I want to share my experience with Mona Lisa Stone & Tile out of Wilmette, IL. I hired this company to clean two bathrooms in which they never came out to give me an in person estimate. This was all done only through photos and email.
Upon our agreement to the contract, they were assigned to strip the original sealing, clean, grout, re-seal the stone and caulk.
I was charged for a two man job in which one employee would leave and then come back hours later. This occurred two out of the three days I was billed for.
Two Issues I found post-work:
1. After my master bathroom was complete, I inspected the caulk lines and noticed that the grout lines were still exposed. I called my contact Barbara Medina and made her aware of my concern with photo evidence. In response to this, she tries to give me a verbal explanation":
"Thank you for sending these photos. I understand your concern with the application of the caulk on top of the grout lines at the base of the shower where the wall and floor meet. However, as we previously discussed, the best practice to protect that joint is to remove as much of the grout as possible and then apply a bead of silicone caulk for flexibility as natural expansion and contraction occurs. We applied the caulk on top of the grout as you requested but doing so again will not give you the clean line at that area that you desire, as you can see now. With the amount of grout in that joint and the bead of caulk applied on top, if we are to come back and apply further caulk to the top it will look heavy and more pronounced, in addition to being more susceptible to future separation between the grout and the caulk, much like you are seeing now. If you prefer us to return to scrape out the existing grout at that area and apply a new bead of silicone to that joint, I would be happy to get you an estimate for that new scope of work. Please advise."
After several emails regarding my disagreement of being charged for the caulking AGAIN because she claimed they didn't have supply to re-apply the caulk I had already paid for, she finally decided that she would cover the costs and send someone out at no charge.
On the day of the re-caulking, one of the the employees wanted to apply the caulk on top of the existing caulk. I advised him that this was of poor practice when
re-applying caulk that had already healed. He began to remove the old caulk and asked how I wanted the application of new caulk. I told him the same but, I wanted him to cover the grout line just not as thick as he was applying the caulk. I told him the caulking was too wide and didn't look professional but, he continued to apply as he so wished. When completed, I told him that I was disappointed with the caulking appliication.
2. After two days of the caulk healing, I finally was able to use my shower and noticed that a part of the shower floor stone was not sealed. I sent
Barbara Medina an email with photos and this was her explanation:
"I greatly appreciate your concern. The master shower is sealed properly. Sealer is NOT waterproofing. Sealer is designed to make the stone easier to maintain. It is a breathable application that allows water vapor to escape, helping to prevent damaging moisture and to help repel stains or give you time to clean them up in a timely manner before damaging the stone (depending on the nature of the staining agent). Marble naturally is porous and the sealer penetrates into the surface of the stone for staining protection not waterproofing. If your shower was constructed properly, there should be a waterproofing membrane below the surface of the tile that directs the water that enters the stone or grout down to the drain. Your shower was properly cleaned, caulked and sealed.
If you would like us to further apply additional coats of sealer (beyond what was already applied), there will be an additional cost for this service. Please let me know how many additional coats of sealer you would prefer us to apply so I may provide an estimate for your approval to cover the associated materials and labor."
I would not recommend this company to anyone who is looking for customer satisfaction and professional work. They are not willing to admit mistakes, but are willing to charge you on top of the amount of money spent for the original SOW. Very disappointed!! read more