Dealing with general contractor on home renovation/additions

[3gunr]

I have been a remodeling contractor for 40 yrs and i can tell you that things are going to get worse, I have friends and family all over the country and none of them can find anyone to do anything, Unless they pay outrages prices, I live in a 1600 square ft ranch and got a quote of 95k to do the roof with metal. Thats more than i paid for the house on 5 acres.

 

[Oaktree]

Get a mediator?
Why not just get a pair and confront the guy on his 9-3 work day?

I’ve had 25 years of dealing with unreasonable customers and subcontractors. It can get ugly at times, but hiring a mediator to have a discussion with someone just makes you look like a scared, little man.
Man-up, show the guy you are disappointed, and I bet you get immediate results.

I wouldn't be quite that harsh, but it's clear the "contractor" has a less than stellar work ethic. Gotta feeling he knows he's in over his head on this project.
To a great extent the OP brought this on himself hiring someone who sounds like a glorified handyman to do a job that should have gone to a real contractor. It doesn't help that the homeowner is providing a lot of the materials, in some cases (cabinetry) way in advance of when it'll be needed.

I can sympathize with the difficulty of finding good help, especially in a rural area. Lots of guys who own a hammer and a saw and know where they can borrow a ladder marketing themselves as builders.

 

[Gem99ultra]

TLJ87, I've unfortunately been through exactly the same scene. Not fun. I had a contractor pull similar work hours and minor progress on a workshop build. We'd see those 6 hour irregular workdays, vacation in the middle of the project, and wanting progress payments before milestones were met.
The saving grace was that I demanded progress payments with milestones detailed, and major final payment in the contract. The contractor wanted to quit long before the building was completed. I told him fine - no more money. It was finished when I said it was finished, not before.
Sure - he took me to court. I won. I had plenty of pictures of re-do work, poor craftsmanship, etc..
My Lesson Learned:
Disregard anything the contractor says if not explicitly written in the contract. Get very detailed in what and how, including material specs. That "My word is my bond" crap isn't worth the air he uses.
Set specific start date, milestone dates, and completion date with penalties. (Expect a fight over that, but insist!!!)
Establish that all modification, additions and deletions must be documented with Field Change Orders, signed by both parties.

Understand - everybody is all 'buddies' before the work begins. Once the first shovel is used, it has changed into a business contract.

 

[LouNY]

In this day and age you will never get a contractor with that type of contract unless he is charging 5X what the job should be.
The more demands that you have the the bullcrap factor goes up and if you want it it will cost $$$$$$$$$.

 

[Don1958]

TLJ87, I've unfortunately been through exactly the same scene. Not fun. I had a contractor pull similar work hours and minor progress on a workshop build. We'd see those 6 hour irregular workdays, vacation in the middle of the project, and wanting progress payments before milestones were met.
The saving grace was that I demanded progress payments with milestones detailed, and major final payment in the contract. The contractor wanted to quit long before the building was completed. I told him fine - no more money. It was finished when I said it was finished, not before.
Sure - he took me to court. I won. I had plenty of pictures of re-do work, poor craftsmanship, etc..
My Lesson Learned:
Disregard anything the contractor says if not explicitly written in the contract. Get very detailed in what and how, including material specs. That "My word is my bond" crap isn't worth the air he uses.
Set specific start date, milestone dates, and completion date with penalties. (Expect a fight over that, but insist!!!)
Establish that all modification, additions and deletions must be documented with Field Change Orders, signed by both parties.

Understand - everybody is all 'buddies' before the work begins. Once the first shovel is used, it has changed into a business contract.

Gem99ultra​

I would not work for you. can you control the weather, supply issues, etc., I can't. Then I get hit with penalties if I don't meet you dates. I've done this for 30 years, I start your job, I work your job, barring the small "a tree branch fell on my roof and put a small hole in it and it's going to rain can you help me?"​

tlj87 start looking for someone else

 

[dougtrr2]

..... His work is good and he is a stand-up guy.

Don't lose site of this fact. I would rather take a long time with someone who is doing good work and I trust, than get a job done quick with less than stellar work.

When we built our house the wife had to deal with a workman that took over three years to finish her kitchen. Unfortunately, for her she is married to him. The only thing that saved me was, I was smart enough to get a dishwasher hooked up temporarily for three years.

Doug in SW IA

 

[Gem99ultra]

Gem99ultra​

I would not work for you. can you control the weather, supply issues, etc., I can't. Then I get hit with penalties if I don't meet you dates. I've done this for 30 years, I start your job, I work your job, barring the small "a tree branch fell on my roof and put a small hole in it and it's going to rain can you help me?"​

tlj87 start looking for someone else

yep. You're sure right. Twenty years of construction project planning/management plus five more on NASA project comes with some experience.

 

[EddieWalker]

Interesting thread. As a small, one man contractor, I like hearing what everyone has to say that is hiring contractors.

 

[LouNY]

yep. You're sure right. Twenty years of construction project planning/management plus five more on NASA project comes with some experience.

Sounds like you have lots of experience with high dollar government type projects, just a tad bit different then small farm / homeowner projects.
Your attitude is normal on those big projects with there crazy over runs and expensive corrections to stupid mistakes.
I worked many big expensive industrial projects in my younger day and I found it quite stupid and irritating when errors are found and the management says do it the way it's drawn, we'll fix it later on T&M.
But much of the higher management was to smart to listen to the craftsmen.

 

[crashz]

OP - have you had regular conversations with this guy? Have you told him that you want him to start earlier and end the day later? At least until the additions are weather-tight?

Like other have said, you need to keep communicating with this guy. Maybe he does great work, but he's just too tired to put in 8 hours of hard labor. Maybe he needs an extra hand. Let him know that you don't agree with work hours and that you will be saddled with storage charges for the materials.

 

[scootr]

I had 35 yrs experience with this crap. I do miss building stuff but honestly I'm also glad it is behind me. I did tons of small remodel and I framed a school bult flood control, supervised a 200 man $30 mil project twice... and breathed a sigh of relief when I left it for good in 09.
There are 2 sides to every story. I never ended a job in court. Maybe I was lucky. Maybe I was honest and hardworking.
Lately I'm struggling to find anybody worth a chit to fix or do much of anything.
Sign of the times I guess. Everybody wants to be a you tube star. Screw working for a living.

 

[/pine]

Just curious...how old is the craftsman?...
Construction workers (especially carpenters) do a lot of lifting and bending over a career...their backs and legs take a beating and often later can only take so much in a day...

If the OP is happy with the work and time on the job is the biggest complaint...I would sit down with the man and offer to do whatever I could to help expedite the job...i.e., act as a gofer / helper etc...

 

[newbury]

I can tell you that I have to put in deadlines and penalities in contracts at work and it's been a nightmare for the past two years... constantly amending contracts to extend completion dates.

Well as the saying goes
"Winter is coming"
A deadline you should have made was to get all materials under cover ASAP.

Have you at LEAST gotten the structure "water proofed" from rain and snow?
Hopefully you don't have any exposed OSB that is not waterproof. But regardless it would be well worth your while to get cheap plastic sheeting to get everything under cover at least.
I had to help string plastic on one of my additions.

 

[Lastkidpicked]

Very insightful posts from you all on this thread.
May I take up the side of the contractor for a moment?

These days, with the observation of "It is so hard to get anything done anymore", is it really such a bad thing to have a good, honest, contractor who is slow?

On a practical side, you mentioned

But, he gets here at 9-9:30 am and leaves around 3-3:30 pm

These are the exact hours a guy would work if he were responsible for dropping off and then picking kids up from school. Has he ever mentioned any family obligations?

It seems that TLJ87 (the OP) and the contractor have a good business relationship and only want to finish the project in a high quality and honest fashion. That means a lot.

This could also be a communication issue. How much better would it have been for the contractor to say at the very beginning:

"Thank you for considering me, and I'll do a good job for you. I'm a one man show, just me and a helper. I also have family obligations. If you hire me, I promise you a successful project from my end, but it will take twice as long as the other guys."

Then the OP could have made an informed decision on what to do.

 

[zoranutt]

Schedule a meeting with your contractor to discuss your concerns and express your expectations clearly. During the meeting, calmly explain your frustrations about the slow progress and the impact it's having on the project timeline. Ask your contractor about the reasons behind the delays and his working schedule.

Emphasize the importance of deadlines and the need to complete certain tasks, like getting the additions dried in before the weather worsens. Mention the storage cost for the cabinets and express that you expect the contractor to cover it. Seek clarification on any obstacles or challenges preventing efficient work and offer assistance if possible.

Brainstorm with the contractor to find solutions. Consider adjusting working hours, bringing in additional labor support, or reevaluating the schedule. Review your contract to ensure you're both aligned on expectations and any penalties for delays.

Approach the conversation with a constructive mindset and aim to maintain a good working relationship. Communicate openly and find mutually agreeable solutions to get the project back on track. Remember, it's important to address the issues while avoiding unnecessary conflicts.

 

[Dftodd]

The right contractor is hard to find. Neighbor is having a home built. GC was paying the sub contractors originally. Then started getting squirrely with the money.

Of course the GC wanted to be able to just tell the neighbor what they needed and didn't expect to show receipts for it.

Subcontractors approached my neighbor because they hadn't been paid

So, when the GC approached the neighbor for more money, they were adamant about seeing where it was going. GC balked at this, so the neighbor started dealing with the subcontractors directly handing out payments when they recieved the invoices.

This ticked the GC off so now the build has slowed way down to a snails pace.

 

[zoranutt]

Schedule a meeting with your contractor to discuss your concerns and express your expectations clearly. During the meeting, calmly explain your frustrations about the slow progress and the impact it's having on the project timeline. Ask your contractor about the reasons behind the delays and his working schedule.

Emphasize the importance of deadlines and the need to complete certain tasks, like getting the additions dried in before the weather worsens. Mention the storage cost for the cabinets and express that you expect the contractor to cover it. Seek clarification on any obstacles or challenges preventing efficient work and offer assistance if possible.

Brainstorm with the contractor to find solutions. Consider adjusting working hours, bringing in additional labor support, or reevaluating the schedule. Review your contract to ensure you're both aligned on expectations and any penalties for delays.

Approach the conversation with a constructive mindset and aim to maintain a good working relationship. Communicate openly and find mutually agreeable solutions to get the project back on track. Remember, it's important to address the issues while avoiding unnecessary conflicts.
However somrtimes contractors are really bad in comunication. When we were chosing a wooden door for kitchen renovation it itook ages to come to a common decision

Thank god we finished the renovation and now I am saified with the result in spite of all difficulties

 

[Dynahinte]

Hey there, it sounds like you're dealing with some frustrations with your contractor's pace. It's important to address your concerns directly but delicately. Maybe try having an open conversation with him, expressing your expectations and the urgency of certain tasks. Emphasize that you value his work and just want to ensure the project stays on track. It's all about finding a balance between pushing for progress and maintaining a positive working relationship.If you're still in need of skirting boards, I recently stumbled upon a great deal with free delivery on skirting boards for my own home renovations.