Chesapeake, VA on Aug 21, 2011

Pros, I apologize for the long story, but I'm trying to give you all the facts and really want input on this issue.

As part of my stairwell remodel, I contracted to have a ventilating skylight put in at the very top for light and to expel the trapped heat.

In addition to installing the skylight (wrapping, leak barrier, shingle repair), the contract details:

• All rough framing from roof deck to ceiling

• No interior finishes or electrical

• "Skylight tunnel will be "cased" with plywood from attic side to protect interior from attic infiltration until homeowner finishes interior"

• Estimate time of completion from start of work is: 1 day

** ...»

Monday: The assigned worker showed up a few hours late. He stayed two hours, took a lot of measurements and left saying it might rain. He brought a smaller skylight than stated in the contract: VSE 104 (approx. 22"x38") due to concerns about the nearby roof valley. Disappointing, but better than a future leak. The contract states they will either install a "VSE 106 (22"x46") or a VSE 606 (44"x46") skylight.

Tuesday: Only an hour late, but he brought a helper. The helper cut the hole in the ceiling (see pic). The worker the framed the shaft, but didn't case it with plywood.

I asked, he said he didn't know anything about that. I showed him the statement in his copy of the contract. He sealed the ceiling hole with the cardboard box (see pic). They left early, saying it might rain.

Wednesday: Stayed a full day - cut the hole in the roof and installed the skylight ... all dried in. The skylight is not centered, but pushed up and left ... more concerns with the roof valley. Wish the boss and the carpenter @ the pre-construction meeting would have noticed that ... bummer.

I hooked up the electrical and tested the skylight ... it works ... Yay

Friday: He came back to case the framing with plywood (see pics) and was ready to leave.

I pointed out that the attic was still open to the house, since the plywood was cut several inches short all the way around. I asked how he was going to seal it; maybe, more plywood or trim it out? He said that he didn't have any more plywood and he had to go (it was noon). Also, when I do the interior finishing it'll be fine. I told him that might not be soon, since I have to finish other parts of my project before getting the plaster crew in here.

Then he called the office and wanted me to pay the 2nd half of the labor and for the VELUX skylight. They wanted to charge me more for the smaller skylight than the VSE 106 in the contract. So, I told him I'd contact his office & we'd work out our discrepancies. It was fine by him and he's outta here.

I sent an email to my contractor POC (the guy who came out when we wrote the contract) with these pictures. The worker called me back a few hours later asking why I didn't say anything when he was here (really?) and what he can do to make me happy. I told him that all I want is for the skylight tunnel to be cased as specified in the contract.

He said it was a miscommunication. Had he known I didn't want any air from the attic to get into the house, he would have framed it differently. He said he can't come back today and asked again what he can do to make me happy. So I repeated that for me to be satisfied, the work had to be completed as stated in the contract. No go, but he made an appointment to come back, which had to be the next time I was home (two weeks later).

That Friday evening we picked up relatives from the airport. The next morning we hauled them and the locals to a rented lake house for our annual family vacation. Guess who spent all available "spare time" hanging from a ladder? The cardboard had gaps, so I pulled it down (only held by a few tacks). I sealed the framing from the inside with plastic and from the attic with all the insulation I could stuff into the gaps.

So my question is this: What does "protect interior from attic infiltration" mean? I took it to mean that air from the attic would not leak into the interior of the home. I didn't want the heat from the attic in the house, nor did I want to cool the attic while we were gone. The worker called it a miscommunication, so I may not understand the term "attic infiltration". Please educate me ... I have to deal with this guy again real soon.

17 Comments

Paul M Fairburn, GA

You got it right the first time. Attic infiltration means that the attic is sealed off from the conditioned air of your homes interior. In my opinion you need another professional to come fix your problem before it gets worse. If he thinks it is ok to have those gaps at the bottom of his boards then he doesn't know what he is doing. You can frame it with plywood but most people would have it framed like the rest of the house, lined with sheet rock, mudded, painted, and then insulated just ...»
like the walls of your house are. If he thinks that is a finished product then he is not a professional at all and you need to ditch him quick. That is the sad part of dealing with people in home upgrades, you don't know who you will wind up with. Someone here can probably help you find someone in your area who actually knows what they are doing.

on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 1
Hudson Designs Loganville, GA

I have to agree with Paul, it is time to find another contractor. I think this group may cause you more problems later by not standing behind any warranty that they may have promised.

on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 1
KMS Woodworks Nederland, CO

• No interior finishes or electrical
.
• "Skylight tunnel will be "cased" with plywood from attic side to protect interior from attic infiltration until homeowner finishes interior"
Two conflicting issues in the contract...ply wood and rough framing do not fall into the ...»
category of being sealed for infiltration....Until homeowner finishes interior....this comment to him is his excuse for a half ass job...he is waiting for you to finish the inside. As far as sealing the attic with plywood his idea of sealed and everybody else's (yours in particular) differ.
He sealed it to keep raccoons and other large mammals out but not air or even smaller creatures.
This is bit of the 20/ 20 hind site thing but did you get any references from this guy before you asked him to cut a hole in your roof?
The two radically different sizes of skylight also has me concerned...22" wide or a 44" wide?....that wide one would require re-framing a header and a LOT more work...not to mention would it even fit (the valley concerns)

on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 2
KL K Chesapeake, VA

I'm happy to report that the contractor stepped up and the work was finished satisfactorily. The carpenter came out this morning. He realized that the way he framed the skylight tunnel, it would be very difficult to "protect interior from attic infiltration" working from the attic side. He cased it with plywood and even caulked the joints. See the pics. There are only tiny slivers of light visible from the attic. ...»

**
I may insulate the tunnel from the attic side with the pink itchy stuff (or should I use that foam board?) and trim out and paint the wood.
**
I paid the full amount of the labor. The charge for the material (skylight) will be resolved when I see the invoice.
** Thank you all for the prompt & useful responses. You helped me feel more confident about standing my ground to get this done right.
========================
@ KMS: This contractor is a leading one in our area, was recommended by my insurance company, a termite company and was even featured on this website. They are a higher-priced contractor and are well-established, good rep and warranty their work. My mom's house was eaten by termites and they were called in to consult. They gave an estimate for covered repairs. And another for the total rebuild of her sunroom (non-covered). Before awarding a major contract (major for us anyway), I wanted to try them out on a small job. This was basically an interview.
on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 0
Paul M Fairburn, GA

So you wanted it finished in wood? Typically I see this done with standard framing, sheet rock, (mud, sand, and paint), insulation behind like the rest of the house and 100% sealed from all attic infiltration ( no light at all coming through anywhere). When you see one done that way it is a seamless transition from the walls to the skylight area. It all looks like one cohesive piece when it is done. But if you like it like that you are the one that has to live with it. Standard insulation ...»
should be used in my opinion. At least an R25 or an R35 if you can get it to fit there. I have used those plastic straps that they cut off the bundles of lumber at Lowes or Home Depot to hold it in the vertical position if you choose to leave it open or you can cover it with more plywood if you want to hide the insulation. If you use an R35 you will need 6" of space to fit it into. Good luck.

on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 1
KL K Chesapeake, VA

@Paul: The reason I was leaning to wood is the other skylights were completed that way when we added a family room to our house a few years ago. See pictures. The skylights were trimmed to match the windows.
The stairwell skylight has a longer tunnel: almost 3ft on the deepest side, tampering to 6inches. It is also not centered. ...»

Your comment about getting a more seamless transition is interesting. Maybe no trim would call less attention to the uneven placement.
on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 0
Paul M Fairburn, GA

Well it can be finished either way, wood trim or sheet rock corners, it just depends on what you like. Personally I like the sheet rock corners, my wife likes the trim, we just meet in the middle most of the time and do both. The only issue I would have with it is the fact that it is not really sealed like it would be with jointed sheet rock. But you can address this or leave it, it really is up to you.

on Aug 22, 2011 · Like 0
KMS Woodworks Nederland, CO

Glad the contractor came through...this Was the "litmus test" and he has proved his worth...as lesser one may have just bailed on you. The road was a little bumpy but often that is the case without a full and complete understanding from both sides before the project starts. . I have many clients who give me full rein to do "what needs to be done" this trust and freedom comes from years of working with them. When the project is complete they just smile as they write out the check.

on Aug 23, 2011 · Like 1
KL K Chesapeake, VA

@KMS: I've known a couple of tradesmen like that. I explained what I wanted & the results were even better than I imagined. (My tile guy [RIP] & my electrician [retired] ... gosh, I miss them) You're right ... for those gentlemen, writing the checks were not traumatic ... until it can time to figure out where to get the $$$ to make them not bounce ... LOL

on Aug 24, 2011 · Like 0
The Sunshine Boys Duluth, GA

This is one of the reasons VELUX Skylights has partnered with companies that are skylight professionals to set us apart from people that do ten or twenty other jobs but have not been traiined at the manufactoring facility to provide a ten year no-leak warranty as well as doing a turn key job. The skylight shaft should be insulated for several reasons...first and foremost is air infiltration which can cause moisture damage as well as heat transfer and extream condensation issues with ...»
change in temps. go for batten insulation over the pink stryofoam.

on Aug 27, 2011 · Like 0
KL K Chesapeake, VA

@ Sunshine Boys: The company I hired is listed on the VELUX website under skylight installers. Thanks for the tip about the insulation.

on Aug 27, 2011 · Like 0
The Sunshine Boys Duluth, GA

OK...I would have to say the installer was not a VELUX 5 Star partner...probably a 3 Star which is not certified as a prefered installer...enjoy....:)

on Aug 29, 2011 · Like 1
KL K Chesapeake, VA

@Sunshine: You're right ... I'll pay attention to the stars for my next VELUX install. Didn't realize that a 3-Star wouldn't have the required skills. Thanks

on Aug 29, 2011 · Like 0
Woodbridge Environmental ... Colonia, NJ

If the contractor sealed the attic from the living area you should see NO slivers of light at all. Do not rely on finishing materials to complete that process.
In the attic your best served using a foam board system that is tightly sealed on all joints using spray foam from a can. This helps prevent any moisture and it stays put. Using pink stuff and wrapping it around the tunnel will eventfully fail and you will be where you started out. ...»

You can do what Sunshine suggested also, but if you use proper thickness of foam, the pink stuff will add little to increase savings.

on Aug 30, 2011 · Like 1
Glkirk Builders Inc. Chesapeake, VA

KL K, It is quite a difficult job sheeting skylite tunnels substantially from the attic side.
I know you said; it is done now but did the salesman even consider this. Has he ever done any framing? Seems this issue should have been discussed in the initial discussion with the salesman. It is not usually wise to do things that take several times the normal time, to finish a project.
As for the valley near the skylite, once again, did the salesman know? Does he even know what ...»
to look for?
I hope that you will give my company a try if you want your projects discussed and built right, start to finish.

on Nov 25, 2011 · Like 0
Cathy S Clearwater, FL

i would notify your local Velux Rep (velux.com) and send him these photos, just so he knows what one of his local installers is doing. the Rep might be interested in coming out and seeing it for himself, as well, to make sure you will get full warranty on it, should you need it.

on Nov 27, 2011 · Like 1
KL K Chesapeake, VA

@Glkirk: The salesman claimed to be a former contractor. Next, they sent out a project manager to further assess the job. He went into the attic with me, took measurements, etc. We gave him pictures from when we climbed up on the roof and he had all the measurements.
@Cathy: good idea, thanks

on Nov 29, 2011 · Like 0

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Pros, I apologize for the long story, but I'm trying to give you all the facts and really want input on this issue.

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