COMPLAINT: Kathleen Finch, Atlanta

"I hired Painting by Ron Scott to pressure-wash, caulk, paint and replace old wood on my house, fence and arbor. He found numerous extra expenses, such as windows that had to be replaced or more rotten wood than he expected.

"Two months after the work was done, I found carpenter ants infesting a wooden railing he replaced because he had not primed or painted the underside. The new paint on one of the posts on the arbor soon blistered.

"Ron saw the ants and piles of sawdust they created and told me he would replace the railing right away, but I called for several months and he never showed up. Meanwhile, the carpenter ants are drilling away at the house's front railing and the blisters are getting bigger on the arbor."

DESIRED RESOLUTION: "I would like the railing replaced with exterior-grade wood and have it primed and painted. I would like the bubbled paint scraped off and repainted."

STATUS: Penalty Box