heh, is this typical of handymen / contractors where you are?

[kelt65]

[Daniel Meyer]

*snort*

Done that a time or two myself...

[TexasRed]

Absolutely kelt65. Classic picture.

I'm too embarrassed to show pics of recent drywall work we paid for. I'm almost certain their names were "Moe and Curly". OMG, I've never seen such a lack of pride in ones work or perhaps an overstatement about level of skill. My bad - never again will I hire someone off CL. Had to hire another contractor to come in and cover up the carp with a nice texture. It is acceptable now, but barely.

So yes, the care-less contractor woes seem to find us all at some point.

ETA: This work was done at of our houses in NM. Fortunately not my new 1904 model.

[kelt65]

Absolutely kelt65. Classic picture.

I'm too embarrassed to show pics of recent drywall work we paid for. I'm almost certain their names were "Moe and Curly". OMG, I've never seen such a lack of pride in ones work or perhaps an overstatement about level of skill. My bad - never again will I hire someone off CL. Had to hire another contractor to come in and cover up the carp with a nice texture. It is acceptable now, but barely.

Yeah I just hired some guys to build a 6x20 uncovered porch, or "landing" I guess, for my side door, which previously opened to a 3' drop. It's solidly constructed, I guess, but for the money, a BIT on the crude side. Pretty disappointing, but I'm not the type to haggle and bitch with the contractor, unfortunately.

But seriously, if you build a porch on the side of a long, narrow house, which way would you run the floorboard? I felt they should run opposite (perpendicular to) the house and unfortunately assumed anyone else would, too. They did not. I think it looks weird but I can live with it.

[TexasRed]

I agree with you 100%. Of course the floor boards should have been perpendicular to the house. Doesn't everybody know that? Sheesh, it seems we are both victims of "assuming". Sorry about your new porch.

Maybe they were thinking deck, not porch?! Those boards are often run parallel to the house. Hope you can adapt to it in time.

solidly constructed... but crude. Great choice of words. I made up a word for the drywall work. "Condave". It is an apt version of the word concave. Not sure I found a single wall where the drywall is flat and level near the outside corners. It became funny after awhile.

[heartwood]

I too had the painters/skim coat people from hell....when the light is just right the walls show ragged divots, air bubbles, lines of mud that were not sanded, ripples from where the knife rode over a bump...

at week 7 of my fairly straightforward bathroom remodel, I let the contractor go...the second highly recommended contractor drywalled my cat behind the shower and left for the day....yup, it really happened....he installed the chair rail at the wrong height for my new pedestal sink--he said I could just cut around the area behind the sink...installed trim with 1/8" gap at mitered joints..."that's what caulk is for!!!" he (by his suggestion) changed the swing of the door...he installed the strike at least 3/16" off so the door rattles on a breezy day....my plywood and linoleum floor was installed so badly, the company had to take it up and reinstall it...crappy job the second time too...the plumber did an ok job but never returned to install my sink after numerous promises to show up....the good thing is, he never sent me a bill.....I could go on but I haven't had breakfast yet.....I did find a great new plumber and heating guy

I am one who outlines and often draws VERY CLEARLY what I want and how I want it...i'm willing to pay for it and don't haggle over price if I feel it's fair....I am astounded that there are so many hacks out there...BUYER BEWARE!
...jade

[Don M]

I've been fairly lucky with contractors; the person I've been using pretty much for the last 15 years can do just about anything & does it well. I did have a plumber sent by a home warranty company who removed an expensive shower valve & installed a contractor grade unit. It works ok but the cover didn't fully seal on the tile leaving a spot for water to get into the wall. The contractor said they couldn't fix it ---my guy did!

[kelt65]

I too had the painters/skim coat people from hell....when the light is just right the walls show ragged divots, air bubbles, lines of mud that were not sanded, ripples from where the knife rode over a bump...

at week 7 of my fairly straightforward bathroom remodel, I let the contractor go...the second highly recommended contractor drywalled my cat behind the shower and left for the day....yup, it really happened....he installed the chair rail at the wrong height for my new pedestal sink--he said I could just cut around the area behind the sink...installed trim with 1/8" gap at mitered joints..."that's what caulk is for!!!" he (by his suggestion) changed the swing of the door...he installed the strike at least 3/16" off so the door rattles on a breezy day....my plywood and linoleum floor was installed so badly, the company had to take it up and reinstall it...crappy job the second time too...the plumber did an ok job but never returned to install my sink after numerous promises to show up....the good thing is, he never sent me a bill.....I could go on but I haven't had breakfast yet.....I did find a great new plumber and heating guy

I am one who outlines and often draws VERY CLEARLY what I want and how I want it...i'm willing to pay for it and don't haggle over price if I feel it's fair....I am astounded that there are so many hacks out there...BUYER BEWARE!
...jade

Yeah for the general contractor work I just had done I spelled out EVERYTHING to the letter, all written out, with pictures. He actually appreciated it. He wasn't the most skilled person in the world, but he knew enough. There ended up being very little I needed him to address after the job ...

Still, you'd think anyone would know you can't attach a four square box to a piece of lath. Or that you can't leave a piece of lath in the wall unattached on one side after you've cut it ... just made him go back and put a 2x4 behind the lath.

I wish I hadn't made any assumptions about the porch. I'm not worried to much about the crudeness of the railing, as I always intended to eventually get around to finding some salvaged balusters and rail somewhere. They did pour the concrete well and the supports are driven pretty deep. I wish I was the kind of person who will be more demanding. I just let things slide too much.

[TexasRed]

Oh jade, sounds like "Moe and Curly" the plaster hacks went to your house too. And maybe they brought their cousin. The description of your walls is exactly what I got too.

I am only hiring southern brothers for the rest of the work on this house. It's a big family we've known for many years. (Wish I had thought of them in the first place!) They are all tradesmen in one area of construction or another and my projects are just side jobs for them. Hard workers and they genuinely care about the quality.

So sorry for all the lousy hacks you've dealt with at your new house. Sealing your cat in the wall - omg That would of just put me over the edge. Seems like nobody is mindful anymore.

Buyer beware indeed. Hope you are able to find quality contractors for your future projects