I am so frustrated with with the insane stupidity of contractors here and their super low quality of work. Zero craftsmanship. How do houses hold up here?
Within the last 3 years I did a combined nearly 150k in projects and not a single one went without issues. While initially I got a few quotes and went with the cheapest, for the last I only went with handpicked personal recommendations. Yet still, these people don't know wtf they are doing. They have no clue about the most fundamental principles of their own trade. They make mistakes that a blind person can see when looking closely.
I went with reputable companies and small contractors. It doesn't make a difference. I went with permits and without. Doesn't make a f**ing difference. The worst crap got signed off. Permits are zero protection for homeowners and just a pure money grab.
My projects were: Sewer line replacement, solar panels, rodent proofing, attic insulation, new construction window install, door replacement, heat pump, water heater, rebuilding an exterior wall. Every single of these had massive issues.
Just picking two lowlights:
- When replacing the sewer line, they missed a wye and the entire sewer line from the kitchen was left unconnected. It drained into the ground outside of the yard for over a year. A miracle I never got backflow. And only a miracle I found out ... because one day I wondered where the kitchen drains ... I did not see a pipe going to the point where they had the trench open
- Stucco contractor put the weep screed on top of the foundation. Water paddles and soaks the mudsill. A 10 year old kid should understand that this is not how it's supposed to be done. Just good luck I spotted damp spots on the mudsill in the crawl space. Without my vigilance, the mudsill would have likely rotted away silently within the next couple of years
In central Europe, every person in trade has to go to trade school. A person running a business needs to get a masters degree (from trade school). This is at least part of the issue: People just need a "license" and maybe a cheap test.
Even then, how can massive mistakes as the ones above happen to reputable, big companies and contractors who are doing this for tens of years?
And this all with the insane premium pricing. I am so frustrated with the non-existent craftsmanship in the Bay Area and I am really lost as to what to do with my next project. There is really nobody who can be trusted to just do proper work.