You decide....did the countertop installers screw me up or not.......

I have to agree with you Mark, there's no excuse for sloppy work.

I would've thought they would have masked the cabs off

I've masked off cab sides, staircase railings, etc, after I've done an install where there wasn't any paint on the walls.
To me, this insures no one else screws with my hard work.

Mark Rios said:

I have a kitchen remodel (At this I assume you are general contracting the remodel)that I am in the middle of. The maple cabinets are installed and they are sanded and (were) ready for finishing, but they are yet raw wood.

Today, the countertop installers installed the full height backsplash. ( everyday we hear of jobs held up for one reason or another, the sequence needs be followed, the job should have been stopped before the installers started)The bottom of the upper cabinets meet the backsplash at six places. The installers caulked the gaps between the backsplash and the wall, including the joint between the backsplash and the cabinets in those six places. At five of those junctions, they wiped/smeared(I hate those words and the people who do it cause they just don't care.) the clear caulk on the raw wood maple plywood. The spots range in size from 3/4" x 1" to 1" x 1 1/2".

I believe/assume the caulk is a latex product but I don't really know exactly.(Contact the installer) important, rise above the anger to solve the problem!

How can I remove the caulk and will I be able to remove it completely so that it doesn't affect the finish? Get some maple plywood scraps and "smear" some on the edges in slightly larger areas, leave some unsmeared areas adjacent to that on the same board to test with the several possible finishes.Your finish may blend with the smear,hopefully,or while the smear is damp with the finish use your scraper. Do another smear on another piece of ply to try solvents, and denote each one so you remember what solvemt did what. To my knowledge most caulking is a surface, not penatrating substance, You may be best off with the scrape and sand, but be careful with that veneer. Sadly, you will have more luck solving this problem than you will getting the installers to care . But you know what...We Care!!!

I will need to back charge the installers for the needed repairs (to this issue and for the dings that the guy who did the template put in the faceframes).( you are angry and you have that right because you care about the job, try wetting the dings and cover with a wet cloth and hot iron over them exercising caution as you go. It may help the dings. When finished with the wet areas wipe the entire board with water, just to make it all damp, sand when dry.) Any idea on a charge for this repair to these five areas?
Thanks very much for your help, suggestions and advice.

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Hi Mark,
Real sorry about your episode with the other trades.
Try to solve this stuff yourself, you will gain knowledge, lose time, be PO,
but in the end you will make it work and be better for it. That will be more satisfying than trying to make the other trades pay.IMHO
Best wishes and feel free to disreguard anything or all I have said.
Shaz

Definitely a learning experience, with no easy fixes. Discovering how to work with other trades is an art in itself. With unfinished cabinets, especially, I found communication before other subs get in there is essential, and a good supply of visqueen, masking tape and paper should be added to your arsenal in the future. After wrapping and masking my cabinets, finished or unfinished, I also put up warning signs, like "Please don't stand on counters (cabinets)" etc. Plus, getting to know other subs, developing relationships, like granite folks, solid surface shops, plumbers, and quoting these to the clients so that they are your subs can go a long way toward making these other shops want to please you for future work. If there is a general contractor running things, a simple list of do's and don'ts, again, communication is invaluable.
This probably doesn't help the frustration you are feeling, but the bottom line is... expect the worst of every job/install and be prepared for it.
Plus, my best guess is they used Polyseamseal clear caulk or similar, no silicone and it won't be that difficult to deal with it.
Good luck and keep us posted.

Robert Schaubhut said:

Hi Mark,
Real sorry about your episode with the other trades.
Try to solve this stuff yourself, you will gain knowledge, lose time, be PO,
but in the end you will make it work and be better for it. That will be more satisfying than trying to make the other trades pay.IMHO
Best wishes and feel free to disreguard anything or all I have said.
Shaz

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Shaz, That was one of the best responses I have heard to a problem! No finger pointing, blaming, superiority, contempt. Just some good honest options to help fix the problem. It is refreshing to hear.

Ed Nelson said:

Shaz, That was one of the best responses I have heard to a problem! No finger pointing, blaming, superiority, contempt. Just some good honest options to help fix the problem. It is refreshing to hear.

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Hi Ed,
Thank you for your kind words. I believe you would do the same.
Thanks again,
Shaz