work: "We have completed..." Why are you now reluctant to say who cleaned and packed them? Are you having doubts about whether it was done properly? Your reader is going to start asking questions.

 

[The Newt]

1. seems awkward. Another option would be "We have completed the removal of light fittings, and they have been cleaned, packed, and stored on site."

 

[MJSD]

Of course it's possible, but it seems odd. You have begun by saying who did the work: "We have completed..." Why are you now reluctant to say who cleaned and packed them? Are you having doubts about whether it was done properly? Your reader is going to start asking questions.

I think, I should write something like tht:
As we discussed. the light fittings were removed, cleaned, packed and stored on site.

 

[SevenDays]

1. We have completed the removal of light fittings, and they were cleaned & packed and kept on site.
2. We have completed the removal of light fittings, and we have cleaned, packed and kept them on site.

Is it possible to combine past perfect and passive voice together? Are they grammatically correct?

Yes, it's possible, and, yes, it's grammatical.
In 1., you are changing the focus mid-sentence. The focus begins on "we," and then shifts to "light fittings" (light fittings = they were cleaned). There is nothing unusual about this. By contrast, 2. maintains the focus on "we."

As to which is better, 1. or 2., that's a subjective judgment. The answer will depend on who you ask.

 

[Keith Bradford]

A detail that has not yet been commented on: you begin with the present perfect tense (have completed) and then switch to the past (were, rather than have been). This again emphasises the rift between the two halves of the sentence that raises doubts in the reader's mind.

 

[MJSD]

A detail that has not yet been commented on: you begin with the present perfect tense (have completed) and then switch to the past (were, rather than have been). This again emphasises the rift between the two halves of the sentence that raises doubts in the reader's mind.

Well noted, thank you