Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations contractor liable

my half acre pond was built in july this past summer. about 2 months after finished we had a small slip on the back side of dam the top of the dam developed a crack in the top of the dam the contractor said that maybe he had the dam to steep which may have caused the slide.he brought the backhoe up and pulled the dirt back to the top of dam and just covered the crack up with dirt. he debated about decreasing the slopeon the dam and then said lets wait till spring and see what happens.well we had alot of rain one weekend and the slip happened again this time causing major problems.and he is saying hes going to charge me to fix it. this guy is in his 70s and has a rep. for doing good work but being a crook for these kind of reasons but i have known him all my life and always liked him and defended him i never thought he would do this to me what should i do?

From the way he says "maybe I made it too steep", I aasume that the design is his instead of yours. Therefore, he is the one who made the mistake, not you. You should not have to pay for his mistakes. This may be why it is best to deal with strangers and get iron clad contracts. As uncomfortable as it may be, I would be just as "unfriendly and businesslike" as he is being.

By the way, this recently happened to me on fencing. I have learned my lesson and my wife is reminding me of it.

Hosty, I remember one of your previous posts when we were having that heavy rain several weeks back. Your damn was slipping and you needed help. I believe you said the contractor had gone to Florida and it sounded like he was not coming back 'til the spring.

At the time, I wondered how much you might have spent with the contractor. My thinking was that if you paid a substantial amount, you could have told the contractor to get his ass back to Ohio and correct the problem.

Now if you paid a substantial amount, you need to get what you paid for whether he is a friend, acquantaince, or total stranger.

As Dave said, it does not seem like he's treating you like a friend. I think you could basically give this guy a friendly, but stern, bottom line by saying two things: 1) You are not pleased with the situation; and 2) He can decide what happens from here by either correcting the problem as a professional should, or be on the receiving of end of some legal letters or action.

Again, I think this depends on how much you paid. If the guy had given you some deep discounts 'cause you were friends, that would change the situation in my mind.

Hosty,
I believe in the "Do unto others" aproach. I would simply tell him I need it fixed. He misled you by alowing you to think you were paying for a first rate job. It would not bother me if he believed I was going to pay to repair his mistake. After the repair work is complete & he asks for payment I would explain that he was mistaken in thinking you were going to pay for his mistake the same as you were mistaken when you thought you were getting a good man that stands behind his work & his word.

THANKS GUYS FOR THE POSTS MY POND DREAM HAS TURNED INTO A NIGHTMARE,IM HOPING THAT MIKE OTTO OR SOME OF THE OTHER CONTRACTORS ON THIS SITE WILL POST,IM NOT A BAD GUY I JUST DONT KNOW WHAT RIGHT I HAVE.

Hello everyone.Haven't been on here for awhile thought that I would drop in and say Hi'Sounds like there might be some problems with a contractor.The best way to deal with this is to get everything in writing first.If this guy layed out the pond and went by his plans then he is the one that is responsible.The way that alot of contractors get out of repairs is they say that they did the work the way they was told buy the customer and not the way that they wanted.If they ask you what or how you want something done then watch out the corners will be cut and it will be your baby.Always ask whats the right way and make them tell you they're plan and if it sounds good say lets go with your plan.That will give him his dollar back.Try to have someone there to hear what was said.that will help if you end up in court.As for the back of your dam the standard slope is 4'wide to every 1'tall.This will help you keep it maitained. Hope this helps DOC

Lakedoc,
Can't tell you how good it is to see you back!

Thanks Rick. hope everyone is well and had a good year.I didn't get all that I wanted to get done with all the rain that we had this year but still managed to build 13 ponds and fix about 10.It is good to have alittle time off though.It has been cold for the last month and has shut me down on all construction.William has some of the problems that I get to here from the repair jobs that I do.It is sad the way that some people in this country do things.If I can't do a job that I can be proud of then I don't do it.A good contractor stands behind his work no matter what it says on paper.but to some its all about the money.Thats why the people that will do the best job is the one that loves what they do.They do the job the way that they would do it for themselves.I get to where a lake or pond becomes a part of me and find myself thinking about what I would do to make it perfect even if it doesn't pay any extra.But one of these days when I am old and gray I can drive by and see what I did and still sleep at night.Well better close this book . DOC

I am not a lawyer or an expert in working dirt. I feel most knowledgable once the pond is full of water; then I am in familiar teritory.

When it comes down to money, it changes a lot of peoples ideas, behaviors or opinions. You may have to accept some of the blame and negotiate a price for fixing. either way it needs to be fixed. I would think you should get a better price from the original contractor than one from a new one. Plus the original one already knows the problem, "underlying" dirt conditions and internal dirt work or layers. If you have faith / confidence in him, I would try and haggle a fixing or repair price. The price almost has to be cheaper than what a new high quality contractor would charge starting from where the dam is currently. Main difference could be in the quality or integrity of finished product. Hopefully either way the outcome would be the same and only difference would be in the price.