Drywall contractor wants to bankrupt me!

[ultrarunner]

Learn something everyday here on TBN... Buttboard is my word for today.

I have down all the rock for several small homes and textured by hand... money was tight and drywall cheap... always passable but that was it.

A friend build a 5000 square foot down slope home 4 finished levels plus a 5th storage... the drywall guys were amazing with all the curved staircases and high ceilings... 6 brothers and 2 brother in-laws... all from Mexico... it was poetry in motion.

That was 25 years ago and the job still looks great...

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

They want 5 months to drywall, mud and texture?

Is this just one guy with a broken arm?

Sounds ridiculous. The contractors around here can drywall an entire new public school in half that time.

 

[spitter]

Sounds like u need a new rocker. We use to bang out 6,000 sq. ft. center hall colonial's in a week. 4 guys. spackler another week The main problem is nobody wants pay for temp. light or heat then when cracks develop the say you did a s--t job and it ad nothing to do with the 50 degree temp change.:drink:

 

[Diggin It]

I guess some people missed the post asking why they couldn't do the work in a week (or two or three), including sanding so that the HVAC could be installed properly and used to keep the space warm for drying and curing.

 

[zmountaineer]

When my house was drywalled they used the regular furnace. However what they did was not hook up the return line and drew the air from the basement. After drywall finished they hooked up the return.

 

[chim]

I don't know what LP prices may be in your area, but here it varies between $0.97 and $1.70 per gallon. We have a 2,700 SF two story w/ basement and burn around 600 gallons per heating season in a 95 plus efficient 100MBTU gas furnace. We buried a 1,000 gallon LP tank about 6 years ago so we can buy our gas when the prices are down and from wherever we want. Before that we were stuck with the prices charged by the company that owned the "free" tank.

Point of all info that is we can usually heat our place comfortably for under $700 per season. If I were faced with your situation I'd look for a used LP furnace (or two) and connect it temporarily with a stubbie T duct off the top and a few box fans to circulate the heat (and dust) if necessary. When our place was built in 1989 they used a few of those little roaring LP heaters. They made plenty of heat and probably added moisture because they had no venting.

To date the only problems are a couple corner beads that have hairline cracks. It appears there is almost no mud thickness on those, so I'm thinking they are a result of the installation.

 

[EddieWalker]

I understand the need for temps to be a certain level, but I don't understand why the HVAC system can't take over heating the house once the walls are done and ready for painting? I would be very surprised, and questioning the GC if the sheetrock wasn't completely done in two weeks.

The biggest issue with sheetrock crews is the mess that they create. Before they start, make sure to get something in writing that they are not to be paid until they clean up their mess and the concrete slab is clean and free of debris, dust and most of all, joint compound!!!!

 

[plowhog]

The biggest issue with sheetrock crews is the mess that they create.

My neighbor just completed a 4,200 ft garage and apartment. You are right-- the sheetrock crews made an incredible mess and got him extremely upset. He got the concrete slab cleaned up, then the painters came in-- with no drop cloths, and paint all over the new concrete slab. He was furious.

I will investigate more why the heat needs to be on for such a long time. I suspect it has to do with things long after drywall, but I will see what the GC says.

 

[joeu235]

Its a $1M house. What is $2K in electricity?

 

[orezok]

During my 39 years as a General contractor, I have built about 2000 dwellings. I have dealt with many subs that make up their own rules as they go. I would ask the DW contractor these questions.

Provide the manufacturers documentation for required temperatures and duration. That is the only relevant requirement.

How does the moisture from the drywall mud escape a closed up house even when heated.

And the kicker... does he ship all the materials he uses in HEATED trucks to the job site to assure that they are not defective prior to installation.