September 26, 2008

Makeover house needs makeover

Problems plague 'Extreme Makeover' houseBut even as the show aired last October, five months after the home was completed, reality was seeping through the cracks.

Problems had started to surface with the air conditioner, water was draining from the roof right into the foundation, and the greywater irrigation system was malfunctioning, creating a stinky cesspool in the yard.

Without water, the landscaping was dying.

By midwinter it was evident this extreme makeover had some extreme glitches. The house was freezing. For days on end, the Yazzies could not get the indoor temperature above 40 degrees, even with the thermostats cranked all the way up.
And:Meanwhile, there were cosmetic problems: the cork flooring was peeling up, tiles were falling off the shower walls, and two huge pine beams were pulling away from the walls.

"I'm afraid to have someone sit under them in the living room," Yazzie said. "I keep thinking one of these days one of them is going to fall."

A light fixture did fall.

"It could have hit one of the grandkids,'" Yazzie said.
Comment:  For more on the subject, see Yazzies Enjoy New House.

4 comments:

alanajoli said...

I hope ABC is planning to pay for the repairs...

Rob said...

More from the article:

The warranty on the house is up, but Georgia said she brought most of the problems to ABC's attention before it expired.

Lance Guest of HomeLife Communities, which built the house, said he has been apprised of the problems and was told by ABC that the corporation would take care of them.

"For a while they were calling me to consult about various problems with the house, but I haven't heard from them in three or four months," Guest said.

dmarks said...

No doubt ABC is sending its famous tool man, Tim Taylor, to fix things.

Rob said...

Good one, DMarks.

Are shoddy houses the norm on Extreme Makeover?

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sfl-1004-extreme-home,0,5577288.story

'Extreme Makeover' homeowner struggles with $29,000 county lien, code violations

Sadie Holmes thought it was a blessing when ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition built her a 7,000-square-foot home and office for her charity in 2006.

Now she's struggling to keep her nonprofit afloat, and she may end up losing the $400,000 home if she can't pay a $29,000 county lien—placed on the property after months of code violations racked up.