Home DIY

he's never fitted a traditional floor before.

Ffs.
Did he try and explain why it allegedly wasn’t possible? I was quite curious as to how he was gonna spin that one.

I definitely think there’s reasonable grounds to get some cash back, and I’d probably prefer that to having him try and remedy his work. You seem like you’re more than capable of sorting bits.

Yeah the gap at the doors is apparently for sticking your fingers in to push the board tongue into the adjacent groove...

Not sure why he couldn't just push it from the circa 700mm wide gap inside the doorway. By which I mean obviously he could.

I would 100% look for a route of getting money back rather than letting him have another go - then you can take your time and finish it to a standard you are happy with. He may prefer to go down that route as he can work other jobs which will likely cover the loss of a partial refund vs his time making good for £0 (if that makes sense)

In my experience of getting people to come back and make good has never ended well and things have still been patchy at best.

I guess options are:

Let him come back and make good. Not sure he's got the skills to do it right.
Write lawyer-y letter and try to extract refund
Third option that I can't currently think of due to frustration?

He won't make it much better than it is. This is almost certainly a case of him trying to make a big job as small as possible and hoping to get lucky with the result / your expectations. One thing is for sure: that's the best he's capable of doing. If he was capable of better, he would have done it already and warned you of the extent of the job before hand.

You might do well by getting another contractor in to look at it and see what he quotes / details to fix it. Then I'd revisit with the first guy and tell him what you've learned. Sometimes second opinions are powerful weapons.

I would definitely not let him perform further work. before you know it you'll have ruined the door trim and baseboards.

So, time to write A Letter then... @Brommers do you have any words of wisdom?

Ha, or just use a flooring pull bar or a flooring clamp like you’re supposed to. Or use a pry bar, etc etc.

It's not a job I've done but there's a type of plaster 'coving adhesive' which I've seen used on the plaster coving. Not even sure how I've escaped the task.

I'm not sure what letter you're going to write.

I would start with a second opinion from a well regarded professional. They may guide you on repairs, cost and course of action with the first fellow.

maybe then you can write a letter.

Agree. I've got someone lined up who has some experience giving second opinions in disputes. I was thinking "dear contractor, we don't feel you're competent to rectify this. See attached letter of support from [expert]. Pleas return [value] and we will be on our way" (obviously more verbose)

Interior painting....

We have 1 concrete wall and 3 plastered walls in a bedroom.

Do we need to lining paper first or as the plaster is smooth can we just paint over them all with a couple of coats of emulsion

Lining paper is rarely considered a requirement in the UK. If its fresh plaster people usually water the paint down for a first 'mist' coat. Then you will see if your fresh plaster is really smooth (likely it won't be). Run some sandpaper over it (180 grit or finer) and maybe fill any deeper voids then 2 coats of emulsion at least depending on your choice of paint manufacturer and colour.

Paint raw plaster with watered down emulsion as a “mist coat” first - it’ll much improve the paint adhesion and stop it flaking off.

For some reason I only read the first paragraph of your reply earlier.

Wise words. Thank you. One of the difficulties is actually getting people to quote for remedials - everyone seems super busy. I've had one quote but it didn't include for the repairs by the doors, even though I scheduled out the repair locations with typical photos and estimated areas/ numbers of locations. I chased up for clarification but nothing yet. However late this afternoon another contact let me know that he does expert witness stuff for this kind of thing (there's another phrase he used, which escapes me just now) so I'll be back in touch with him tomorrow to see if I can get him to survey and write some recommendations/appraisal.

This is pretty helpful
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/getting-home-improvements-done/problem-with-home-improvements/

The response I got was odd, as didn’t seem to suggest they were going to remedy it and that he was expecting it to be a different colour as it was done later.
I haven’t paid for it yet and given we supplied the tiles puts me in quite a strong position.
Although it now feels like it might not ever be right without starting over.

When we had a different but similar issue, we showed the tradesperson the standard/finish we expected from other similar jobs and let them decide to either a) spend the time to fix the issues to meet that standard but if they couldn't, told them we'd still not be paying the full amount for sub-standard work or b) refund a reasonable amount to enable us to pay someone else to do the fixing.

No option is comfortable, or perhaps fair in the tradespersons eyes. I'm acutely aware it's tough being a tradesperson and i'd like to think very few of them set out to take the piss (although your's sounds like he has). Needless to say, for us, the tradesperson was happier to walk-away without the final installment.

if you've paid up already I'd imagine it'd make life way harder.

I found other tradespeople were happy to send pictures of their work as an example of a 'good' job.

My bathroom floor is looking very tired, old boards with historic woodworm, but more worryingly this towel radiator has just been mortared in to the old hearth.

Realistically the proper solution here is to lift the boards, remove the hearth, and re-lay shower tray isn't it? Also is it sensible to have the shower tray on a plinth for pipe drop & service access?

Edit: oops meant to put this in the OyoH thread as I'll probably get someone in, there might be some DIY if it's simple enough.

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I'd get a quote for the remedial work. Then write to the bodge artiste saying:

1. The contract for the works contained an implied term that the work would be carried out to a reasonable standard.
   
2. The work done failed to meet that standard and require remedial works.
   
3. The remedial works will cost £x
   
4. Therefore you require a refund of £x in order to meet the costs of carrying out those works.
   
   

If you really want to go formal on his arse, state that the letter is a letter of claim pursuant to paragraph 6 of the CPR Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and that you expect a response within 14 days.

#Justiceboner.

Kitchen cabinet hinges, for the middle of one of these bifold doors - cant find what I am looking for. It's not the ones I got from B&Q the other day. That much I know.

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What's the best way to keep an inventive 4 year old out of a room? There's no lock on the door currently. I thought about sliding a bolt across but honestly think he'd kick it in if there was any give or wiggle. Chicken wire stapled to the door with a 2000V battery hooked up?

Round door knob? I can’t recall when our current 5 year old mastered them.

How do people get neat finishes when cutting MFC? Making some shelves yesterday and getting the edges smooth and square without chipping the melamine seemed a real ballache (enough that I didn't actually manage it).

To be fair I struggle with them.