Vent: A ceiling job in an old Phoenix house turned into a mess last month.

We were hanging new 5/8 inch board on a kitchen ceiling, a standard job. The homeowner said the place was built in the 1950s. When we started screwing into the joists, half of them felt soft and gave way. Turns out, termites had been eating them for years and it was never fixed. We had to stop everything, prop the ceiling with temporary braces, and tell the guy he needed a framer before we could go on. Has anyone else run into hidden damage like this in an old house, and how do you handle the extra cost talk with the client?

2 comments

2 Comments

abbycraig22d ago

Man, that sounds like a nightmare. How do you even start that conversation without the homeowner freaking out? I've found old plumbing leaks that rotted out subfloors the same way, just hidden until you open things up. It's never a fun talk, but you gotta be straight with them about the safety issue first.

sethp2622d ago

Oh, you just lead with "congratulations, your house is trying to kill you." Then show them the wood that crumbles like a cookie. Framing it as a safety thing is the only way to soften the blow of the repair bill.