My Deck Collapsed, I Hired The Wrong Contractor
If you're looking for a little bit of advice, you've came
to the right place. If you're looking for some answers to some difficult
questions about hiring the wrong contractor, you’re in the right place.
Let's get started and don't ever let this happen to you again.
The deck that I'm talking about collapsed because the contractor didn't
pour any footings and used the wrong lumber. In areas where he needed 2
x 8 deck joist, he used 2 x 6’s and in areas where the deck needed 12" x
12" x 12" footings, there weren't any.
Let's forget about why in the deck collapsed and focus on how you got
involved with the wrong contractor. If you don't want something like
this to happen to you again, you're going to need to educate yourself
about contractors and deck construction.
If you're planning on building a deck and hiring a contractor to do it,
what would it hurt for you to go down to your local library or bookstore
and pick up a book on deck building. This could give you a basic
understanding of deck construction. In other words for less than $20,
you would now have the ability to ask your contractor why they're doing
something a certain way.
If you don't plan on getting a book, you should get at least three deck
building estimates. Make sure that each one of the contractors tells you
exactly how they are going to construct the deck and which types of
building materials they're going to use.
By purchasing one book on deck building and getting at least three deck
building contractors to look at your project, you could eliminate more
than half of any types of deck construction problems, you will have in
the future.
If you really don't want to hire the wrong contractor you're going to
need to educate yourself on how to hire the right one. You can do this
by using books, talking to your friends and by asking questions the
right questions to contractors.