I have a contractor at my house putting up new siding. The start date was Monday Apr 12, and we are now over 1 week into the production. All they have completed so far is siding the front and the side of my garage.

They started putting siding on the front of the garage when we realized they were using the wrong product. They had to remove it and put the correct product up.

They are nailing the Tyvek to the house using ordinary nails (not washerhead). They are not taping the Tyvek seams. It is already blowing loose.

Friday they only worked from noon to 3:00pm. The put soffit on the front porch (about 30 sq ft) and now I can't open my screen door. The corner of the door drags on the soffitt.

Yesterday they called at 10:30am and said the truck was broken, but they were on the way. I called the siding company at 4:00pm asking where the workers were; the workers called me back and said they told me they wouldn't be able to make it (which is a lie).

They are not very clean workers - they throw their cigarettes in my yard/driveway, they have broken a birdhouse.

On top of all this, their workmanship on the siding leaves a lot to be desired. The trim pieces are sloppily fit and loose. Some pieces are already falling off. The flashing is visibly wavey.

What is the best way to handle this with the siding company? I have already paid 1/3 deposit - do I withhold payment until I am satisfied with the work? Do I negotiate a steep discount?

I did call the siding company yesterday and told them we were not happy with the work; they promised to send someone out today.

Yikes. 1/3. I would need to know what the contract says. When will work begin? Are the methods of construction indicated? (Tape Tyvek, etc.?). From there I would like go directly to small claims court based on your contract.

In the future, my hard rule is that I don't contract any work unless I have both a written contract outlining EVERY detail as well as a clear wire (tape) of our conversations backing-up what is expected as per the contract. Just to "clear things up". I also do not allow a deposit to exceed 10% or $2500.00 regardless of job size.

I find that some contractors won't play by these rules, and those are the ones that folks have trouble with. I had a roof done not too long ago. They had to redo the soffit trim 3 times before they got it right. (Wavy and banged in where nails were done. Guy said, "Well you're just going to cover it with gutters, so it doesn't matter." -- My reply? Well you're just going to spend my other 90% of beer, so I'll be doing you a favor if I don't pay the balance.

They truck was there the next day with a new crew each time until it was right.

Live and learn.

Let me know the details of the contract.

Pete

I'll let you know exactly how the contract is worded tonight when I get home, but it basically says that Tyvek will be installed. I went online to DuPont's website and downloaded the Tyvek HouseWrap installation manual, and they specify the type of nails and the type of tape to use.

Sounds like quite a crew. When I ran my business, we kept the worksite spotless and cleaned up when we were done.

Definitely withold payment until the job has been completed to your satisfaction. Speak to the top guy directly, whoever he is and politely and calmly outline your concerns. See if he will address them personally and ensure satisfaction. Take some digital pictures of work in progress.

It's always better to try and work things out before they get nasty. Not sure about the US, but contractors can file a lien against the home if they aren't paid. You don't need that hassle over a siding install.

__________________
Chris
2007 E550 4Matic - 61,000 Km - Iridium Silver, black leather, Sport package, Premium 2 package
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1998 E430 - sold
1989 300E - 333,000 Km - sold
1977 280E - sold
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"And a frign hat. They gave me a hat at the annual benefits meeting. I said. how does this benefit me. I dont have anything from the company.. So they gave me a hat." - TheDon

Zeus has the right idea. I do tend to jump the gun with these people.
I just get a little miffed when I hear 1/3. That's a lot of money for not having done a darn thing!

Talk to the head guy and try to get where you need to be.

In the end, if it states to apply Tyvek, then it is going to assumed that it will be installed as per mfg. recommendations... but be careful with teh "assume" part.

It's difficult to enforce a warranty claim with the product manufacturer if the product is not installed with their recommended method.

Thanks for the ideas. I don't want to come across as a nit-picky, but I expect to receive what I paid (or will pay) for.

This is the first and last comment I will make on the subject, but be careful when telling someone to withold money from a contractor--depending on the laws in various states, the contractor may be able to go down to the courthouse and simply enter a lien on his home for witholding payment, thus clouding the title to the property and possibly harming his credit or ability to sell or re-finance.

Thorsen, check out contractors/mechanic's liens in your state and good luck.

If I could add my tuppence...if possible take good pics of the mess,damage to birdhouse etc,and the sloppy workmanship in addition to the way the Tyvek was installed.
You may need proof,hope you don't,really I hope it all works out but if you want peace prepare for war.

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Raise your issues as soon as you are aware of them, take lots of pictures, and your contract should be worded to require "installation per manufacturer's guidelines" or words to that effect. Alos your contract should include payment terms with clear milestones.

It's always better to work things out amicably and that means before work has proceeded so far the it has to be torn out and redone. Also, building contractors (especially the smaller ones) are notorious for going out of business and popping up under new names.

Good luck. I do subcontracting to general contractors on large commercial projects, but I have also been in your shoes as a home owner trying to get work done on my house. It can be VERY frustrating sometimes.

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

Whew. Sorry to hear about your difficulties. Being in that line, it's a bit embarrassing to hear about.

Sounds like good advice so far, pictures especially. I don't know how some of these people stay in business long enough to have a yellow pages ad.

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Te futueo et caballum tuum

1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

They are in cohoots with lenders who convince the plaintiffs to re-fi their homes at stupid rates so they can put on siding to folks who think it is happening for free. Google the Money Store class actions relative to siding and Sears/siding has been hammered nationally as well.

Yeah, when Congress made the bankruptcy laws harsher, I wish they had also made the lenders a little more accountable, too. I can't believe the things people will fall for when it comes to borrowing money.

__________________
" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

Trust me--the Money Store took an @$$ pounding for this stuff and when Wachovia bought their paper, they paid out some pretty good settlements and offered class money to opt outs who had weak cases, ect....to clear up the books.

I've been thinking maybe I should have more financials in my portfolio. I'm waiting to see what the shakeout will be like with the subprime lenders. Most likely the investing public will over react as usual. That's when I hope to jump in.

__________________
" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles