New Home Advice
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- Gucci
I'm sure some of you out in QBLand have bought a home before, so I'm going to put this question out there in hopes you've got some advice for me.
My wife and I bought a house that's going to be ready next year. We've decided to put hardwood flooring right off the bat and are going to go to the trouble to rip out the supplied carpet and put in our own stuff – seeing as the flooring from the builder is about $1 million per square foot.
So here's my dilemma, the maple flooring we've fallen in love with doesn't match any of the stain options the builder have and we want the floor to match the oak stairs. We've told them we're willing to give them the proper stain and pay to have them apply it (they charge $2,000), but no... they're being cockhats about it and are refusing to do that. They "have" to seal the stairs.
I'm considering
a) saying fuck it and giving in to their shitty colours.b) bribing the workers on the site and getting them to lay down my own colour.
c) getting someone to come in after they've sealed the floor and strip and stain it – which is probably a hassle.
Just wondering if anyone's had this issue before and how you went about it.
- mikotondria30
c.
Don't put up with their bullshit, they might try it on me next time, and I'll blame you.
Seriously, if your buying and fixing a home, you can't afford to just throw money away - that could be money you invest in other parts of the home.
They'll have made a tidy profit from what they've done already, they're just looking for a sweetener; this is business, money talks, put up with it not looking nice for a while, and save your pennies, youve worked too hard for it.
- version30
making changes on pre planned build houses is hard. saw a buddy purchase items on an addendum and extra square footage. But when he and his wife showed up to the work site, none of the changes purchased were being worked on.
they seemed to rather get caught doing the wrong thing, which in this case, is the standard thing they do on these builds, rip it out then rebuild finally doing it as ordered.
after the on site meeting half the outer exterior wall needed moved out, then the doors windows in it rearranged, and a stair wall removed. yeah it would have been cheaper/faster to just do it as ordered but that's not how the the actual labor works and without communication they never know
your case sounds as similar.
- Ouch. That sounds shite. I've heard stories like your friends.Gucci
- blaw0
Maple is naturally much lighter than oak, a contrast that grows as the wood ages, is exposed to sunlight, etc. (oak will darken at a faster rate). So, even without stain, there are color matching issues.
Oak and maple have a different grain structure and absorb colors much differently. Oak has a more open grain and will absorb stain at a higher rate, resulting in a darker tone.
Maybe I don't have all of the details, but it could be a case of what you are asking for is not a good idea. Hey, this 'client thinking he's always right' bullshit can happen outside of graphic design, too. :)
- Gucci0
Haha. Very true, blaw. I've heard about the differences in wood tone. I can handle a bit of difference in colour, but I'm trying to get it as close as possible. I don't see why they won't accept a stain that I give them to put on.
I just don't like being jerked around when we're spending our life's savings to buy a house.
- formed0
You could just ask them to no finish the stairs and have the maple installed when you do it all.
Why aren't you having them do the flooring? $1 million per sq. ft. seems a tad pricey, lol.
Fyi, we are using 4 different stains, as options, on the townhomes we are developing. The looks are from an almost black to an almost white/natural. This is all on white oak, which was extremely cost effective.
What are you paying for the maple flooring?
The other option is to just accept the difference in colors, as you won't get it using different woods anyway, and make something that is contrasting or complimentary, but not trying to be the same.
- SigDesign0
Step back, listen to some of the advice in this thread and look up alternative ways to solve the situation... there's always another contractor...
- Gucci0
formed, the maple floors we're looking to buy are roughly $4/sq ft.
The builder won't leave the stairs unfinished, hence the troubles. It'd be nice if they did, but there are still no guarantees that the stain colours would match from the different woods anyway.I think I'm going to test my stain on red oak and make my decision based on that. I've never had someone refinish stairs, but I suppose it's better than being left with something I'm unhappy with.