edo
Member
Ok thank you. I see the owner has started a gym business so perhaps this is now the focus.
Devonshire Stables - difficult to deal with
- Thread starter Patchworkpony
- Start date
Haniki
Well-Known Member
Their website is still live and they were advertising discounts recently on their Facebook page.
Very frustrating for you that they are being difficult / impossible to deal with.
Very frustrating for you that they are being difficult / impossible to deal with.
edo
Member
Yup. A very strange business model. Given the bank interest in the company, and the fact they appear to have closed and risen again before, I dont think throwing money at small claims is worth it sadly.
Vanewman
New User
Hi all, I’m Edo’s wife and feel I need to chip in … the barn is still upright, I am happy to have my horses in and out of the worst of the weather; we know how our winters are becoming. But it’s such a shame that Devonshire cannot fix what they never completed over 2 yeasts ago.
The roof leaks in several places (I’d also not recommend Cladco roofing!!), the shiplap cladding at the ends are not sufficiently watertight so rain pours down the inside of the end walls and makes it mildewy (not great for my horse with COPD).
The final touches to the woodwork have never been completed, the upright beams supporting the roof are loose - and by that I mean they twist sideways whenever there has been a storm and I have to climb up to a precarious height to hammer them straight again, lest they collapse and bring the whole roof down.
Furthermore, there are gaps in the insulation that exacerbate the leaks and wind even when the windows and doors are all closed up.
The clock in the clocktower - a very special feature we commissioned - a very heath Robinson job, has never worked, David even dropped the replacement clock face when up the ladder, which I begged for months to have put in, so that doesn’t work.
I’m at a loss as to why David Gent cares so little and can’t hire in the skillsets he claims to have in order to do a proper job.
I’ve seen others’ reviews about field shelters and stables they’ve done which appear to be fine. But anything bigger / more challenging Devonshire Stables and David Gent are quite frankly not able to do. Frankly I wouldn’t even recommend them for any job at all. Hopeless!
The roof leaks in several places (I’d also not recommend Cladco roofing!!), the shiplap cladding at the ends are not sufficiently watertight so rain pours down the inside of the end walls and makes it mildewy (not great for my horse with COPD).
The final touches to the woodwork have never been completed, the upright beams supporting the roof are loose - and by that I mean they twist sideways whenever there has been a storm and I have to climb up to a precarious height to hammer them straight again, lest they collapse and bring the whole roof down.
Furthermore, there are gaps in the insulation that exacerbate the leaks and wind even when the windows and doors are all closed up.
The clock in the clocktower - a very special feature we commissioned - a very heath Robinson job, has never worked, David even dropped the replacement clock face when up the ladder, which I begged for months to have put in, so that doesn’t work.
I’m at a loss as to why David Gent cares so little and can’t hire in the skillsets he claims to have in order to do a proper job.
I’ve seen others’ reviews about field shelters and stables they’ve done which appear to be fine. But anything bigger / more challenging Devonshire Stables and David Gent are quite frankly not able to do. Frankly I wouldn’t even recommend them for any job at all. Hopeless!
edo
Member
May his toast always land buttered side down.
PurBee
Well-Known Member
Im not surprised youre having these issues, having looked at devonshire stables website and seen their ‘american barn range’ example pics. In one picture there;s a very tall large barn without any roof apex cross-bracing! A strong wind against either side of that building and i can imagine those long straight supports from floor to ceiling - barely braced at all - leaning over.
It seems in other pics theyve tried to master the art of cross-bracing a very wide structure, but i’ll admit, theyre using unconventional designs to do it.
Shiplap external cladding looks lovely, but i think the quality of wood available these days - mostly pines, due to their monoculture planted too close together ’farming’ methods, grow a weaker wood thats prone to twisting/bending/flexing - even after ‘cured’ and machined to shape.
We’ve got a chalet building that has a shiplap external cladding made from pine that was available 30yrs ago - it’s fabulous quality wood. You see the very dense grain, it hasnt warped at all to let any moisture in.
We bought some shiplap to do an external wall a couple of years ago, and despite nailing it tight, pinning it every foot, ensuring everything was snug and fitted together, it has warped, there’s gaps - its utter shoite quality pine available these days. The grain is so far apart you can dig a screwdriver into it and its like sponge. Pine of yesteryear, grown slowly, has dense grain and is fabulous to use. Commercial pine now is like using chipboard.
If your frame is twisting via wind gusts, that’ll cause shiplap to develop gaps too.
Im sorry your barn hasnt turned out as hoped. You could try small claims but the phrase getting blood from a stone comes to mind, if the company has folded and he has no builders insurance - which he should have, should a client make a legal claim against him. If he’s still operating i’d go for a claim. But first id get an independent building inspector to draft up a report of your build and all the faults and issues - have that as proof the build is not as advertised, to bolster your claim.
If you dont feel you can have luck claiming - does your own house and buildings insurance cover this type of issue? Long shot i know - but maybe theyd pay legal fees to sue a dodgy builder? Or cover fees to make good a ‘not fit for purpose’ build? I’d closely check the clauses of my home building insurance just in case there’s a clause with the possibility of getting some cover for your circumstance.
If all that draws a blank, its still worth getting an independent build report, especially from an build engineer if your overall framework is unstable. They can advise what further framing is required for strong stability, and also methods of fixes for the other issues. Then you can hire an independent proofable insured/certified carpenter/builder to do the work as advised by your independent report. Then you‘ll be better informed via the inspection, cant be fobbed-off with sloppy build methods, and can get work done by a decent builder. Its more cost, but you’ll end up with the build you should have had.
edo
Member
Thanks. Working out our options at the moment. I've found an old post which I think suggests he's folded a previous company and started again.
Landcruiser
Well-Known Member
I don't think that's very fair on Cladco roofing. They are a roofing materials supplier, but they don't fit their own products. We have dealt with them twice, and roofed 2 separate blocks of stables with their roofing sheets, and I would highly recommend them in every way. They supply cut-to-length profile metal roofing sheets in various gauges and finishes, plus all the fixings and trimmings. There is no possible way that these can leak IF THEY ARE FITTED AND FIXED CORRECTLY. They deliver what they say, when they say, and were recommended to us by an agricultural contractor.
edo
Member
Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately the product cladco supplied IS defective. Their tile form product doesn't work over a large roof and the "pinch" of the form means after a large run you have a large gap between each sheet that allows water to get in. I can show this for a fact. The product is defective and anyone is MORE than welcome to come see for themselves.
Toby_Zaphod
Well-Known Member
You are going to spend a fair amount of money on these stables & they can't be bothered to pick up the phone or answer an email ? There are many stable builders out their & wanting business. I'd not bother with Devonshire Stables & go with a company who is far more professional in their dealings with potential clients. These professional companies will supply you with a plan of the build, details of the materials being used etc. & this will be all on the written quote they will supply you. Don't waste your time with Devonshire Stables, if they can't be bothered with keeping in touch ditch them & try other builders.
Clodagh
Well-Known Member
I think you are missing the point? The stables are built?
honetpot
Well-Known Member
You may not believe this but it is possible to put on roof sheets incorrectly, you would think they would be idiot proof.We employed specialist contractors to roof and clad our building, with no problems. We tend to source and pay for sheets direct from the manufacturer, so if their are any problems, and there never have been, our contract is with them.
I would get a good local contractor to come out and asses you roof, recladding it may be annoying but a good team will do it quickly.
I would get a good local contractor to come out and asses you roof, recladding it may be annoying but a good team will do it quickly.
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Landcruiser
Well-Known Member
Should the stable building company not have known it wasn't suitable though? And used an alternative? It sounds like it's possibly unsuitable for the particular job rather than actually defective? Although looking at the product I don't see how it can possibly leak if overlapped and fitted and supported correctly. I would be genuinely interested to see photos of your issue, because I'm still minded that it's a fitting issue. . (And no, I don't work for Cladco!)
edo
Member
Agree to a point. THw way the sheets are pressed means they cant quite get level with each other. This is fine on a smaller roof but when the barn is as long as ours, the 5mm per sheet drop gets significant after a long run. Devonshire claimed they would sue Cladco. Cladco cam out - an just b*llshited us that it was as designed. David Gent agreed that it wasnt right (as did his son Jack), but we had lost the will to live at this point. A lot of the leaks come from the fixings that werent tightend down and also the caps have fallen off. Another fix David Gent hasnt attended to.
edo
Member
Landcruiser
Well-Known Member
They’ve put the fixings in the valleys not through the ridges
? It will always leak if that’s the case. And those edges
. That’s disgraceful OP.
? It will always leak if that’s the case. And those edges. That’s disgraceful OP.edo
Member
Apparently you are supposed to put the fixings in the valleys on this style (and others) according to Cladco. They have rubber seals on.
PurBee
Well-Known Member
Yes, valley fixings is the usual standard, the fat rubber seal does a great job, usually. The seals cant be under or over-compressed, otherwise water-tightness issues could result.
Because the usual steel sheeting is so thin, if you fixed the less than 1mm thickness sheet metal via the ridges, the compression needed to screw down the rubber seal tightly, would warp/alter the profile causing shape distortion - aswell as requiring very long screws to meet the timbers inches below, than fixing in the valleys. Valley fixings provide a much more structurally strong fixing as the valleys lay directly onto the roof timbers, allowing the screws to form a tight seal of the roof sheet to the timbers.
Here’s gladco’s fitting recommendation sheet: https://www.cladco.co.uk/media/pdf/InstallationGuide321000.pdf
Your pics show really sloppy flashing work using that stick-on tar flashing sheets. Also the exposed wood/insulation pic should have been generously covered and sealed. But the pics are close-up so cant see what they were trying to achieve with the way they did that.
edo
Member
I see the latest review on Devonshire stables suggests this form is now normal. You have been warned......
g.co
Google review of Devonshire Stables LTD by Robert Gregory
âââââ "Had a stable block made by Devonshire Stables in the summer of 2023. Quality highly variable. Storm water system not properly assembled (leaks at the guttering joints) and not finished off (no downpipe outlets fitted. Rang them up, they promised to drop the downpipe outlets off when...
dixie
Well-Known Member
Well glad I found this post. Having just had a quotation from them and was seriously considering them.
I'll keep looking...............it's a lot of money to get wrong.
I'll keep looking...............it's a lot of money to get wrong.
edo
Member
Glad to have saved someone from the rubbish service.
edo
Member
Had to chuckle on this one. Devonshire stables had a 5 star google review just now. By a lady called Hayley. She's married to Jack, who runs Devonshire Stables with his Dad. If you're going to do fake Google reviews Devonshire Stables, maybe dont get your wife to do them using the same profile pic thats on yours and her facebook pages!
neddy man
Well-Known Member
Just shows how arrogant they are.
edo
Member
If only they put this much effort into sorting all the snagging, leaks and problems! Very strange business model.