ᐅ Multiple construction defects—what to do?

Hello,

I hope someone here can help us because I really don’t know what to do anymore.

We are close to completing our house and we just can’t reach an agreement with the contractor.

Brief summary of the construction defects:
1. During the house planning, two door jambs were designed incorrectly, so standard doors cannot be installed; instead, two smaller ones have to be used.
2. Our anthracite gray front door was damaged by one of the trades. The damage was patched with a paint pen. Do I have to accept this even though the damage is still visible?
3. The exterior window reveals are crooked and uneven.
4. The external insulation was installed with staggered joints. It was supposedly corrected afterward, but there is no proof since the plaster was applied before we could verify any corrections.
5. The exterior plaster was applied in too hot conditions. It dried too quickly and is patchy and uneven. (According to our site manager: "If the sun doesn’t shine on it, you don’t even see it anymore.")
6. During plastering, our foil-covered windows were damaged because they were not masked off. Plaster and expanding foam have damaged the rails and glass. There are still residues on the frames that have not been completely removed yet. (The first attempt to clean was done with white spirit by the plasterers.)

My question is, what can we do? Do we have to accept this? Would this already be considered a significant defect affecting the value, and could we withhold payment?

Our site manager now offered to give us money if we clean the windows ourselves. To me, this sounds like he is trying to “buy his way out” to avoid dealing with the damaged windows.

I hope you can help us!

Thank you and best regards

Hello sunshinetiffy,

It is almost impossible to assess the defects or damages to your house through the forum.

Since it seems to involve considerable visible issues, I would recommend hiring a building defects expert to provide a written report detailing the damages and the estimated costs for repair.

Having this in the background makes negotiations significantly easier.

Best regards,

Dirk

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

1. During the house planning, two door reveals were designed incorrectly, so we cannot install standard doors but have to use two smaller ones.

I don’t quite understand; was it not possible to correct this? Who covered the extra cost for the custom-sized interior door?

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

2. Our anthracite gray front door was damaged by a trade worker. The damage was fixed with a touch-up pen, but I can still see the flaw. Do I have to accept this?

It depends on what is stated in your building specifications. Is the scratch in a very visible spot, or is it just that you know where it is, so you keep noticing it?

On the other hand, I wonder why you didn’t cover the front door with painter’s plastic film? I recommend this to all our clients for exactly this reason.

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

3. The exterior window reveals are uneven and crooked.

Is this due to the shell construction or the plastering work?

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

4. The external insulation was installed with cross joints. Allegedly, it was corrected later, but there is no proof because the render was applied before we could inspect the correction.

Without any evidence, it’s too late at this point.

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

5. The exterior render was applied during very hot weather. It dried too quickly and is now blotchy and uneven. (Quote from our site manager: "If the sun doesn’t shine on it, you won’t even notice.")

Was the colored render applied without a primer or leveling coat?

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

6. While applying the render, our foil-covered windows were damaged because they were not masked off. The render and expanding foam have “eaten” into the rails and glass. Residues remain on the frames, which have not been fully removed yet (the first attempt was done with white spirit by the plasterers).

How did the protective foil react to this?

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

My question is, what can we do? Do we have to accept this? Does this already qualify as a significant reduction in value (commercial depreciation), and can we withhold payment?

Commercial depreciation

The question is why you waited so long? What kind of mindset does your site manager have? How does your building partner view the situation? Withholding payment only helps if there are outstanding works to be settled from it; otherwise, it doesn’t even work as compensation for inconvenience. Basically, Dirk is correct—it mainly depends on what is included in your building specifications, contract, and any negotiated amendments.

Based on your answers to my questions above, you should hire an expert (depending on which contract applies: building code or construction contract procedures) and inspect the construction together with the expert and preferably your site manager. Definitely do this before acceptance, then see what you can make of it. I cannot judge your chances here as I would need to review the entire contract documentation.

Best regards, Bauexperte

Thank you very much for your responses!

Unfortunately, the door jambs of the interior doors cannot be fixed at this point because there simply wasn’t enough space left for the door frames. (Where the door frame would be attached, there is only 1cm (0.4 inches) of wall.) So, we first have to add wooden boards to be able to attach the frame of the smaller door.

The scratch on the front door is about 5cm (2 inches) next to the keyhole. It is immediately noticeable when unlocking. We did not cover the door with painter’s plastic because we were always told the door would be replaced after we moved in to prevent such damage. However, now we are told that only the door panel will be replaced, not the entire door.

The exterior window reveals have become uneven and crooked due to the plastering work. We reported this before the plaster was applied and were assured that everything would be corrected and that plaster would only be applied after inspection. Unfortunately, it was only partially repaired.

There are photos showing that the cross joints were glued (we did this). However, there are no photos proving they were properly repaired because the plastering surprised us, and the plasterers did not take new photos.

The plaster is an off-white color with this leveling coat. However, it looks the same as before.

I cannot yet say how the plastic sheeting held up against the plaster and expanding foam, as there is still residue on it and I’m not exactly sure where the solvent was applied. The silver strips have tarnished and become rough. The glass panes look cloudy and matte.

As to why we waited so long, I can only say that I have already fought like crazy here, but it simply falls on deaf ears with the site manager. He dismisses the defects as minor issues. See the quote above. Maybe one could see it that way for a single defect, but when problems accumulate and everything is just patched up in countless spots, I no longer see the house that was promised to me. :-(

Hello,

may I ask who you are building your single-family house with?

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

Unfortunately, the reveals of the interior doors cannot be corrected at that spot because there simply wasn’t enough space left for the door frames. (Where the door frame would be attached, there is only 1 cm (0.4 inches) of wall)

WHO plans something like this?

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

The scratch on the front door is about 5 cm (2 inches) next to the keyhole. So it is immediately noticeable when unlocking. We didn’t cover the door with painter’s film because we were always told the door would be replaced after we moved in. To avoid such damage. Now they say only the door leaf will be replaced, not the entire door.

That is common practice: first a construction door, then the final frame structure with infill. Nevertheless, you are entitled to delivery free of defects.

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

The exterior window reveals became crooked and uneven due to the plastering work. We complained before the plaster was applied, after which we were assured everything would be fixed and the plaster applied only after inspection. Unfortunately, only partial repairs were made.

Sorry, I don’t quite understand this paragraph...

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

The plaster is an off-white color, with this leveling coat. However, it looks like before.

The leveling coat is intended exactly to ensure even drying of the plaster...

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

How the film reacted with the plaster and construction foam, I can’t say yet because some residue is still there and I don’t know exactly where the solvent was used. The silver strips, however, have tarnished and feel rough. And the glass panes appear milky and dull.

That’s unfortunate, but also somewhat good for you. Unfortunate because the glass probably became dull due to the benzoic acid contained in the solvent (every glass has microscopic pores invisible to the eye); good because you have obvious proof. A hexane-isopropanol mixture would have been much better; my partner, an enthusiastic amateur photographer, uses that, so I know this. There are also special cleaning agents; the window installer would have surely named those if asked by the plasterers (why are plasterers cleaning the windows, anyway?).

sunshinetiffy schrieb:

Well, in response to why we waited so long, I can only say that I have really “fought” here like crazy, but it just falls on the deaf ears of the site manager.

If no external expert supervision was engaged during construction, I hope you have documented all related phone calls with the site manager.

Follow Dirk’s advice and commission an independent expert now; once the house is accepted, you will hardly have any chance, except in cases of intentionally concealed defects, to assert your claims. Whether this will be possible at all also depends crucially on your provider’s choice and their public reputation.

Regards, Bauexperte