FWIW, in general, "continuous faceframe" construction is an considerable upgrade from a bunch of separate boxes screwed together..

Casey

Yes thank you. And I paid considerably more for custom cabinets to get exactly what I wanted which isn't working out as planned and contracted.

The wrong width bank of drawers and area for my step stool would always bother me and I would want them fixed or credit I could live with so I didn't feel cheated.

They need to fix ALL these things! You need not accept anything. Call countertop people and see if they can stop cutting the countertop until all these problems are resolved.

They installed already. The fabricator was here for install and I discussed all the available options with him, both of which would compromise my storage space, support for sink and appearance of cabinet frame.

I actually prefer stiles on drawers to be in scale to the size of the drawer so I think it might be a mistake in your favor.

A 14" inch drawer is not a very useful size. I would rather have two 18" in the space or a 36". I would let them go but I would expect something "extra" in return for the error.

Anything damaged must be repaired to the same condition as it was before the damage occurred. If they have to replace it ,they eat it. Not negotiable.

The pantry cabinet needs to be redone. There is no good reason they can't replace the front frame without tearing out the whole cabinet. There is already a seam at the corner. It's a separate unit for all intents and purposes. Voiding a stile at the bottom may compromise the integrity of the cabinet so make sure the issue is addressed before doing so. But by the pics and the size of the cab I see no issues in doing so.

The counter top guy is responsible for doing it as ordered. If there was a reason he couldn't he should have told you before he started the job. It's on them to give you a new one to your specifications.

Seems we cross posted so I guess the counter top issue is nil. Still would use it as a bargaining chip with the contractor.

YES. You have some very significant deviations from your design. If you're going to accept them you should be compensated for it. I too just had custom cabinets installed and my cabinetmaker made an error and once I told him, he without question has torn the whole section out and is rebuilding. He would never have expected me to accept the kind of errors you have. He made one other small error (built in spice rack in back of upper cupboard door was supposed to be left of range hood and he put it on the right) but I didn't even mention it because he's been so awesome about everything else.

I'm so sorry. What a lousy situation. I would definitely ask for some kind of discount for the drawers and pantry. The cut down rail on the top drawer would drive me nuts. That should be one thing they can fix at least.

I would have made them rip it out but they were going to proceed with template then remove and install two whole walls of base cabinets. I wasn't about to risk countertop not working out!

the 14" drawer was to be a notched chefs drawer so in actuality, it would be a 24" drawer as I would use the full depth. The bottom one was to store a few cutting boards. I really needed the extra width on the other bank as that was to store spices.

also the top drawers are all only 3" high box with a 5" opening.

I too had custom cabinets made, and there were a few mistakes. I reveived a lazy susan instead of a super susan; changing that required uninstalling the cabinet. Two 3-drawer banks were specified to have a bottom drawer deeper than the middle; they arrived with bottom and middle the same height. As soon as these things were brought to the cabinet guy's attention, and he verified that the cabinets delivered did not match the plans, they were taken care of, quickly and cheerfully. All through the process he kept saying "I just want you to be happy", and he meant it!

I believe you should get whatever you signed off for on the plans. I would not have accepted my cabinets being wrong - even though I felt bad that they had to make changes.

Good luck!

If it were a matter of cabinet boxes being redone, I would in a heartbeat. But the countertops were being templated regardless. What if they didn't install exactly as before? I didn't want to risk it :(

Well after seeing your reasons for the drawers I retract my statement about keeping them. Seriously this contractor owes you. Do you have the paperwork you signed off on? If your specs are in there then insist they fix it. Or fire their butts, take them to court and get someone else to do it right. There are too many errors here. They are sounding less and less like errors then the people you have employed simply ignoring you.

You have a contractor. His job is to see the job goes right. If he messes up or his sub then he has to fix it. Don't allow yourself to be bullied.

I just looked at the Stages Sink. It is an under mount and I could see that the thickness of the counter top would determine where the accessories sit. I think the counter top guy was correct in that. But they should have let you know and made sure it was understood by you when you requested the higher installation.

We are close to finishing. Appliances get delivered Wed.

Get this, I asked the template guy if he wants to see the accessories. He said no. Then I emailed a pic of the accessories being flush to contractor saying this is what I want! And they still screwed up. I did get an apology for that and they are cutting me new boards.

I am sad to hear of your woes. I have the stages 45 sink and while I like the seamless look of the flush cutting board, functionally it should be fine. You can't run water over the cutting surfaces that freely because the space between the cutting boards and counter are a tight fit. Water would run onto the counter. I use the cutting surfaces A LOT and then tip the cutting boards into the sink to rinse.

As a thought -- I don't recommend that you have the accessories cut. Order a custom, thinner, cutting board and get a few colanders.

Depending on how big of a step stool you need I have one of these folding ones and they're great. The shorter height would fit in your cabinet folded (assuming it's high enough to reach what you need). Just thought I'd mention in case you don't have them repair the cabinet. https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/kikkerland-reg-easy-folding-step-stool/3241862?skuId=43858101&mcid=PS_googlepla_nonbrand_homedecor_&adpos=1o1&creative=43742651629&device=c&matchtype=&network=g&product_id=43858101&gclid=CjwKEAiA2OzDBRCdqIyIqYaaqQoSJABeJZdi9qbfIpwWovPJjTR9D6N3YJoowKwXpDN5JExMwNd5oRoCkZjw_wcB

Oh and your kitchen looks beautiful!

As you can see, the drawer fronts are simply screwed onto the boxes. Have replacements made the way you want them and keep both. You can then decide which you like best. Number them.

Thank you all! I might try that step stool. I remeasured and I have about 7" deep, 14" high and 12" wide. I might be able to squeeze it in!

Was hoping for a taller one but I can store that elsewhere.

Dan are you saying replacement fronts with the rails and stiles matching as I requested? I might. I'll talk to them about it

I just showed DH your posts. He is a lot more forgiving than me. Easier going.

His comment: They need to tear it out and do it right. He was quite adamant about it.

The more I read the more I agree. Listen to Sherri. You are trying to make lemonade out of lemons and I can see you are just plain tired of the situation. But when you pay someone 36,000 for something it becomes their responsibility to provide the product service, not yours to accept it and live with it.

How are you going to feel when you look and work in your kitchen in 6 months from now? If these things won't bother you, then make sure they compensate you for the mistakes. I realize you are tired from the reno, but a few more weeks if it will bother you in the long run is a small price to pay.

If they will bother you, then you need to have it ripped out and redone according to what you signed off on. If you didn't sign off on exact plans, then you're probably out of luck.

smm5525 - RATS! I am so sorry to hear this, but love seeing the glimpses of your kitchen. The differences in the rails doesn't stand out to me, but I can understand your frustration at the drawer bank sizing errors. (It must be hard to complain, because everything looks so good, albeit in incorrect dimensions). Do you have something in writing, on the mistakes? Regarding making lemonade from lemons - that is an option too:) More pictures please!!

I think it will bother me only if I don't get a discount or fixed according to my satisfaction. Everything I requested was in the final approved and signed shop drawings which are a part of our contract.

The countertop I feel I should get a credit. The solution was to hack the install and compromise sink support as well as add decorative moulding to hide the raised plywood. That's not a good solution.

The rails I can live with as is but will request a credit. If they would rather redo, I would ask to keep them until the new ones get here. That ball is in their court and is a fairly easy switch

The dents and dings I'll ask them to patch to my satisfaction. I might have them take island to the shop to patch up. I want it to look flawless not patched. If they need to redo it, so be it

"Everything I requested was in the final approved and signed shop drawings which are a part of our contract."

Have you paid in full? If not you are in the drivers seat. Either he compensates you and fixes the easy items to fix and you can live with or he replaces EVERYTHING to the approved drawings. Period. Stop.

From the cab makers point of view ask for 1 drawer front so you can install and see what you want. He can supply that in a day.

KItchen remodels are complex. I accepted a few work arounds that weren't a big deal; fixed a few things myself to my satisfaction; accepted a few minor problems where the fix might have made the problem worse or introduced more problems; and focused on the big ones. Fortunately my contractor/kitchen designer agreed with me on the major issues. A recurring problem we had is that the contractor did not want to read and follow the appliance manufacturer specifications for power, water, and ventilation.

I was able to be at the house for much of the installation work which helped. Sometimes there is a lot of advocacy for customization on this board but if you head down that path and start deviating from a standard installation you really have to be prepared to watch closely. Most of the contractors are getting paid by the job not the hour so they are not incentivized to take their time to make things perfect or to figure out something like how a Stages 45 is different than the sink they installed last week. The workers who are getting paid hourly often have multiple jobs on the same day and are trying to stay on schedule (pretty sure they don't ask for and get overtime).

I never work lump sum. I can't do the job I want to do otherwise. I'll give you a price range with witch you are comfortable and I'll land in there somewhere.

Joseph, we all know you are one-of-a-kind!

Met with owners today. Went so-so. I got accused of being aggressive and confrontational. Unfortunately this was minutes after I found cig butts littered all over my property from a worker I had asked nicely on Friday not to smoke. I have young kids and live in a fire zone prone to Wild Fires. Needless to say I was upset and in tears. The constant cleaning up after workers or making sure hazards are cleared so my kids don't get hurt in my back and front yard is just upsetting. My wishes get ignored. All. The. Time.

They will remove center divide on pantry cabinet no charge.

They will redo top drawers if I decide I want them to after everything is in.

I'm not going to get a credit for anything. They decided on their own that a 14" wide chef's drawer by 24" deep wasn't functional and they redrew that wall of cabinets so many times for me so it's basically my fault. And they had offered to redo them and uninstalling would not have affected the countertop template accuracy. Hmmmm.

At this point I want these guys to finish and get out of my house. I can live with cabinets not perfect. I can't live with these guys in my house and being direspectful of my home and my family anymore.

I'm so sorry. I know the feeling of the little screw ups and it does make you feel like your plan got compromised after all the money you spent. Your kitchen is gorgeous and it will be great in the end.

They pressured me to pick a stucco color to match existing from a 1" square. The stucco lady left trash in my garbage, didn't clean up her mess, and her tools and equipment have been left haphazardly all over my property for weeks now. Including one time leaving a tool bag of shears and sharp tools on my patio chair within reach of my kids for 4 days. Left on Friday, didn't return until Tues.

She wants to charge me $50 per stucco sample. She sent this email to my contractor "Is that the only sample she wants because I'm not gonna come back day after day to put a different sample up." She took no effort to match my existing color and wants to charge me $50 per sample. They had my original stucco color for months, said it can't be color matched and is discontinued... She is upset because I asked them to ask her to clean up her equipment because she isn't scheduled to return until 2 weeks!

I contacted the manufacturer directly today. They will send me 12 x 12 actual samples for free and a sample of the updated formula of my original stucco. Said if none of those worked, they would color match. Needless to say, I told them I'll get my own samples.

Wow!

This has been like this for 3 weeks now since she hasn't returned to finish. It's been raining off and on but there were several days of sun in between.

Ripped out my shrubs and threw them on my property

Knocked out my light

this really sucks. So sorry for you. Hang in there. I remember while building our current house we had one of the workers staying with us. OMG. It worked out well financially but took a toll on our family for sure. It's so amazing what people think is OK.

Everything looks amazing from the posts you shared. It will end.

Progress pics for those that asked

If they disrespect you so much, once the cabinets are done, I'd fire them and find a different stucco person. And I wouldn't pay them what it will cost you to get new bushes, or new lights, etc. How dare they treat you like that. You should have kicked them out of your house and told them to come back when they could be civil to you.

Additionally, you should have taken that witches tools and hid them.

And I would have told the GC that the cigarette guy was not welcome on your property.

And when done, make sure you give them an appropriate yelp review. And FB too.

Owner said she wants to start over and wants me happy. She wants to be able to use my kitchen in her portfolio. She kept reiterating how beautiful it is and how much a difference it made from original. The layout and design was all mine with suggestions from you GWers. They executed it (albeit with some problems) and suggested the corner cabinet pantry. Finishes and material selection is all mine.

But when problems arise, a sign of good customer service is apologizing for mistakes. Instead, I got treated like I was the problem and got excuse after excuse. I should have let them know of problems (I did and got accused of being confrontational), maybe the workers cig butts were there before I asked him to not smoke ( I asked him not to before he even started work for the day as I saw a cig hanging from his mouth as he was unloading the truck), its normal to store equipment on job sites (she basically abandoned them for 3 weeks now), my stucco got discontinued (it didn't), they can't color match (they can). On and on and on.

This is the sand I cleaned up today from stucco lady three weeks ago

More sand mixed with cig butts. My 3 yr old was sitting on this curb earlier and I had no idea this was there