Dealing with contractors SUCKS (no offense to those here)

[Fred W. Hargis Jr]

Well I've been waiting anxiously for my drywall guy, I had been told the last half of July to do my shop. To refresh memories, I had called multiple contractors back in April trying to get an estimate...only 3 actually showed up and one of them backed out. I selected a reputable (I'm told) drywall guy to do, and his price was about what I had guessed it might be. July came and went with nobody here, I called yesterday and asked what's the best guess, and am I still on the list of jobs to do. Heard back today...the week of 10/2 is when I'm scheduled. That's probably getting close to when it can't be done (unheated building) so if he misses that I'm really stuck until next spring. At this point, and given the problems I had in April I'm not even sure I can call for more estimates. This is typical of the limited experiences I've had with contractors in this area....it just isn't fun; and certainly not expeditious. To those of who who are contractors, please don't take this personally. I'm just really frustrated.

[Chips N Dust]

Fred, I know in my area, ALL trades are super busy. One thing you might want to talk to your contractor about is if he delays your install, he is responsible for temp heating. Have you signed anything with this guy so you have some legal recourse on his delays?

If it were me, I would consider trying to get a couple of other numbers. I know that is a pain, but you may luck out and get a good number and a guy with an opening due to someone else's delay/cancelation.

[lew]

This has to frustrating, to say the least.

 

I guess those on-line services like "Angie's List" can't offer any alternative businesses.

[Fred W. Hargis Jr]

Kelly, I have one other possibility that I'm confident will show up and do the job. I may have to give them a call. I've used these guys in the past and it wnt well, but at the time I was unaware they had added drywall work to the things they will do.

Lew, one of the 2 who gave me an estimate was an Angie's list contact. He wasn't the one I selected.

I suspect this is some schedule slip along with maybe some of his regular commercial clients putting pressure on him for their work. I understand that, but it still doesn't sit well with me.

Edited August 8, 2017 by Fred W. Hargis Jr

[Al B]

I think dependability say's a lot about any contractor. If you were given a July date and now it has been moved up 4 months, who knows whether the contractor will honor that date. I'd definitely keep looking ! He's obviously accepted work elsewhere since providing your July date. A good contractor can complete a whole house within a week's time.

[Fred W. Hargis Jr]

Well, given the problem i had getting the 2 estimates I did wind up with, I'm not hopeful....but  am going to call another outfit and see what they want and how long before they get to it. I wouldn't give up rural living for anything, but it does have many downsides and I think this is one of them.

[Nickp]

Fred...have a "drywall party"...call a bunch of friends over, start the grill, you cook, they hang...have plenty of food and drinks available and sit back n get outta the way...set aside a corner of the yard for a "she-shed event"...

 

I estimate a 3 pounds of food per sheet should do it...food after completion or they'll want to nap... 

 

Done in no time...spend the rest of the day watching the spackle dry...

 

 

[Stick486]

3 hours ago, Nickp said:

3 pounds of food per sheet should do i

 

that leaves me out...

and use a lift to install the sheets...

[Grandpadave52]

On 8/9/2017 at 2:59 PM, Fred W. Hargis Jr said:

I wouldn't give up rural living for anything, but it does have many downsides and I think this is one of them.

You're right Fred it does have some downsides but at the end of the day they're just nuisances versus living in "town." I shudder thinking about the possibility of moving to the concrete confines someday. 

 

Hope you can find a dependable, reliable, and reasonable cost professional soon. I guess it is a sign of a stronger economy when the "good ones" are hard to schedule. It really surprises me though that no one seems to want your job; straight forward walls,ceilings, minimal cutting/fitting...with a good crew, they could be in and out of there in 3 days. Good luck...keep us posted.

[Fred W. Hargis Jr]

Not a small job, either...130 sheets. This guy is supposed to be a pro, nice B&M establishment, recommended by 2 general contractors, and even has someone who answers the phone when you call them! Around here many of these outfits are 1-2 folks with a truck and a cell phone (that they don't always answer).

[Smallpatch]

Fred I really feel for your problem. I have lived in three different houses since i got married having bought all three we have never rented.  

  I was in a way fortunate getting that first job a week or so after getting out of high school. It was working at a furniture store. The owners were great to work for except for the wages they payed but they owned about 50 different houses and stores and buildings that we when not delivering furniture were turned into repairmen to keep up all those structures. When any one of the tenants called with a problem I was told to go and take care of those repairs. Whether it was replacing screen wire or fixing a leak through the roof. Replacing but mostly repairing leaking  pipes and faucets. Keep the people happy was my job. 18 years old when I went to work for them and by the time I got drafted in the army I had learned to repair anything.

I had an electrician to come and move the main electric panel a few feet from one wall to another in the very first house we bought . We were remodeling that house to suit us and since then we have never paid  for any repairs on those three houses.

   Later if I ran in to problems I would go to the library and read up on something I had not encountered. 

 I still live with the thought of prices and labor still should be like it was back in the later 50's and early 60's for we have not paid anyone to repair anything since then.

   Counting the two rent houses we bought, wife and I have done 5 large roof replacements. The last two my wife, after I carried up enough shingles to last her a day, she would do all the labor. I griped after she cut the excess over hang with a very crocked knife one day saying it made her work look sloppy then I realized no other female I ever knew would even get up on a roof....Something I was short on back then was showing praise.

  Thankfully in Texas if you owned the house you lived in, you could do your own work. Not a clue if it is still that way.

  We never even heard of those sheetrock  lifts back then. Too bad I didn't get pictures of my wife laying on her back on stacked up scaffolds holding a 4x8 sheet of 1/2" sheetrock in position with here legs while I drove the nails in . The ceilings were slooped and not flat making it even harder to handle.

  This and all the other wild things we accomplished like building the complete  go-cart track except smoothing the concrete was something we never dreamer of hiring someone else to do

not to mention landscaping four acres with lots of elevations for a large mini golf which it took 8 years of form setting before any concrete was poured..some boards actually had to be replaced before the concrete trucks got there.

  Now thinking about your problem of trying to getting someone out there to do a job not knowing if they will do a good job makes me wonder why I went the route I did instead of hiring everything done that came along. I don't know if it was pride or stupididity......Especially after both of us have terrible back problems..  

[Nickp]

4 hours ago, Fred W. Hargis Jr said:

Not a small job, either...130 sheets

 

Nice...bout 4,200'ish sq ft...?  Hope you get to move in quickly...best of luck

[lew]

Just thinking about the frustrations, delays and other things. I'm afraid at this point I'd order T1-11 from the borg. More expensive but you could use any wall spot for hanging stuff without worrying too much about stud location.

[Fred W. Hargis Jr]

1 hour ago, Nickp said:

 

Nice...bout 4,200'ish sq ft...?  Hope you get to move in quickly...best of luck

I guess, I didn't calculate that..... one of the estimates did. I was told they estimate based on # of 8' sheets. I suppose the savings in labor from using 12' sheets stays in their pocket.

 

[HARO50]

On 8/10/2017 at 9:38 AM, Nickp said:

Fred...have a "drywall party"...call a bunch of friends over, start the grill, you cook, they hang...have plenty of food and drinks available and sit back n get outta the way...set aside a corner of the yard for a "she-shed event"...

 

I estimate a 3 pounds of food per sheet should do it...food after completion or they'll want to nap... 

 

Done in no time...spend the rest of the day watching the spackle dry...

 

 

I like this solution! We built our own house, and had a number of small "parties" to speed things up.

John

[HARO50]

5 hours ago, Smallpatch said:

then I realized no other female I ever knew would even get up on a roof..

If I ever get down to Texas, I'll have to introduce you to my wife. She won't let ME get up on the roof any more, but SHE was up there helping when we had it re-shingled a few years ago! Surprised the heck out of the roofers when she climbed up the ladder and offered to help.

John

[Stick486]

5 hours ago, Smallpatch said:

no other female I ever knew would even get up on a roof....

 

my would.. same for the female employees... even my mother would roof...

[Smallpatch]

One time when I was building my first cabin on a lake which was started a couple of years after we got married as we were driving toward the lake I mentioned I would need her to hold the ends of the long 2x6's I needed to attached under the over hang of the roof as soon as we got there. She didn't say anything at the time but after we climbed up the ladder she said, you want me to lay down on the roof and hold that board while you attache it underneath that part thats sticking over out over nothing thats at least 25 foot from the ground. After I finally get her in position and after the first nail went in she started moaning and groaning. She had her eyes closed and was gritting her teeth. I realized she had turned white as a sheet and was frozen in that one position. It took forever to get her to let me help her down off that roof. This was sometimes around noon and at four that afternoon I was still working with her to let me help her down.

   Then about 10 years later is when she nailed all the shingles down after I carried them up there each morning before I went about my other work. I removed the old then put new felt and tin down and she did all the rest. She even loaded all the old shingles on to the trailer. To this day she has never mentioned why she froze up there that first time, never. I think she finally realized I was not trying to put her in danger or get rid of her or something..