Whiney people and contractors

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I’m not a fan of people who whine. You know who they are. (No, it’s not you gentle reader. My readers don’t whine unless it is medically necessary!) Well, here I am with another interesting contractor story.

For (suffering) long-term readers, you know that I’ve been in construction for the last year. Two large scale projects with a few little ones thrown in. We are in the middle of the last small scale house project for this year (and the beloved husband hopes forever).

It’s simple and straightforward. Technically, we could have done it ourselves but decided a contractor would be faster (ha!) and would produce a better product without boogers (like we tend to do) and multiple runs to the hardware store.

That rationalization was wrong, wrong, wrong. In July, we locked in a date in October with a contractor we have used before. His work is excellent. The only stipulation was that he had to be out by Thanksgiving. Easy. The job should take a week at most. The date he picked was dangerously close to a family visit with guests staying here. What could possibly go wrong?

If you’ve done house projects, you know that stuff is displaced and there is a constant layer of dust with plastic drapes all over the place. When he started last week, I was hopeful that it would be completed before the visit which starts on Friday. After he finishes, I have a lot of cleaning and painting to do and furniture to rearrange. At least a day’s worth of work moving at Mach 1 speed.

He did a lot in two days. I was hopeful. Then he got a call. He has a friend with a terminal disease, and he appears to be at the end. His wife called our contractor needing a ramp built ASAP. The contractor is trying to balance both jobs. I’d like to whine about this but how can you whine about a person that is dying? (Yes, the contractor made the right decision but this is about me!)

Will my project be done by Friday? Who knows but I’m working on not getting stressed. Sleeping arrangements will be tight because unless it’s finished, we can’t move furniture out of a small bedroom. Another area in the basement is not quite ready (but almost).

Just a recap of our experiences with contractors over the past year. Most don’t manage the clock well (the beloved husband says this is a sports metaphor). Stuff happens – one lost a week because of a knee injury, then another week on crutches and rehab sessions, wife leaves another contractor turning him into a broken-hearted nut case (this continued into another project because we don’t learn our lessons and contractors are as scarce as hen’s teeth!). Contractor’s departing wife canceled all the items for our job (other jobs too) just to stick it too her soon to be ex which meant the four-month lead time for products had to start all over. Promised crews never materialize because well…we don’t know. I suspect no one wants to work for a crazy contractor.

We don’t have a lot of projects left. There is one big one – a bathroom remodel – looming in the distant future. It gets more distant every day.

Lessons I’ve learned include using contractors with crews. I love the single carpenter concept but if anything happens, your project is impacted and yes stuff happens.

The first contractor told us that he never gets sick. He’s worked for 40 years in this industry and never once took a sick day. First weekend into the job he took his kids swimming and got a bad case of swimmer’s ear. Out three days. Then he had a panic attack (this was before the wife left). Lost more days and came back medicated which made him crazier. Kids started to act out and he needed time off to meet with school officials and/or police. Need I go on? Never a sick day in 40 years?

In the end I’m glad my issues are only delays and my house wasn’t washed away, but I reserve the right to whine.

 

53 thoughts on “Whiney people and contractors”

  1. Like you, I tried to see what *could* be worse and weigh it against my current issue … yes, it makes you feel like it is easier to take the high road and not gripe, but doesn’t make it any easier to deal with. I had to replace deadbolts on my front and side doors as they went wonky within a few weeks of one another. One was the original deadbolt that came with the steel door installed in 1984 and the other was a newer deadbolt installed about eight years ago. I asked the locksmith “why would they both at once – they got difficult to turn, then didn’t turn at all?” “The house settled.” Hmm. I also asked him if that was normal for sparks to fly all over the place from his electric screwdriver and that I could smell burning from sparks on the carpet. “No worries ma’am, I know what I’m doing.” Yes, they’ve been in biz for 45 years, but still. I don’t know how you did it – this was enough for me.

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  2. I’m waaaay behind in reading posts so sorry this is old. All I can think of is you are a glutton for punishment. I cannot fathom how you’ve managed to keep your sanity considering all you’ve been through this year. The kitchen remodel would have been more than enough to do me in!

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    • It is done except for one sill he will do on Monday. He worked until 6:30 last night. His friend died. He had just finished the ramp for him on Monday. The funeral was today. It all came out ok. Just too much angst for me.

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  6. Oh my gosh! Reading your blog over the last year or so has made me never want to do a home renovation ever. I’m thinking my next house needs to be perfect when I buy it, and then that’s the way it will stay until I sell it.

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    • Renovations are always trying but mostly because all your stuff is displaced. These days it’s hard to get a contractor. You have to “get in queue” and wait. My neighbor waited more than 9 months for her job to start. Then you have roll with whatever is going on in the contractor’s life. Oh yeah, supply chain issues but surprisingly, except for our kitchen sink, we didn’t hit many of those.

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  7. My stepson used to say “Here, let me get you some cheese with that whine.” And then he’d pretend to play a little, tiny violin. It always made me laugh. I think sometimes we are a little overdue for a bit of whine and complaint. We have perspective, and as you express, compared with someone with a health emergency we can surely afford to be inconvenienced. But sometimes we do get to the end of our ropes. You sound like you’re handling it all well. I know the end result of your project is going to be so rewarding. Maybe next year you can avoid contractors? LOL!

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    • Looks like he will finish tomorrow hours ahead of the weekend company. We have things to move and clean up between the two so fingers crossed. We have worked like crazy all week. It’s just the timing.

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  9. “Yes, the contractor made the right decision but this is about me!”

    I so get this! And is there anything worse than the slightly guilt laden pity party because, you know, dying friend. But yes, you have the right to whine, and as someone else said, wine.

    I’m glad that, based on the comments, things are going somewhat better. And here I was planning a party for you with pizza and wine/beer and guests helping you paint and move furniture about. I hope you got low vocs paint.

    I also totally get the people on HGTV who insist on selling the home they are in and moving to an already updated home just so they don’t have to do the renovations. I’ve threatened to burn my house down rather than move but these reno stories from around blogosphere make it all make sense.

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  10. As I was reading comments, I understand that things went well yesterday… Yes! Reading that you feel a “tad better” and hopeful. That even makes me feel better.. Ha! I can be a big whiner, but SSNS is the chosen one that gets my whiniest moments/minutes. Poor guy. Whining about home improvement contractors should get a pass… I mean it’s entertainment and we can all commiserate, right?

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    • We’ve been working on our part too. I met up with friends for dinner, Afterward I painted the new walls. I fell into bed and slept like a drunken sailor. Today I’m cooking for the weekend which I find relaxing. We are hopeful that he will either finish or finish enough that we will be able to move furniture around and free up areas to sleep along with taking down all the ding dang plastic sheets protecting the other rooms. Writing about these adventures when I’m mid-stream in angst has been helpful. I should be paying you all for the therapy!

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  11. You absolutely have the right to whine…..in fact you also have the right to WINE !!! Nobody has more problems with contractors than you’ve had. Remind me of this if I ever mention the word “contractor” in one of my posts will you?

    Hugs, Pam

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    • I would except if you don’t move ahead nothing ever changes. This contractor is stable without radios, smoking and a lot of drama but I do get to have the occasional pity party. Normally the slight delay wouldn’t have mattered but we are getting guests. It seems no matter how much I pay attention to the calendar when planning things, stuff collides. Guests were originally planned for August, then September. I could have delayed the contractor but you NEVER do that. Fighting for a place in queue is critical. If you do work, you have a great blogging support to help you out! My cats are looking forward to the end of the contractor. Wait until they find out we are having house guests. Poor Sasha. Hidey holes here she comes.

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    • And I did. Or at least I beered! Went out with my girlfriends last night. It was good. Then I came home and finished the painting. I am hopeful things will be far enough for the weekend guests.

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  14. Your blog – you can whine. We’re having a septic system and fields redone. We’re in week 8 with no definitely end in sight. There’s a crew, with three brothers/owners, but no more than two every show up and that is only on Saturdays. Did I mention one brings his daughter who is about 12 and wanders all over the place. I understand contractor frustration. 🙂

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  16. We have been so fortunate with both of our house projects, one was a new roof and siding for the whole house and the other was a small bathroom remodel, both way before pandemic issues complicated things. We would hire these folks again in a heartbeat but the next big project is a kitchen redo and I’m not ready for that yet.

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    • We’ve had some projects go very well. We had painting done and that was done in a day and the landscapers worked without incident for 2 days to finish the job. It’s just the dang inside jobs that seem to get unhinged.

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  18. I am sending you three things. First, a virtual hug because, well, a hug is just as warming in good times as it is in bad. Second, a heartfelt wish that your barista will make your Starbucks order extra, extra good for the rest of the month. Third, a wish that someone who knows you well enough bring you your favorite alcohol-laced bottle so that, if the hug and coffee don’t work, you can try making yourself numb!

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  20. we hope all things will end good and like planned (sort of) … I had a fantabulous tiler… he did a great work and I really thought I can celebrate a good christmas two days later when my parents pop up…. till he got the grinder out and cut tiles in the house.. oh man, all things looked like the belongins of a cocaine baron… wtf…

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  21. There are perpetual whiners who never see anything good going on, then there nuanced whiners who only speak up for the good of all on particular issues that relate to their well-being. You are nuanced and that’s okay. I like nuance

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    • A long time ago, I did a complete bath remodel, moving the toilet and sink. I only had one bathroom. The very kind carpenter reset the toilet every night so I had that and my neighbor let me shower for a week. Fortunately it only too a week, just like he said it would. Our bath project is scary. There are useless closets in there so we are looking at a back to the studs re-do. We would have to move upstairs to sleep in the interim and that’s a project too.

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  24. You have my permission, as if you needed it, to whine whenever needed! I feel so fortunate that our contractor comes when he says he will and finishes when he says he will. Might be a rarity these days

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    • Contractors, in general, are a rarity these days. He finished the ramp and worked here for a half day yesterday. Last night I painted the trim work. Keeping him moving. If we weren’t having guests for the weekend, it wouldn’t matter.

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