Had a customer call me three times because their concrete driveway had 'cracks' that were just control joints

I run my own concrete crew and we poured a driveway for a guy in Maplewood about six months ago. Dude called me at 7am on a Saturday freaking out because he saw 'cracks' running across the whole thing. I drove 20 minutes out there to find he was pointing at the control joints I saw cut in myself a day after the pour. Tried to explain those are supposed to be there to prevent actual random cracking, but he kept saying it looked like a mistake. Showed him the contract where it's literally in bold that control joints are standard practice, and he still wasn't happy. Ended up having to bring a senior crew member to back me up before he finally let it go. Has anyone else had to explain basic construction stuff to a homeowner who won't listen?

2 comments

2 Comments

nelson.gavin3d ago

My neighbor bought a brand new pickup last month. Spent two hours bitching to me about a weird rattling noise from the engine bay. Checked it out myself. It was just a loose water bottle cap in the cupholder vibrating against the plastic. People just don't want to believe their problems are simple. They want drama and a big conspiracy.

henry_hernandez2d ago

I had a guy in Maplewood last year who did the same thing with his stamped patio. He called me at 7pm on a Sunday night freaking out about a hairline crack near the edge. I pulled up the photos from the install and pointed out it was right where we poured a cold joint because we ran out of time and had to stop for the weekend. Told him straight up that's a weak spot that can happen when concrete sets in two different batches, and if he wanted it perfect he should have paid extra for us to finish it in one pour. He finally shut up when I offered to grind it out for free and fill it with a matching caulk. People just need to hear you'll fix it even when it's not really a problem.