5 Comments

1. 

   Daytrip on February 16, 2017 at 11:42 pm

   Reno contractor fatigue here. I keep asking, “contractors, why not just do it right?” It takes as much work to do it right as doing it over!

   Contractors! The hell’s wrong with you people?!

   It’s good, or it’s not good. Ain’t no such thing as “good enough”! Ain’t nobody want to hear “well, nobody will notice after its caulked”! It’s unamerican to suck in construction, no matter how humble the home. Anyone who tries half-assery should be deported. I don’t care if your ancestors served in the Revolutionary war!
   Back to Scotland with you!!

2. 

   Susie on February 17, 2017 at 6:44 am

   This reminds me of a story, JtR:

   My late husband was a extraordinary finish carpenter (and could also fix anything). At his memorial service a close friend told a story about when they were working on a $2 million beach home–my late husband’s last job.

   The friend was sanding a piece of wood for the staircase and asked, “Is this sanded good enough?” My late husband’s reply: “If you have to ask, it’s not.”

   From then on, whether it was a painter, electrician, floor guys or any other subcontractor on the job, the rallying cry became: “Sand it like Scott.”

3. 

   Eddie89 on February 17, 2017 at 10:58 am

   Reminds me of this interesting article I read:

   Chabuduo! Close enough …
   Your balcony fell off? Chabuduo. Vaccines are overheated? Chabuduo. How China became the land of disastrous corner-cutting

   https://aeon.co/essays/what-chinese-corner-cutting-reveals-about-modernity

4. 

   Shadash on February 17, 2017 at 1:26 pm

   Contractors are fat and happy right now. Homeowners are flush with equity that they can tap into at any time.

   We need a downturn in real estate so contractors are forced to compete for deals and in doing so provide a better finished product.

   I have a home built in the 30s (lath and plaster with old hardware) and I can’t tell how many contractors either bid crazy high on projects (so I won’t hire them) or they simply run off and not return calls.

5. 

   daytrip on February 17, 2017 at 2:02 pm

   “I have a home built in the 30s (lath and plaster with old hardware) and I can’t tell how many contractors either bid crazy high on projects (so I won’t hire them) or they simply run off and not return calls.”

   I’m going to try that rallying cry of “Sand it like Scott” today. Nothing else has worked! I won’t explain what it means. Maybe it will scare them.

   Jim’s “35 year old house” rule works well. With contractors, once you get past 35 years, relationships get complicated…

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2vsdQ17x-U