Stone-Tree has shown they are NOT a reliable company to work with. The owner, Jon Hadley, refused…read moreto submit a claim for defective tiles. He kept blaming the "problem" on the subfloor because our home was built in the 1970's, and his NEW (never before used by Stone-Tee) installer was not able to level the floor properly. After much insistence by us, and resistance by Jon Hoadley the owner, two floor reps were brought in to inspect the floor, and determined the floor tiles were "cupped", which is a term for defective. Everything needs to be removed so we can start over.
Stone-Tree is STONE-DEAF when it comes to problems created by their hired contractors and miscommunications within their own organization. They have not contacted us regarding refunding our deposit and payment for damages.
The following letter was sent via certified mail:
01/10/2024
Stone Tree Design Center
27875 MN Highway 65 N.
Isanti, MN 55040
Attn: Jon Hoadley
RE: Defective Flooring and Faulty Installation Refund
We understand the LVP flooring installed in our home was deemed "cupped" and a credit has been issued to your business to replace the product, as well as for tear-out and replacement labor.
Due to your lack of interest and response to our many concerns during the flooring installation process, including the mention several times of "defective tiles" (which you refused to acknowledge), we no longer consider you a "trusted flooring company" and, therefore, no longer require your services to remediate the problems you and your hired sub-contractor created.
The correct repair would be to remove ALL of the 3/8" underlayment and replace it with ¼", at great expense, throughout the kitchen, dining room, hallway to the basement, and family room entry area in front of the service door; however, this would create additional problems (removing granite countertops, removing cabinets, disconnect plumbing, etc., and eventually replacing everything) of which we have no desire to undertake at this time .
Per text message from Breckin August 23rd, "He's going to pick up ¼ inch!", was the response to Connie's phone call to Breckin, regarding the underlayment thickness the installer should be picking up at the lumber yard. He had a different idea that didn't work out. The underlayment used was 3/8", not the ¼" that was requested by us, and confirmed by Breckin. Patches are uneven, creating more problems rather than solving them. Chairs wobble in the dining room, in the family room entry way, and at the end of the kitchen island. Floors slope and dip well beyond acceptable tolerances for warranty coverage. Edging cuts are uneven, the floor tiles are warped, and transitions are very poorly cut and installed!
The underlayment in front of the family room entry must be removed in order to amend several major issues in that area - to bring the floor back down to carpet level, to leave room for the service door to fit back in place, and to remove the major hump and slope caused by improper underlayment thickness and installation. Our entry door needed to be cut down to accommodate the current 3/8" underlayment plus floor tile thickness. A new door will need to be purchased to fit back into the original opening.
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As you know, custom kitchen cabinetry was installed between the underlayment going down and floor tile placement. The NEW solid wood end panel covering the refrigerator was damaged by the installer you hired, using a dull saw blade. Leaving it "as-is" or covering it with quarter round molding are not acceptable "solutions". The cost to replace is $390.36.
We were told, in error, that we needed to remove a perfectly good ten foot solid Oak stair nose at the edge of the dining room. The cost to replace is $200.00.
The re-do of this project entails more than just pulling up vinyl tiles and installing new tiles. It includes removal of all the tiles throughout the kitchen, dining room, family room entryway and small hallway to the basement, partial removal of underlayment, additional work to re-level the floor, re-install new flooring, removing and replacing appliances, and more cleanup. The additional time and overall mess is a major inconvenience, especially the second time around.
Considering all of the above, but possibly not everything, please issue a refund check for the following items:
-Deposit of $2,000
-Remove and dispose of defective LVT: 480.48 sf x $3.00 = $1,441.44
-Remove 3/8" underlayment at family room entry area: $700.00
-Replacement damaged refrigerator end panel: $390.36
-Replacement oak stair nose between dining and living rooms: $200.00
TOTAL REFUND: $4,731.80
Please send a check to our home address by return mail in order that we may continue and finally finish our remodeling project.
The above letter was sent via certified mail; however, no response, nor refund, has been received as of March 12,2024.
Joe & Connie T.
