Appreciation post for the guy who told me to insist on site visits every week

We're building a place out in Austin and our first builder kept sending us these nice emails with progress photos but something felt off. I'm not a contractor or anything but my dad used to frame houses so I know what studs should look like. Turns out they were using 2x4s in a spot where the plans clearly called for 2x6 for the load bearing wall. If I hadn't driven over there on a Tuesday afternoon I never would have caught it. The crew foreman just shrugged and said the lumber yard sent the wrong order. Now I go out every Wednesday morning no matter what and I take my own photos too. Has anyone else found a huge problem by showing up unexpected like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

nina_clark17d ago

Three years ago I showed up unannounced to check on a new deck and found the posts sitting on bare dirt instead of concrete footings. The guy tried to tell me that's how they do it in the old country. I made him dig six holes right there while I sat in a lawn chair drinking coffee.

kevin_schmidt9722d ago

Man, that's one of those things that just proves trust but verify is the only way to go. I mean, it's not just construction either. It's like when you order something online and the tracking says delivered but you check your porch and nothing's there. Or when a mechanic says your car needs a new alternator but you just changed the battery yourself. People cut corners all the time, and the only way to catch it is to physically be there. Idk, maybe I'm just getting old and cynical, but I swear the more hands something passes through, the more likely someone's gonna take the easy way out. Good on you for sticking to your gut and driving out there.

taylor_fox22d ago

That reminds me of the time I had some work done on my house a few years back. The contractor said they'd fixed a leak in the roof, guaranteed it was all sorted. First good rain and my living room ceiling looked like a showerhead. Ended up climbing up there myself with a flashlight and found they'd just slapped some caulk over a crack that was still spreading. Makes you wonder how much of what we pay for is actually done right, or if people just assume nobody will bother checking.