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I am at the end of a renovation project on my home. A major component of the renovation was opening up a family room and kitchen (a large area - approx. 40 x 20) and adding a ceiling over the family room.
As you can see from the attached photo, the new ceiling that was installed does not look good (looks like waves when there is grazing light). The general contractor has tried over and over to fix it (many coats of primer and paint, then re-mudded the entire ceiling, and then primed and painted again).
I don't know whether the problem results from poor installation of the drywall, poor drywall finishing or an underlying problem with the joists. Note that 5 steel beams were installed for this project and the worst looking areas of the ceiling are close to the steel beams. The ceiling is not level (off as much as an inch in places.)
I suspect the drywall needs to be removed and new drywall reinstalled.
My general contractor is refusing to do any additional work to fix it. I am looking for a drywall contractor that can help fix our ceiling. I don’t expect perfect, but I would like it to look better than it currently does.
Sue the contractor. Based on your handle, it shouldn't be a problem for you to do so. I'm not a drywall expert, but I was told that these problems are created by the furring strips underneath the drywall either being too far apart or not installed at all. Being off SOME is inevitable. Being off AN INCH is unacceptable.
If the problem is with the furring strips, mudding and painting will not solve the problem. The drywall needs to be installed correctly.
I'm curious. What are the social media comments and rankings on your contractor?
Sue the contractor. Based on your handle, it shouldn't be a problem for you to do so. I'm not a drywall expert, but I was told that these problems are created by the furring strips underneath the drywall either being too far apart or not installed at all. Being off SOME is inevitable. Being off AN INCH is unacceptable.
If the problem is with the furring strips, mudding and painting will not solve the problem. The drywall needs to be installed correctly.
I'm curious. What are the social media comments and rankings on your contractor?
For what? Am I looking at a different pic than everyone else? It looks decent to me. There is no way those rafters are 1" off...maybe a few mm at best.
Unfortunately the photo does not convey how bad it is.
Had a drywall comtractor take a look yesterday. He could not believe how bad it is — both the drywall finishing and painting. There is flashing at almost every seam.
And the ceiling is not at all level. The drywall contractor checked with a level at different spots. See attached photo. Almost an inch.
So, apparently the GC did not inform you that your ceiling joists needed to be leveled in order to achieve an acceptable drywall installation.
That being the case, either he/she did not check for level prior to bid or prior to drywall installation, and/or he/she did and hoped you would not notice how poor the end product would be. Either way, IMO, the GC is at fault. Perhaps he/she has run out of the contingency fund that was in the original bid, and having no funds left to rectify the issue, and is hoping you will blink first.
You know what end product will be acceptable to you, and you now have one professional review (with photo documentation) of the current product. Were it me, I would pay for two more peer reviews, then present the findings to the GC asking that he come up with a solution to meet your expectations, and those of his peers, or you will be seeking a legal remedy.
My questions to the GC would be, "how could this situation have been avoided" and "would you accept this product in your own home" How the first question is answered will tell you all you need to know about the integrity of the GC, and should signal your next move.
So, apparently the GC did not inform you that your ceiling joists needed to be leveled in order to achieve an acceptable drywall installation.
That being the case, either he/she did not check for level prior to bid or prior to drywall installation, and/or he/she did and hoped you would not notice how poor the end product would be. Either way, IMO, the GC is at fault. Perhaps he/she has run out of the contingency fund that was in the original bid, and having no funds left to rectify the issue, and is hoping you will blink first.
Regards
Gemstone1
Thanks. FYI, the GC installed 5 steel beams and many of the joists. (i.e., the places where the ceiling is the most off is where the beams and joists were installed).
Unfortunately the photo does not convey how bad it is.
Had a drywall comtractor take a look yesterday. He could not believe how bad it is — both the drywall finishing and painting. There is flashing at almost every seam.
And the ceiling is not at all level. The drywall contractor checked with a level at different spots. See attached photo. Almost an inch.
I highly doubt you can see a non-level ceiling from below. Most home will not be level. What your picture shows is a surface that isn't smoothed perfectly flat...that is why you are seeing the ridges.
Drywall can be installed on curved surfaces and look flat...but it is certainly not level.
I would bet your floors have similar issues if you took a long level to them as well.
I highly doubt you can see a non-level ceiling from below. Most home will not be level. What your picture shows is a surface that isn't smoothed perfectly flat...that is why you are seeing the ridges.
Drywall can be installed on curved surfaces and look flat...but it is certainly not level.
I would bet your floors have similar issues if you took a long level to them as well.
The ceilings are not flat, you can actually see hills and valleys in certain places.
The ceilings are not flat, you can actually see hills and valleys in certain places.
You need a contractor who will take the sheetrock down, and level the framing/beams with sistered framing dropped to a level, as needed to present a level surface for installing sheetrock.
And, then reinstall new sheetrock and finish it properly.
You could also have strapping installed along the bottom of the framing and shimmed to level, but I think I would sister. You should lose less ceiling height and likely be more structurally sound with framing sistered as needed.
Bottom line:
Yeah. It sucks.
And, you seldom get good results from a contractor who cannot deliver or doesn't want to deliver. I think I would move on.
You might consider having an engineer look at the job after the sheetrock is torn down, to give you a report you could beat up the GC with in small claims.
Last edited by MikeJaquish; 02-23-2021 at 03:32 PM..
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