Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/07/13) */
The floor in question was properly acclimated for a duration of 15 days prior to install. Floating natural hardwood flooring has an allowance of plus or minus 10 degrees of the acclimation temperature in which it will not shrink and separate or...
expand and buckle. As per manufacturers regulations the flooring temperature must be kept between 60-80 degrees. The average temperature for the acclimation period, factoring the day highs and the night lows, was 71 degrees.
Throughout the project, the large gap in the front door (you could actually see objects outside, not just daylight) was brought to the homeowners attention several times.
End of October, the job was complete with no issues and the average temp was in the mid 50's. At that time, I mentioned the front door needed repaired or replaced before winter.
The average temperature at the end of November and early December was in the upper 30's. At that time, the homeowner mentioned minor separation. When I arrived to pick up the final payment December 10th, I adjusted the floor and re-locked the separated floor planks. At that time, the front door was still in the exact same state of disrepair. I once again stressed how urgent the repair was and pleaded that it be remedied before the temperature dropped further.
In the beginning of January, I was informed of major separation in the floor. The average temperature was now in the upper 20's. January 17th, the low was 8 degrees, the 18th, the low reached 5 degrees. On the 19th the low was 8 degrees and I was informed of even more separation.
On February 1st, I was notified that the flooring was now lifting and buckling. The temperature the day prior reached a high of 60 degrees.
If the temperature inside of the house was properly regulated, there wouldn't be a single issue with the flooring. If the cold air outside was not bellowing in and hovering over the floor, the separation would not directly correlate with the rapid drops in temperature the few days prior to each complaint.
On 1/11, 1/25, and 2/3, I mentioned the unacceptably large gap in the front door was the culprit of the issues with the flooring. On 2/3, homeowner stated he did not believe the draft would cause the separation. On 2/10, homeowner again stated disbelief in the draft causing the problem. On 4/9, homeowner threatened legal action and again reiterated that I am "blaming the minor draft" on the problems. On 4/14, I again explained in detail the root of the problem. On 6/13, homeowner claimed not to have received my response even though I replied in the same ongoing email conversation. The same day, I re-sent my 4/14 response. I then received a reply 6/13 that the weather-stripping was "replaced last fall" when I saw with my own eyes on December 10th that it had not been.
I explained why and how the gap in the front door was inarguably the cause on five separate occasions and the damage was a direct result of their negligence even after multiple warnings to repair. Not once did the homeowner mention that the door was repaired "in the fall". If it had actually been fixed, that would have been the first response to my undoubtedly accurate assessment of the situation. The claim was only made just prior to this formal complaint in an obvious attempt to hide guilt of their direct responsibility in the cause of the problem at hand.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/07/13) */
The floor in question was properly acclimated for a duration of 15 days prior to install. Floating natural hardwood flooring has an allowance of plus or minus 10 degrees of the acclimation temperature in which it will not shrink and separate or...
expand and buckle. As per manufacturers regulations the flooring temperature must be kept between 60-80 degrees. The average temperature for the acclimation period, factoring the day highs and the night lows, was 71 degrees.
Throughout the project, the large gap in the front door (you could actually see objects outside, not just daylight) was brought to the homeowners attention several times.
End of October, the job was complete with no issues and the average temp was in the mid 50's. At that time, I mentioned the front door needed repaired or replaced before winter.
The average temperature at the end of November and early December was in the upper 30's. At that time, the homeowner mentioned minor separation. When I arrived to pick up the final payment December 10th, I adjusted the floor and re-locked the separated floor planks. At that time, the front door was still in the exact same state of disrepair. I once again stressed how urgent the repair was and pleaded that it be remedied before the temperature dropped further.
In the beginning of January, I was informed of major separation in the floor. The average temperature was now in the upper 20's. January 17th, the low was 8 degrees, the 18th, the low reached 5 degrees. On the 19th the low was 8 degrees and I was informed of even more separation.
On February 1st, I was notified that the flooring was now lifting and buckling. The temperature the day prior reached a high of 60 degrees.
If the temperature inside of the house was properly regulated, there wouldn't be a single issue with the flooring. If the cold air outside was not bellowing in and hovering over the floor, the separation would not directly correlate with the rapid drops in temperature the few days prior to each complaint.
On 1/11, 1/25, and 2/3, I mentioned the unacceptably large gap in the front door was the culprit of the issues with the flooring. On 2/3, homeowner stated he did not believe the draft would cause the separation. On 2/10, homeowner again stated disbelief in the draft causing the problem. On 4/9, homeowner threatened legal action and again reiterated that I am "blaming the minor draft" on the problems. On 4/14, I again explained in detail the root of the problem. On 6/13, homeowner claimed not to have received my response even though I replied in the same ongoing email conversation. The same day, I re-sent my 4/14 response. I then received a reply 6/13 that the weather-stripping was "replaced last fall" when I saw with my own eyes on December 10th that it had not been.
I explained why and how the gap in the front door was inarguably the cause on five separate occasions and the damage was a direct result of their negligence even after multiple warnings to repair. Not once did the homeowner mention that the door was repaired "in the fall". If it had actually been fixed, that would have been the first response to my undoubtedly accurate assessment of the situation. The claim was only made just prior to this formal complaint in an obvious attempt to hide guilt of their direct responsibility in the cause of the problem at hand.