Error in house construction - How did you deal with it?

Hello everyone,

I would be interested to know how you generally dealt with construction errors.
My problem is that errors keep being discovered, which are then supposed to be fixed with a "workaround" because the original plan no longer works.

A few examples:

[*]The recesses for my doors on the upper floor are all too high (2.30 m instead of 2.15 m). Apparently, this can no longer be adjusted by bricking up because the correction would later be visible in the plaster. So now we are getting custom-sized doors.

[*]A distributor for the underfloor heating was planned incorrectly. It is shown in the plan with a width of 75 cm, but the heating installer needed one with a width of 120 cm. Instead of being in the wall, the distributor is now in front of the wall because the wall was already built and the recess was too small.

[*]The canopy in front of the front door was originally intended to be made of concrete with a supporting column. According to the plan, the canopy should be 20 cm high. Then there was the idea to switch to a lighter wooden structure to avoid the supporting column. However, now, without prior consultation, it suddenly became 50 cm. Apparently, it can't be done otherwise because a layer of 15 cm of gravel is needed on top as splash protection.

[*]My balcony walls are too low. Apparently, at least 90 cm above the floor is legally required, but we only have 85 cm. Now they want to put a handrail on top, which was never planned, to reach 90 cm again.

[*]The cistern was initially not buried deep enough. Then it was dug up again and set deeper. Now a spacer ring is needed for the lid because the lid now sits well below ground level. We are supposed to pay for the spacer ring because it is supposedly part of the landscaping, which was not commissioned. We have the same problem with the light wells in the basement. On top of that, the property is actually completely level.

How tolerant are you with such issues?
Would you insist on a solution in such cases, even if something would have to be torn down again?

Thank you.

I hope that we will be spared these types of errors.
Quite a lot has already come your way. Are there more planning or execution errors?
Example doors: I would agree to special doors, but not to the additional costs incurred as a result. Execution error --> additional costs for the trade that left the wrong opening height.
Wrong distributor - very annoying. Presumably, the solution found is a pragmatic one.
Thickened canopy - depending on how it looks, more or less annoying. Could have happened to me too. In many places, I had to ask again and again because the experts sometimes find things obvious that laypeople do not see. After some discussions about design-relevant misunderstandings, communication now works well.
I would have balcony walls done properly, even if it means doing them anew. Either the planner or the executor pays. If the height resulted from a change of flooring, pay yourself.
Cistern - I would pay for the spacer ring and that’s that.

My tolerance threshold for construction errors is low. But if a good solution is presented, I can live with it well. Additional costs due to poor execution are unacceptable to me.

1. We had that too. Bricked up and fine. But I would also be with hampshire here, special doors if you will, but at no extra cost to me.

2. I would agree with the solution. Then just surface-mounted instead of flush-mounted. Usually, it’s in the hallway or a side room anyway, so it doesn’t bother anyone.

3. Well, everything somehow went wrong here overall. The only help is to talk/negotiate and find a middle ground. Put everything in writing.

4. Hmm, well, I’m fine with a handrail, but at no extra cost and rust-free. Apparently a planning error by the architect.

4. Here you have to see what was agreed and ordered. If the outdoor area and drainage were always treated as an extra, then it can be disputed. (To your disadvantage)

Who planned it? Are you building with a general contractor or architect/individual trade contracting? Who reviewed the individual points in between, even if acceptance was not necessarily required? Who made the plans for, for example, the entrance canopy, who approved them, and why does someone think they can change it by 50 cm without prior consultation with you?

Has the interior plaster already been applied and the incorrect height only noticed afterward?

We have always decided on a case-by-case basis. Who is to blame, does it bother me, what does the rectification mean, and so on.

I also think it makes a difference whether you invest a lot of money in something or not. For the top 3D and expensive planned show bathroom or the show kitchen, every defect would really bother me.

I would probably only accept the issue with the cistern. It happens and it has already been extensively reworked. The front door only if it was explicitly my fault, but tendentially no. Was the execution in wood cheaper for you or why the change in plans?

The underfloor heating distributor was the same for us. I found a sensible solution with the bricklayer, deviating from the plan and not at my expense. If the box is visually in the way, I would not accept it. If the box is okay for you, *I* would only pay for it if it is supplied by another separately commissioned trade.
Likewise, I would not accept the balcony, although the question is what is reasonable, I cannot assess that.

We accepted some smaller aesthetic issues that do not bother us or things for which we or our planning were responsible.

For two issues regarding the building fabric, I didn’t even start a discussion but immediately had an expert document the problems in writing. Works wonders. For most trades, however, that was not necessary.

And Maria’s question is important, with the general contractor or architect.. With a general contractor I would have accepted less.

Hello everyone,

thanks for the answers.

Who planned it? Are you building with a general contractor (GU) or an architect/individual contracts?

We are building turnkey with a GU.

Who checked the individual points in between, even if no acceptance was necessary?

We are on the construction site daily, but actually that would be the job of the site manager.
As laypersons, you just don’t see everything.

Who made the plans for, e.g., the entrance canopy, who approved them, and why does anyone think they can change it by 50 cm without prior consultation with you?

I have never seen any plans. It was just there one day.

Was the interior plaster already done and the wrong height noticed only afterwards?

Yes, exactly.