The job was supposed to be done in three days.
It took six, and I had to force the contractor to show up on the last day to finish.
The contractor threatened harm to my home if I didn't let him leave the job site (I have this on tape).
He knocked the water intake valve (40 years old, buried under the foundation and made of lead) loose and caused a leak.
I actually have much of our interaction taped (which I will upload once I find a free, non-malicious hosting site - any suggestions?) and continued to keep a daily diary.
Keep in mind here that before the job even began I was promised a 20-year transferrable warranty, underwritten by the company that created the product and process he used during the remediation.
They're known as Anabec, Inc. and they sign warranty paperwork without ever inspecting the jobs. They claim they honor all warranty claims, but they don't, and screwed me too. They will come into this story a bit later.
But that's not so much important here, at this juncture, or even to the blog as a whole.
What is important is that the contractor wasn't able to charge to my credit card.
I knew he might have problems, as I had purposely given him the wrong expiration date because I had planned on having the job inspected (and did just that, within 36 hours of the contractor's last visit) and if the basement didn't come back clean, I would refuse to pay until he made it right, based on the warranty.
As it turns out, the contractor, after a month (apparently) of trying/failing to charge to my card he called and lied to me that my bank (then still MBNA) wanted to talk to me about it.
And even though I knew he was lying, I called them. And that is what this blog is really about.
It is about what happened when I called MBNA/Bank of America to help me deal with this moron.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Friday, September 29, 2006
The mold remediation - Day Two
7:30am – I discovered that I had no hot water. I was unsure if I could go downstairs to check the water heater.
9:30am – Crew arrived one hour later than scheduled due to traffic on the local bridge. I was aware of this ahead of time having heard about it on the radio. The demolition was mostly completed, and the removal of debris began.
I know for a fact that with mold you are supposed to put all the debris in bags after removal to avoid cross contamination, but the contractor did not do this. Contractor brought moldy furniture, drywall and other items through the highly exposed "containment area" un-bagged and tossed it into the dumpster that was placed six inches from the side of my house (and in front of a basement window they opened for ventilation), which was also mere feet from my neighbor's house. The images below were taken from my living room window. The brick house belongs to my neighbor, (who happens to be an elderly widow, and prone to illness).
11:30am - I went down into the basement for the first time since they started work. I spoke at length to the contractor about what I wanted to see done as far as clean up, restoration, etc. The contractor advised that he had just been to another home in the area (on Cherry Street) for an estimate and gave my name and number as a reference. He did so without my permission.
11:45am – Crew left for lunch
12:20pm – Crew returned from lunch
1:30pm – I was outside in my garage. Contractor made a big deal about the fact that my garage was messy and why didn't I toss everything in the dumpster since I was paying for it. (Contractor would continue to pry into my personal business for two more days before I got really mad and put a stop to it).
2:30pm – I went back into the basement and hinted that contractor should re-light the water heater pilot since he knocked it out. Contractor acted like he didn't understand. I lit the pilot myself.
3:00pm – Crew left for the day.
9:30am – Crew arrived one hour later than scheduled due to traffic on the local bridge. I was aware of this ahead of time having heard about it on the radio. The demolition was mostly completed, and the removal of debris began.
I know for a fact that with mold you are supposed to put all the debris in bags after removal to avoid cross contamination, but the contractor did not do this. Contractor brought moldy furniture, drywall and other items through the highly exposed "containment area" un-bagged and tossed it into the dumpster that was placed six inches from the side of my house (and in front of a basement window they opened for ventilation), which was also mere feet from my neighbor's house. The images below were taken from my living room window. The brick house belongs to my neighbor, (who happens to be an elderly widow, and prone to illness).
11:30am - I went down into the basement for the first time since they started work. I spoke at length to the contractor about what I wanted to see done as far as clean up, restoration, etc. The contractor advised that he had just been to another home in the area (on Cherry Street) for an estimate and gave my name and number as a reference. He did so without my permission.
11:45am – Crew left for lunch
12:20pm – Crew returned from lunch
1:30pm – I was outside in my garage. Contractor made a big deal about the fact that my garage was messy and why didn't I toss everything in the dumpster since I was paying for it. (Contractor would continue to pry into my personal business for two more days before I got really mad and put a stop to it).
2:30pm – I went back into the basement and hinted that contractor should re-light the water heater pilot since he knocked it out. Contractor acted like he didn't understand. I lit the pilot myself.
3:00pm – Crew left for the day.
The mold remediation - Day One
8:00am – I locked up my two cats in a bedroom as far away from the basement/kitchen area as possible, in expectation of the mold remediator's arrival (henceforth known simply as "contractor" and/or "crew") as promised at 8:30am. Contractor had advised me they wouldn't be affected by the work but I did it anyway.
9:30am – Contractor called to advise they were running late on another job and it would be another hour or so before they could arrive to start work.
1:20pm – Contractor and crew finally arrived - five hours later than scheduled. Demolition in the basement began. Contractor put up a "containment area" of plastic sheeting no thicker than my Dollar Store shower curtain (I have a sample) between the basement door and the door to the outside. A great amount of wall, floor and other space was left unprotected, yet this was the area that all the debris would be taken out of the home through. Although I questioned this, Contractor advised me he knows his business and I have nothing to worry about they would thoroughly clean up after themselves. I had to point out several openings in the containment where they’d forgotten to tape.
1:30pm – Contractor set up a "negative air" machine in my living room. It was loud and blew dust and papers all over the room. It ran all day in the same spot. Contractor advised that it would clean the air in the entire house five times over". My home is a Cape Cod converted into a two-story with many doors, a small hallway and a finished attic. The location it was placed was the living room, which is nowhere near the basement or kitchen where the work was taking place. In the image below you can see the entrance to the attic, and the hallway to its right. To the left (not pictured) is a door to the kitchen.
2:20pm – Contractor's crew left for lunch
2:30pm – I decided to take some pictures of what they'd done so far but didn't go into the basement because of all the heavy demolition and debris.
The "containment area" @ 2:30pm:
3:10pm – Crew returned from lunch
3:40pm – Crew left for day. The basement light was left on though I didn’t notice till it got dark.
9:10pm – Found that the "containment area" of plastic sheeting had fallen down, and the basement door was left ajar, potentially exposing the house to excessive amounts of disturbed/airborne mold spores. You can also see (in the second image) the leftover residue from the duct tape on the ceiling where it pulled away.
The kitchen reeked of mold.
9:15pm – I left a message for the contractor
9:40pm – Received a response from the contractor that they would arrive first thing in the morning to fix the containment and that I had nothing to worry about. basement.
The basement light remained on because I didn't want to go down there myself.
I left the cats locked up and ran for my bedroom upstairs.
It got worse from there.
9:30am – Contractor called to advise they were running late on another job and it would be another hour or so before they could arrive to start work.
1:20pm – Contractor and crew finally arrived - five hours later than scheduled. Demolition in the basement began. Contractor put up a "containment area" of plastic sheeting no thicker than my Dollar Store shower curtain (I have a sample) between the basement door and the door to the outside. A great amount of wall, floor and other space was left unprotected, yet this was the area that all the debris would be taken out of the home through. Although I questioned this, Contractor advised me he knows his business and I have nothing to worry about they would thoroughly clean up after themselves. I had to point out several openings in the containment where they’d forgotten to tape.
1:30pm – Contractor set up a "negative air" machine in my living room. It was loud and blew dust and papers all over the room. It ran all day in the same spot. Contractor advised that it would clean the air in the entire house five times over". My home is a Cape Cod converted into a two-story with many doors, a small hallway and a finished attic. The location it was placed was the living room, which is nowhere near the basement or kitchen where the work was taking place. In the image below you can see the entrance to the attic, and the hallway to its right. To the left (not pictured) is a door to the kitchen.
2:20pm – Contractor's crew left for lunch
2:30pm – I decided to take some pictures of what they'd done so far but didn't go into the basement because of all the heavy demolition and debris.
The "containment area" @ 2:30pm:
3:10pm – Crew returned from lunch
3:40pm – Crew left for day. The basement light was left on though I didn’t notice till it got dark.
9:10pm – Found that the "containment area" of plastic sheeting had fallen down, and the basement door was left ajar, potentially exposing the house to excessive amounts of disturbed/airborne mold spores. You can also see (in the second image) the leftover residue from the duct tape on the ceiling where it pulled away.
The kitchen reeked of mold.
9:15pm – I left a message for the contractor
9:40pm – Received a response from the contractor that they would arrive first thing in the morning to fix the containment and that I had nothing to worry about. basement.
The basement light remained on because I didn't want to go down there myself.
I left the cats locked up and ran for my bedroom upstairs.
It got worse from there.
Here is where the story begins
I bought my house in 1999. The previous owner had done a great job of hiding all the problems.
The big-time issue was the fact that the basement turns into an indoor swimming pool every time it rains for longer than five minutes a week.
So I had a flooding issue. And a mold issue.
I hired a contractor for $6900.00 (tax included) to clean up the mold.
He didn't.
He also caused a ton of damage in the process.
When the contractor showed me the following hole, he kicked it with his work boots till I told him to stop (as pieces of my wall fell to the floor).
Now he's laughing his way to the bank with my money.
Unfortunately I can't tell you his company name in public because their attorney has already threatened to sue me for tortious interference.
The next post(s) detail what happened, each day, as it happened (and the audio that proves it).
The big-time issue was the fact that the basement turns into an indoor swimming pool every time it rains for longer than five minutes a week.
So I had a flooding issue. And a mold issue.
I hired a contractor for $6900.00 (tax included) to clean up the mold.
He didn't.
He also caused a ton of damage in the process.
When the contractor showed me the following hole, he kicked it with his work boots till I told him to stop (as pieces of my wall fell to the floor).
Now he's laughing his way to the bank with my money.
Unfortunately I can't tell you his company name in public because their attorney has already threatened to sue me for tortious interference.
The next post(s) detail what happened, each day, as it happened (and the audio that proves it).
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