Contractor screwed up my patio installation - what should I do?

[Ns1]

You should do everybody locally a favor and make sure people know about it through yelp.

If this guy showed you immaculate work, and gave good references, they must have been cherry picked and not representative of overall work.

If someone is just learning how to screed, float, and broom finish concrete, that is fine, but you have someone experienced there to fix the mistakes. Concrete isn't like super glue. It has a lot of working time. To have so many areas that are so poorly done, is really incredible. Maybe the experienced one called in sick?

If you go this route, be very careful to word everything in factual terms only.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local...174580-8ae5-11e3-a5bd-844629433ba3_story.html

 

[BoomerD]

Holy Fuck! That's horrible work. Looks like 3 retards and a blind guy placed that mud.

Push that issue as far as possible...even into court if need be.

Sorry to say, it's going to cost you quite a bit if he refuses to fix it on his own. You'll have to pay to have the sun room removed, the concrete broken out and disposed of, then new concrete poured. THEN you'll have to pay to have the sun room reassembled.

Go after his license...go after his bond/insurance...go after his house if need be to recoup your costs.
Might indeed be time to lawyer up.

 

[Greenman]

You need to seriously have a heart to heart with your original contractor.

Lay it on the line that you are not satisfied at all and it's (we haven't seen the work yet so this is an assumption) subpar work.

Don't hire a new guy to fix the problem until you fix that problem with the first guy. Otherwise you are burying your evidence.

This is the correct answer.
Put this in writing and send it to your contractor. If he doesn't agree to make the job right, file a complaint with your states contractors board. Don't fix anything until you've settled with the first contractor. You may end up in arbitration, depending on the laws of your state. If the state board tells him to correct the problem and he doesn't do it, they can suspend his license.

Don't be intimidated, you're in the right and what your contractor is doing is wrong. It doesn't matter that it was a sub that did the work, your contract is with him and he's the guy that has to make it right.

I've been a licensed general contractor for 28 years, feel free to send me a pm if you have any questions.

 

[jaedaliu]

I Googled for days to find contractors. I took their license numbers, looked them up online, asked for portfolios, asked for references, etc. This guy has been in business with his father since the early 90s. Pictures of his prior projects looked great. I also showed up at a site while they were still constructing and it was stellar.

The actual enclosure (i.e. aluminum, roof, screening, etc) is immaculate.

Sounds like he's taking the small jobs, his father's taking the big ones. Or his dad's retired now. If his dad's still working, ask him to bring daddy around to figure out how to fix it. You won't be paying more. If daddy's retired, ask him to bring daddy around to figure out how to fix it on their dime.

Hopefully they can take care of it to your liking. Concrete on the walls isn't a big deal in the long run; that can be cleaned/painted. But it's a sign of the sloppiness of the entire job. When they do the repair work, (sounds like you're fairly set on a smooth layer on top) do your best to be there a few times to make sure that it's to your liking. Depending on who's overseeing the employees, "good enough" may not be.

The company's been around for ~20 years (assuming it's the same company and not someone mimicking their name.) Their reputation means something. Suing is a last resort, but small claims court is thankfully manageable on a small bank roll. You won't need $10k-$100k to take someone there.


I think I know how you got in this situation. You found a contractor and you trusted him to do the work while you were busy with other things. Next time, until you find the right guy, you have to watch over their process to make sure they do everything to your liking. And that's why great contractors are rich and cost a pretty penny.

 

[bradley]

I happen to live near two general contractors. I showed one of them the pictures and he couldn't believe a) the shoddy workmanship or b) that this contractor is even licensed. Keep us updated.

 

[Jumpem]

Do not pay them!

 

[momeNt]

If you go this route, be very careful to word everything in factual terms only.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local...174580-8ae5-11e3-a5bd-844629433ba3_story.html

Good point. You need to just speak to the work itself, and yelp also has the option of posting pictures. In this case the pictures are indisputable evidence of lousy workmanship.

 

[SaurusX]

Call Mike Holmes.

 

[Aharami]

holy shit that is bad!! I'd be livid! Another reason why i dont hire contractors who bid the lowest. I've learned my lesson the hard way. Is this contractor listed in homeadvisor.com, angieslist.com, yahoo, google reviews, merchantcircle, yelp, etc? If so, leave detailed reviews with those pics. You've pretty much lost your money on this, but you can prevent others from going thru the same ordeal you had to go thru. I once hired the lowest bidder for a drywall taping job. He did a shitty job (although nowhere near as bad as yours in terms of quality) and I left him some nasty reviews warning others to not hire him.

That is beyond bad work. Wish you the best of luck in getting this fixed.

 

[momeNt]

Call Mike Holmes.

I don't think he travels that far south. Most of his shows are in Canada.

 

[Aharami]

My father does building inspections in the own he lives in. He has said a lot of the contractors hate him because he does follow the rules. It was a 'good ole boy' system before he took over (having virtually zero ties to the town or the people a year or so before he took the job). The good contracts (the ones that do it right, the first time) love him for driving out all the shit guys that got a pass before. Just hearing his stories about how many times he's told people to rip it up and do it right is hilarious.

kudos to your father!

 

[Aharami]

I paid about 30% of it on an American Express. Should I call them? But I'm afraid of him putting a lien on my house...

Sounds like you need to call a lawyer.

Suing him will likely shut him down if his business is small. He knows this. You might have to pay to have him served, but he might back down after that. I've had problems like this in the past and usually paying a lawyer to write a letter fixes it. People talk big, but when the rubber hits the road they fold.

I agree. You need to hire a lawyer. Seems like you're being very timid about this. You need to get angry, start raising your voice to him, and be more assertive on what you want. But since you're going thru so much right now, pay a lawyer to write a letter to him. Hopefully that will fix the situation. His "that's what you get for cheap labor" statement would've made me lose it!

 

[Markbnj]

Based on his response about the job being "done" and too bad if you don't like it, I would be making it my personal mission to destroy this asshole. He needs to never get another contract. If there's a God in heaven he'll be working as a framing nailer or pushing a mower this time next year. I can't even tell you how pissed I would have been if he had made that statement to me in the face of that result. I'm not at all sure that would have ended peacefully, because I would have been ready to kill him.

 

[Jimzz]

I would do a charge back and send him a certified letter stating why. If he wants to sue then counter sue. Better yet file a small claims case against him now for the full amount.

I would wait a month before getting any type of topper on it. Let the concrete dry a little more and see if any cracks come up. Cracks may not be a issue but you want them to happen before you put tile/brick/etc... on top so the cracks will not come up through the new surface.

 

[olds]

Do not pay them!

Read the thread!

 

[waffleironhead]

That is terrible work. I would do a chargeback. Make sure you document everything. Plus check on his bond, maybe you could try to file against it to pay for removal of the slab(no idea).

 

[alkemyst]

do not do a chargeback with a contractor until you have talked to them!

 

[Humpy]

do not do a chargeback with a contractor until you have talked to them!

Read the thread.

The contractor stated that the job is done and is declining the opportunity to correct the issue. Assuming there was a real contract in place, it won't be too difficult to show that the contract wasn't fulfilled. Hence, there isn't much worry about a lien.

A chargeback will be a quick way to take a little control. Worst case, the OP has to pay it back at some point.

 

[alkemyst]

Read the thread.

The contractor stated that the job is done and is declining the opportunity to correct the issue. Assuming there was a real contract in place, it won't be too difficult to show that the contract wasn't fulfilled. Hence, there isn't much worry about a lien.

A chargeback will be a quick way to take a little control. Worst case, the OP has to pay it back at some point.

Good luck in your belief.

 

[Elixer]

What OP needs to do is take pictures, (which they did).
Get written estimates on how much it will cost to fix it (which they did, but a few more won't hurt).
Get all documentation from original guy, and hold on to it.
Tell them, that the quality of the job is pretty terrible, and show them copies of the estimates the other guys had.
If they still bitch, get a building inspector (reputable!) and see what they have to say (they are not looking to screw you like some of the other contractors might).
Stress that his (original contractor) reputation is at stake.
You might be able to contact the local TV news / newspaper investigative divisions, and see if they can grease the wheels so to speak.
Tell AmeX about the problem (they might be able to help as well).

If all that didn't work, then you have to go to small claims court, and if you got a referral for the current contractor, slap that person upside the head.

Good luck!

 

[BoomerD]

What OP needs to do is take pictures, (which they did).
Get written estimates on how much it will cost to fix it (which they did, but a few more won't hurt).
Get all documentation from original guy, and hold on to it.
Tell them, that the quality of the job is pretty terrible, and show them copies of the estimates the other guys had.
If they still bitch, get a building inspector (reputable!) and see what they have to say (they are not looking to screw you like some of the other contractors might).
Stress that his (original contractor) reputation is at stake.
You might be able to contact the local TV news / newspaper investigative divisions, and see if they can grease the wheels so to speak.
Tell AmeX about the problem (they might be able to help as well).

If all that didn't work, then you have to go to small claims court, and if you got a referral for the current contractor, slap that person upside the head.

Good luck!

Good suggestion...

http://www.wfla.com/category/251987/8-on-your-side

http://www.abcactionnews.com/taking-action/i-team

There may be other stations in the area who have a member of their staff who "helps" with such things. USUALLY, a bit of negative publicity...and getting a reporter involved will "persuade" a contractor or business to do the right thing...but not always.

 

[slugg]

Thanks, everyone, for motivating me to get aggressive with this. There are new developments in the story, but at this time, I am unable to speak publicly on this matter.

I will definitely update this, but expect to hear from me in months. Well, in this thread, that is. I'll still troll the rest of ATOT.

 

[Ns1]

Thanks, everyone, for motivating me to get aggressive with this. There are new developments in the story, but at this time, I am unable to speak publicly on this matter.

I will definitely update this, but expect to hear from me in months. Well, in this thread, that is. I'll still troll the rest of ATOT.

ah fuck, we're going to get goosed.

good luck tho.

 

[olds]

spidered

 

[Jimzz]

slugged