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The Bane of Home Repairs

bbqueen Registered on Jan-24-2005 More User Info Message #174748 posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 09:41:27 ET Once they do the demolition you are a prisoner. I needed a structure repair on my house this past week. Nothing major but not for the novice either. I live in an older house under "revitalization". As I am preparing to install a new bathroom, I had to complete this repair I had been putting off for too long. So I found a highly recommended company to come and give me an estimate. The price seemed fair and covered everything I needed done. We agreed on a start date. We also discussed my absolute annoyance with companies that start with gusto but then fade too quickly. It was well understood that I would wait for them to start at any time as long as they were "here" and diligently doing the work. Day One They showed up 2 hours late but explained their truck had been loaded with materials that needed to be unloaded in order to pick up the materials needed for my repair. But of course they had to have their lunch break after working 2 hours. Returned from lunch, worked another 2 hours and explained they would be back tomorrow to finish as they needed more materials to continue. During this afternoon stint though I realize my microwave and an entire wall of outlets aren't working. Seems they hit a wire while demolition was happening. Thank god no one was hurt and not their fault at all. The wire was in an area totally outside of any code standards. Total work completed: The entire corner of my house from one corner to another was removed leaving a gaping hole approximately 2 feet high. Yes the demolition stage....... Day Two: Again 2 hours late. Seems the water pump in the company truck had gone out and they needed to repair it. Usual lunch time taken and back to work for 2 hours. Then saying they would be back tomorrow to finish. Total work completed: More demolition off the same corner but in the opposite direction. Now I have gaping holes 2 foot high but now along 2 sides of my house. I just know I'm screwed now. Still no microwave and have moved everything such as coffee pot etc to different outlets so that I could use them. Day Three: Well I had tornado warnings the night before. Had to scramble around and cover the gaping holes with whatever I could find. What a freaking mess. At noon no one had shown up and phone calls were not be responded to. Seems my contact person had lost his cell phone this time. I only know this as I finally got a phone call explaining and apologizing for the delay. I just want blow up but of course I have a house with gaping holes and can't piss these guys off. I said the day is almost gone and let's start fresh tomorrow. Day Four: Alrighty demolition is done and now the rebuild is all that's left. Workers show up and start right in. But a couple hours later they knock on the door to tell me they need some plywood and they couldn't get someone to deliver it to them right away. And as usual said they would be back tomorrow. Day Five (Friday): Now it could be just me but as its now the weekend, wages have to be paid, and they don't want to work on a Saturday ......... but isn't it amazing how much work can be done so quickly? They showed up earlier than they had all week long. Not one person ate any lunch. They hammered and repaired like busy little beavers all day long. Finished about 6:00 pm. Did a great job. Got paid and all is well. But the warning here is, once the demolition starts you are screwed. Thanks for letting me drone on and now I have to figure out a way to get that new bathroom without letting anyone do demolition cuz I just know that I will be held prisoner again.

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

bbqueen Registered on Jan-24-2005 More User Info Message #174749 posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 09:45:43 ET In Reply to: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 09:41:27 ET oh yeah just in case you are interested ......... the microwave is working again as well lol

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

puffgeezer Premier Member Registered on Apr-19-2002 More User Info Message #174752 posted by puffgeezer (Info) May 10, 2008 10:34:02 ET In Reply to: Re: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 09:45:43 ET bbq, I'm familiar with the process you describe. I studied the trades in my business and have spent a lot of time with tradesmen in all the categories. Like everything else in life, there is a bell curve in competence and performance. A few are very good, a few are very bad, and the majority are somewhere in between. The guys likely had another job or two they were squeezing in with yours. Juggling jobs and keeping everyone more or less happy is a survival skill for those who specialize in smaller homeowner jobs. The uninformed or inexperienced customer has little chance to get around the games. Plus, if they wanted to be on a schedule, they would be working in another line of work. You can deal with this kind of problem to some degree by staying right on top of them. Pushing the guys to be as specific as you can about what and when they're going to do, and then regularly checking in and getting updates. It makes it more difficult for them to play you. But they're very good and practiced at the game. Few tradesmen are truly dishonest, and most are just trying to make a living. Good luck in getting your project finished. Puff

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

Damndrugtest Registered on Sep-12-2003 More User Info Message #174759 posted by Damndrugtest (Info) May 10, 2008 15:37:49 ET In Reply to: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 09:41:27 ET Sounds like it was a pain in the ass. Home contractors seem to be about 90% unreliable. But you probably did better than most. I've heard of stuff being ripped out and work uncompleted. I've always found this to be a good source when it comes to selecting a business to use. http://referrallist.com/ DDT

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

bizar4u Premier Member Registered on Dec-01-2003 More User Info Message #174760 posted by bizar4u (Info) May 10, 2008 18:25:13 ET In Reply to: Re: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by Damndrugtest (Info) May 10, 2008 15:37:49 ET I'm just getting ready to do some home repairs too -- but almost all outside, not inside. So ... I hope it won't be too much of a problem. We'll see... B

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

* del... * Board Moderator Premier Member Registered on Feb-22-2000 More User Info Message #174763 posted by del... (Info) May 10, 2008 18:42:01 ET In Reply to: Re: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by Damndrugtest (Info) May 10, 2008 15:37:49 ET yeah, i know what ya mean...been there, done that. and now that i have a home nearly 100 years old i'm in need of a contractor once again, also for total rehab of a bathroom but i also have a kitchen that needs to brought into the 21st century! luckily i have a reliable and honest general contractor...only prob is he lives 400 miles away from this one and 100 miles away from the nevada home! but he's traveled to both places in the past and is well worth the extra he charges for mileage and always gives me a good deal for his expertise...but it's still damn expensive and have been saving up for it for nearly a year now and still have a ways to go! so until he gets down here i'm stuck with a bathtub only as the shower pipes are plugged with calcium deposits from the super-hard water here in az but the tub faucet is plugged up too so i have to siphon from the nearby sink to even take a bath...lol...but it works! hopefully by this time next year i'll have it all updated and can live and shower like a civilized man again...

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

bbqueen Registered on Jan-24-2005 More User Info Message #174765 posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 20:29:28 ET In Reply to: Re: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by del... (Info) May 10, 2008 18:42:01 ET i know what you mean by old houses del. i also live in one that is almost 100 now. wonderful house but used to be rented by college students and took a beating. so i will give you my current old house "money pit" story. I dropped something down the drain of the upstairs bathroom sink. i had to take the drain apart to get it out. when i tried to put the drain back together, the pipe broke off inside the wall due to age. as the walls are all tiled and the total bathroom was old, i told myself i was not calling a plumber to fix that one pipe. well........i want a new bathroom now but the house really should be leveled before i do that as it will be more weight and i want the whole room level. soooooooo i called a contractor to come and give an estimate on the leveling which was fine. but he told me i had to have a sill plate repaired before he could level the house. i knew i had a bad spot in the foundation so decided to have that repaired. someone (the contractor in the beginning of this thread) came to give an estimate on that work but also said i should put gutters/downspouts on the house at the same time. so the real story now is that when i dropped something very small down a bathroom sink. i have now moved shrubbery for the sill plate repairs, had sill plate work completed, new gutters, almost have the house leveled and still have the broken pipe in the wall .....................

Re: The Bane of Home Repairs

The Sage Premier Member Registered on May-24-2002 More User Info Message #174784 posted by The Sage (Info) May 11, 2008 18:41:42 ET In Reply to: The Bane of Home Repairs posted by bbqueen (Info) May 10, 2008 09:41:27 ET Oh, I sympathize with what you went/are going through. I work with contractors all the time, but having them at your home with (what seems to be) no schedule for finishing their work is definitely unpleasant and somewhat unnerving. All in all, it sounds like you're happy with what they did. It was very good that you let them know ahead of time that you were interested in their getting the job done on a timely basis. If they delivered what they promised, at the price you agreed, within the time they promised, then it was a successful transaction. To get results from contractors, it pays to keep their attention. The best person to yell at, if you get pissed, is the person who sold you the job. The best person to get a commitment from is the person who moves the troops. The best people to give you the straight skinny: the troops. Peace, Sage

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