MVanDam Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 Hi guys We’re having a double storey extension put on the side of the house and all has been going well, but not we’re at the stage of making it water tight including the roof being put on All the way up to now the contractor has told me that he was using a local roofing firm but it seems they’ve let him down, or he hasn’t actually made sure he’s booked them in advance and the contractor is now doing the roof himself I work away and he never spoke to me about doing it himself and by the time I came home 2/3rds if the roof was done, I asked him about what was going on with him now doing it and he said he’s done it before and not to worry I’m not happy about the situation as you can imagine and don’t know how to proceed. His actual work up to this stage has been spot on but that’s what he does, I’m concerned he’s not a roofing specialist and is now just having a go to keep the job moving What do you guys think I should do to cover myself? i was thinking of getting a separate roof inspector to come down and check his work and making the contractor cover the cost as he never spoke to me about doing it himself? What do you guys think? Any other suggestions? thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 (edited) On a small build or extension doing all the work is common. Raise your concerns and tell him you will be having it inspected and if it isn’t right he will have to put it right and pay for the inspection. If it’s all done correctly then the inspection is at your cost. there is a good chance the local roofer would do a worse job so have a contingency but don’t cause problems beforehand Edited June 30, 2023 by markc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Punter Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 Roofing does not always need a high level of skill. He should be fine. Have Building Control inspected any of the work? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayc89 Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 I've had some pretty terrible roofers work on our houses in the past. If you're otherwise happy with this work, I really wouldn't be overly concerned. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 41 minutes ago, MVanDam said: .... I’m concerned he’s not a roofing specialist and is now just having a go to keep the job moving ... What do you guys think? Any other suggestions? ... You're describing the norm for this sector. What do your finger-tips tell you about this builder? Spot-on so far, and prepared to keep the job going is what I see at this remove. But you have a valid concern. How complex is the roof : beaver-tail details front and back, complex hips, or a 10 meter straight run - no chimney? If the latter - fine. If it's complex, talk to him about the support he may need .... Asking that may get a reassuring response - he's done several like this before. Here's your real problem Quote ... I work away and he never spoke to me about doing it himself .... Skype? Teams? Google chat? Phonecall? Facebook? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrerahill Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 58 minutes ago, MVanDam said: Hi guys We’re having a double storey extension put on the side of the house and all has been going well, but not we’re at the stage of making it water tight including the roof being put on All the way up to now the contractor has told me that he was using a local roofing firm but it seems they’ve let him down, or he hasn’t actually made sure he’s booked them in advance and the contractor is now doing the roof himself I work away and he never spoke to me about doing it himself and by the time I came home 2/3rds if the roof was done, I asked him about what was going on with him now doing it and he said he’s done it before and not to worry I’m not happy about the situation as you can imagine and don’t know how to proceed. His actual work up to this stage has been spot on but that’s what he does, I’m concerned he’s not a roofing specialist and is now just having a go to keep the job moving What do you guys think I should do to cover myself? i was thinking of getting a separate roof inspector to come down and check his work and making the contractor cover the cost as he never spoke to me about doing it himself? What do you guys think? Any other suggestions? thanks in advance I had never done a roof before I built my garage and extension, its simple. Follow some typical details and you have a perfect roof, I actually claim my roofs are better than roofers due to additional steps I took. If he was a builder claiming to be an electrician or heating engineer I would worry but roofs are not complicated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nod Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 Absolutely no issue Roofing isn’t difficult We’ve laid the 4500 + slates ourselves The workshop pictured was mostly done by my wife Due to me braking my hand + slates ourselves The majority laid by my wife Most builders will have done some roof work over the years 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted June 30, 2023 Author Share Posted June 30, 2023 (edited) Cheers guys His other work appears to be of a high standard but I have had an issue with him with one of his invoices (was basically trying to bill me for 8K of materials/work up front whilst on holiday which was against our payment agreement) which kind of made me a bit unsure about him in general so figured I’d put it out there and see what other opinions were when he decided to do the roof himself without running it buy me after saying numerous times he was getting roofers in Edited June 30, 2023 by MVanDam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Jones Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 roofer is a failed brickie. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted June 30, 2023 Share Posted June 30, 2023 And the brickie was a failed teacher? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted July 1, 2023 Share Posted July 1, 2023 14 hours ago, ToughButterCup said: And the brickie was a failed teacher? Failed teacher is now an inspector. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted July 3, 2023 Author Share Posted July 3, 2023 Should I be asking for some money to be knocked off due to this? ie the quote I was given before the job started included a roofing firm doing the roof, now he’s done it himself without consulting me and talking about how this might change the price etc He’s basically just removed the roofers from the equation off his own back and expects everything to remain the same what do some of you more experienced guys think? Im 100% not trying to penny pinch but if he’s saved money and therefore increased profit it should be passed down to me too seeing as I wasn’t even consulted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc Posted July 3, 2023 Share Posted July 3, 2023 How do you know it hasn’t cost him more and he’s done you a favour getting the work done quicker if the roofer isn’t available for a few weeks or months Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyT Posted July 3, 2023 Share Posted July 3, 2023 Is he doing the plumbing, electrical, plastering, painting, joinery work too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted July 3, 2023 Author Share Posted July 3, 2023 (edited) 3 minutes ago, TonyT said: Is he doing the plumbing, electrical, plastering, painting, joinery work too? No mate I’m sorting all that, I’ve got mates in those trades who are doing that for me just the shell (minus the windows I’ve got them myself too) Edited July 3, 2023 by MVanDam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted July 3, 2023 Author Share Posted July 3, 2023 5 minutes ago, markc said: How do you know it hasn’t cost him more and he’s done you a favour getting the work done quicker if the roofer isn’t available for a few weeks or months I don’t know But this goes back to his total lack of communication which I’ve already told him about. He is very evasive and cagey when asked anything about the work being carried out and after the invoice problem I don’t really trust him any more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eandg Posted July 3, 2023 Share Posted July 3, 2023 2 hours ago, MVanDam said: Should I be asking for some money to be knocked off due to this? ie the quote I was given before the job started included a roofing firm doing the roof, now he’s done it himself without consulting me and talking about how this might change the price etc He’s basically just removed the roofers from the equation off his own back and expects everything to remain the same what do some of you more experienced guys think? Im 100% not trying to penny pinch but if he’s saved money and therefore increased profit it should be passed down to me too seeing as I wasn’t even consulted If he does the work to the standard you expect then pay him the rate you agreed - it makes no odds to you if he's got someone else to do it or done it himself, or made more or made less on it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmj1 Posted July 4, 2023 Share Posted July 4, 2023 Is a flat roof involved? This is the one area I got burned on when our main contractor did the same.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Jones Posted July 4, 2023 Share Posted July 4, 2023 9 hours ago, MVanDam said: Should I be asking for some money to be knocked off due to this? ie the quote I was given before the job started included a roofing firm doing the roof, now he’s done it himself without consulting me and talking about how this might change the price etc He’s basically just removed the roofers from the equation off his own back and expects everything to remain the same what do some of you more experienced guys think? Im 100% not trying to penny pinch but if he’s saved money and therefore increased profit it should be passed down to me too seeing as I wasn’t even consulted If the work is done to the quote what's it matter if Fred or George is the one doing the work. Looks like your looking for a reason to penny pinch. Remember if you ever want to get him back in the future for snagging penny pinching now will burn that bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Punter Posted July 4, 2023 Share Posted July 4, 2023 10 hours ago, MVanDam said: Should I be asking for some money to be knocked off due to this? No. It is no concern of yours how much profit or loss your contractor makes on the job. If the work done and the materials used are of an acceptable standard just pay what you owe. It really sounds to me like you want to find an excuse to chip the price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted July 4, 2023 Share Posted July 4, 2023 10 hours ago, MVanDam said: Should I be asking for some money to be knocked off due to this No and no. Some roofers have been the least skilful, biggest cowboys I've ever known. I think if is that nobody normally goes up to inspect their work. On the other hand general builders know a bit of everything. So I think you are probably better off. Apologise if you have been rude or doubted him to his face. Perhaps offer extra payment for getting on with it despite his subcontractor letting him down. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted July 4, 2023 Author Share Posted July 4, 2023 (edited) Nah I’m not looking to penny pinch, if I was looking to do that I wouldn’t have asked anyone’s opinion about it I would have just done it He tried to bill me 12K up front for work that hadn’t been done and materials that hadn’t even been ordered as soon as I went on holiday which was totally against our payment agreement which he’s followed perfectly with 2 previous invoices and when I asked him why his only answer was “because I didn’t think it mattered” so yes I’ll admit I kind have had an off feeling about the guy since then. sonething I’ve neglected to mention in here is him saying he’d mispriced for the tiles (60p when they are around £1.05’ish) and he was gonna lose money now and then after this when he kept telling me the roofers were doing the roof and then he was up there doing it himself with no chat or explanation at all I didn’t really know what to make of it These little things and a complete lack of communication from the guy himself does make people wonder what’s going on Maybe not people like you guys who are frequently involved in this world but people like me who don’t really have anything to do with it a bit of an explanation and an update occasionally would go along way Edited July 4, 2023 by MVanDam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted July 4, 2023 Author Share Posted July 4, 2023 Cheers for the help btw guys No offence taken to any accusations of penny pinching btw I’m just glad to hear I don’t need to worry too much 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted July 4, 2023 Share Posted July 4, 2023 We're not supporting the builder either, and he may well be trying it on re extras. Just keep talking, and pay what's fair. Not much less, not much more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVanDam Posted July 6, 2023 Author Share Posted July 6, 2023 (edited) Hit another snag today, but rather than start another thread I’ll just ask in here The screed flooring in the extension is an inch high at the back of the house. He took the level by the front door and actually took a brick out to get a visual too but neglected to check the floor height at the back of the house and it obviously slopes to the rear to the difference of an inch So we’re level at the front and an inch high where we’ve knocked through in to the kitchen His solution was “when you get around to doing the flooring you’ll just have to ply the kitchen out with 25’mm ply then use an inch threshold to cover the drop in to the living room”. No mention of him covering the cost of the ply (measured up and it’s about £350 worth) Ive has a little look online and 90% of people in this situation seem to recommend just getting him to take the screed up and do it again What would u guys do? obviously if we go the plywood route he’ll have to stand the cost as it’s his mistake Whats the recommendations gents? Edited July 6, 2023 by MVanDam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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