Is this a big deal? New construction and architect folks

[mollybrown]

I live in a  new development, and they are finally starting the house next to me by digging the hole for the basement.  These are city lots, so the new house will be about 12 feet away from mine, with 6 feet of a passthrough on either property.  I came home yesterday, and we no longer have any soil on that side of the house.  The foundation is exposed and our gutters are either bent up haphazardly against the side of the house or hanging in the hole.  I have no idea if the bulldozer screwed up, or if the snow we got last night was the culprit.  My gut is that this is something the builder needs to get out here and deal with right away, but I have no idea if I'm overreacting.  So is this a problem, or NBD?

[april37]

Didn't they put up those plastic fences (or whatever they are made of) before they started digging? That's what they do around here so the neighbor's property doesn't get messed up. Or, at least I'm assuming that's the reason. Did you already have grass planted there?

The builder definetly needs to replace your gutters and fix your dirt/grass. I would require that the gutter issue is fixed ASAP.

[Deleted]

I would say it's a problem. Even if the bulldozer didn't knock down your gutters, they should withstand a snow storm. Call the builder.

[mollybrown]

No, they didn't put anything up.  Fortunately, there was nothing planted on that side of the house.  There will eventually be a fence, but the builder doesn't put that up until the neighbor's house is done.  I figured that was to give the construction equipment a little more room to maneuver, not to give them free reign to make my house part of the hole.  Geez.

[new2this2]

I would want them out ASAP to fix it. That's not okay. It's your property and they have no right to mess with it.

[emjacobs]

They need to fix it ASAP and replace (not "fix") the gutters. You didn't buy a house with mangled gutters and a hole in the side yard. The snow certainly is not the culprit here.

Take pictures and contact the builder. Sometimes the crew will try to "fix" it once the boss had been called as if it never happened.

[mollybrown]

Thanks all! Didn't want to raise hell and look like an idiot if this is par for the course.

[boiler717]

They definitely should have put up an erosion control fence. I would complain and ask for repair.

[bunnymendelbaum]

They need to fix it ASAP. Foundations actually rely on the soil around them for stability.

[dee]

You ALWAYS have to watch what builders / contractors do. There definitely should have been a protective barrier.

When my neighbor's house was being built they did a horrible patch job on their stair rails. I ran into her one day while she was there to see the progress and showed her what mine looked like so she could get them to make it right. They were going to pass that garbage off in a brand new house! But since she caught it, they took it out and replaced it.

Stay on them!

[TBM]

I was telling my H about this post, and he suggested having an inspector look at it to make sure that they didn't damage your foundation.

At the very least, he felt that you should take a lot of photos, and keep copies of all communication with the builders and records of work done.

[mollybrown]

Mar 24, 2013 16:00:03 GMT -5 TBM said:

I was telling my H about this post, and he suggested having an inspector look at it to make sure that they didn't damage your foundation.

At the very least, he felt that you should take a lot of photos, and keep copies of all communication with the builders and records of work done.

So funny you mention this.  H and I agree that we're going to tell the builder they need to pay for an independent inspection.  We realized after looking at the damage some more that the construction workers definitely knew what they did.  They made a half assed attempt to tuck the lines that used to be buried on top of the drains and basement window wells.  Despite that, they didn't bother to notify us or the builder that there was a problem.  Who knows what happened, or what they might try to cover up.

[mollybrown]

I tried to attach some pictures so the whole situation makes more sense.  Once we realized how many pipes/wires/whatever else are exposed, we're even more concerned.  I think we're also going to push them to put in the fence NOW.  There is no reason for the construction equipment to come within 6 feet of our house.

ETA:  Most of what's in the pictures used to be underground.  Now there is just a sheer drop off where there used to be yard.

[emjacobs]

Yeah that's definitely not ok.

[bunnymendelbaum]

How close is the drop off to your foundation?
I'd definitely get an independent inspection.

[mollybrown]

Mar 24, 2013 18:57:59 GMT -5 bunnymendelbaum said:

How close is the drop off to your foundation?
I'd definitely get an independent inspection.

You can see the foundation in some spots, others are still superficially covered with dirt/snow.  Our house basically rises out of the hole.

[tripleshot]

Time to raise some hell. I'd go straight to the highest person at the building company I could get.