J & B WEST ENTERPRISES, LLC

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/09/20) */
Good morning [redacted]
Please see the following as our response to the customer complaint we received on 9/13/16 for Case #XXXXXXXX.
First we would like to address the initial statement that we “improperly installed roofing materials”. I...

have attached our contract for the work we were hired to do. We are Platinum Preferred Roofing Contractor with Owens Corning and our installations pass [redacted] strict inspection guidelines. We are in their top installer tier in the country. There is no evidence that we improperly installed any roofing materials on their roof. To the contrary, we properly installed every product included in their contract with skilled workmanship.
Next, we aim to address the claim of a “failure to properly vent attic”. We removed three box vents and installed one continuous ridge vent to allow for an improved exhaust ventilation through the top of their roof. This is the correct method of exhaust ventilation for their roof. We then installed baffles in the attic cavity to properly allow air intake through their existing vented aluminum soffit that another contractor had installed. Vented aluminum soffit is a proper air intake source and we felt that their existing soffit was more than sufficient to work with the other aspects of the ventilation system we were replacing.
Per the terms of the contract, we installed additional insulation to allow their home to meet the regionally recommended amount. Bringing their insulation up to standard was one of the many ways in which we aimed to improve their attic ventilation through proper management of air flow.
The sheeting on the house roof did have mold on the attic side. Additionally, we removed two layers of decking installed by another contractor. We disposed of both layers that had contact with the mold. This resulted in twice the work for our crew but we did not charge the customer, as we do our best to provide a generous “extra” for every customer in appreciation for their business.
We completed the work in the spring of 2014 and were pleased to be under the impression that we had resolved all their issues. As an additional favor, we allowed them to make small monthly payments without added interest for quite some time. Our normal terms are payment in full by time of project completion.
As stated in the complaint, we received a phone call about a potential leak after some time. As is our typical procedure, we promptly send a skilled installer out to troubleshoot the issue and address it if it is indeed the result of our workmanship. Often times the issues are caused by something else in the home, but we always do our best to fix the problem for the homeowner since we are already on site as a favor. This was true with this call. Our inspection showed that at some point, by someone else, their bathroom vent had been improperly installed. This allowed moisture to condensate and collect at the base, appearing as a water leak. We did not charge for our time and routed it out so that it would no longer cause this issue.
While on site, our installer did a thorough inspection to see how our roof was performing. Mold was found on the underside of the decking and immediately a much more detailed inspection was performed. The only part of the system that hadn’t been replaced by our company was the soffit system, so we suggested it could possibly be the source of the issue since the insulation, baffles and ridge vent were all properly placed and fully functional. As stated above, the existing vented soffit looked fine upon our original inspection. This newfound indication of moisture, however, raised questions about a potentially hidden problem created by a past contractor. The customer did not believe the soffit was the cause of improper ventilation which had allowed the mold growth. Therefore, no further action was allowed in an attempt to address it.
We received another repair call at a later date once the customer may have begun to realize that the soffits were the issue. We promptly sent a representative out to continue troubleshooting now that we had received their permission. What we found was very poor workmanship by someone in the past and the cause of the air intake blockage. It was hidden from everyone’s view until we were allowed to begin removing material to diagnose it. Underneath their vented aluminum soffit, which would have been a perfect source of air intake, was solid wood soffit that had never been removed. Therefore, solid wood underneath the vented soffit prevented any air intake at all, successfully cancelling out our attempts to provide a proper ventilation system on their home.
We promptly put together an estimate for the customer to detach and reset gutters, remove all wood soffit and install new vented soffit and all new fascia at cost (no profit or overhead included). Our goal was to give them an affordable solution since we felt this work was necessary to prevent any additional deterioration of the new roof they had invested in and we had worked hard to install and warranty.
J & B West did not hear from them again, until recently when we began receiving multiple complaints on social media of poor workmanship. We feel our efforts went above and beyond to address the multiple issues that were not our own, nor were they evident at the time of our work in other trades on the home. We also helped them out in more ways than one since a good name and positive referral is priceless in our small town.
We feel we gave a prompt and correct response to the improper soffit intake issue once it had been revealed. The lack of action on the behalf of the customer to correct this over an extended period of time has allowed continued moisture retention and mold growth. If they continue to not address the problem caused by someone else, we agree they will need to replace their roof again or have a mold remediation company remove the mold. For J & B West to perform any additional remediation services to this customer, we need their authorization to fix the problem in the form of a signed contract to replace their bad soffit. Until either we or another contractor are allowed to fix the actual problem, their desired resolution of money for a new roof is not effective nor fair.
Please contact us if we may be of any further assistance to help this customer with their issue. We would like to reach a resolution and common understanding so as to cease the unwarranted negative reviews on our company.
Sincerely,
The J & B West Management Team
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2016/09/21) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
We had no other contractor install a bath fan. It's our understanding that it's supposed to be vented out the roof. Said vent never got installed when they re installed the new roof. By having the bath fan vented into the attic this creates moisture into the attic which would then create mold. Also no one else installed soffit this is the same soffit system prior to JB West installing the new roof and sheeting. There are vents in the soffit but the baffles they installed in the attic don't line up with them so when they blew in the insulation they became plugged. Again if we needed to add ventilation JB West should've informed us then. Not a year later after there is again mold in our attic which is the initial reason for replacing the roof. JB West at the time of insulation assured us we wouldn't have any further issues.
Even his own expert that came out told he he didn't know why they didn't install the roof vent for the bath exhaust fan. We don't feel confident in them to perform the job correctly and have to have the roof re done due to the mold and are asking for a refund to get our house mold free once and for all.
Sincerely, J [redacted]
Final Business Response /* (4000, 10, 2016/10/21) */
1st topic- bath vent- as joy states she had no other contractor install a bath vent. simple answer is that there never was a bath vent hooked to the exhaust hose.-the bath vent is in no way part of the roofing system therefore the bath vent would not be part of the contract. As a courtesy we addressed the issue. ( if the bath vent was correctly vented through the roof prior to the new roof installation it would remain but it wasnt) As far as mold is concerned we have seen hundreds if not thousands of bath vents venting into attics- if an attic is properly vented this could only result in a small mold spot near the end of the hose as the majority of the moisture would be evacuated through the attic ventilation system.
2nd topic-Soffit system- As joy mentioned and I quote "Also no one else installed soffit this is the same soffit system prior to JB West installing the new roof and sheeting." When joy refers to the same soffit system prior to our work she is correct. This is the same vented soffit system that appears to be vented correctly because it is vented soffit. The important part here is this-There is solid wood soffit under the aluminum vented soffit that cannot be seen. This is the culprit for no intake ventilation which has been thoroughly explained to the meeces. We physically went to the property and removed some of the aluminum soffit so they could see and understand exactly what we were trying to explain. They than understood the underlying issues and were given a quote for corrective action.
3rd topic- Alignment of baffels- there is no such alignment. Roof rafter cavities are either aligned on a 16 in or 24 in spacing. the aluminum center vent soffit is aligned on a 12 in center placing a vent every 12 in. The exact alignment of airflow is not the important part. The important part is that both pieces of the intake ventilation are present and sufficient. Meaning air can enter the soffit and continue through the baffle into the attic. You do not need a straight line of sight to create a draft which is what the attic ventilation system boils down to. Again the culprit is the solid wood soffit not allowing air to get to the baffles.
4th topic- We should have informed joy that her intake ventilation was covered by wood soffit- How can we inform joy of something that is not visible?
Conclusion- Both main topics of the bath vent and improper soffit have both been identified in the response above by the homeowner as PREEXISTING CONDITIONS and were not part of our contract.
WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN- joy needs to hire a contractor to remove gutters, aluminum soffit, aluminum fascia and blocking wood soffit. Than install new centervent soffit, fascia and rehang gutter on eave ends of home. ( we provided a quote for this work) Than she can call a local mold remediation company and have the mold removed from the attic cavity. The mold hasnt been there all that long and can be removed. The roof and roof sheathing does not need to be replaced at this time. If joy waits several years to do this her roof sheathing will again delaminate from the moisture content and need to be replaced.
J & B West
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 12, 2016/10/26) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The condition is not pre-exhisting. J & B West did send an employee out to remove a 12" X 12" section of soffit off corner of house and that was the only section they removed and then sent us a quote.
We contacted another contractor for a second opinion and upon removal of the soffit they revealed there was indeed vents under aluminion soffit. As you can see in the pictures the vents were clogged with insulation blown in by J & B West.
As J & B West stated baffles are to be installed every 16" to 24"in. In our home the baffles that J & B West installed were not done that way. That is how the insulation got to the vent because there was no baffle to deflect it when they blew in the insulation.
We do not wish to devalue our home and leave mold in it when we paid fornew sheeting and shingles and the mold was not caused by anything we had done.
We attached copies of the conract and ventalation and insulation is indeed in the contract.
So we feel that they owe us a refund.
Sincerely,
[redacted] and [redacted]