I'm up to my eyeballs in a fence frenzy. We have to repaint our fence by the end of the month and I'm sure I know why...
The delightful lawn care company insists on weed whacking the bottom of our fence where there is absolutely no grass near it. (The stuff above is moss)
Now I know the 2x4 are algae covered so that's a big contributor too but I'm beyond po'd that these d-bags insist on purposely hitting the fence once a week with their whacker. I'm about 2 seconds from telling them what they can whack.
So we rented a power washer and the Mr blew off paint, chunks of the fence, small colonies of insects, my hostas and anything else in his way.
Then we got to sand it down to get it ready for priming which is a joy.
There is nothing I enjoy more than sanding in sweltering heat.
So I crisped in the sun for 2 hours yesterday priming the slats. (He gets to do the insides and crevices) I got 2 coats on most of it until my foot arches cramped so bad, I was forced back inside. Trying to straddle what's left of your hostas whilst not damaging newly planted lilacs proved to be too much for the dogs to bear.
We had our fence post replaced (finally!) and I was less than pleased the dude put back up a damaged slat despite having slats in his truck. He's barely old enough to drink and I so didn't want him to prove me right but there you have it. So now we have a gaping hole in one slat where the old gate hardware used to be and the damaged slat he put back up before he ran without taking our money. When the boss had to come back, the Mr said to replace the slats or knock $20 off since we'll now have an extra project we didn't have when they came. $20 off it is. Why can't anything just go as it's supposed to go? *checks forehead to see if "poke the bear" is tattooed there*
This morning I'll go out and put the second coat of primer on the last few slats and the Mr will start his coats on the crappy parts. Hopefully, we'll get a full day of drying and we'll have to cover it up because I think we're getting rain. Grrrr.
Ever had a run-in with a contractor that left you with an extra project due to their incompetence?
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Yep. After had my bathroom remodeled I had to bring in an electrician to wire and mount my lighting fixture and a plumber to fix my shower switch. They tiled it in!
ReplyDeleteMy jaw literally dropped on that one. Wow. I hope you billed them for it!
DeleteMaybe I missed it, why do you have a deadline to get your fence painted? It looks like you are painting the side that faces your yard, do you have to do the other side too? Do you have an association or did your neighbors complain?
ReplyDeleteWe have an association and if you enclose your deck, you're responsible for it. Honestly, I expected to get the notice last year so I was ready for it. Still doesn't make it any fun. But I see quite a few other fences that look worse than ours so they'd better have gotten letters too!
DeleteI have, but mostly it has been work related. I deal with large industrial construction projects and we have this wonderful thing called holdback, where the owner keeps in trust 10% of all invoices for a minimum of 90 days after a project is complete to ensure that work is completed, deficiencies are corrected, and all subcontractors get paid.
ReplyDeleteI have to say you both did a much better job pressure washing your fence than I did my steps. I'm also not planning on priming or sanding before I paint. I'll just make sure that I clean off any remaining debris on the surface before painting. The wood is too worn and it takes a regular beating to make a difference.
Ooh, how I would love to have that! Then the contractor has incentive to do it right!
DeleteI thought so too (about the wood being too worn) but our neighbor has a fence the same age that he primed before he painted and NOTHING came off of his (that faces our side). So while priming is a huge pain in the butt, I'd seriously consider doing it because you can easily double the amount of paint time you'll get out of your coat. (And not the kind that comes in your paint, its not the same.) Trust me, I didn't want to do it either but might wanna consider it if you're staying there a while! :-)
I had an issue with a lawn service one time (dude totally talked the hubs in to a bunch of crap while I wasn't home and then disappeared). I called the company and said never to step foot on my property again or send any advertising my way. It's been five years and they have not. The only other issue was with a roofing company. We got screwed there, and while they did excellent work replacing the roof, there were some sketchy things that went on and I wouldn't use them again. I just dread dealing with things like this.
ReplyDeleteI did not get a chance to comment this morning because we were painting of course! But I have to say that if anyone out there ever needs to power wash paint off, just MAKE SURE you cover EVERYTHING with drop cloths first (including your neighbors stuff) or you will end up on your knees picking up little bits of old paint by hand (like me).
ReplyDeleteAlso time being on my side now, we are able to say we got the painting DONE! Woo hoo! On to the next project...