Caggiano Construction

I would like to respond to the statements made by [redacted] in a complaint filed 9/26/16.I met with **. and [redacted] prior to submitting a proposal to renovate their bathroom. I submitted a proposal which [redacted] signed on 11/21/15. The signed proposal was to gut the master bath...

down to studs, frame shower, install new sheet rock, tile shower walls, seat and floor; install heated floor with digital thermostat, tile floor, install cabinets, mirrors, 6 high hats and an exhaust fan. A copy of the Signed contract is attached which further details the work discussed and provided.After demolition I suggested adding a closet since the tub was to be removed and we had the additional space. We framed the shower and closet and as we were working on the shower [redacted] decided she wanted to add a tub (which was not discussed in the contract). framed the tub platform, installed tub, new plumbing and new fixtures at no additional cost. I also installed tile backsplash around the entire tub platform, the wall behind the tub, installed chandelier above the tub, removed door and Wall going into toilet area all at no additional labor cost to the homeowners, All materials were paid directly by the homeowners.Upon completion of the project the homeowners were very satisfied with the work and made the final payment during the first week of April 2016. Three days later received a call from [redacted] stating that there was a swirl within a few tiles across the bathroom floor. At this time the bathroom was completely useable (and clients admitted to using the shower and bath on two separate occasions) and all tiles were intact with absolutely no evidence of loosening. The following day my subcontractor Mr. David L[redacted] and I visited the home and inspected the bathroom and tile work. The swirl could only be seen throughout a few floor tiles when lying on floor and looking on an angle with the bathroom lights and sun reflecting on floor. When standing the swirl could not be seen (swirl is also not visible in photos). explained to [redacted] that this may be a defect within the tile because it was not on all tiles-just a select few throughout the floor. Since the swirl could not be felt I reached out directly to [redacted] in Montgomeryville PA and spoke with [redacted] went out to the homeowner's home and stated since the tile was perfectly smooth with no scratches he was not certain what could have caused this. [redacted] then reached out to their corporate manager and was waiting for a response. I personally spoke with the corporate manager and he stated the tile was not defective and he was looking into possible routes to identify the issue and how this could be corrected. I followed up throughout the week and was only advised they were looking into the issue and would get back to me and the homeowners as soon as possible.Upon waiting for the corporate manager from [redacted] to investigate, **. [redacted] and kept in contact daily. explained that was working with corporate and I would let him know if corporate stated this was tile defect and how they were willing to rectify this situation. The homeowners were still using the shower and bath during this time. Before I had a resolution with [redacted], **. [redacted] contacted a tile restoration company (without my knowledge) on May 24, 2016 to sand down and polish the floor tiles. Both homeowners were then satisfied with the work after sanding and polishing was complete and swirl was no longer visible. Bathroom continued to be used and clients were happy with the work of both Caggiano Construction and the tile restoration company.**. [redacted] reached out to me upon completion of the tile restoration stating he wanted me to pay the S1,500 it cost to resurface the tile. I explained that the issue was not within the installation of the tile by Caggiano Construction rather the actual tile purchased from the manufacture which is why I contacted [redacted]s corporate Center and was waiting for a response from them.**. [redacted] then contacted me on June 3rd 2016 stating that the grout within the floor tile was cracking and the tiles were shifting and moving. I explained that the heavy duty restoration machine device was used before the grout and thinset was fully cured upon the [redacted] heated flooring system. I visited the home and I could clearly see the tiles had shifted where the large heavy machine had been run-tiles upon the outskirts and walls were fine since a handheld machine had been used upon tub area, shower walls, toilet area-simply to polish all tiles to look the same (swirls were only upon floor tiles). The damaged tiles only occurred where the large tile restoration machine was used. This machine is extremely heavy, used with force from the operator and heavyweights to keep device stable and not bouncing while operating.Caggiano Construction is only responsible for labor- homeowners purchase all materials separately and install. The contract with **. [redacted] signed 11/21/15 states I am only responsible for labor and materials are to be provided by the homeowner. In my opinion the heavy machinery used by the tile restoration company on top of the plastic honeycomb [redacted] heated flooring system (photo enclosed) was too heavy and abrasive for the tiles and caused the loosening of the grout and thin set causing the tiles to lift. The addition of the heated flooring being left on for the weekend (detailed below) caused an unnatural drying process of the tile and thin set. The combination of the heated flooring being turned on prior to grouting or tile completion (and left on for the Weekend) and the heavy resurfacing machine loosened the grip of the thin set to the tile causing the tiles to loosen then lift.I have several issues with the complaints made by the homeowners:The heated floor was turned on by homeowners on Friday after we installed the tile and floor was not grouted yet (prior to final payment). Homeowners were advised we needed to allow the thinset to dry before grouting and they could not walk on the floor. I received a phone call Sunday afternoon from **. [redacted] stated that the heated floor had been turned on and he was notable to turn it off. I explained that each system was different and I was away for the weekend-the best bet was to read the instructions left within the bathroom vanity drawer. I visited the home on Monday and the heated floor was still on. I was able to turn the device off immediately and we grouted the tile as planned. In my opinion the heated floor was turned on entirely too soon-the-floor was not even grouted yet and homeowners were advised not to walk on the floor, in 100% certainty can say myself or my subcontractors did turn or the heated footing system.I am attaching documentation stating that natural stone tiles may have “faint cloudy spots visible when viewing ties from different angles and in certain lighting conditions due to swirl like marks from the 'manufactures' polishing process.Once corporate was notified that the tile restoration company had used heavy machinery to restore the tile they stated all tile manufacture warranties were voided, the homeowners agreed the bathroom was beautiful; the shower, bath, vanity at worked correctly and there were no issues with the title other than the faint swirl pattern in a few tiles visible under certain light. The homeowners hired a private company to sand down and polish the tiles too soon for [redacted] deliver a solution and too soon for the tiles to have a chance to cure property.I never lost communication with the homeowners. We were on the path of working with corporate from [redacted] which may have held a warranty on the tiles however **. and [redacted] were premature in contacting the tile restoration company and if they had made me aware of the tile resurfacing I would have told them to wait until we have a resolution from [redacted]s Corporate department.I returned to the home and I laid tiles where the ones had lifted off.  I sanded down the original thinset, re-applied a thin layer of thinset and the tiles gripped properly, however it was 1/16" higher than the other tiles. When I realized that the tiles had successfully gripped to the thinset and floor I went back to the homeowners and told them that the tile would hold- however if you place the heavy machine on top of the tiles it would break the tiles loose again- which proves my company was not responsible for the tiles loosening this was at issue to be resolved by the tile restoration company they hired.Thank you for your time in reviewing this case. Please feet free to contact me with any additional questions.Vincent C

October 20, 2016Hello [redacted],Per our conversation, we are requesting that you please reopen the above referenced claim ID #[redacted], We were out of the country from October 5, 2016 - October 15, 2016 and had little to no access to email during this time.We are responding to Caggiano's Constructions response to our complaint. Mr. Caggiano's statement that we turned on the heated floor is absolutely FALSE. He turned on the heated floor, we did no such thing. His employee, Pete L....(cannot recall his last name) stated to me when he came to grout the floor that it was like a sauna in the bathroom. I asked Mr. Caggiano why the heated floor was left on over the weekend and to please turn down the temperature, he stated to me that the heated floor needed to be left on for 24 hours to make sure that it works before he could grout the tile. We not knowing any better did not think anything of it. Mr. Caggiano is 100% lying when he states that he did not turn on the heated floor. In his rebuttal he states that he turned off the heated floor and proceeded with grouting the tile as planned. (See Page 2, very end of paragraph) if he genuinely knew that this would have been a potential problem why would he proceed with grouting the tile??[redacted], ask yourself why a homeowner would turn on a heated floor that could not even be walked on. We can assure that we never entered the bathroom until it was completely finished. Fortunately we have another full bathroom in our home and that is what we used during the entire time that Mr. Caggiano was in our home working on our master bath.Mr, Caggiano's fabrications are audacious and even contradictory if you re read his response letter. This is the first we hear of him saying that due to the heated floor being left on is what caused the problem. He knew all aiong and just kept stringing us along buying himself time. We have had 4-5 contractors and floor specialists come to our home and they have all told us that this is likely what happened. That is unless the subfloor was put on wrong and that we will not know until the repair job gets underway. Please note that other issues were also identified by every contractor that has been to our home and we haven't even brought up any of that. He knows it was due to his incompetence that we are now left to deal with so many headaches.The entire time Mr. Caggiano has blamed [redacted] for cheap material, then he blamed the [redacted], (which addressed our problem approximately 45 days after floor was grouted, giving it more than enough time to cure), and now he is falsely accusing us of having turned on the heated floor. He refuses to assume responsibility for anything. Every time there was an issue with this job it was always someone else's fault,In sum, he was informed that a [redacted] was coming to refinish the floor and he was made aware that he was to be responsible for the cost of the polishing of the grout haze that was left on the marble which he did not remove properly after he tried to buff it out. Why? Because he used a sanded bag of grout which should not have been used. Please note that he went to [redacted] and picked that bag up himself.After he was informed by [redacted]'s corporate headquarters that it was not defective tile it was due to his workmanship he then agreed to repay us for the cost of the marble restoration. Then he reneged and said he couldn't pay for it and asked us if he could pay off the debt by doing work on our other bathroom to pay off his debt. There was no way we were going to let him do anything else in our home after the way he handled things.You replied to Caggiano's Construction that there are always two sides to a story, agree and would like to add the following...And then there is the truth. This fetter should clear the true facts of what actually transpired. ask that you reread our original complaint and reread his rebuttal carefully.We thank you in advance [redacted] for reopening and reviewing this case. Should you need any further clarification on this case please feel free to contact us.

Review: Kitchen, powder room, and hallway remodeling project done incorrectly.

Flooring, cabinets, trim, dishwasher, and plumbing installed incorrectly resulting in having to tear out installation and reinstall correctly.

Contractor rushed to put cabinets in to get paid and did poor installation work.

Base cabinets and dishwasher should have been installed on top of tile floor and not directly on subfloor.

Cement board under tiles should have thinset underneath. Instead, contractor used glue. This is a risk for floor tiles cracking.

Counter tops ended up too low and backsplash looked terrible because of all the necessary cuts.

Dishwasher can not be removed/replaced without breaking tile, taking granite off or damaging cabinets.

Hung cabinets not even with one section 1/4" lower that the other making the backsplash look terrible.

Another hung cabinet not installed correctly making the door inoperable.

There is also a considerable amount of risk to the granite tops and cabinets by taking them out and reinstalling them.

Spoke with the vendor on many occasions asking them to fix these issues and they would not.

Repair will cost a lot more money and the project is now delayed.

My son has respiratory issues and this project was to be completed while my family was traveling and it's not finished. Now we have a mess.Desired Settlement: I would like the vendor to pay for the labor and materials for someone else to complete the project correctly.

I do not want this vendor to do the work.

Business

Response:

Dear [redacted] I Am sending you the pictures that you requested, And I am explaining what happen on this job. Started the Kitchen remodel job July 07,2014 Was promised a finish date of July 31,2014 Gutted the existing powder room and kitchen throughout. It was time to install flooring and customer bought the wrong material for the flooring so had to be returned and repurchase tile flooring. Cabinets were delivered and discussed the height of the cabinets with [redacted] because he wanted enough room for a juicer machine to fit under the counter for easy access because the builder of the property installed the old cabinets at 15 inches and as discussed with homeowner that if the tile was not installed under the cabinets that would give him another half inch under the counter and he asked me can we do that and told him its done every day because if cabinets were already there and if we just were installing a new tile floor for him we would be doing the new floor right up against the cabinet and he said that great let's do that and gained the half inch, moved forward on installing the granite as planed [redacted] did not say anything more about the half inch. As planed we installed the back splash tile under counter lighting then as planed installed wonder board on plywood sub floor with a bad hump in sub floor and my laborers fixed at no extra charge. Tiled the floor and grouted it, then on July 25th told him was going away for the weekend and my trim guy would be in on the 26th of July. received a phone call on the 26th from [redacted] telling me everything looked great and he was pleased. I told him I would be there on the 28" to install faucet and sink and he said fine and you mad the dead line two days early. I received a text message from [redacted] telling me that he wants me to come a gut the hole kitchen and said you are kidding me, I said why it looks great he said looks mean nothing counters need to be at 36 inch high and you are at 35 and a half. And I said we discussed that before the fiooring was installed he told me the half inch would put stress on my back when I am using the counter top and it would interfere with the sale of the house in the future and would not be able to get the dishwasher out if he had to replace it in the future, told him that was not true and I would pull it out now to show it can be pulled out with no problem, and why wouldn’t you say something way before all of the work was done when we could have corrected it back then when it was easy to do. He still insisted the kitchen be torn out and redone at my expense, I told him there was no reason to do that when it looks fine, then said I will give ten year warranty and leave the kitchen as is, And he said no he didn't understand the half inch and I said you are professor in engineering at [redacted] University. I tried to talk to him for an hour because he is a neighbor that lives across the street from me, he said this is not personal it is business. I am also faxing over the contract and you can see the list of free things did for him and I could have made that in extras but I did not tried everything to rectify this situation because we are neighbors.Thank You Vince C