So having one of those nightmare contractor situations. I thought it would be a great idea to have someone remodel our master bathroom and another bathroom while me and the family were overseas for 3 months. Luckily, my house sitter knows a LOT about this stuff since her mom is apparently the Bob Vila of her hometown in Indiana. When my house sitter noticed how poorly they were doing the work, she suggested firing them on the spot. I didn't, I gave the contractor a chance to do it right, but now the second time, it's still not right and now my contractor has stopped answering my calls, e-mails, and texts. I put half down prior to the start of the job, so should I realistically expect to get any of the money back? I assume I'm going to have to eat it.
If anyone's interested...here's what happened (long)...
When they removed the old shower tile in both showers, mold was noticed. My contractor assured me it wasn't a lot, so she'd just have her guys clean it up, saving me thousands. They apparently tried to scrape the mold first, then sprayed something on it, let it dry, then sprayed it again. But there's still moldy insulation behind the shower that was never removed. And when they removed other moldy stuff, they didn't bag it or anything...just carried it out the front door, probably trailing mold spores everywhere.
Then they started to install the new showers. They put up the concrete boards without installing a vapor barrier behind. Then on the concrete boards, they didn't put up a moisture barrier or any thin seal prior to putting the tiles up. They also did some other things wrong, which I won't get into. When I told my contractor that she didn't do A, B, and C, she said they'll tear everything down and do it right.
So they removed all the tiles, but didn't take down the concrete boards in order to install the vapor barrier. Then they painted some pink substance on the concrete boards, but it was poorly applied and there were lots of gaps and really thin in some places. And not enough to close the gaps on the corners. And...there was a decorative strip in the middle of the shower that they didn't remove at all in order to put this pink stuff. And they didn't waterproof the built-in soap dish at all...which is a great place for water to escape. So now I'm left with no choice but to fire her.
Have another guy coming tonight to give me an estimate on what it'll take to take out what she'd done and do it right, and if he can do that before we return in late September. Apparently, he's so good he has a waiting list.
Update: she finally responded to my last text saying she's been too busy today to respond because her husband just died. Turns out, she told my house sitter the same thing about a month ago when they first met. Talk about a plot twist!
If anyone's interested...here's what happened (long)...
When they removed the old shower tile in both showers, mold was noticed. My contractor assured me it wasn't a lot, so she'd just have her guys clean it up, saving me thousands. They apparently tried to scrape the mold first, then sprayed something on it, let it dry, then sprayed it again. But there's still moldy insulation behind the shower that was never removed. And when they removed other moldy stuff, they didn't bag it or anything...just carried it out the front door, probably trailing mold spores everywhere.
Then they started to install the new showers. They put up the concrete boards without installing a vapor barrier behind. Then on the concrete boards, they didn't put up a moisture barrier or any thin seal prior to putting the tiles up. They also did some other things wrong, which I won't get into. When I told my contractor that she didn't do A, B, and C, she said they'll tear everything down and do it right.
So they removed all the tiles, but didn't take down the concrete boards in order to install the vapor barrier. Then they painted some pink substance on the concrete boards, but it was poorly applied and there were lots of gaps and really thin in some places. And not enough to close the gaps on the corners. And...there was a decorative strip in the middle of the shower that they didn't remove at all in order to put this pink stuff. And they didn't waterproof the built-in soap dish at all...which is a great place for water to escape. So now I'm left with no choice but to fire her.
Have another guy coming tonight to give me an estimate on what it'll take to take out what she'd done and do it right, and if he can do that before we return in late September. Apparently, he's so good he has a waiting list.
Update: she finally responded to my last text saying she's been too busy today to respond because her husband just died. Turns out, she told my house sitter the same thing about a month ago when they first met. Talk about a plot twist!
