construction question. HELP!

[AR182]

A 4400 sq. ft.,a 6900 sq.ft. house.What do you guys have in these houses, basketball courts or bowling alley's?And I thought the 3200 sq.ft. house that I live in is too big.

I don't know how it is in other states,but here in the Phoenix area if a person has a problem with a builder or any other trade the person can call the Registrar of Contractors.This state run agency will send a rep. to the job site to settle any disputes.To my surprise,they were more than fair in a few different disputes I had.
So,if anyone plans on doing major work,like building houses, or adding extensions to existing houses or any other major work they should have phone numbers handy to agencies who could help settle disputes.I am sure every state has these agencies.

To keep peace in our house,the wife handles the upgrades on the inside & I take care of the outside.We then review each's choices before the final decision.

 

[skulldog]

Jack, if it passed the building inspector, that doesn't mean shit, most of them don't know their ass from their elbow. JMO

I'd go the engineer route.

 

[Captain Crunch]

Il'l second that Skulldog. We are in the middle of a job right now where we are doing some storm drainage work and adding on to the end of a box culvert. We had the slab all formed up and the rebar in place and we called for an inspection. The inspector for the City of KC came out and got out his tape and started measuring all the spaciing for the rebar and then he asked what is this wood doing down here. I couldn't see what he was talking about, so I got a little closer thinking there was some tree limbs or something that had washed in that I wasn't aware of. He was talkiing about the lumber that we used to form the FLOOR. I told him it was standard to use wood to hold your concrete in place and also set your elevations. This SOB didn't even know why we had used 2x10's for our formwork. These are the kind of people that also inspect the bridges we drive over everyday. Scary They don't have any commen sense whatsoever.

 

[fatdaddycool]

Hey Jack,
I'm no expert but,...won't your skirting cover up the crack?

 

[in2fitness]

Jack, also if the wall is not replaced, I would hire a structural(sp) engineer(have the builder pay for it, BUT MAKE SURE IT'S YOUR PICK) and have them give you something in writing regarding the structural integerity(sp), then it's on the engineer shoulders and not yours.

I spoke with a friend who is a engineer last night and he said exactly the same thing as skull. Also, when they were filling the cinder blocks w/ concrete do you know if they were sticking anything in the concrete to prevent air pockets from forming? From what I understand they should have been doing that too. You don't want this coming back to haunt you 10-15 years down the line.

 

[MadJack]

geezzz, you guys are right. i guess i should protect myself somehow even though i 'think' and am confident the wall will be fine.

i visited with the builder at the site on friday and he offered to take it down and rebuild it again, but he said i have to make up my mind real soon because framing starts on monday.

i think i'll leave it up to HIM. if HE thinks it's ok then he should give me in writing that he is responsible for the wall for 15?, 20? years against any unusual leaking and/or settlement problems.

he is the premier builder in this county. i highly doubt (but you never know) that he is taking this as a shortcut.

what do you guys think about this? i hate to make him take it down if it isn't necessary. i know an engineer is going to suggest it be replaced. you know how engineers are right?

 

[Captain Crunch]

Jack, if he is the premier builder in that area, he didn't get there by doing shoddy work. It doesn't take long for word to get around if a builder is jacking people around or doing crummy work. No realtor or developer will want to have anything to with him for fear of screwing up their reputation.

If the flatwork contractor hit the brick, I am sure that the foundation has already been backfilled and waterproofed and he probably hit the blocks towards the top of the foundation, which is better than if they would have somehow knocked them out towards the bottom. It is hard w/o being there and seeing how severe the damage is to make a decision, but I would think you would be OK.

It wouldn't hurt to get something in writing from the builder that he stands behind it and also get something from the flatwork contractor acknowledging that they did in fact hit the wall and fixed it to the best of their ability.

Like I said in an earlir post, don't be afraid to ask questions. That is part of the builders responsibility to keep you informed of what is going on during the whole building process and explain things to you if you don't understand them. Big problems can arise if their is a breakdown in communication but it sounds like you have a good builder and I would bet that he is not weak in this area, as this is something that has made him "premier".

Good Luck

 

[MadJack]

CC, it is not back filled yet. he IS the premier contractor in this county. my house is like a toy for him to build. the only reason i was lucky enough to get HIM is because i will be the first home in his new personal development. most of his homes are 5000 square feet and bigger. nothing is subbed out except the well driller.

i guess if he can ASSURE me that it's ok and gives it to me in writing also stating that he knew his men hit the wall, i'll let him continue. :shrug:

christ! decisions, decisions!

 

[AR182]

Jack,

The building business in the Phoenix area has been booming for the last 10-15 years.Even with this boom,there have been a few premier builders in the industry going bellyup for various reasons.Some have left customers with houses half built,only to be rectified by state agencies.
Before moving to Arizona,I was an insurance broker in NY.I found a common practice of some contractors was to go out of business under one name,then open up under a different name.There were various reasons why they did this,you could probably guess what some of them were.
I don't want to sound like an alarmist,but what if your contractor closes down his business in a few years?That paper he gave you stating that he will stand behind his work won't mean anything.I don't know the guy,I don't know how he runs his business,but if I was you I would tell him to do the wall over.But first I would follow Skulldog's advice & get an engineer's opinion.I would also use an independent inspector as I mentioned in a previous post.The engineer might be able recommend one for you.
Building a house, is most times, the biggest investment a family makes.Having peace of mind is very important in this situation.

 

[in2fitness]

Having peace of mind is very important in this situation.

Agree 110% w/ AR182. Also, it will take less time for them to rebuild the wall now as opposed to the time you will spend trying to track this guy down in 10-15 years and having to go through court proceedings if he won't honor the warrantee that he gave you. Give yourself and your wife piece of mind so that you both can enjoy the new house without any worries whatsoever.