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Private Notes
Jo Jo and Heather hired a contractor to update their newly purchased home with a new basement bathroom. As the work progressed, they began questioning some of the contractor's decisions until eventually, the contractor left the job unfinished. Mike Holmes is called to the scene and finds many problems above and below the surface. Mike and his crew gut the entire bathroom and start from scratch, leaving Jo Jo and Heather with a beautifully stylish bathroom that is safe, watertight and completely up to code.
Yetti and Andrew hired a custom kitchen contractor to build their dream kitchen. A late start, poor workmanship, and terrible communication between the contractor and their subs left Yetti and Andrew with a normal looking, but non-functional kitchen. To make matters much worse, as the job neared its end, Yetti and Andrew's son, Caleb, mistakenly drank some Varsol that was foolishly stored in a water bottle in the kitchen. Although Caleb recovered from the accident, the couple took the kitchen company to court to get their unusable kitchen paid for with Mike Holmes as an expert witness. After winning, due in part to Mike's testimony, Mike helped them build the dream kitchen they should have had in the first place.
Henry and Mandy purchased a new home and submitted several complaints to the builder about various inefficiencies, most of which were not addressed. After two years the warranty expired, and they were left with several unaddressed issues. The most alarming of which being the bedroom above the garage that Mandy's mother-in-law was using. It was cold and uncomfortable for her to stay in for any amount of time. Mike and his crew are called in to investigate the situation and create a comfortable bedroom for all seasons.
Lynda and Joe hired a stone mason "friend-of-the-family" to construct a concrete basement walkout to their backyard. All was fine until the first winter. The wall beside the stairs started to bow out, threatening to crumble into the basement wall. The contractor returned to put in rebar supports that he neglected to do in the beginning and pour more concrete into the existing wall. The wall continued to curve and crack and Lynda finally contacted Mike Holmes to make it right.
Two couples, Stacy and Peter, and Donna and Bill, each own one half of a 100-year-old Victorian home. These two semis share the same leaking porch that's rotting and falling apart for the second time in five years, even though the porch had been entirely rebuilt and the eaves trough had been replaced three times. The issue with the two families has always been that the water comes from one house and ruins the other. Solving the issue means sharing in the costs, something the homeowners with the least of the rot issues have been reluctant to agree to. Mike steps in and mediates the issue, pointing out the benefits of having this done right for both families. After getting the green light from both parties, he and his crew attack the problem at the source, the roof, and work their way down to include new eavestroughs, downspouts and restore the brickwork to its former glory.
Pat bought a two-story house, and two weeks after moving into the house, a city inspector stopped by to inform her that there was an outstanding work permit on her home. Among several other problems that needed to be brought up to code, the existing back deck was incredibly unsafe and had to be replaced. After nine years of litigation against the home inspector and the lawyer, Pat won a small settlement and wanted to move forward with bringing her home up to code.
Debbie and Ross hired a contractor to build a new open concept staircase. They ended up with an unwieldy staircase made of particleboard and cheap spindles. Mike is called in to demolish the eyesore and install a beautiful new safe and sound staircase.
When Nancy purchased her home there was an existing retaining wall holding up the raised backyard from the sidewalk. She hired a contractor "friend-of-a-friend" in the neighborhood to rebuild the wall. The contractor laid weeping tile on the bottom but no above ground drainage. After the first winter, the retaining wall bowed dramatically and the contractor did not respond to any of her requests to return. She feared the retaining wall would fall over onto the sidewalk and hurt one of the many children who walk by each day. Mike Holmes and his crew are called in to make it right.
Barb wanted to surprise her son with a new basement bathroom and exercise room when he came home from college. She hired a friend's son who worked as a contractor to do the job, but soon after the work began, so did the delays, shoddy work and countless excuses. She threw them out and called in a professional. Mike was appalled at the very sloppy work and complete lack of planning or craftsmanship. He was also quite skeptical that the plumbing was done correctly. After deciding to relocate the bathroom to accommodate the very low ducting that the previous guy located the shower under, Mike found countless plumbing disasters and had to re-route everything right back to the main drain. A few weeks later, and a full year after the work originally began, Barb and her son were finally treated to a deluxe bathroom and exercise room complete with a built-in sound system, mirrored walls, slate tiles and halogen lighting throughout.
Tanya and Alexander bought a 40-year-old home without an inspection. They hired a contractor to renovate the second-floor addition and gave the contractor a sizeable deposit to start. After a few weeks of work, the contractor walked off the job and declared bankruptcy. After a lengthy and frustrating legal battle turned up nothing, a second contractor was hired to complete the work. All seemed fine until they used the laundry. Mike and his crew arrive to discover the plumbing was connected to the weeping tile and not the main sewer line, draining soapy water onto their property and the street. Mike decides to gut the laundry room after finding faulty venting, electrical and insulation- all of which added to the plumbing problems.
Carl and Amelia hired a general contractor to oversee the building of an addition to their home for their new baby daughter. After weeks of stalling and extra payments right off the bat, work began on the addition - by a subcontractor. After the first rainfall, water poured through the addition, and the homeowners called the contractor who was nowhere to be found. The subcontractor refused to send workers over as he said that he had not been paid. Feeling as if there was no other choice, Carl and Amelia signed a deal with the subcontractor to complete the work. After several months, the subcontractor took the work permit and left the job incomplete. After 6 months and a large sum of money, Mike and his crew arrived to find a rats nest of problems including condensation in the attic that lead to mold in the drywall, ducting stolen off other rooms with no return vents, dangerous electrical work- all adding up to a world of headaches for Mike Holmes.
Alessandra and Max were shopping for a home together in hopes of having their wedding in the backyard. After a home inspector gave his approval, they made an offer and got the house. They held off on the wedding plans when, after living there for only a few weeks, they discovered a crack in the kitchen bulkhead. The homeowners were concerned that their house was structurally unsound, so they asked for Mike Holmes' help. Mike discovers an electrical and plumbing mess in the ceiling and a huge leaky mess from the shower stall above. After consulting with the homeowners and getting an inspection of the structural integrity, it's time for Mike and his crew to get to work.
Vicki and Dave bought a house that they were truly happy with. In order to make it the home of their dreams, they wanted to do a few minor cosmetic changes. They hired a contractor who came recommended to them, who ended up starting all the jobs they wanted, but bailed before any of them were complete. The biggest job left undone was a fireplace in their family room. After being left with a functionless fireplace and little repairs half done all over their house, they called in Mike Holmes. Mike and the crew will fix the fireplace and turn this nightmare into the dream home it should have been.
Janice and Craig, a young couple with big dreams, bought a small bungalow on a large lot with visions of transforming it into the house of their dreams for their four young children to grow up in. After grossly underestimating the quote and the job, the contractor abandoned them, leaving the family living for over seven months in the dank, dirty basement of this dangerous and poorly supported skeleton of their former home. With Christmas just around the corner, and with all their money and hope drained, they ask Mike Holmes to take on the monumental task of giving this horror story a happy ending. Mike and his team of dedicated pros take on the biggest challenge of their lives. In just eight weeks they transform 4,000 square feet of cold rafters and dust into a finished awe-inspiring dream home, just in time for the holidays.
