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If they are at the foundation/joist juncture I'd be less concerned, but only if they were steel shims, not wood.
If he's shimming between the joist and underlayment I'd be freaking out. No way would I accept that. Make him rebuild the joist system so it's level, as it should be. I can walk my entire basement and not see a single shim, except under a laminated beam in a foundation pocket, and they are steel.
Out of curiosity, are the steel posts that support the beams in the basement anchored to the concrete floor? If not, they should be. Another shortcut that is common.
Before things go too far you might want to contact a Certified Home Inspector in your area. They'll walk the entire house and note any problems. This gives you an expert opinion to back up any changes you want your contractor to make. Don't let the contractor tell you he'll have to charge for a "change order" for these items. If he did it right the first time he wouldn't be fixing it (not "changing" it).
A Certified Home Inspector sounds even better considering this is your first time building. He will also be a help if you run into resistance and end up in court. You need someone with experience on your team.
And if the CHI doesn't find anything you just acquired peace of mind.
Get problems caught and fixed now because they will cost more later....
Do you have a lawyer?
What old_cold said is good advice. Follow it for all posts, including mine.
In my new hosue which is being built in cleveland, i noticed that the builder has used some shims ( wood) to level first floor.. In the area next to the garage he has used two shims (around 1" space) to level the area next to the outside door.
He has used shims in the area next to the morning room too to raise the whole morning room from the back side by around 1/2 inch to 1 inch by using a set of wooden shims..
How common is the practice of using shims for such leveling especially whole floors ?? Wont the shims compress or break over time ?? They have covered it with caulk to prevent inflitration..
Is your first floor your basement, a poured cement floor?
I have a walkout basement and as such one set of shims on the walkout side - basically for lifting the morning room side.. The other shimming is on the side of the garage which looks bigger ..
The support beams in the basement does have a concrete floor - so that part they are doing good..
I am attaching a picture of the area in which shims have been added... Basically now the whole house has been sealed, plumbing and electric also has been done.. they are planning to do insulation in some time... Can the framers come back and fix these issues the right way ...
Please do have a look at this pic and let me know, if it looks really bad..
Your framer used precut studs instead of getting 8' and cutting each stud to the correct height. This is an unacceptable building pratice. If they wanted to keep the precuts,all they had to do was add another plate to the top or bottom. Shims are only temperary. eventually the bottom plate will crush down around these shims thus allowing the whole wall to drop that inch which will cause problems with your doors upstairs. Is this job being inspected by an inspection agency. They won't pass this application if they notice it. I would take pictures of everything to cover yourself.
If your builder has any ethics, he will be sure the framer comes back and fixes this.
The main cause of this is that the floor is poured too low in spots, however its the framers responsability to make it right.
What???? Unacceptable building practice to use precuts??? No- what's unacceptable is framing over an uneven floor and using shims- there's nothing wrong with using precut studs.
I have a walkout basement and as such one set of shims on the walkout side - basically for lifting the morning room side.. The other shimming is on the side of the garage which looks bigger ..
The support beams in the basement does have a concrete floor - so that part they are doing good..
I am attaching a picture of the area in which shims have been added... Basically now the whole house has been sealed, plumbing and electric also has been done.. they are planning to do insulation in some time... Can the framers come back and fix these issues the right way ...
Please do have a look at this pic and let me know, if it looks really bad..
I'd get the building inspector back out to look at that, assuming it passed inspection already (which I can't believe that it has). Those shims need to be removed, and either a solid piece of lumber installed that's cut to accept the variation between the top plate and the floor framing, or the lower level wall needs to be shimmed up and the void packed solid with non-shrink grout.
This is happening because the slab and/or foundation walls aren't level and flat, and the first floor walls are following those imperfections. The framer's solution to the problem is completely unacceptable.
I don't mean precuts are unacceptable. They just shouldn't have been used in this application. A precut stud measures 92 5/8". This particular wall calls for studs to be 93 5/8. Thats why a good framer would have used 8'studs cut to size and you wouldn't have this problem. Sorry if I confused anyone.
Thanks for the wonderful responses... I have just now mailed the city building inspector with this same picture ( his prefered way to get contacted)..
Sorry for my ignorance, what is a good non-shrink grout to fill the gap .. Will this fix stand the test of time .. Do i need steel shims to be placed in ??
Since most of the stuff for the house is already done.. can they get it fixed teh right way ??
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