ᐅ OSB Boards for the Attic "Required," Yet Additional Charges?

Sebastian79 schrieb:
Shear wall – that’s no joke

Thank you. You always learn something new. I just read a bit about it. You’re right.

If this is necessary for the original poster, then in my opinion, they should not have to bear the costs.

Best regards
Thorsten

As mentioned, if the structural engineer requires installation according to the static calculations, the contractor clearly owes the client the proper installation, including everything that comes with it.

They tried the same with our chimney. One email later, it was accepted. They wanted to sell us a roof window because they claimed a cleaning hatch couldn’t be installed in the attic. I simply told them, “You sold me the chimney for price X at the specified location. Make sure the chimney specialist approves it.” That settled the matter—they had to begrudgingly install the window for free.

Hello,

first of all – this is mostly guesswork since I don’t know your contract or building specifications!

tlactar schrieb:

yesterday the construction company called me and said: "we would now carry the OSB boards for the attic floor directly up to the roof structure. The boards cost about €580 for 40m² (430 ft²), and whether you install them yourself or not (980€ / about $1,050) you can decide." ... okay?

Well, yes – that’s close to a thousand euros. In my opinion, the price for the convenience of not lifting a finger yourself is reasonable.

It is true that these boards – like many things in housebuilding when looked at individually – can be found cheaper on the open market. But I believe you have no idea how cumbersome these boards are and how impossible it is to get them into the attic through an installed construction opening.

tlactar schrieb:

Now the question: can it really be true that these boards are absolutely necessary? It seems strange to me... and if they were – shouldn’t they be included in the price? We have repeatedly asked beforehand what additional costs might come up – this was never mentioned. Is this legal? Would they build us a structurally insufficient house without these boards?

Your option to install them yourself or have it done for you confuses me a lot. To my understanding, you should not have this choice if the full-surface boarding was taken into account in the structural calculations. In that case, this item should also have been listed in the offer, either priced separately or marked as included.

Therefore, I rather think that the OSB boarding does not currently have a mandatory load-bearing or stiffening function and thus is not required by the structural engineer. If I’m correct, it’s also unsurprising that no additional costs were mentioned, because a walkway should be provided to you as per the building specifications, right?

Best regards, Bauexperte

Bauexperte schrieb:
Hello,

first of all – this is mostly “guesswork,” as I don’t know your contract/scope of work!

No matter what the contract states, the contractor must comply with the structural engineering report. Legally, they cannot claim that it is the homeowner’s responsibility to ensure the building is structurally sound. This is clearly the general contractor’s responsibility, as they were specifically hired for that purpose.

A different interpretation:
Perhaps the structural engineering takes into account the use (storage) of the attic, and for the general contractor (through their surprise structural calculations just before roof closure), this is now a nice additional source of income.

Payday schrieb:

He cannot legally claim that the client is responsible for ensuring the structural soundness of the house. That is clearly the general contractor’s responsibility, since they were specifically hired for that task.

You seem to be looking for an argument again today.

You are taking sides with a statement that is still unproven. It “could” well be that @Musketier is correct in his assumption, but it could also be that the client simply confused the building permit / planning permission, that I am not wrong, or … or … or.

That’s why it’s precisely _not_ unimportant what is written in the contract and the technical specifications; that the building must be done according to properly calculated structural engineering requirements goes without saying!

Not every disputed statement from a user hides a malicious client.

Regards, Bauexperte