What a disappointment. I've got 3 suggestions:
1) When you send her something, tell her to acknowledge it BEFORE she makes any changes.

2) Have you asked her WHY she's making unauthorized changes? Sounds like she's got ego issues and wants it to be her plan, not yours, even if you don't like her ideas.

3) It may be a flat fee, but these kinds of changes can delay completion of your plan and cost you wasted time. Do you have a contract spelling out a completion date for her work on preparing a ready-to-build plan that you approve of?

When we hired an architect for our previous house he took our rough plans and greatly improved upon them. I decided to make a relatively minor change and he didn't like what I wanted (a walkway along a lap pool that was in a confined area) and sent me a 5-page fax telling me what he didn't like about my walkway. However, to me it was a safety issue that we have a walkway the full length of the lap pool (the original plan had a walkway only about 1/2 the lengthof the lap pool; the rest of the lap pool was butted up against our greenhouse). I sent him back a fax with 4 words, "I sign your checks." Got the revised plan immediately, no more arguments.

Good luck!

BJ, stop writing 2000 words about why you want what you want. Start instead by using Susi's approach, "I sign your checks" or simply rejecting the plans with the comment, "This is not what I have asked you for."

Save your breath, be short and succinct.

Things are falling through the cracks and there is no bigger crack than design by email.

Meet with the architect and resolve the issues face to face. Have the architect note the resolutions on a set of the plans, then you initial each sheet, and ask the architect to send those plans back to you along with the revised plans.

Design by email is a huge waste of time and money second only to design by phone.

"I sent him back a fax with 4 words, "I sign your checks."

OMG, I absolutely LOVE that!!! Beyond the hilarity, it is EXCELLENT advice!

If you have a standard set of drawings to work with already, then insist that your architect get pre-approval for any changes to those drawings. This way you have a record of what is/is not approved, but then you also don't have to scan the drawings with a fine tooth comb to find out what was changed and/or omitted.

Having said that, nothing beats meeting in person. You can get three times more covered in person for the same amount of time than you can via email and the back-and-forth.

And if you DO need to converse via email, I absolutely agree with the short & succinct version. No more 2000 word explanations. "This does not work because (blank) as I've explained previously. Please revise & resend."

I do recommend indicating WHY it won't work, simply to remind/reinforce to the architect what your needs/requirements are. But that doesn't require a 2000 word dialogue.

Good luck bj! When are you looking at building?

Wow, guys! I think "I sign your checks" is hilarious. Just not my style.

We're still in the early stages of design and don't want to cop an attitude that will linger. But I think we're now close enough to say "this is the one we like, the way it's drawn, so before you change anything please contact us to discuss it."

Our problem is we just can't tell on the "fully dimensioned" drawings what is what. You have to add all the little numbers together in a room to see what the total size is. And I'm far too cautious to accept their drawings at face value. I keep looking at my scaled drawings on grid paper, which I've sent them a copy of. We're not yet at the stage where they're supposed to draw full scale drawings until we officially accept the design and all the elevations.

That's just my own technical ineptitude, but before I accept a schematic I'm gonna have to see it on my big grid paper, 1 inch equals 4 feet scale. That's apparently not architectural practice at the schematic-acceptance stage. So, I don't know how to bridge that gap (which is my own "fault", not theirs). Do I give them a copy of my own final version on my scaled paper and say "We'll accept your schematic design if it exactly corresponds with this?"

I have to tell you we met with our architect in person many times through out the design process. At each meeting, he had all drawings printed from autocad (sp?). If we decided to change anything, he would redline then redo in autocad. By doing it this way it gave us a much better visual. There was no communication via email, only phone and face to face. This is how he operates and it worked well.

If you try face to face, you'll get your point across in the manner you should- tone of voice & facial expressions can say alot.

If there are communication problem, making a nasty comment like "I sign your checks" will only make them worse. All architectural problem solving should be a collaborative process. If that process doesn't work you must find another architect.

If the project is being designed with a CAD system, a print can be made at any scale with full room dimensions at little or no additional effort. The problem is that you are reviewing the drawings in an email attachment file where there can be no scale and the resolution probably makes it difficult to see small text like dimensions. Also, at the schematic stage of design there should be no short dimensions, only overall and room dimensions because the only purpose of this information to to facilitate your review and acceptance.

If the project is being drafted by hand you should be looking for another architect IMHO.

It is so inefficient, unproductive and unprofessional to conduct a preliminary design in this manner that I strongly suspect this person is not really trained as an architect and therefore should not be using that title.

Post the plans here and we can tell you if this person is capable enough to design your house.

All: I should have explained that the email is partly for our convenience. It's a good drive for us to meet with them and DH could never take this much time off work for in-person meetings. I refuse to have a meeting without DH because that cuts him out of the process too much and he's very sensitive about that. I want nothing blamed on me!! Our contract calls for meeting in-person after we accept a conceptual design and they do a full-scale draw for presentation to us.

mightyanvil:
"If the project is being drafted by hand you should be looking for another architect IMHO."

It's all CAD drawings. I'm the one who drafted it by hand because I want can't see what's going on any other way. So I keep using UPS overnight to send my own drawings back with any changes we make.

Why doesn't the architect come to your house for a meeting? The only clients that have ever come to my office happened to live nearby and even that has been rare. My design meetings with clients are typically in the evening and on weekends with only site meetings occurring in the daytime. Designing a house is a difficult complicated process and there are few if any shortcuts. Spending a bit more in the design phase can save a lot of money and pain later.

The bottom line is that the architect is your employee. You are paying this person money to do something for you. If they do not do as you wish you either fire them and find a new employee or don't pay them until they produce the result you want.

mightyanvil: Hadn't really thought about evening/weekend meetings at our home. Part of this is really our own scheduling. DH is on call 24/7 and subject to running out of the building at any time! We don't mind that so much if we're at their office, but if they haul out here 50 miles and then he leaves, I'd hate that.

It still doesn't solve my problem of not being able to tell what's redrawn (or not) on a CAD program. I know that once we get the full scale presentation drawings this will all be taken care of. But Catch-22: I will not approve the schematics to be taken to full scale without seeing them full scale if I have to draw them myself. My problem??

The architect is not your employee unless you are a principal in his/her architectural firm. The architect is your professional consultant (working on a fee for service basis) with whom you should work in a collaborative manner. Treating an architect like an employee would be a very foolish approach to building a house.

You are making too much of the possibility that your husband will be called away. Take a chance. It should make no difference to the architect. You are not a corporation, you're a family. In the end one of you will have to take more responsibility for the house design than the other (or at least that has always been my experience) so guess what; you're it.

I don't understand the difference between "schematics" and "full scale presentation drawings". Any CAD drawing can be printed at any scale at any time. Drawings go from the Preliminary to the Design Development stage simply by adding more information, not by blowing them up. Unless the designer is using a different CAD program for the early design stages (or drawing by hand), there is no reason to deny you a set of drawings at 1/4" = 1'-0'" at any time in the design process.

I really don't know what is meant by "schematics to be taken to full scale". Serious CAD programs draw at "full scale" (in other words real world dimensions or "no scale") and it is only the printouts that are scaled.

mightyanvil: yes, your're right. The CAD schematic drawings could be taken to full scale. But by email they're not. I have had them blown up at Kinko's but just sized to fit whatever convenient paper size, not to the scale I'd like.

That is a very helpful idea: I'm going to ask them to send me a set of 1/4" = 1'0" drawings now. They would not generally do that until the presentation drawings are provided to us after we select a final conceptual design.Further, I'm going to ask that they additionally label each room/space as to its finished size.

mightyanvil is giving you some good advice. "I sign your checks" or "you work for me" or "your my employee" will only breed controversy and may make her walk. And by the way, she could say

"You are right, I do work for you. Please pay my benefits my FICA match, FUTA, SUTA and witholding taxes and make sure I get a W2 at year end."

It really sounds like the architect does not now how to use CAD very well.
If drawings must be emailed, they should be as PDF attachments to the email.
You can then view them and enlarge them to see any details you want.

brickeyee: Like I said, part of the problem is my own technical ignorance plus bad eyesight and a serious inability to visualize in three dimensions. The CAD drawings do come as PDF attachments. And DH enlarges them on screen for me. I can see each detail but I can't see the entire plan at one time enlarged that way. And I simply need it on paper to comprehend what I'm looking at. And to compare it with the existing paper renditions I've drawn to scale myself.

The architect is highly skilled and I have no complaints with her expertise. She does a lot of LEED consulting and commercial design, so she's used to dealing with corporate and institutional clients who are more able to relate to drawings than I am. Therein may lie part of the problem.

I'm talking with her Tuesday to see how to better accommodate my needs. Might be as simple as mightyanvil's idea of just asking for paper drawing in the scale I want it. I'm sure there's no problem with them providing that.

bj: you can always take a list of comments to any meeting and give the architect a copy. Same level of documentation as e-mail.

You can also get those PDFs printed at original size. Not sure if Kinko's would be your best bet. Somewhere like Diazo that does more drawings would be a good choice. We use QRS/Georgia Blue at work.

If your architect is making changes w/o your requesting them, talk about it. Not just the who's paying who part. Get the "why" too. You might find out it makes some sense.

And FWIW, putting in a lot of LEED/Southface details is great, but make sure you team up with a builder who has some experience doing them. We found out the hard way that using a builder who just assumes he can do things the same way he always does, regardless of the drawings, doesn't end well.

Print the drawings out at letter size, and then review the numbers on the screen if you want to see them.
You can even mark up the printout with the dimensions.

An inabliity to read a drawing is your problem, not the architects and it really sounds like this is the problem.

"An inabliity to read a drawing is your problem, not the architects and it really sounds like this is the problem."

This sounds a little harsh, but I'm kinda getting the feeling that that is what is going on. And since you are on the verge of making a HUGE, HUGE investment I'm going to make another kinda harsh comment:

If you can't read a drawing perhaps some of your design preferences are truly bad choices (because it's a lot easier to read a drawing than to design a house). Yes, you should get what you want, but you also want a house that will be attractive and appeal to potential future buyers, right?

Can you post the plans? I have to admist, I'm really curious about the items you and the architect are disagreeing on.

"An inability to read a drawing is your problem, not the architects and it really sounds like this is the problem."
"If you can't read a drawing perhaps some of your design preferences are truly bad choices (because it's a lot easier to read a drawing than to design a house). "
BJ:
I gotta DISAGREE with both of these statements. First, you hired the architect. She or her company are working for you. You can ask for what you want. If you want to be able to read the drawing then ask that they come up with a format that you can use. They are not doing their job if they are not conveying the information to you clearly. No more than if they were speaking a language that you did not understand. If the expert cannot communicate to their audience (i.e. customer) then they are not truly doing their job.
As to not being able to read a drawing relating to designingŅŅ.Nonsense. You now what you want to a greater or lesser degree of detail. An architectÂs job is to translate those desires to instructions (thereÂs that communication aspect again) to EVERYONE involved so the house can be built appropriately, including you. The ability to read a print has no bearing whatsoever on the ability to know how you want to use space, what space you want, what feel you want, etc. Additionally, IF you want to learn how to read prints it is simple to go to a bookstore and get yourself a reference book to learn as much detail as you desire.
AND, the readability after enlargement of PDFÂs or DWGÂs or whatever file format is used is dependant on how it was saved in terms of resolution/detail/layers/etc. Not all things you can see on the screen are necessarily usable when printed.
I think the key to you success is sitting with the Arch. and discussing the whole thing; what you need, what you want and asking why things are being done the way they are.

we used someone like this the first time we tried to design house plan--he took what we wanted to do as criticism of HIS designs...not a very flexible person and not very creative--his solution to problems was to "flip" the design--so he really did not have to do anything but same design just laid a different way---very frustrating because it usually lead to more problems not fewer...

Can your architect use COLORS for the changes--I know when my DH has legal document/contract where there are additions--the additions are done in color type so theya re immediately visible--different people different colors--so you know who did what...
don't know if that would work but agree that something will slip past you and get into the final document which may come back to bite you--and if you signed off on it--then you bite the bullet...not architect or builder...

REally don't know why your architect is doing this w/o you asking for it...unless there are problems w/code issues or because YOUR changes require adaption in roof line or something like that...but does not sound like the case...

thull: thanks for the name of the place to get architectural enlargements. If I need anymore I'll go there.

I'm surprised at all the helpful advice here and experiences it represents. I'm making notes! We'll see how it works out because I just had UPS deliver our scaled drawings and comments responding to their latest design revisions.

I should have explained more fully. The architect has a younger architect who assists her by doing the CAD drawings. I think he gets carried away and starts fixing things that aren't broken. And for the curious of you...I can't post a plan yet, but here's the kind of thing, in boring detail, that has happened:

After a meeting at the building site to try to site the plan on the land, we left thinking we had the plan finalized and they're ready to consult a structural engineer about the foundation. A few days later we get more revision drawings asking for our comment. I'm really annoyed! They don't seem to relate to anything we discussed--didn't discuss any changes.

So, I examine them and find they've shifted several rooms down ONE FOOT, making my linen and broom closets at the end too small. No mention that they did it, or explanation of why. Just the drawing. So, I intuit the answer: they decided a half bath was one foot too narrow, and the toilet front is too close to the wall.

I pull my building code and NKBA guidelines, wanting to see if they're right, or be able to defend moving it back if they're not. Code requires a 21" clearance there. NKBA recommends 30". I pull my toilet selection (which they don't have yet.) We'll have 31 1/2" clear. So today I requested their revision be revised to the way it was before!

The real annoyance is time is money for us because we own the land, are paying taxes, etc. They're being paid by the job, not the hour. Still, they don't get the next big payment from us till they get our approval on the schematics, so you'd think they'd want to be pressing onward rather than spending time drawing stuff without ASKING US first why we designed the bathroom that size!

My conclusion is that they prefer designing floorplans and elevations to the later--boring, boring tasks of doing exacting construction drawings and specifications. I would too if I were an architect.

So, we'll see shortly how they respond to our rather clear message of "here's what we want and why and please call us if there's a problem with any of this because we're ready to accept this design."

bj_inatlanta. Sounds frustrating. Got a question where did you get the building code and NKBA guidelines from? I've been looking for these to try to come up with something pre-architect.

Another question is did you figure in the plumbing rough-in when saying you have 31.5" clear or just the toilet dimensions?

Equating the understanding of plan drawings with the ability to understand the graphic lines and symbols on it misses the real issue: many people simply can't visualize a 3D space from a 2D plan drawing no matter how hard they try. I would estimate that this is true for at least 10% of my clients. For them it is necessary for me to provide 3D CAD drawings that they can view and rotate on their own computer. Of course, the design cost is greater.

I have to confess I have been designing houses for 35 years and I had never heard of NKBA guidelines and had yet to notice that the IRC had any fixture clearance requirements for residential bathrooms. What you need to understand about such "consensus standards" is that they are compiled by committees and are generally MINIMUM standards to prevent people from making spaces that are difficult to use. To limit a designer to such standards would be insulting and foolish. If a space is unacceptable to the owner after it is built, pointing to trade guidelines and building codes is not going to make it OK. You hired the architect for his judgment not just as a draftsman.

A 3" shorter dimension from the toilet bowl front to the back wall doesn't determine where a person sits relative to other objects in the bathroom, it just makes it harder for an adult male to use it comfortably. Minimum dimensions for a bathroom should always be taken from the backwall, not the toilet rim. What if someone (mercifully) substitutes a full sized adult toilet later? I use 54" as a minimum if the space is comfortable, in other words it is wide enough, relatively open, and there is no door imposing on the space. Otherwise I use 60". I learned this from measuring bathrooms wherever I go. If I like something, I measure it although I can usually guess withing an inch.

The best design reference for architectural design is Architectural Graphic Standards which has been constantly updated for 70 years. It was taken over by the AIA in 1966 (that's the edition I still use). So maybe I don't need the dimensions of a VW Microbus anymore but the stair chart will never change and the masonry sections are priceless. It is about 700 very large pages and is very expensive these days especially on CD ROM ($375). It offers minimum and liberal dimensions for bathroom fixture clearances to different kinds of objects instead of simpleminded rules.

The key word to remember in this process is "collaboration" if you want to create the best house for your needs.

We had similar circumstances. There were/are some thing she just wouldn't change because she wanted them her way. Have you signed a contract with her? Is her fee so low that she's worth the aggrevation? If not I'd consider fireing her now. Our architect did everything by pencile and straight edge. Didn't know it then but that's a bad sign for things to come. Makes for a slow process and features that don't always fit. The architect is so important in your process that they have to be someone you trust and can work with. Tom

I agree with mightyanvil about the average person's visualization skills or lack thereof. DW used to do some engineering design for a living, but when we re-did our house, I found she had a hard time visualizing when things didn't leave enough space around them to walk, etc.

Using an architect was the smartest money we spent. But ours was great with the space but not so great with the detailing. She preferred to leave that up to the contractor.

bj- If you don't mind, shoot me an e-mail. I'm curious on the off chance we used the same architect.

Maybe this is a case of "too many cooks spoil the stew". We had some troubles keeping changes on the plans. We'd change a window height, but that change would disappear on subsequent plans where we had changed something else. If too many people are fooling around with the plans, they may be working on ideas for some portion that then gets included in the CAD program by mistake.

FWIW, our lead carpenter had to re-figure how to connect our garage wing to the house. It's at a 120-degree angle. The architect's plans didn't mesh with reality as they were framing the attic. He said that in his experience seldom did a plan hold true throughout the entire build -- he was always having to adjust *something*.

chisue: I did an interesting post on another forum. Don't think the rules here allow us to direct people away from here, but it's a forum for professional builders. I asked what kind of mistakes they had found that architects made. You wouldn't believe (or maybe you would) the range of responses.

So, although I'm using a la-de-dah internationally known architect, everyone makes mistakes and I'm now watching like a hawk and will be throughout the build. What the pro builders said: architects design buildings on paper (ie, computer); we build them in the real world.

lyfia: I have NKBA guidelines in several books I own on kitchen and bath planning; they're easy enough to find. Did you mean how did I find out which local building code governs here? If so, researching the state and city government building regulations (on their websites in our area) will give you the names of the applicable codes. If you meant where you can actually got your hands on it--several possibilities: through our local public library we can do a online search(here on our home computer) of the contents of any publication that is available that way. That's not how we did it and I don't know if you have that kind of access or if the codes are available online that way. We bought the code because a few hundred dollars in the context of what we're all spending here is small potatoes. Oh-- yes, I always get the technical specs and installation diagrams/instructions when we select a fixture or appliance, so I can make sure I'm considering everything.

loves2read: Great idea about the colors! DH does that too and I don't know why he didn't mention it. Yesterday I emailed the architect that although we are ready to sign off on the design (after she restores it to the plan I thought we were ready to go with) we will need to have it in a 1" =4' scale on paper so we can compare their presentation with our own drawing and make sure everything matches. I am overly cautious and have no intention of being committed to a plan with even a closet 2" smaller than I want.

thull: I just sent you an email. Our architect is very experienced with LEED. Her firm also provides commercial engineering services and LEED consulting services. They've done the design work that won silver LEED status for a number of buildings, one for a local university. So, that's the one thing I'm not worried about.

Everyone: I'm amazed at the helpful comments here. I will sum up what I think has been my problem: I don't have a problem with my architect; she's highly qualified and very responsive. I have a problem reading a CAD drawing and readily comparing it to the old-fashioned scaled paper plans that are easier for me to understand. It's the same frustration DH and I both have had using a software house-design package: it puts all these architectural dimensions on a room and you have to add up maybe 4 or 5 tiny numbers to find out one simple thing--how wide is this room? Or how far is this window from the corner? Things that we have to know before we'll sign off on a plan.

There's the more general problem for me of having a brain that (no surprise here, guys) understands/functions best verbally. And trying to deal in a spatial/mathematical world. I said that from the beginning.

And that is where my most recent discomfort came from. The assisting architect sent me a revised plan and mentioned only one change. But when I examined the plan I saw several others. I'm not paranoid enough to think he was trying to sneak them in on me--why would he? I think he simply was operating in his spatially-oriented brain-preference. He had drawn them on paper. Didn't think of describing or mentioning each one in words as well. And wasn't thinking of us as the atypical client we are, who has researched all the technical specs. on a fixture and measured 6 different comparable spaces before we ever said we want a bathroom 56" wide. He's used to people who say "just design me a nice bath."

That's my take on all this and thanks for all your input. Let me add a couple of things for all of you who may end up in a legal dispute over something before your build is complete (or afterwards). DH and I run a consulting company that helps individuals, corporations, and attorneys in a variety of ways: preparing their documentation for court; helping attorneys with e-discovery (extracting data from all sorts of electronic devices from computers to cell phones); setting up and maintaining routine records so they will be in the best position to defend themselves in legal disputes; etc. And so, out of that and earlier professional experience, I will say this: document everything. Email is a superior method of documentation than taking handwritten documents into a meeting. Everytime you send an email, request a return receipt so you have a record that it was read. If your request is ignored, send another email saying that you don't know if they got it. Organize your email files and save all messages to the appropriate file. Backup your computer weekly, as most attorney firms do, and store the backup "off site"--in a bank safe deposit box or at least at a relative's house, so you have a backup copy in case your house burns down.

If you fax something and your home computer does not time and date stamp it (which ours does not and most do not), take the fax to a local store where their fax does that and before they fax it for you, ask if their time setting on their fax is correctly set. Sometimes they will be off. In short, do the work to document every step as if you're preparing to submit it in court. And then, if a legal dispute arises, you will most likely be able to stay out of court (saving a LOT of attorney's fees) once the other side finds out just how superior your records are.

Is this overkill? Maybe. Time will tell. Is it a lot of work? Oh, yeah (like you needed more). Does it have any unintended but desirable consequences? Yes, it often has a positive effect on the course of business by putting everyone on notice that you simply handle your personal business in a professional way. If they had planned to take advantage of you they will often rethink that. If they're honest, they relax in the knowledge that if they need a copy of something later YOU will have it and can provide it for them. Happy building in the era of litigation!!

Thanks bj_inatlanta, I meant where I could find them so your post answered that. I had hoped for an online one, but I guess I'll have to find it in book form.

We will be building in an area that doesn't enforce codes at least not from anything I've found. They do enforce architectural features, but I'd like to at least write in codes that make sense and are there for safety into building contract to make sure we have some code control even though there isn't an official one.

I want to be able to point at it if we encounter any problems since we will be the ones to have to inspect this what they didn't do. I know most of the general measurement codes and I'm not too concerned about those as we plan to exceed all of them as I hate cramped areas, it is the more safety ones I'm concerned with to not miss one or ones we may not be aware of. We will be building 1.5 hrs away from where we currently live so I'm trying to do a lot of research and have everything nailed down ahead of time to minimize potential problems (I know stuff will still come up).

lyfia: good thinking. I don't envy you the distance and trying to do your own "inspections." Best of luck!

lyfia: did you try www.iccsafe.org's store. Looks like there are some things available there by online subscription; I didn't read through it all.

"What the pro builders said: architects design buildings on paper (ie, computer); we build them in the real world."

You would think from your comment that the hands-on aspect of building in the real world would give a builder enough knowledge to avoid mistakes. I have not found this to be true. I find that because many builders have only learned on-the-job from other builders who learned the same way, bad construction practices can be perpetuated for decades.

In my experience, where most builders have the most trouble is in lateral structural bracing, moisture control, and structural connections. Sixty to one hundred years ago, when most of the basic residential construction principles were established, materials were cheap, homes were over structured, and moisture control was simple: just kept he water running downward.

Today's construction materials are fabricated to minimize material and labor costs and provide a much higher level of moisture and thermal performance. Were does a builder go to learn about these materials and how to put them together? Unfortunately, most information is available only from the manufacturers who often issue it in the form of thinly disguised advertising brochures. Only a hand full of highly experienced consulting engineers actually have a good handle on how these materials are best assembled and some of them are willing to share on the internet. Some builders pay attention to this kind information but I find that most do not.

Today, to suggest that a builder is better positioned to understand the principles of good construction is simply not true. The simple fact of the matter is that few builders, architects, or manufacturers have the level of knowledge they really need to be effective.

It is such a mess that I have begun to look forward to retirement so I don't have to deal with it anymore.

mightyanvil: I know what you mean; sorry you've reached that point of burnout. Given that, probably the last thing you'd want to do is see architects doing project delivery. But I'm reading more and more about it. True design build rather than the stuff builders promote-which is closer to "we design it and build it and you get to pick the finishes."

I think that classical Master Builder idea is still the best. Although today it is so complex you'd have to really love being an administrator. If you have any interest in the concept, if not the practice, take a look at the AIA book "The Architect's Guide to Design-Build Services" edited by Quatman & Dhar. Interesting idea.

When we hired our architect I asked her if she does design-build. She said no, but that a number of people have made that same inquiry. You may be retiring just in time, or you may have missed the solution to the problem.

In a design-build contract there is no one representing the owner unless they hire a manager. Thanks for the info. but I have always represented owners and I can't go over to the dark side.

bj_inatlanta - thanks for that link. I will check it out when I get a chance.

bj_inatlanta I think I figured out why your "architect" keeps messing up! She gets too exhausted reading your emails and just tunes out. I think you make a lot of decent points in all of your postings, but I'm a speed reader and many of your posts still take FOREVER to read. A little brevity could be more powerful than a 2000 word reply...

FYI...that was meant to be tongue-in-cheek rather than rude. I just re-read it, and I think it might have come across the wrong way! sorry :)

dixiedoodle: you're absolutely correct! (that's the shortest I can get!)

Is the architect sending difficult to read plans because of a copyright issue? Will you get clearer plans after writing a bigger check? Because you sound so detail-oriented - I can't imagine why you are having trouble reading the plans unless they are specifically DESIGNED to obscure details.

So let me ask a question on a slightly different topic...

what happens if an architect agrees to do some detail work and gives both a time line both in work hrs and days to complete but misses his own deadlines by over 400% and we are forced to move forward with the project due to our own deadline... The architect shows up a few days too late with the details which cause significant cost that would not have been incurred if he had done his work on time or even take twice as much time from his own schedule to do the work... let me also add he was well ware that we wanted his details and he knew exactly what stage the hose was at so he can not plead ignorance...

whats your guys take on this one?

Are you pleading both sides of the case? Hang him! Next case.