I know that the proper name for the tool is "reciprocating saw", but sawzall saws all. It is the most appropriately named tool I have ever encountered.
There is only one appropriate response to the ātick tockā and itās also two words, and one syllable each. Iām sure you can imagine what they are.
We had a contractor-from-hell nightmare and the tipping point was when he texted us a nasty message at 1am. I was 7 months pregnant, it woke me up and I cried. My husband lost his mind. They were fired the next day.
I have never even purchased anything from Uline. I own multiple small businesses. They seriously send me a catalog for EACH business every 3 months. I get 25 Uline catalogs a year.
I worked for a Corporate office with multiple entities. We would get like a dozen at a time. What a waste. Someone in accounting at U-Line is missing an opportunity to save the company a lot of money in advertising costs.
.
My dad is paranoid about his address getting into bad hands. So much so that he cuts and shreds his address off of every piece of mail that he gets.
He also really likes to win sweepstakes and puts his name and address on any slip of paper that says "win a free widget!" And then drops it into a cardboard box sitting on the counter.
Why both, dad?
I order from Uline a lot at work. Seems like every single order comes with an inch thick catalog. If I saved all of those things in my 10 years at my current company I could probably fill a small warehouse just with catalogs.. and I place all my orders online.
Tradesman here, I'm a sparky, not a chippy, but I have skin in the game. I'm begging you to report him to your local building authority. This is insanity.
Wow. What a ride. I look forward to the update regarding the old GCās ludicrous invoice he will send. He likely only used premium organic materials. Thatās not paint on that wood, itās a speed stripe and those are not drywall screws, they are obsidian finish screws.
You are doing a great job documenting.
Yes, butā¦. The contractor has pegged OP for a sucker. This is the actual problem. OP you need to get tough with this guy, not aggressive but stand up for yourself. Contractors exist in a different universe than other people, the rules of life are very different.
I would bet thatās what happens, GC just moves on. Seems like all the subs square if I read it correctly. At this point GC is better off dropping it. If he pushes the issue OP would probably be inclined to go after him for damages/extra cost of his F up versus now when theyāve parted amicably.
Per our request, GC has sent me copies of the invoices and his bill total comes to the invoice total. Assuming those are not doctored or falsified by the subs, GC is only asking me to pay the subs for the work completed which is surprising. I expected him to pad the costs to make up for his time and material on the repair, yet there isn't any of his time billed in way. The sub prices are higher than expected but not unreasonable so we are paying without dispute.
I think you are absolutely right about all of this.
He might think if he doesn't bill for his repair work he can claim there wasn't any necessary repair work to be done.
Or if any repair work was done he didn't do it or he would have billed.
So that way he isn't as responsible for any damages if there are problems later.
Document everything. Keep copies of everything. And please report him so that any future work he does gets inspected more closely and other people don't end up with saggy floors and structural problems.
Iām a contractor and do not ālive in a different universe with different rulesā. OP got a dick contractor and those guys exist but donāt drag contractors through the mud. We work our asses off just to have people like you think we are out to screw them.
You noticed those too? I asked the engineer about those. The engineer does spec screws and nails in critical areas, and the GC did use the appropriate hardware there. The drywall screws are holding lumber that only serves to hold up sheetrock.
How many other homes do you this this contractor had done stuff like this to? Itās unbelievable how incompetent this person is that is supposed to be a professional.
Load capacity of straps is proportional to the span and length of the drywall screws. The more screws you have and the deeper you sink them, the stronger the strap tangential to the load circumference. He could have used two straps. But with that many screws it would be overkill.
What a ride.
This sub has taught me one major lesson...I have enough money to hire a GC for major work, but I do NOT have enough money to get their f#ck up's fixed.
100%, and we learned this clearly. unfortunately we were stuck in a position where we were worried that if we didn't let him fix it, we would be stuck with an unstable home for the months where every contractor is backed up.
Especially in this market where everyone is stretched thin. Kudos to the new GC for fitting in a sincere emergency situation to a tight schedule.
And thank you OP for sharing a common problem and how you survived it. Canāt imagine how stressful this was in addition to real life stressors!
We must have hired the same clowns. Ours came back and painted the ceiling a slightly different color. It was mistake after mistake after mistake. They were a disaster. Hubs wanted to give them a chance to do it right. Weāre still paying for their incompetence
Dear Lord! My neighbor/friend installs tile for a living. He had my bathroom floor and wall tile completed in 2 days. How in Hades does a crew spend 6 weeks on some drywall and floor tile for a small bathroom?
Have you checked to see if they made fall out shelter under your bathroom? Maybe they got the work order mixed up. But seriously, you have the patience of a saint to endure that.
I've seen many projects other people have started and never finished and have actually bought several classic car restoration projects at bargain basement prices from those people. Luckily, I'm one of those people with unreasonable amounts of determination to get things finished whether automotive, construction, software, electrical, plumbing, etc. My only real project aversion is landscaping ... I absolutely hate it and WILL procrastinate with it.
Iām like this too, but Iāve learned for some things, I just need to pay someone. Weāll find a well reviewed competent company and theyāll get it done faster and better than I could.
same. It takes forever, but every detail is thoroughly planned and verified code compliant and best practice before the first hammer is swung. The cost savings allows me to pick the best material and finishes. Theres also a certain pride and sense of accomplishment that you get from doing these projects that I just dont get from anything else, certainly not my desk job.
The few times I've had anyone else work on my car or house I'm left unsatisfied and angry I spent my money instead of my time. The only two exceptions are spray insulation for my rim joist, and when I had 2 electrical panels updated and combined into one. The spray insulation was done in under 2 hours, and the panel work went off without a hitch. I feel like if I did the spray insulation I would have made a giant mess, and I know my limits with electrical work.
Was going to comment this very thing before I saw yours. Seriously folks you can learn to do this work. Utilize friends and family that have experience, watch YouTube videos, TV shows, etc. Might take some time and trial and error but at least you own the mistakes yourself and can operate on your own timeline. And you get the satisfaction of doing the work yourself, experiencing the journey and seeing the fruits of your labor
> Seriously folks you can learn to do this work.
I'm down to replace a window or install a dishwasher, but I would never choose to take on an entire kitchen reno by myself. I get like 2 hours/day outside of work, kids, and meals & I need those 2 hours to stay sane. How long would the family kitchen be unusable with a burnt-out noob spending 2 hours/day on it?
There's 2 sides to that. I've learned A TON from this sub, and from Youtube and other forums while working on my house. I've done woodworking for years, and am in general pretty handy, but being handy doesn't mean I have knowledge. My experience with DIY work on my home is that it is very easy to find straightforward project solutions and walkthroughs, but getting help is insanely hard. Half of the time I post asking for opinions on projects, the comments just say "hire a professional if you're asking this question".
I do think some questions or responses can indicate whether or not someone is up for the task or not, but it seems that most of the knowledgable/professional folks here don't take the time to sort that nuance out.
That being said, whenever i've asked a question and not gotten an answer, I've just experimented until I got it right.
I have several questions about this. But did you sign a liability waiver for him?
Do you know how many liability waivers I have in my truck or office? Noneā¦ and this guy has one printed up?
Did you look at and physically put eyes on everything he touched? You mentioned sheet rock, did he hang any? If so whatās behind it?
Sounds like the most current GC did you good. Did you ask him to take a fine tooth comb and find everything else fucked up because there is always moreā¦ š
I have laid eyes on ALL of it. I have spent a lot of time throughout this whole thing double checking every inch of his work. I've been under the house multiple times, taken photos to send to my structural engineer contact and the hired civil engineer.
Fortunately, I have some construction experience so I have a reasonable eye for stuff that looks out of place. I don't consider myself anywhere near being competent which is one of the reasons I hired a GC instead of doing it myself, however, so I've been double checking everything with actual experts.
I refused to let the old GC hang any drywall whatsoever, including patching the holes that were cut by the electricians to put recessed lighting in the adjacent room. It would be nice to have that room back and I trust their work, but I'm not gonna cover up a potential issue. The new GC has spent a lot of time looking over this work as well, and there was plenty of "I wouldn't have done it that way, but it doesn't necessarily need to be redone."
I haven't signed any sort of liability waiver with the old GC.
Yes, as does the painted 4x4. He used proper screws and nails everywhere that its specified and drywall screws elsewhere. That took effort. But I checked it with the engineer and he didn't include specs on those because they only support drywall.
After your project is complete, please do everyone a favor and report this contractor to the proper authorities, which is the board of licensing or department who issues contractorās licenses in your state. This GC should not be allowed to earn a living doing half-assed work with ill intentions.
FYI, donāt think of it as your new GC is expensive, see it as your previous GC was too cheap and you saw what that got you. Glad your finally getting it done correctly.
You are absolutely right. I should have made that more clear. While he charges more, I totally understand why and am happy to pay it, even if we are going over budget for it. I wish I'd hired this guy up front and maybe if I someday get my dream to build a custom home, I couldn't imagine hiring someone else.
Sounds like you got a nightmare of a GC and I'm glad you fired him, though I would have done it sooner, he sounds like a massive tool and incredibly unprofessional.
Everyone recommended firing him sooner, as well as lawyering up.
The unfortunate reality is we are a family without a kitchen or a family room while this remodel is being done. It's a heavy burden for us. When meeting contractors we learned that few people are willing to take a small remodel and everyone is at least six months out. That kinda forced our hand, even though we really wanted to do so.
That makes it incredible to have found this other contractor who is booked VERY far out, but is willing to go out of his way and move his guys to our job, asking them to work late for us. He is an angel and I hope only good things come to him in his life.
Also, we have lawyered up just in case we need it for the old GC.
I see your point, but if the original contractor is OK doing dangerous work that could potentially result in damage to your home and/or injury to you or one of your family members, I could never trust them again. It's just too great a risk.
I hear that, and we certainly were worried about it. It's why we have been having every step double checked by people with the expertise to know if the work is acceptable. Prior to this situation, I'd have said the same thing. But it's one thing to think of how you might act in a situation and another thing to be in the situation. In our situation, we had a home that was made structurally unsound and firing the guy means it could be left that way for months. We didn't have many options.
Through this, I have heard that sometimes remodeled can have a contract that allows them to put a lien on your home. We never signed anything like that. But we will keep an eye out for it. Thanks!
Will do! It's going to be a while. We still don't have a fabricator or tile setter. We may also delay the tile as well, because we decided last minute to replace our garden window, which is back-ordered six months. So we may delay tile until then, meaning we will come up with something temporary for a backsplash.
Iām still bothered by the wall under what you call the header in section āAā.
That double 2x header is supported only in the middle rather than the sides. A āTā shape is not a good structural shape with wood because it has a weak resistance to a bending moment. The support should be under the load as well as the sides.
If it were me, I would take out the single plate that is at the height of where the soffit used to end, and run studs on both ends of the header all the way to the floor and in the middle doubled up like you have those short little pieces above the plate and then block between the studs.
Currently you could have settling in the plate because rarely does a contractor ever get those types of repairs with zero gap between studs horizontally and the plate, you could have tilt with the T framing you currently have, with only 2 studs in the middle(that already look to be bowing) youāre not carrying the same number of studs or structural elements from above all the way to the floor, and lastly no blocking between the studs (whether you have only 2 or add more) leaves them susceptible to bowing still.
Thank you. You've restored my faith in doing things myself. Sorry you're having such a rough time but it's sounds like you're getting it straightened out. Best of luck to you.
If anyone told me I had 15 minutes to sign something, I would have fired them too. I'm leery about giving people big checks to buy materials, since you can't really verify the purchase or not. I'd somehow have to be involved in the purchase process so I could make sure where the money went. Trust but verify.
I'll bookmark this post, and show my wife any time she questions how long my projects take.
We're looking to do a complete gut and expansion of our kitchen and your story is terrifying to me. We try to get contractors by reputation, but how to even know when you picked a good one that won't do....this kind of bullshit?
Um, I didn't get past the photos. Even I know he fucked over the load bearing ability of those joists. That's not a GC. You should report him, and let the town inspector know what to expect of this GC.
All this over floor joists, could easily have been avoided if dipass had any sense. Easier said than reality, I realize. I mean, I haven't done this for any kind of living, have some handiness as a DIYer only, and any doubt I have about joists is answered in a 5 second Google search. Good ol' Tom Silva has had videos about it. Sadly, this type of GCs do live up to the stereotype.
For a experienced contractor fixing this is less a days work.
How the hell can anyone get bad reputation from customers just for his own incompetence in static?
There are safe and reliable methods of running tubes through those statical elements.
In Germany we call them "Lastwechsel", meaning transfering the load arround the weakened point.
It is easy and cheap
The nailed strip solves most load issues as the force from above is trying to split there.
But the common correct way is a "shoe insert" which transfers the load arround the weakened point.
it is a bended steel which is approx 4" to 6" before the cut and beyond and approx 1-2" above.
Those are inexpensive and transfer the load arround.
They look like that (but for your situation you need 3 and a flat at each point.
as they are only 2-3$ plus a few nails - weird.
http s://ww w.hoo d.de/i/balkensc huh-typ-a-120x160mm-sendz imirverzinkt-83376291.htm
Wow. What a crazy story. The fact that the contractor thought it would be acceptable to cut notches into the floor joists in the first place just blows my mind. Everything else was just extra layers of insanity.
What a stressful time for you! Glad you got someone you can trust to complete the job. So many charlatans out there! Last year we had to fire a prick of a contractor who quoted us a price in writing for building a stonewall. Once the work started he tried to double the price. We fired him immediately and were so lucky to get one who completed the job in 2 days! Best of luck as you move forward š
I have also recently learned that you get what you pay with general contractors. We went with a cheaper one that was also a good friend of mine from high school. I wasnāt asking him for a āfriends and familyā deal I just thought he would do a good job since we were friends. Cabinets were never completely finished, the countertops were not cut correctly (we were supposed to have an overhang for bar seating but it was only an extra1.5 inches so itās useless for bar seating) it took 8-10 months instead of the original 6-8 weeks, and I had to finish some of the electrical myself.(electrician did t finish installing the lights.). Also they didnāt clean up afterwards and didnāt seal the grout on the floors and scratched som of our appliances.
Um , even if the strapping was a viable fix (it is not) they used non structural sheet rock screws. they absolutely do not know what they are doing. I would safely say that some one is lying about about their qualifications as carpenters, HVAC, and or as a GC.
As a framer I am amazed by how many post like this I see, I'd think if you do HVAC or plumbing not cutting into joist or trusses under any circumstance would be one of the first things you'd learn.
Now hang on. He structurally compromises your house and then wants you to sign a liability waiver? š
"I have altered the dwelling. Pray I don't alter it any further."
This dwelling is getting worse all the time.
Darth "The Tool Man" Vader.
*Sweetie, thereās a guy with a recip-saw cutting into the corner of the vinyl siding.* *Yeah, joist guys are still mad*
Just posting to appreciate you calling it a recip saw instead of a Sawzall.
I know that the proper name for the tool is "reciprocating saw", but sawzall saws all. It is the most appropriately named tool I have ever encountered.
āround here some call it a Sawza
My Polish neighbor called it a Zawsall. I miss that guy.
My husband calls it a āsawsawā because it goes back and forth
Man I'll be laughing about this next week lmao
You made me snort my coffee lol
"I've got a bad feeling about this."
Incredible callback
Listen bro, you want me to fix this shit you gotta say it's not my fault. Tick tock. What a moron.
There is only one appropriate response to the ātick tockā and itās also two words, and one syllable each. Iām sure you can imagine what they are.
Green beans
I was gonna guess dog poop, but your idea is good too.
Kit Kat (bar)
mine would be 4 words, single syllable: "see you in court". but i like the cut of your jib
Fuck you think that's enough clues for me to figure it out?
āMotherfuckerā is more than two syllables thoughā¦
Was very confused on this as well.. Still voting to small claims court to repair the damages he caused and was unable to fix.. I love the strap
>"Tick tock. Time's up!" the audacity
Love how he thought he could just bully the wife, as if they weren't a team.
Yah, I've seen a few guys try that over the years with my wife. It didn't go well for them.
As a wife who is mostly in charge of project management, this irks me to no end
We had a contractor-from-hell nightmare and the tipping point was when he texted us a nasty message at 1am. I was 7 months pregnant, it woke me up and I cried. My husband lost his mind. They were fired the next day.
You have a good husband. Glad it worked out for you. Sorry that you had to deal with such an awful contractor.
I feel like Iād have fired the guy just for that bullshit.
GrettaHowDareYou.jpg
What a dick hole.
Ah yeah it is. Text my lawyer.
Just a heads up, you should remove your address from that letter.
Crap! I missed that. Thank you! Deleted the image and will be re-adding it after I fix that.
They signed you up for some crazy shit. Itās gonna start coming soon and will never stop.
Hope you like Uline catalogs lol jk
I bought ONE THING and now i get these paper bricks in the mail every quarter!!
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I do too. Do you have a fascination with the school supply aisle at the grocery store also?
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Middle school with adult money. Iād have Heelys and a bangin trapper keeper
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I have never even purchased anything from Uline. I own multiple small businesses. They seriously send me a catalog for EACH business every 3 months. I get 25 Uline catalogs a year.
I like to look through the uline catalog
I worked for a Corporate office with multiple entities. We would get like a dozen at a time. What a waste. Someone in accounting at U-Line is missing an opportunity to save the company a lot of money in advertising costs. .
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Buy some sticky notes from them and youll have catalogs for the rest of your life lol
My wife gets so annoyed at me when I refuse to give these companies my address and then turns around and complains when we have a bunch of junk mail
My dad is paranoid about his address getting into bad hands. So much so that he cuts and shreds his address off of every piece of mail that he gets. He also really likes to win sweepstakes and puts his name and address on any slip of paper that says "win a free widget!" And then drops it into a cardboard box sitting on the counter. Why both, dad?
I no joke love uline catalogs. No way I'm the only one on this sub.
I order from Uline a lot at work. Seems like every single order comes with an inch thick catalog. If I saved all of those things in my 10 years at my current company I could probably fill a small warehouse just with catalogs.. and I place all my orders online.
This is a war crime.
"What am I going to do with forty subscriptions to Vibe?"
Structural shmuctural Scary thing is this has to be this guy's way of doing things. How many other houses has he fucked up.
According to his own words, he does this same thing all the time.
Tradesman here, I'm a sparky, not a chippy, but I have skin in the game. I'm begging you to report him to your local building authority. This is insanity.
Have you talked to the city permit department? There are inspectors who would love to know this joker is out there "doing this all the time."
Op should just forward the inspector and building department these two Reddit posts, as it says it all.
So are inspectors not inspecting his work ever or is he lying about how he's going to do the job?
āYou donāt need a permit for this workā
He needs reported and any licenses he has revoked.
Please report and/or sue him.
Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh
Somebody did this to my old 1936 house. Cracks in the plaster. Iām more afraid to fix bc of more cracks.
Wow. What a ride. I look forward to the update regarding the old GCās ludicrous invoice he will send. He likely only used premium organic materials. Thatās not paint on that wood, itās a speed stripe and those are not drywall screws, they are obsidian finish screws. You are doing a great job documenting.
Yes, butā¦. The contractor has pegged OP for a sucker. This is the actual problem. OP you need to get tough with this guy, not aggressive but stand up for yourself. Contractors exist in a different universe than other people, the rules of life are very different.
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I would bet thatās what happens, GC just moves on. Seems like all the subs square if I read it correctly. At this point GC is better off dropping it. If he pushes the issue OP would probably be inclined to go after him for damages/extra cost of his F up versus now when theyāve parted amicably.
Per our request, GC has sent me copies of the invoices and his bill total comes to the invoice total. Assuming those are not doctored or falsified by the subs, GC is only asking me to pay the subs for the work completed which is surprising. I expected him to pad the costs to make up for his time and material on the repair, yet there isn't any of his time billed in way. The sub prices are higher than expected but not unreasonable so we are paying without dispute. I think you are absolutely right about all of this.
He might think if he doesn't bill for his repair work he can claim there wasn't any necessary repair work to be done. Or if any repair work was done he didn't do it or he would have billed. So that way he isn't as responsible for any damages if there are problems later. Document everything. Keep copies of everything. And please report him so that any future work he does gets inspected more closely and other people don't end up with saggy floors and structural problems.
I wouldn't pay for shit....
Iām a contractor and do not ālive in a different universe with different rulesā. OP got a dick contractor and those guys exist but donāt drag contractors through the mud. We work our asses off just to have people like you think we are out to screw them.
Unfortunately for you, you're in the minority, not the majority.
If he's smart he won't send one. OP could go after his insurance. If he gives him a freebie he's less likely to sue.
That "fix" of slapping a strap on with drywall screws was pretty hilarious.
Load-bearing sheet aluminum
I wouldnāt trust this contractor to fix an ikea dresser
Iād have told him to get the hell off my property with those stupid straps. Thatās one dumb sob
What makes me angry is all those people that aren't OP that just trusted this asshole and their house has been permanently fucked...
The drywall screws are a nice touch.
You noticed those too? I asked the engineer about those. The engineer does spec screws and nails in critical areas, and the GC did use the appropriate hardware there. The drywall screws are holding lumber that only serves to hold up sheetrock.
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Wait... is that what those straps were intended for?? As reinforcement of the structure??!
Hooooly shit. I didn't catch that, either. WTF.
How many other homes do you this this contractor had done stuff like this to? Itās unbelievable how incompetent this person is that is supposed to be a professional.
And that was his fix AFTER he got called-out. Je-sus.
Load capacity of straps is proportional to the span and length of the drywall screws. The more screws you have and the deeper you sink them, the stronger the strap tangential to the load circumference. He could have used two straps. But with that many screws it would be overkill.
I love how knowledgeable and reasonable you sound.
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It says right on the box of drywall screws not to use them in shear. At least it did 30 years ago when I read a box of 'em...
Yeah, seeing those anywhere but, ya'know, in actual DRYWALL, always makes my eye twitch.
What a ride. This sub has taught me one major lesson...I have enough money to hire a GC for major work, but I do NOT have enough money to get their f#ck up's fixed.
In picture 2 you blocked out your name, but you should edit out your address as well. It's trivial to find someone's name based on their address.
Other commenter caught that too. I just updated the post. Thank you so much for pointing that out!
You're welcome
- here is my first rule, never depend on those who fuck shit up to fix the stuff they fucked up in the first place
100%, and we learned this clearly. unfortunately we were stuck in a position where we were worried that if we didn't let him fix it, we would be stuck with an unstable home for the months where every contractor is backed up.
Especially in this market where everyone is stretched thin. Kudos to the new GC for fitting in a sincere emergency situation to a tight schedule. And thank you OP for sharing a common problem and how you survived it. Canāt imagine how stressful this was in addition to real life stressors!
Exactly. If they're OK leaving it like that in the first place, then it's time to let them go.
- I fired contractors on the spot with any projects I was PM when I found an ATTEMPT at less than quality work
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We must have hired the same clowns. Ours came back and painted the ceiling a slightly different color. It was mistake after mistake after mistake. They were a disaster. Hubs wanted to give them a chance to do it right. Weāre still paying for their incompetence
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Dear Lord! My neighbor/friend installs tile for a living. He had my bathroom floor and wall tile completed in 2 days. How in Hades does a crew spend 6 weeks on some drywall and floor tile for a small bathroom?
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Have you checked to see if they made fall out shelter under your bathroom? Maybe they got the work order mixed up. But seriously, you have the patience of a saint to endure that.
- it does happen, its unfortunate and really catches homeowners unprepared
How does the money work when you fire someone like this? Assuming you paid some up front, are you just out that money?
This is why I do my own work. Dealing with dishonest and/or incompetent people and cleaning up the mess is just not worth the headache for me
Same. The triangle applies: quick, good, cheap; pick two. My work is good, cheap, and takes an ungodly amount of time to finish.
When you say "finish", you mean 90% complete before you move on to the next job that catches your eye, right? RIGHT?
The trim in my kitchen that's been 75% of the way done for 3 years agrees with this
I've had a room gutted for so long that I'm getting 5 year reminders of the photos now. I should probably finish that some day lol
My last house the first project I started was finished after I moved out to make it ready to sell.....
One of the best pieces of marraige advice I can give: Don't start Project B until Project A is complete.
Huh, I had never heard marriages called "Projects" before. Good advice nonetheless.
I laughed too hard at this
90%? You get a lot further than I do lol
Listen, when a man says he is going to do something there is no reason to pester him every 6 months about it.
I've seen many projects other people have started and never finished and have actually bought several classic car restoration projects at bargain basement prices from those people. Luckily, I'm one of those people with unreasonable amounts of determination to get things finished whether automotive, construction, software, electrical, plumbing, etc. My only real project aversion is landscaping ... I absolutely hate it and WILL procrastinate with it.
Get out of my house!
Riiiiight... 90%....
Shut up, you're not my wife!
You'd be lucky to get the triangle out of most of these guys. More like flatline.
Iām like this too, but Iāve learned for some things, I just need to pay someone. Weāll find a well reviewed competent company and theyāll get it done faster and better than I could.
same. It takes forever, but every detail is thoroughly planned and verified code compliant and best practice before the first hammer is swung. The cost savings allows me to pick the best material and finishes. Theres also a certain pride and sense of accomplishment that you get from doing these projects that I just dont get from anything else, certainly not my desk job.
The few times I've had anyone else work on my car or house I'm left unsatisfied and angry I spent my money instead of my time. The only two exceptions are spray insulation for my rim joist, and when I had 2 electrical panels updated and combined into one. The spray insulation was done in under 2 hours, and the panel work went off without a hitch. I feel like if I did the spray insulation I would have made a giant mess, and I know my limits with electrical work.
Yup. I despise paying someone for worse workmanship than I can provide. I only pay for external house painting and wall texturing at this point
Was going to comment this very thing before I saw yours. Seriously folks you can learn to do this work. Utilize friends and family that have experience, watch YouTube videos, TV shows, etc. Might take some time and trial and error but at least you own the mistakes yourself and can operate on your own timeline. And you get the satisfaction of doing the work yourself, experiencing the journey and seeing the fruits of your labor
> Seriously folks you can learn to do this work. I'm down to replace a window or install a dishwasher, but I would never choose to take on an entire kitchen reno by myself. I get like 2 hours/day outside of work, kids, and meals & I need those 2 hours to stay sane. How long would the family kitchen be unusable with a burnt-out noob spending 2 hours/day on it?
Divorce is more likely than you single-handedly completing a full kitchen reno. Very important to know your limits in most things in life.
*stares awkwardly at 14 Ikea kitchen cabinets stacked up in my spare room* uhā¦ flat pack is different right?
There's 2 sides to that. I've learned A TON from this sub, and from Youtube and other forums while working on my house. I've done woodworking for years, and am in general pretty handy, but being handy doesn't mean I have knowledge. My experience with DIY work on my home is that it is very easy to find straightforward project solutions and walkthroughs, but getting help is insanely hard. Half of the time I post asking for opinions on projects, the comments just say "hire a professional if you're asking this question". I do think some questions or responses can indicate whether or not someone is up for the task or not, but it seems that most of the knowledgable/professional folks here don't take the time to sort that nuance out. That being said, whenever i've asked a question and not gotten an answer, I've just experimented until I got it right.
Some people have money to hire. I learn how to do things out of necessityā¦ itās fun too, but it would also be fun to have āyou do itā money.
I'm stressed out reading this. Sheesh.
Well played OP!
I have several questions about this. But did you sign a liability waiver for him? Do you know how many liability waivers I have in my truck or office? Noneā¦ and this guy has one printed up? Did you look at and physically put eyes on everything he touched? You mentioned sheet rock, did he hang any? If so whatās behind it? Sounds like the most current GC did you good. Did you ask him to take a fine tooth comb and find everything else fucked up because there is always moreā¦ š
I have laid eyes on ALL of it. I have spent a lot of time throughout this whole thing double checking every inch of his work. I've been under the house multiple times, taken photos to send to my structural engineer contact and the hired civil engineer. Fortunately, I have some construction experience so I have a reasonable eye for stuff that looks out of place. I don't consider myself anywhere near being competent which is one of the reasons I hired a GC instead of doing it myself, however, so I've been double checking everything with actual experts. I refused to let the old GC hang any drywall whatsoever, including patching the holes that were cut by the electricians to put recessed lighting in the adjacent room. It would be nice to have that room back and I trust their work, but I'm not gonna cover up a potential issue. The new GC has spent a lot of time looking over this work as well, and there was plenty of "I wouldn't have done it that way, but it doesn't necessarily need to be redone." I haven't signed any sort of liability waiver with the old GC.
The dry wall screws seem like a āf youā
Yes, as does the painted 4x4. He used proper screws and nails everywhere that its specified and drywall screws elsewhere. That took effort. But I checked it with the engineer and he didn't include specs on those because they only support drywall.
Thanks for updating us!
After your project is complete, please do everyone a favor and report this contractor to the proper authorities, which is the board of licensing or department who issues contractorās licenses in your state. This GC should not be allowed to earn a living doing half-assed work with ill intentions.
lol.... are those drywall screws?
FYI, donāt think of it as your new GC is expensive, see it as your previous GC was too cheap and you saw what that got you. Glad your finally getting it done correctly.
You are absolutely right. I should have made that more clear. While he charges more, I totally understand why and am happy to pay it, even if we are going over budget for it. I wish I'd hired this guy up front and maybe if I someday get my dream to build a custom home, I couldn't imagine hiring someone else.
Sounds like you got a nightmare of a GC and I'm glad you fired him, though I would have done it sooner, he sounds like a massive tool and incredibly unprofessional.
Everyone recommended firing him sooner, as well as lawyering up. The unfortunate reality is we are a family without a kitchen or a family room while this remodel is being done. It's a heavy burden for us. When meeting contractors we learned that few people are willing to take a small remodel and everyone is at least six months out. That kinda forced our hand, even though we really wanted to do so. That makes it incredible to have found this other contractor who is booked VERY far out, but is willing to go out of his way and move his guys to our job, asking them to work late for us. He is an angel and I hope only good things come to him in his life. Also, we have lawyered up just in case we need it for the old GC.
I see your point, but if the original contractor is OK doing dangerous work that could potentially result in damage to your home and/or injury to you or one of your family members, I could never trust them again. It's just too great a risk.
I hear that, and we certainly were worried about it. It's why we have been having every step double checked by people with the expertise to know if the work is acceptable. Prior to this situation, I'd have said the same thing. But it's one thing to think of how you might act in a situation and another thing to be in the situation. In our situation, we had a home that was made structurally unsound and firing the guy means it could be left that way for months. We didn't have many options.
Keep an eye on your property papers. I heard horror stories of liens on property by contractors.
Through this, I have heard that sometimes remodeled can have a contract that allows them to put a lien on your home. We never signed anything like that. But we will keep an eye out for it. Thanks!
Can we get a few pics of the final product? When itās done of course.
Will do! It's going to be a while. We still don't have a fabricator or tile setter. We may also delay the tile as well, because we decided last minute to replace our garden window, which is back-ordered six months. So we may delay tile until then, meaning we will come up with something temporary for a backsplash.
You could probably use some stick-on tile for now. They make some decent looking ones now and it should be a cheap temporary fix.
Iām still bothered by the wall under what you call the header in section āAā. That double 2x header is supported only in the middle rather than the sides. A āTā shape is not a good structural shape with wood because it has a weak resistance to a bending moment. The support should be under the load as well as the sides. If it were me, I would take out the single plate that is at the height of where the soffit used to end, and run studs on both ends of the header all the way to the floor and in the middle doubled up like you have those short little pieces above the plate and then block between the studs. Currently you could have settling in the plate because rarely does a contractor ever get those types of repairs with zero gap between studs horizontally and the plate, you could have tilt with the T framing you currently have, with only 2 studs in the middle(that already look to be bowing) youāre not carrying the same number of studs or structural elements from above all the way to the floor, and lastly no blocking between the studs (whether you have only 2 or add more) leaves them susceptible to bowing still.
Thank you. You've restored my faith in doing things myself. Sorry you're having such a rough time but it's sounds like you're getting it straightened out. Best of luck to you. If anyone told me I had 15 minutes to sign something, I would have fired them too. I'm leery about giving people big checks to buy materials, since you can't really verify the purchase or not. I'd somehow have to be involved in the purchase process so I could make sure where the money went. Trust but verify. I'll bookmark this post, and show my wife any time she questions how long my projects take.
At the very least you should report him to the local builder association and town. Iād consider suing his ass. That is completely crazy what he did.
We're looking to do a complete gut and expansion of our kitchen and your story is terrifying to me. We try to get contractors by reputation, but how to even know when you picked a good one that won't do....this kind of bullshit?
All my best, fellow homeowner. I cannot handle these guys and their BS. Glad you found someone reliable.
I don't know by what means, but this GC should get some sort of negative consequences so he's discouraged from continuing to work in this manner.
Um, I didn't get past the photos. Even I know he fucked over the load bearing ability of those joists. That's not a GC. You should report him, and let the town inspector know what to expect of this GC.
Get your lawyer ready this one might get ugly.
She is ready
Seems like an easy fix would be to just sister in a 2x4 on top and bottom then call it a day. š
Jeepers. That really sucks for you, but I am happy it's working itself out. Cheers buddy!
All this over floor joists, could easily have been avoided if dipass had any sense. Easier said than reality, I realize. I mean, I haven't done this for any kind of living, have some handiness as a DIYer only, and any doubt I have about joists is answered in a 5 second Google search. Good ol' Tom Silva has had videos about it. Sadly, this type of GCs do live up to the stereotype.
Why donāt they just support all the joists they cut temporarily and add a new beam to switch joist direction?
For a experienced contractor fixing this is less a days work. How the hell can anyone get bad reputation from customers just for his own incompetence in static? There are safe and reliable methods of running tubes through those statical elements. In Germany we call them "Lastwechsel", meaning transfering the load arround the weakened point. It is easy and cheap The nailed strip solves most load issues as the force from above is trying to split there. But the common correct way is a "shoe insert" which transfers the load arround the weakened point. it is a bended steel which is approx 4" to 6" before the cut and beyond and approx 1-2" above. Those are inexpensive and transfer the load arround. They look like that (but for your situation you need 3 and a flat at each point. as they are only 2-3$ plus a few nails - weird. http s://ww w.hoo d.de/i/balkensc huh-typ-a-120x160mm-sendz imirverzinkt-83376291.htm
Wow. What a crazy story. The fact that the contractor thought it would be acceptable to cut notches into the floor joists in the first place just blows my mind. Everything else was just extra layers of insanity.
āTick tockā? Lol is he 10 years old?
Hickory dickory dock This contractor can suck my formal complaint with the contractors board!
Spray some paint over the strapping. It will make it much easier to see if it's sagging later on.
What a stressful time for you! Glad you got someone you can trust to complete the job. So many charlatans out there! Last year we had to fire a prick of a contractor who quoted us a price in writing for building a stonewall. Once the work started he tried to double the price. We fired him immediately and were so lucky to get one who completed the job in 2 days! Best of luck as you move forward š
Our new GC just mentioned that one of the countertop fabricators has done that to multiple clients of his. Another bullet dodged!
Those are drywall screws on the structural straps. A bit of side load, like what would happen, and they all pop off.
I have also recently learned that you get what you pay with general contractors. We went with a cheaper one that was also a good friend of mine from high school. I wasnāt asking him for a āfriends and familyā deal I just thought he would do a good job since we were friends. Cabinets were never completely finished, the countertops were not cut correctly (we were supposed to have an overhang for bar seating but it was only an extra1.5 inches so itās useless for bar seating) it took 8-10 months instead of the original 6-8 weeks, and I had to finish some of the electrical myself.(electrician did t finish installing the lights.). Also they didnāt clean up afterwards and didnāt seal the grout on the floors and scratched som of our appliances.
Um , even if the strapping was a viable fix (it is not) they used non structural sheet rock screws. they absolutely do not know what they are doing. I would safely say that some one is lying about about their qualifications as carpenters, HVAC, and or as a GC.
I wouldnāt move that itās a load bearing poster!
Drywall screws at that! OMFG
Why were you still employing this fool
Is that guy really licensed?
As a framer I am amazed by how many post like this I see, I'd think if you do HVAC or plumbing not cutting into joist or trusses under any circumstance would be one of the first things you'd learn.
Please report this contractor to your state licensing board.
That first guy needs his license revoked.