🔨RENO HORROR STORY: He used the sink in my TRASH?💀
So... STORYTIME! ☕️ We thought we found a hidden gem for our carpentry. Turns out, we found a nightmare. Here is how our "budget" carpenter almost gave us a stroke. 📉
The Setup 🏠 We only needed small carpentry work (kitchen counter + vanity). Big firms wouldn't take it because they have a minimum project size, so we went with a smaller contractor, Jia **** Carpentry.
✅ Portfolio looked legit good and social media was actively posting.
✅ Initial sketch by "Ah Teck" (the master carpenter) was solid.
❌ MISTAKE: I forgot to check if they were CASE certified. (DED).
The Red Flags 🚩 Everything was fine until payment was made. Then... ghosting. He delayed us for MONTHS saying he was "rushing other projects." Bro, we are paying rent! 💸
The Audacity (The Tea 🫖) This is where it gets crazy. We bought a Grohe sink with a specific diagram for cutting the stone. I explained it to him. I even put the OLD sink in the recycling box outside and told him NOT to use it.
You know what he did? He dug through my TRASH pile, took the old sink, and drilled the stone based on the garbage sink. 💀 When I confronted him, he blamed my Father-in-law. DUDE. I gave you the instructions yesterday! The best thing is that he asked me if I could accept the wrongly drilled hole. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or to cry anymore. We communicated that since it was his mistake, he had to rectify it - he then started to tell me about how much it would cost him. Bro made me do his math for him.
This went on for another few weeks of him refusing to change the sintered stone for us, but agreeing to remove the wrongly drilled stone. Which left us with...... our sink sitting on RAW WOOD. He made us do his math on how much money he lost. He made us call the supplier ourselves. He basically made us the unpaid Project Manager.
The Real MVP 🏆 Shoutout to Tat Jing Construction (the sintered stone guys). Eventually, Tat Jing Construction mentioned to us that they would waive the charge to replace a new slab of sintered stone but they would need Ah Teck to verify this and contact them. He then ghosted us and refused to pick up our calls saying we are costing him money, and that there's no such thing as a free lunch, and it can't be that the sintered stone is free. He even refused to have an in-person meet-up with the sintered stone guys so that they can work out the details with him.
Well, turns out with enough time, things resolve themselves. Because one fine day, our sintered stone appeared, well done and well cut. Shout out to Tat Jing Construction - our sintered stone guys for graciously offering to replace it for free - saving us so much time, effort and money.
Final Verdict 📝
Design: 6/10
Workmanship: 8/10 (Actually decent, ironically)
Communication: -100/10 📉
Overall: 2/10
Final verdict: Unless you want to test the blood vessels in your brain, just spend a little bit extra to get a well reviewed, CASE certified carpenter.
Got any other tips to avoid stepping on landmines? Let me know in the comments so I don't feel alone! 👇
#renovation #hdbrenovation #renonightmare #renovationsg #reviewsg
After going through such a frustrating process with our carpenter, I learned some valuable lessons that I wish I had known earlier. First, always verify that your contractor is CASE certified (or the local equivalent). It’s tempting to go for cheaper or smaller firms for budget reasons, but certification ensures some level of accountability and standards. Secondly, clear communication is key, but don’t just rely on verbal instructions or messages. Write everything down and have agreements in writing regarding materials, designs, and changes. It’s frustrating when your carpenter ignores your requests or goes behind your back, like using your trash sink without permission. I also realized the importance of having reliable suppliers who can back you up, as Tat Jing Construction did by replacing the wrongly drilled sintered stone for free. Building a rapport with such suppliers can help mitigate problems when contractors fail to deliver. Lastly, don’t hesitate to escalate issues. If your contractor ghosts you or refuses to meet, reach out to their supervisory or certification bodies. Sometimes sharing your story on social platforms can also prompt accountability from unreliable service providers. Overall, renovating is stressful enough without these headaches. A little extra research and patience pays off in protecting your investment and sanity.
The risk u take if u take direct contractor. If u take id, anything happens is on them