Chuck Lowery Builders Hires Subcontractors then will not pay them. Greer, South Carolina

Yes, Frank Halmon did pour this driveway but what he fails to tell the public is that this driveway should have only taken 54 yards of concrete. I hired Tri City Concrete to grade out
driveway 3 1/2" to 4" thick (the standard) and to pour this driveway.
That's where the problem began.

I let Frank use my skid steer (my Bobcat) to do the grading but Frank did not do any grading or form up the driveway.  Frank called me late the night before and asked me to have the concrete
company there at 7 am the next morning. I agreed but the next morning at 8:15 the concrete company called me to say that no one was there and there was no form set up for the
driveway.  The concrete was hot and could spider crack when the driveway dries.

I called Frank Halmon to tell him what the concrete company said. He
said that he would be there in 5 minutes.  When I got to the job,
Frank had just finished up with the first pour. I could already see 2 big
cracks in the concrete and it wasnt even a day old.  I asked Frank "why is the driveway so
thick and why does it have cracks"?  He said that "the cracks
are from bad concrete; you should use a different company and I just did not
have time to grade it properly".

I also told Frank that I thought he was going to pour the driveway in one day. Frank told me that another contractor needed to pour this small job and that he had called in a favor.  Then, he said that he could pour the rest the next day. The next day at 8am, the concrete company calls me and said the same thing!


They had been here for an hour AGAIN and that no one was there and that AGAIN no forms
were up for the driveway!  Frank AGAIN showed up 10 minutes later, formed it up and poured it,
AGAIN having the same problems but this time the concrete company tells me he had poured 2 driveways: one each morning before he got to mine. 

I told Frank that the driveway was too thick and he was using too much concrete.  I looked at what was left and saw that it was formed up.  I told frank to fill in and grade it out properly and he said he would.  

The next morning, I showed up early and caught him pouring the driveway without grading it.  I asked Frank why he did not grade it first and he said it would only use 1/2 yard more anyway.  I looked at him and reiterated that this job had a BUDGET and that he went way over it. 
Im also told him that I was not going to pay for his mistake. 

 The next day, I went to the job and measured the driveway.  I calculated it out to be
4300 Square feet.  This driveway should have used 54 yards of concrete; when I got my concrete bill, Frank had used 78 yard of concrete.  I called Frank and told him that he used WAY TOO MUCH concrete.  He did not care.   He wants his money!.  I told him he used 24 yard
too much and he really owes me some money.

To sum this up: Frank agreed to grade out and pour this driveway 3 1/2 inches thick and using no more than 54 yards for $1650.00 and then I get the bill from Frank: $3950.00. Ii
called him and he said that he gets $50.00 a yard and thats what I will pay.  I told him he poured the driveway too thick (it was 6 to 8 inches thick) and that we had agreed on 3 1/2 inches thick

In the thirty years that I have been in construction, I have always poured driveways
3 1/2 inches thick (and that ALL of the concrete companies agree that the standard
is 3 1/2 inches thick).  I told Frank that
he went over 24 yards of concrete and he now owed me $750.00 for his mistake
and that he is a lying cheat. 

Now I can see why all of his clients dont want him back on there property.  At $50.00 a yard with no grading, the deeper the pour the more money he makes.  He is
nothing but a thief and karma will get him. 

Frank Halmon is hard to work with, argumentative, chronically tardy (which is the one thing that a concrete guy should NEVER be), and likes to sue people. 

If I was wrong, why is he not suing me???  Because he
knows that I can go to any concrete supplier, ask if 6 inches for a pour is WAY
TOO MUCH, and prove in court that he is a thief and a vindictive liar.

 So, since he cannot sue me and win, he goes after the homeowner and puts a
lien on their house.Nice guy~ very professional.   Chuck Lowery Builders will NEVER WORK WITH HIM AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I recommend that you do the same.