I'm sorry you are going through this. I would make a punch list of all the issues/things to do. In addition, look at the contract to see what detail was spelled out in there. The vanity and countertop look very nice even if not the rectangle you wanted. You probably have more counter space with the oval if that is any concession. I had to have my sink and faucet to give the fabricators before they woul even measure. The contractor should repair or pay for any damage. We've had a couple little things happen and our contractor took responsibility and fixed.

I'm not really sure about that comment either. I don't think I am an overly
"picky" customer. I did not
demand it to be retiled, after he saw it he immediately told me it would be
retiled at his expense. My next door
neighbor who is a contractor told me the tile guy used a grinder to cut all the
tiles rather than a wet saw, "a hack job" is how he described it. However, the retiling was started in June and
still isn't done. They didn't order
enough replacement tile so had to wait for the second order to come in. Blah, blah, blah. I don't even believe it anymore. There is a
big difference between a 30-45 day estimate for completion that is on my
contract and the 114 days it has been so far - that's 80 working days. If
anything I think I have not been "picky" enough.

In any case, my third payment
that was due halfway through the job was paid on 5/23. The job was started 3/23. So if two months was halfway it should be finished by next Friday 7/22
and when I spoke to him I asked if there was any reason it wouldn’t be finished
by then and he said no. How is that
picky?

As far as the vanity, I am
thinking the supplier made an error since the quotation had the correct sink,
but I do think my contractor should have verified it was correct before it was installed.
The vanity and counter was ordered from the same supplier, the vanity comes in
various sizes with different counter configurations and materials. He ordered
everything from this supplier except the tile, mirror and light fixture. I guess I will just have to wait for it to be
replaced because for what I am paying I really don’t want to compromise.

I feel your pain. After dealing with the same reno company for the last 25 years, and giving them a lot of our $$ over that time, our recent bathroom reno will be the last time we ever hire them. The owner and head builder are the same people so how things could have changed for the worse so drastically is beyond me. We had the same problem. We were booked for Nov. for a gut reno on a small/medium size main bathroom. It was never started till Feb. and we lived in a mess for several months longer than was promised. At least they didn't destroy other parts of our house in the process but they still had to come in thru our living room and hallway for extra months.

If you want the rectangular sink and don't feel like settling, then they need to replace it. It isn't being picky at all. They should be giving you a discount for all the hassle you went thru anyways, but we felt the same and never got a dime knocked off our bill. Just grit your teeth and soon it will be all over. Hopefully you can enjoy the new bathroom. I almost couldn't for a while with the hard feelings we had for the builders. And we were patient, spoiled the workers with coffee and cookies every day and in the end they treated our build like a 2nd rate shed or something.

@Joseph Corlett: Just basing my interpretation on your many past posts (as well as those of some other customer bashing people in the business who post here), along with your choice of words. Your comment spoke for itself.

It still reads badly in that context.

You have more issues than the cosmetic one of the sink. Who did the design work here? And why is an unsuitably sized vanity just shoved up against the molding with an impossible to clean gap? Why does the other side have a bit larger but still impossible to clean or paint gap?

I'd want to know about that functional issue. As well as what kind of waterproofing they used. If any. Too many red flags.

@silken1, sorry you went through that. My situation is similar though I have only lived in this house/city for a year, but this firm has done a lot of work on my 110 year old house and I had a lot of confidence in them. I am afraid I will feel the same, resentful every time I go into my new bathroom. I was going to have them do another big project but now I don't think I can commit to using them again for anything.

This project also included taking out an existing closet and building a new walk-in closet. One of the things that is so stressful is that I have lost the use of my master bedroom in this three bedroom house, all my MBR furniture is in the other two bedrooms and all my clothes are on racks or in boxes since there are no closets in this old house, I've had to move everything several times as my children have come back to stay with me and then moved back out etc. Since they had to run new plumbing and move an HVAC vent downstairs I had to move furniture, artwork etc. They still haven't finished the repairs and painting so my downstairs looks like crap too. I've been told since the end of April it will be two or three more weeks. Every time I ask for a project update. I have some other things to do for the house and I can't schedule anything until this is done.

The only saving grace is that other than the original tile disaster and this wrong vanity, it looks really good. The closet is better that I thought it would be and I do think the bathroom will be nice, although not exactly what I had envisioned.

@SophieWheeler, the waterproofing was redone after the bad tile job was torn out. I went over it in detail with the contractor and had my neighbor who is also a contractor take a look and I'm confident it was done correctly. The space it very small so there were some restrictions on the layout, so it isn't ideal but we did the best we could do I think.

I thought the same thing as Sophie when I saw the picture ... painting in the future will be impossible, and water, splashes, spills, etc. will get down into those spaces.

I agree. Because it was a sideways picture, I didn't study it real close. This is not good. And you could get several inches more storage with the correct size vanity.

"As far as the vanity, I am
thinking the supplier made an error since the quotation had the correct sink,
but I do think my contractor should have verified it was correct before it was installed.
The vanity and counter was ordered from the same supplier... He ordered
everything from this supplier"

Is the SKU or model# on the quotation the same as what is on the order? And is that the same that is on the delivery invoice?

If the contractor ordered the vanity, yes, it is his responsibility to confirm that the vanity delivered was the vanity ordered. A restocking fee? A return fee? A refusal to take it back since it has already been installed? That's all on your contractor, it's up to him to work it out with the supplier. His mistake was accepting the wrong product and then installing the incorrect product.

"Can the sink be switched out or do I need a new vanity?"

Yes. You can order a new countertop with the correct sink and have it installed on that same vanity.

FWIW, I don't believe it's code anymore, but it is a recommendation...so probably just for functionality when cleaning...to have a minimum of 4" between the edge of the countertop or vanity and the adjacent wall(s).

Good luck with it all. Tough to see people suffer extensive delays with repeated installation issues such as yours.

It looks great. I would personally would live with the oval sink. What is on your original order? However, as others have pointed out the spaces on the sides may pose a bigger issue with your happiness with the bathroom. I actually have a similar issue in a bathroom and it a PIA to clean!

Hi Lucy!

I'm so sorry your bathroom reno has been such a headache!

It doesn't matter what I would prefer or live with nor what anyone else here would. And it doesn't matter whether an oval sink gives you more or less counter space. What matters is that you want a rectangular sink and that isn't what you got.

The fact that your contractor immediately told you he would re-tile at his expense and they re-did the vapor barrier too tells me he's a decent human being. All the damage done to your home and the continual delays tell me he may not be hiring people who are as caring about their work (or aren't as skilled) as he is.

Of course they should fix or pay to have fixed any and all damage inflicted upon your lovely home. And it should go without saying that if you signed off on a rectangular sink you should have a rectangular sink. You should not have to pay extra for these things.

I'll give one piece of advice based on experiences various friends of mine have gone through in having to live in disarray for much longer than they thought. The ones who waited it out and went through hell for a few more weeks (or monrhs) than anticipated were ultimately glad they did. The ones who settled for less than they had wanted (and paid for) just to have it done already, were later unhappy with that decision.

I agree with Sophie about the gap between vanity and walls. It's the first thing I noticed. It's not subtle. But the design (looks) element isn't the biggest problem. As someone who is currently renovating a house with extensive water damage, you don't want this. Water WILL inevitably get in there and no matter how careful you are and what a super house cleaner you are, you WILL eventually have water damage. The Grand Canyon was once a small river, after all. :-) (These gaps also make great homes for ants, roaches, and various other critters.) Believe me, you really want to address this now. And since you went over it with the contractor and signed off on it, any remediation on this one is on your dime.

I hope you post final reveal pics! Of the closet too! :-)

Sincerely,

Debbie

Thank you to everyone who took the time to comment. It was an error by the supplier so there will be no cost to me or contractor to replace. However, it will take a few weeks to have the original supplier replace. So we are going to have another local fabricator replace the marble counter and sink so that it goes wall to wall to hopefully alleviate some but not all of the cleaning concerns.

On another note, the photo miraculously rotated itself! Love it.

It might cost more but at this stage, are you sure you don't want to return the entire cabinet and order one that fits wall to wall.? It would function and look that much better. Dust (fuzz bunnies and towel lint) will collect in there. You can just remove the baseboards on those two short walls and have a built in look, or get one with legs.

Agree with silken1. I would be looking for a way to build-in that cabinet or replace with another that fits the spot. Even with a countertop that goes wall to wall, how would you repaint the walls underneath in the future?