A month ago we decided to renovate the house. We needed to resurface 25 years old pool, which was leaking, we needed to replace an upstairs rail, which was not to code, and we needed to put texture and new paint on the walls.
Our house started out as a builder house, constructed as the builder’s personal residence, and the first owners made an interesting decision to not texture the sheetrock. You could see nail holes under the paint, the seams, and so on. We hired a general contractor who came highly recommended. He subcontracted the painting to a respected painting firm with excellent reviews. We walked through the house with the painting company owner. We agreed: the walls needed to be floated, textured with a light orange peel, primed and painted and neutral color that would be nice to live with and would show well when we put the house on the market. It would be expensive, but worth it.
We were told to be out of the house for two weeks so the texture could be applied.
We couldn’t find any rentals on short notice, so we decided to combine being out of the house with a vacation. We couldn’t find any vacation rentals because everything was booked. We looked through three different rental sites and about 60 properties and got the only place that was available by some miracle in our time slot, even though it was expensive. We needed a vacation badly, so hey, serendipity, right?
We spent 2 weeks packing. We have shelves filled with Gordon’s action figures, our comics, etc. Everything had to be removed and packed so shelves could be moved. Every horizontal surface was cleared. It was like moving, except we were coming back to the same house. We dismantled the craft room, packed the office, etc. Everything is in boxes. My yarn is in garbage bags.
We boarded 4 dogs and 3 cats.
We went on vacation. We were assured that the house will be clean and habitable when we came back. It should’ve been a 12 hour drive. It was a 15 hour drive, because Orange, Texas. You see, there is roadwork on I-10 by Orange, Texas, and the 3 lanes of the interstate and 2 lanes of the frontage road were funneled into one lane. Two hours and change to clear the funnel.
Midway through vacation – which was lovely and relaxing and I don’t regret it at all – we got pictures of the room taken from far away. Everything looked good.
Friday we are driving home, hoping to not be stuck by Orange this time. Kid 1 calls and says, “Hey guys, the house is really bad.”
We hang up, and I am like, how bad could this be? We have pretty pictures.
We made it in 13 hours this time, because we hit Houston at 4:30 pm on a Friday. We arrive around 8:30pm. We haven’t eaten because we wanted to make good time. We walk into the house.
It is the worst paint job I have ever seen done by a professional crew. I can’t even explain it. You have to be here. Not only that, but the house is a wreck. There is a thick layer of construction dust on the floor, the counters, and walls. The TVs are unplugged and mounted back, so everything is disconnected and kind of impossible to reconnect without unmounting. We found some gross empty water bottles with some kind of black slime in it. Ugh.
I took these pictures this morning, so this paint is dry.
This next one is a particularly telling image. Floating walls requires a couple of coats of “mud,” which is a compound that bonds to the wall. It’s smoothed, and then texture is applied, followed by primer and then paint.
Single coat of paint.
They did try to patch things, and they made it so much worse. The house looks worse. It is unsellable as is.
I’m pretty good with words, but I don’t have the right ones to convey the feeling of driving for 13 hours, walking into the house, hungry and tired, and expecting it to be habitable… and it’s not. The walls are bad, but the dust and trash everywhere is worse. We couldn’t even sit down. The floor was basically white. So we cleaned, vacuumed, and mopped because you can’t breathe that powder in. It’s not good for human lungs.
We’ve been cleaning non-stop since we arrived. If we are awake, we are cleaning. I took a break to drink my afternoon cup of tea and post this. I am not handling this well. I screamed on Saturday at some point. Just a kind of guttural wordless scream. It was that or explode. I finally put together my computer set up at 10:00 pm last night because we had purged the fridge before leaving and I needed to get the necessities delivered.
We also don’t have the upstairs rail, so the upstairs is blocked off. It is unsafe. The rail is just a post-pandemic delay thing, so I am not mad about that, but I can’t clean the staircase or the upstairs floor. I can’t replace the air filter. Kid 1 moved into the tiny garage apartment, because her bedroom and computer room are inaccessible. Her boyfriend rescued her computer – which is covered in dust and stained with paint, wtf – because we have a launch on the secret project in August and she has to work on editing it.
This color is forgiving in photos so you look at the pic above, and with the right lighting and distance, it seems like it looks good. Trust me, it doesn’t.
Our general contractor was shocked. Apparently he checked this on Monday and told them it was not up to par, so they “fixed” it. He wants to make it right at no cost to us.
The problem is, we can’t take off for another 2 weeks. We have to work. We have dogs and cats. At this point, I’m giving up on texture. If they just sand the walls and make them smooth enough, I would settle for that. I just… I am tired and upset. At some point, when asked what could be done to fix this, Gordon said that we could set the house on fire. He is obviously being dramatic, but every single wall is fucked up. Every one.
I don’t know how this is going to get fixed. We had to be out of the house. That was the whole point of this.
I’ve got to go clean some more. There is paint on one of the TVs, so I need to go and see if I can scrub it off without destroying it. The dogs and cats are coming back today and it should be safe. Most of the powder is gone, and the stairs are blocked off with a sturdy gate.
I have to work on Monday. Kid 1 cleaned our office, which was so nice of her, I almost cried. On Friday around 10:00 pm, I called Kid 2. She’s been checking on us throughout the drive, and we made arrangement to have a fun lunch on Saturday. I told her that I loved her but the lunch was not happening and I showed her some of the walls and the floor. Thirty minutes later, there is a knock on the door. Kid 2 dropped everything and drove in the dark “to clean and help.”
Not all things went badly. The pool is great. I have high hopes for the rail. The renovation budget is spent, so whatever fix happens will be it. Tomorrow the maid service is coming, and we have removed enough powder so it should be safe for them to clean.
Hopefully by Monday, I will stop being a burning ball of rage. Not likely, but anything is possible.
Bottom line: your general contractor was NOT there. He’s not stepping up. It’s too late for him to do that. He’s not doing you any favors. He’s just doing damage control. Hold his feet to the fire. Walk with him through every detail. Give him lists. Check them. He failed you in too many ways to count. Get what you want and need from this person. He OWES it to you. Quite literally.
I think, as a cathartic exercise, you should write out how characters from each of your worlds would deal with the contractors and their job performance. And I’m not suggesting that as a member of the Horde who would love to read it. I would not turn away from that post, mind you, but since we don’t want you landing in prison for murder or maiming, then perhaps writing it out might help.
With paint splatter I’ve used a straight edge razor, gently applied on hard surfaces and painted wood with good results
Silver lining – yes, you knew that your girls are wonderful, but they proved it yet again.
So sorry! Make sure the contractor reimburses you for time and effort of doing the cleaning yourselves as well as the help from the kids. Also, if the animals had to be kept longer. He better be fixing it all for free!!! Some financial help from the contractor can help the sting of the issues. Good luck!
This^^^
I share this story, hoping it will bring a laugh in your time of Woe.
Our story begins much the same as yours. Returning home, tired, hungry, weary from a long drive after a delightful yet (as vacations some often are) exhausting two weeks away. Emphasis on tired and hungry. We open our door and and it smells… strangely… like a barn? Huh. That’s odd. And why is there birdseed everywhere? And what are those brown seeds? Oh. OH. NOT SEEDS. Squirrel poo. EVERYWHERE. And little yellow puddles on all the window ledges. And paper towel nests. And “muddy” footprints along the sinks and toilets. NOWHERE WAS SAFE.
We spent the first 20 minutes trying to chase our intruder out of the house. The next hour, shellshocked as we took in the destruction. By midnight, we’d sanitized a circle of safety in the living room, and huddled in it eating takeout. For the next week, we swept, scrubbed, carpet cleaned and laundered. For a month, we trapped squirrels and and released them far, far away.
So, all that is to say– your story brought me right back to that feeling of initial horror. I truly feel for you, that feeling of complete and utter awe and exhaustion and frustration and rage, when the final arrival home doesn’t feel like home at all. No safety and comfort in the familiar.
Wishing you the quickest and easiest path to when this can just be a story on the blog and not your current reality.
I feel for you. Had laminate flooring put in once. The post-clean up activities included swiffering the walls twice to get rid of the dust. Yes, turns out you can use a swiffer on a wall.
I am so sorry that this has happened to you both. I am really grateful for your relationship with your kids and that they both came over to help. I am grateful that the contractor understood immediately that this was wrong and that you didn’t have to fight with them.
And I hope that you weren’t exposed to too high of a level of the toxic crap.
Know that I would hug you both and make you meals if I lived close enough.
Thank you for sharing. Sending you calming waves. Know that your upsettance is justified.
Oh, my dears, so sorry this happened to you!
If there ever needed to be proof that life isn’t fair – this is it.
I am sure that there is no point in seeking legal recompense. The cost would almost certainly be more than you’d get back.
I wish I could do more than offer sympathy. Unfortunately, I can’t. Even if I lived close enough, I couldn’t physically do much. But I would try…
Your kids are really great. You two did a lot of things right there.
You are doing all you can right now. Deal with your priorities and don’t let anyone try to tell you otherwise.
I hope your contractor gave you the name of their sub so you can review the hell out of them. We are in the middle of building our next house and I’m constantly terrified of walking into a disaster just like this. I really hope your main contractor makes it right.
That so sucks, I had a similar experience before I moved into my house. And yeah they screwed it up as badly as you described in your experience. I hope your able to move on and everything gets better for you. Sending prayers and good vibes.
Sorry about the bad contracting.
BDH, you know the best way to cheer up House Andrews? Pre-order Ruby Fever. It’s a win-win. 😉
OMG! ???? That is horrible! I’m so sorry you are going through all that. Wish I could send you my painter. He was awesome.
Oh Lordy! I am soooooooo sorry! ????
I will not complain about my own renovation woes ever again.
I can’t even imagine. The mind boggles!
Oh no
Cant help wondering if this
is an omen.
Have been living without kitchen for four weeks, very few glitches so far in the projekt -the pinetree-floor was delivered with wrong treatment but that got solved in the second try.
And now i have a pretty room and all the kitchen parts delivered and it should be put in place thursday -we will be away in Berlin.
Is there a Saint for renovations ? Should one offer up a prayer?
Or 50 for House (!) Andrews
I hope you will get a break as good as my breaks with innkeeper -so you have the energy to fix this horrible mess.
Best wishes
In the next Innkeeper installment, perhaps Kosandion will blow up a planet named for the contractor. We won’t expect anything on Friday. Don’t overdo. If you decide to do a GoFundMe so that you can move out again, I’m sure the BDH can cover it.
Sounds awful. It’s so frustrating when you hire experts to do a decent job and they just….don’t.
I hate hiring tradespeople as I’m usually underwhelmed their efforts and am left thinking ‘I could have bloody done that’.
I hope you get resolution from your main contractor. Can’t believe you had to do all the cleaning!!
We’ve been in a situation like this. Contractor subcontracts and on and on until you have people lacking practical experience and supervision. It’s a nightmare that I am sorry you are dealing with. There was a time when there was pride in what you did, you did your utmost best and if you had someone else do it, you made sure they represented you to the fullest. Your walls now look like old plastered walls that have had a hundred or more years to slowly degrade with all the rolling, humps and what almost looks like cracks poorly plastered. *Hugs* Your children are wonderful loving support, that’s a bright and shiny thing to hold close.
I hope you documented everything with pictures. What I see in the post is a good start. Just the fact that you had to clean when you returned tells me how unprofessionally this was done.
You already did your part in good faith. It is up to the contractor to fix this without inconveniencing you any more.
Hugs to you for the emotional distress this has caused you after having a nice vacation.
I am so sorry for yall. No one should have to put up with that, the Contractor should refund the cost of what is going to cost to redo what those idiot painter already screwed up. I worked in the construction industry for 30 years and that behavior is unacceptable when I was working back then. By all that’s right an proper your general contractor should cover any further work out of His own pocket, it’s what I would have done when I was doing said job. Sadly all things being as they are today your likely looking at eating the costs yourself, because most people today don’t have the same work ethic we had back in the day.
Oh my gosh guys I’m so sorry that happened! That is beyond frustrating! I hope everything works out for the best and problems are resolved quickly and as stress free as possible!
Rest while you can. Tomorrow is always a new day full of amazing possibilities.
Ugh, that’s so frustrating and terrible, I’m so sorry! I hope you are able to get it resolved in a manner you are satisfied with.
Really feel for you guys. I know it wont help reduce the stress or righteous rafe but a big hug from the UK.
Oh no….I am so sorry to read this. I’m glad your general contractor is on your side, so at least no worries there. What an awful thing to come home to, though, especially when you had high hopes. I know it won’t help much by saying it, but take a deep breath and hang in there….it will get better. ????????????
Deepest sympathies- we had a company that fitted our bathroom. They asked how close to the wall I wanted the bath ????????♀️ So I said as close as possible. Foolishly, I didn’t say we wanted to be able to turn the taps. Apparently, there are people who pay a lot of money to buy and fit baths with no running water. It’s soul destroying.
That is a seriously AWFUL job of painting! Good grief!! Not only should it get fixed for free, some, if not all, of your money should be refunded! Hoping it gets made right.
What a major pain in the tushie. Good mojo sent, fingers crossed and hoping the contractor resolves every issue to your complete satisfaction.
To remove dried paint from surfaces that should not have them (light fixtures spring to mind for me), rubbing alcohol or Krud Kutter works really well. I’m sorry this happened to you. Kind of negates the vacation relaxation.
PLEASE consult your lawyer before giving up on having it done right! Your contractor is accepting responsibility for fixing it—let him do so.
If that means having him pay to board your animals for another two weeks and having him pay for a rental for you for another two weeks and having him pay for the cleaners to come a second time after the work is done properly, so be it.
Of course you need to begin working again and you need a place to do so, but paying for that place is not your problem.
I agree, so much. He should have cleaned for you too, so I would ask for compensation for that. I won’t give you any more unsolicited advice, Ilona, but I hope your contractor gets his #$%# together, and makes it right.
Holy crap.
There aren’t enough voodoo dolls in the world to cover this one.
Burning a few effigies can help after a fashion?
We had a similar issue when we had to have our roof replaced due to storm damage. An enterprising young man in the roofing company attempted to defraud us, and got caught trying to pocket our insurance payment for the roof. He had conned his way into a reputable roofing company specifically to do this to people. Luckily I knew the roofing people well and was on excellent terms with the insurance company. The idiot threatened me for the money, and that was it, He got fired, the roofers were paid, and it turned out okay.
Hubby and I were not surprised when he was caught doing it again with a different company and ended up behind bars.
oh no! what a terrible end to a vacation! I hope you get it fixed without too many issues. sending good vibes your way! please don’t kill off anyone in the next chapter, unless they deserve it of course!
I am so sorry. There are no words.
I have no words…. That is so bad.
I’m so sorry.
I am so sorry for all of you. What great kids you have to drop everything and help take care of the issues with you. Thank goodness you have a good general contractor. I hope they are able to fix it to your satisfaction – not what you can settle for. Good Luck.
Hugs and I hope the GC makes good on his promise. Previous suggestions about getting a crew in over the weekend to get it fixed sounds like a good idea (having boarding etc covered since you have to undergo the inconvenience). Honestly professional painters should know how to cover existing furniture and tape up doorways and mounted furniture before they paint. Ugh. Curses on them painters!
I am very sorry for you guys, makes our insullation job (forget to do one side of the attic, how do forget something like that??? )seem very minor. Good luck on the repairs and cleaning.
I lost sleep over this. I can’t fathom what you all are going through.
I am so sorry the two of you came home to such a mess! I think I would have walked out and stayed in a hotel if I saw that and I would not have handled it as well as you have.
You have made me really appreciate our contractor who has OCD I think, is very particular, takes forever, does an awesome job and cleans up after himself every day. He would flip out if anyone on one of his jobs left a house like that.
I am impressed with the unity and teamwork of your family. I am hoping and praying you get a miracle for your house. ❤️
Damn! I know that you said that your renovation budget it has been spent. However shouldn’t the contractor that you hired originally who was responsible for a Contracting out all these other folks be paying to have everything cleaned and redone? I mean it was his responsibility as the general contractor to keep on top of all of these subcontractors. That is their freaking job! God knows I hope none of them expect to get a good report and reviews on any site where they can be checked on. I hope that you report them everywhere including the Better Business bureau.
Oh, I am so, so sorry for all this construction woe. It is real, and it is devastating.
We have done major, total house remodel twice. We added 1,000sq.ft. to our house the first time, and completely renovated the interior the second time (30 years apart). My husband will divorce me if I ever suggest another renovation.
In both cases, we did not leave the house during the renovation. The builders hated it and argued with me because it would slow them down. It cost me more, but we were onsite for all decisions and checked all the work (and we had the same kind of agreements about the work in place).
We closed ourselves off in a small part of the place and sometimes had to move about. We required they clean up every day, which they hated but did. We cleaned up after them every day as well.
Everyday there was something wrong that if we hadn’t been there would have been a problem. Maybe other people have smooth sailing on these projects, we never have. No vacation, lots of extra cost, but not the all at once screaming misery at the end.
It is a trade off. You were probably always going to come home to some level of crazy. At least you had some vacation time.
All the best getting it sorted. This is why people pay extra for move in ready houses.
Good luck! My limited experience is once paint is on, sanding isn’t an option. I’d make them redo it and one part at a time so you don’t have to leave again. What a mess. I’m so sorry.
Sending all love, hugs, prayers and lashing of hot tea!
Do not torch the house. 🙁
( I’m a Brit, its hot tea!!)
What a catastrophically dreadful experience!!!
Especially since your home is your nest, your safe place, both your R&R and busy, productive zone…and it was gorgeous when you left it.
And they promised it would be even more gorgeous when you got home.
What a load of you-know what.
Since you both are creative geniuses, I bet you can come up with something original and unforgettable to adequately express your ire to the dorks who trashed your lovely place.
Get ’em!!!
I am not as good with words as you are, so I will simpl say take lots of pictures, save all correspondence and call your lawyer.
At least the general contractor is aware and willing to do something. Doesn’t help your living conditions, but it’s a start. Our daughter and son in law were having a reno done and they had to pour a subfloor due to below grade living area. Only two companies in the entire metro area did this stuff and it was as expensive as Hades. The workers arrived 2 hours late, swore, smoked, left the butts lying around, and were screaming at each other because neither of them knew how to mix or pour the stuff. They did it and the floor was not even remotely level. After more weeks of trying to live and do business in two rooms (neither of them a kitchen) the contractor got the floor re-done and the job was able to begin again. The gen. contractor was a good guy, but was at the mercy of the supposed “expert” subcontractor. I hope you are struck by a sudden run of excellent luck, and this all turns out extremely well. Yes, I know this is unlikely, but may as well wish for the best.Possibly a small sacrifice of some sort? Like an inept painter?
Just a thought, get a 5th wheel while your General Contractor makes it right. If the house is empty, that is the time to do it; otherwise, you live in a place that will forever remind you how much work still needs to be done. So sorry that this happened to you.
The other advantage is that you live on your property and can keep an eye on the daily progress. I have had several friends build their homes while living in 5th wheels…
I’m sorry this happened to you. Its a common theme that gets repeated every time the building industry speeds up. Everyone is so busy the subs are subbing out their work to inexperienced people. Its practically impossible to not get caught in it. I was at my house every single day while it was being built and still have issues I’m fixing a year later (I’m an architect). You can have this fixed while you live there. Its done all the time in commercial renovations. They just said you had to leave because its a PITA and more expensive this way. It takes time, a lot of plastic and tape to seal off each area, and a room filter should be used while work is happening. I don’t know the codes in Texas, especially for residential so the filter might not be required. I’d ask the GC to make sure they use one. It sounds like he will agree. If you need to use your upstairs, you can ask the GC to put up a temporary guard rail. It will look terrible, but keep you from falling.
Oh my, I will definitely be praying that there is a quick, easy, and inexpensive fix for you and your family.
I am so so sorry. Do you have room on the street or driveway where you could rent an RV to live in while it gets fixed? Not ideal, but at least you’d be close to the house while it is fixed. So awful, very sorry!
Oh shite!! So sorry you came back to this – wish we, the BDH could turn up for a working bee to help fix it 🙁 sending hugs, good thoughts and vibes and hopefully the contractor gets things fixed for you in record time to a good standard