Remodeling malady

COMPLAINT: Barbara Curry, Bala Cynwyd, Pa.

"I hired Total Home Maintenance to do some work on my 150-year-old house. They assured me they had the skills needed to do the tasks. The work included removing and replacing siding and a door, repairing rotted wood, coating a flat roof and exterior painting. They worked a total of 181 hours during a three-month period.

"They hung the replacement door with the opening opposite from the original, and the jamb was too narrow. They ordered a new door and hung it correctly. I also needed a new screen door. They mounted the handle too far from the edge, the handle is always loose and the screen door doesn't fit properly. Some of the rotted wood wasn't properly repaired, and they started painting window frames without sanding, scraping or priming them.

"After I asked them about preparing the windows, they brought in a circular sander and proceeded to sand the window panes - and not just along the edges. They hit every one! They painted the top half of my double-hung windows closed and cut them open after I complained.

"When they finished, they left a ladder and other equipment, saying they would come back the next day. They didn't return, so I moved everything to my fenced-in yard and locked the gate. Without calling me, they came for their stuff. I wasn't home, so they went over the fence and removed their equipment by sliding it over the fence and trampling my garden."

DESIRED RESOLUTION: "I want $5,048 to fix my windows, and I want to walk away from the $3,695 left on the contract."

STATUS: Penalty Box