I had vinyl laminate flooring installed on the lowest floor of my rowhouse -- about 1400 sf. The salesman was very knowledgeable and considerate (even when I changed my mind three times on the flooring). He even offered to let me take the larger sample home so I can match it to my kitchen cabinets. I will say though that even though the price of the flooring might be pretty low, where they get you is the extra instillation costs... A couple hundred to detach/reattach appliances, a couple hundred to install the quarter-round trim, a couple hundred to remove and put the toilet back... Just beware of all these "extras" that they don't advertise right up front.
The order came in very quickly and installation was set up for Saturday (which I must admit, is very nice to be able to schedule installation for a Saturday). The installers arrived on time, however when they saw that I had an old layer of vinyl UNDER my current vinyl that they would have to take up I heard nothing but swearing and the "main" guy calling up other people complaining. And trust me, he did NOTHING to hide his distaste for me, my house, and this job. I mean seriously, to actually swear in a customer's house while they are right upstairs and can hear every word?????
The installation too ALL day (about 8 hours) most of which was I am sure due to them having to take up the old layers of flooring -- which I will admit looked like a pain. Meanwhile I could hear nothing but him talking about how the construction of my house was so shoddy, and my kitchen cabinets were cheap, and someone had just bought this piece of sh*t house, slapped a coat of paint on it, and sold it to the first person to come along.
Wow... Lets first say that I bought my house about five years ago, and it wasn't in the best shape, but I've been working on rehabbing it myself and I'm working as fast as I can. Also, I bought my kitchen cabinets from Sears two years ago... And trust me they weren't CHEAP. Nevermind the fact that just continuously insulted my house while in my own home and installing new flooring that I paid over $2,000 for.
When finished, the floor looked beautiful. However, I was really unhappy with the the detail of the work. The quarteround wasn't cut tight in the corners, there were nail gun holes EVERYWHERE, there were even some new holes in my drywall above the floor where it looked like they accidentally banged their "scrapping" tool into the walls..
Also, the toe kick below the kitchen cabinets was cracked in several places where they had obviously banged that same scrapper tool into it. (They blamed it on the cheap cabinet construction) It was just messy and horrible. However, when I pointed these things out, the installer just kept saying "it was like that already".
The final cherry on the top was that when they left I could smell gas. The installer told me that it was just because the stove was reattached and it would go away soon. Well, it didn't go away. I waited two days and the smell just got stronger and stronger. When I came home from work on Monday night, I walked into the house and the smell of gas was so strong that I immediately pulled the stove away from the wall and turned off the gas. I checked the connections and indeed there WAS a leak. I could hear the hissing coming from the stove.
I called Bills Carpet Fair and was told that a service order would be put in for me. Nothing happened. I waited a week and called back. The salesman seemed to think that the installer should have already fixed the problem. Jean alleged that he had been trying unsuccessfully to get a hold of me which is ridiculous -- I have no record of calls from him.
I was given the installers direct number, so I called and set up an appointment . I took time off of work and I waited and he never showed up. This happened twice -- him just not showing up. When he finally did show up it was because I had spoken with someone at the corporate office. And let me just say that when he came to my door, I answered it, and he didn't even shake my hand, say hello, or wipe his feet. He just walked in right past me, went downstairs, all while mumbling "lets get this over with". I sat in the same room the whole time. He never addressed me once, just mumbled to himself and his two coworkers.
Everything was fixed and the stove re installed. He then gave me a lecture about what natural gas smells like, and I must have been mistaken because he didn't think there were any leaks. He actually lectured me.... I mean, thank goodness for men like him who can tell silly little women like me what to do and what is real and not real! I never mentioned that I am an architect and I know just as much (if not more) about construction than he does.
So, in conclusion -- The floor is beautiful, the price was decent, the salesmen are great... The installer? Yeah, well, if I were you I would find a contractor other than Bill's. read more