That (bathroom) sinking feeling

GlitterQueen_2

Tavistock legacy

Doozergirl

GlitterQueen_2 said:

I'd say its 25cm higher than it should be. Want to post a photo but having trouble. I'm 5'3". Counter top sink bought in error since I didn't know there was a difference between counter top / semi recessed until this happened. All the fixtures were bought prior to work commencing. This is why I asked the contractor on the first day to check everything - I've never renovated a bathroom before which is why employing the installer to project manage was appealing. I don't think its unreasonable to expect consultation if there is any doubt or something doesn't seem quite right. A quick check would have spotted this rookie mistake before it lead to a more serious problem The bathroom furniture range is installed with a countertop that is cut to fit the sink. A counter top sink should not be used. 

When you buy things yourself, it is with the aim of saving money.  The money you save is an insurance policy.  If everything goes well, you're happy and your fitter is happy. 

If you buy the wrong things, you come unstuck by attempting to hold the fitter to account for your own mistake.  Your contract is to *fit only*.  You are project manager, it is your responsibility to buy the right thing and then agree the method with your fitter. 

There is a very specific reason why we do not fit anything that a client buys and that is because we do not know the quality of their items, not whether they have picked appropriate fittings to start with.  On the flip-side, I am a project manager - I specify, I buy and I pay my team to fit.  If I make a mistake, I have to pay for both the fittings and the labour myself, because it's neither the supplier nor the fitter's fault if I don't
know the regular height of a sink.    I'm the one that makes it painless for a customer - the one that can interpret what they want, specify correctly and ensure that it looks amazing.  

If you want the benefit of a full guarantee, you pay for 'supply and fit. It's  unfair to attempt to hold someone to account for your mistake when they don't receive any recompense themselves for the choice of fittings.  

You didn't have the knowledge and you didn't explicitly pay for someone else's either.  You made the specification error, no one else because you chose and bought.  

Aylesbury_Duck

I agree with Doozergirl.  This sounds like a cake-and-eat-it situation.  Always best to get the contractor to supply and fit.  You have one contract with one entity that's responsible for everything.  They buy the wrong thing and fit it, they sort it out.  An item breaks or malfunctions? Their responsibility to sort it out because they're the purchaser.

Doozergirl

GlitterQueen_2 said:

Tavistock legacy

I'm struggling to see how it can be £1500 in materials to fix.  

You need a semi recessed sink and tap, then the labour to cut out the worktop, dummy drawer and replumb.  

The only risk of damage is if they can't scrape the silicone sealant nearly from around the counter top basin if that protrudes over where the semi-recessed sink goes, but I don't think it's likely to happen - it's not rocket science and the semi-recessed is larger at the same point anyway.  

Alderbank

Doozergirl said:

GlitterQueen_2 said:

Tavistock legacy

I'm struggling to see how it can be £1500 in materials to fix.  

Agreed.
Tavistock offer a choice of 17 semi-recessed sinks for their Legacy vanity units, each less than £240.
They offer 19 suitable taps, each less than £186 including waste.

That leaves more than £1,000 for a tube of silicone sealant?

The OP should follow Doozergirl's advice and leave procurement to the experts.

Bendy_House

Hopefully this will be resolved with the fitters being able to successfully remove the countertop sink, and fit a new sit-on alternative. The latter could likely be chosen to ensure its footprint WILL cover any resulting damage, IF this is needed. Ie, perhaps don't purchase the replacement until you know?

And humbly pay the small extra labour charge for them to do this.

GlitterQueen_2

Thanks all for your comments its really useful to see both sides. The £1500 included new furniture if it was wrecked as the fitter suggested. The quote has a specific project management fee I'm not assuming anything.

Bendy_House

GlitterQueen_2 said:

Thanks all for your comments its really useful to see both sides. The £1500 included new furniture if it was wrecked as the fitter suggested. The quote has a specific project management fee I'm not assuming anything.

I suspect the 'wrecked' comment was borne from frustration by the fitter, trying to paint a daft worst-case scenario hoping to persuade you to go "All right - leave it as it is...". If so, not very professional, perhaps, but possibly a knee-jerk to the implication that they'd be made liable for your error?

The 'project management' factor issue might add/suggest an element of extra oversight of the project, but the bottom line is that they didn't buy these parts - you did.

If you can post a photo of the unit in question, folk on here should be able to advise how straight-forward the swap should be (keep it under 5MP, I think). If the error had happened the other way - a recessed sink fitted instead of a sit-on - then you'd be truly stuffed! (But still not £1.5k...)

Bendy_House

GQ, if you decide - as I hope you will - that it is right for you to pay the extra labour to swap the sinks, then this is a golden opportunity to get the good working relationship back on track.

You can be 'contrite' about accepting responsibility, or come across as 'grudging' (or various degrees in between!). One will, I believe, will serve you much better than the other.

Nice units, by the way What colour?