I will start with the bottom line. How about that? Sean McDonough from Versa Tile saved me. Yep, simply put, that's what he did. Why? keep on reading. Only want the gist? skip to the last paragraph.
I had contracted some guy (NOT Sean), who claimed to have 20 years of experience laying tiles, to replace the tiles in my entrance, dining area, and kitchen. Overall it was a 220 sqr foot job. The guy assessed and said he could do it and that he had done far more complicated projects than this one. I was convinced by his track record and low price and I went with him.
On the 2nd day I noticed that some tiles were laid unevenly. When I inquired about that, the guy simply said that the floor was uneven, and therefore, the tile couldn't be laid evenly. When I asked if there was something we could do about it, like putting more/less thinset to compensate for that, the guy said that if he puts more thinset, he would end up higher than the floor in the living room, which would require a reducer. I then asked him why wasn't he using a level when laying the tiles, and he said he was going by the floor. Oh wait, didn't we just say the floor wasn't level? Long story short, I had to stop the guy until I consult with some more people to see how we can remedy/mitigate/improve the situation, because as you know, once the tile is laid and the thinset is cured, you will have to break it to remove it (More time & cost for me so no thank you).
Anyway, my intention in this little intro is not to rant and rave on another guy's work, but to contrast it with Sean's. And now, since I have him in the picture, the review on HIM and HIS work can start.
Shortly after I fired the first guy, I gave Sean a call and asked him to come over and give me an estimate for a 220 sqr ft. job. I didn't tell him the job has already been started, that it was *not to my liking*, and that he was to jump in to fix somebody else's sub-par work and finish it up like a champ! I didn't because I was afraid I'd get a NO over the phone. In retrospect, I know he would have come anyway!
He came the day after to assess the situation. From the get-go, I could see Sean was a pro. He knew his stuff very well. He checked the floor and explained why the other guy's work went astray, what were the pitfalls and mistakes made, and what should have been done to avoid them. Finally, he suggested solutions and gave a time frame and a fair price to complete the job. It's worth noting this job wasn't a cake walk, for one reason, since he had to remove tiles that already been laid to correct the lippage. Another reason is because it was a staggered 12 x 24 job, which is prone to lippage and known to require expertise and high level of workmanship. We closed on a price and a starting date.
Sean showed up at my place as scheduled and started work. He worked with a level and with tile leveling system that eliminates lippage. He didn't give me excuses but reasons, he wasn't succinct or repetitive in his answers but descriptive and compelling, and most importantly, he was receptive to my feedback and worked with me when I raised issues or suggested alternatives. Overall, the scope of the work creeped slightly and Sean spent few more hours on the project. We agreed beforehand on how these hours were to be billed so everything was clear and on the table right off the bat. I was very happy with the result at the end. Sean was able to rectify the situation and complete the job with as little lippage as possible, not to mention, the grout he picked for me meshed up beautifully with the tile.
So why four and not five starts? Four stars because the job wasn't clean. Yeah, I understand cutting and laying tile can be a one messy job, but the messiness was all over my place. To his defense, I should say that Sean cleaned up after him, but there was still a lot of dust and debris left after he finished his work. Another thing is communication. It was great at the beginning but towards the end, it kinda dwindled. I had to ask him a few times to send me the revised invoice after we were done. This could have been handled better and quicker on his part. Lastly, the estimate of the hours and materials was good but the difference between the estimate and the final cost wasn't small change. The reason comes from a good place though. Sean didn't try to make an extra buck on my back. Not at all. He just believed and was hoping to finish it up in that time frame, but as it is always the case, things come up so we had to reevaluate.
Brownies: Sean covered a crack I had in my foundation before laying the tile, and he did it for free!!! (First guy just shrugged and said he won't be held responsible in the future).
If you read it thru down to here or just skipped, here is the recap. Sean is a real Tile Pro. He is knowledgeable, resourceful, flexible, and Very Fair. I highly recommend using him, just make sure you ask him to communicate thru and keep it clean during and after! read more