The Bulldog Landscaping

Tell us why here...Dear Mr ***, Thank you for giving us the opportunity to respond to Mr [redacted] concerns We are sorry that Mr ***was unhappy with our product We alsoapologize for the delayed response.We disagree with his assessment of the lawn not being putinto industry standards Over the courseof the last seasons, we have sod installations where the same steps werefollowed with great successThis being said we as a company would be willing to offer Mr [redacted] $1,refundWe value Mr ***’s business and appreciate his understandingin resolving this matter

This is the email we sent directly to *** *** on 8/18Mr ***, Our companydisagree with you that the sod was not installed to industry standards Wehave done numerous sod installs with the same system and had very good results. We would behappy to meet at your home to discuss but at
no point would we be installing anew lawn without compensation. By your own admission you walked on and lifted areas of sodany and all areas of the sod install after we had laid it(from our contract: “Contractor cannot acceptresponsibility for settling due to new construction, utility lines or any otherexcavations not performed by or supervised by Contractor”) We as a company have installed numerous sod jobs with noissues of unevenness or lumps using the same process used at *** *** ** .The difference isthat the other jobs were left undisturbed by the customer to make a symbioticjoining without lifting edges or foot traffic. We have spent ***e and company money (rentals andlabor) trying to help you outAlso correcting settling of dirt and mulch,replacing perennials which by contract we are not responsible for, andreplacing irrigation heads that were not damaged during install When installing lawn we install over the rough grade thatwas completed by customer or another contractor, (It is the responsibility of the customer to ensure thatrough grades have been established according to municipal drainage plans andwithin 2” of finished grade) Referencesfrom agreement, 1.Contractor cannot accept responsibility for settling due to new construction,utility lines or any other excavations not performed by or supervised byContractor It isthe responsibility of the customer to ensure that rough grades have beenestablished according to municipal drainage plans and within 2” of finishedgrade Thank you,***

We are in communication with Mr *** and will be sending the refund shortly

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory, provided the refund is receivedHowever, let it be known that the resolution was initially accepted on 9/14/and the business has still not refunded any moneyI contacted the company over a week ago and all I was told was that they will provide the refundWhen, no one knowsThis complaint should not be considered resolved satisfactory until the company has made good on their promise and the Revdex.com receives confirmation that the complaint has been resolved
Regards,
*** ***

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Mr. [redacted] states they followed local industry standards yet he fails to address why the side property line zigs and zags. This is not an industry standard practice. Mr. [redacted] also cites 2 areas of the contract yet he fails to address the point directly. First, he states that by my own admission I caused the unevenness by walking on the newly laid sod. He obviously failed to read my response as I never stated I walked on the sod. He made an assumption. Furthermore, he fails to address the issue I raised stating that there was to be 2 inches of the top soil and that this was not provided. I have video showing that I measured without walking on the sod and that the measured soil was inconsistent and no where near 2 inches contracted for. The contract clearly states 2 inches is to be installed. I can clearly prove that 2 inches was not provided evenly. Mr. [redacted] only has responses, albeit incorrect ones, that place the blame on me and he never addresses why there are areas that are not 2 inches. Had he actually visited the property, which I do not believe he ever has, he would see that the unevenness could not have resulted from walking on it anyway.He goes on to state that the contractor is not responsible for settling. He cites the contract as : 1. Contractor cannot accept responsibility for settling due to new construction, utility lines or any other excavations not performed by or supervised by Contractor. He fails to mention that the areas that settled are excavation areas that his company performed and supervised. His citation actually supports my case but he would not know what areas settled since he did not personally supervise the job or take an active on-site role. Again, he was not present.He further cites: 2. It is the responsibility of the customer to ensure that rough grades have been established according to municipal drainage plans and within 2” of finished grade. This citation also supports my claim. The initial rough grade was established. The written contract, states: 5. Install sod and Scrape existing dirt and replace with 2 inches of top soil. His company scraped the rough graded yard and therefore was responsible for regrading to proper grades. I did not write the contract and Mr. [redacted] does not want to accept any responsibility for the obvious deficiencies. He has no interest in performing any corrective measures without further compensation.This is not an ethical or moral position that any reputable company would take. I have no faith that Mr. [redacted] wants to accept any responsibility. His assertions and citations are illogical and misdirected.I responded to Mr. [redacted] as follows:Mr. [redacted],Let me start by correcting you on one point. I never stated that I walked across the newly laid sod. I stated I lifted a section of sod, yes, but I always stood on an area where no sod or top soil was placed. This was done in the back yard before it was finished and I have video to prove where I was and what little area I disturbed. In fact, my video shows that I replaced the sod to the same standards as it was originally placed.Second, the rough grade was established before your crew arrived and then it was scraped and regraded by your crew, the scraped soil being used to make the berms and the rest being hauled off. The contract states: 5. Install sod and Scrape existing dirt and replace with 2 inches of top soil. Your company took on the responsibility for the grade once it was disturbed by your equipment. Laying the top soil down unevenly is what created the high and low areas as well as the negative grade area. I cannot be responsible for reestablishing the rough grade if your crew scraped the soil from various areas upsetting the initial grade.Third, The settling of areas all relate to the irrigation system your company installed. This was not settling areas from the house construction. I even questioned [redacted] as to how he intended to prevent the irrigation trenches from settling and all he had to show me was a hand tamping tool. I believe filling in the trenched areas, mounding the trenches, and watering the area over several days would have solved the problem. Rushing to get everything completed created most of the issues I have seen. Since I did not walk on the newly laid sod and I only lifted a few pieces of sod, how can the rest of the lawn unevenness be explained? In fact, some of my measuring occurred during the actual raking of the soil which led me to instruct your crew that they were not establishing the 2 inches contracted for. Fourth, You are correct in that some perennials were replaced. Most of those died immediately due to the fact that the planting beds were flooded from the rain water running back towards them due to the negative grade, again, a grade created by your crew. The job was completed November 4, 2014. I communicated to [redacted] November 6, 2014 of the issue and he stated he would address installation issues in the following Spring. [redacted] even acknowledged there was unevenness and that he would address that in the Spring as well. While he attempted to solve the unevenness by rolling it, the soil preparation under the sod prevents the issue from being fixed. I have a complete history of my text communications with [redacted] acknowledging these issues during and after installation.Fifth, As for the sprinkler heads, I will concede that they could have been my responsibility. However, I also believe they should have been checked after your crew ran an aerator over the yard and then a riding roller. It was after such activity that I noticed the issues and notified [redacted]. Your crew never checked for issues after working on the system or around the system until the very end, when I suggested it get checked.Sixth, Is it local industry practice to have the sod along the property lines zig and zag from front to back? Did you observe the picture I attached?It is and has always been my contention that the yard is not as promised. Multiple landscaping companies agree that this is one of the worst yards they have seen and that they would have redone the yard had they performed the initial work. I would have thought your company would want to back up your work and build a positive reputation. If this is the case, then by all means, lets meet and perhaps you can explain how the high and low spots and negative grade occurred as I have not received any response from you as to how this occurred other than your belief that I caused the issue myself. If you came to my property, I believe you will agree that at some point this project took a turn for the worse and should have stopped so that the final product would be something that both Bulldog and I could be proud of.
Regards,
[redacted]

Tell us why here...Dear Mr [redacted], Thank you for giving us the opportunity to respond to Mr[redacted] concerns.  We are sorry that Mr [redacted]was unhappy with our product.  We alsoapologize for the delayed response.We disagree with his assessment of the lawn not being putinto industry standards.  Over the courseof the last 2 seasons, we have 22 sod installations where the same steps werefollowed with great success. This being said we as a company would be willing to offer Mr[redacted] $1,000 refund. We value Mr [redacted]’s business and appreciate his understandingin resolving this matter.

Review: I contracted to have a new yard installed. Other than some basic grading issues, my lawn has considerable high and low spots in extremely close proximity to each other. Some refer to this as uneven lawn. The reason for the unevenness, which I was assured would not exist and when it did that it would be fixed through rolling multiple [redacted]es, is due to improper preparation of the soil.

My contract called for 2 inches of soil. When the soil was delivered it was dispersed with hand rakes in small areas at a [redacted]e with little to know regard to the depth. Once a small area was covered, perhaps a 10’ x 10’ area, the sod was put directly on top and then the next adjoining small area was treated in the same manner. I personally had to explain to the workers that they were to ensure that two inches was required throughout yet no one went back to correct the already laid areas. I have video showing that within the same area under one piece of sod, the soil had as much as a 1 1/2 inch variance. This is the reason for the unevenness. The workers had no way of measuring to ensure that the 2 inch contracted amount was adhered to and they continued spreading the soil at whatever rate and depth they deemed to be good enough. This cannot and did not result in an industry approved practice.

My contract also states that lawns are installed according to local industry practices. I have not found a landscaping company that is familiar with installing a yard in the manner in which my lawn was installed. What I have found is that once the topsoil is dispersed, a lightly water filled hand roller is to be used to roll over the soil revealing the low spots, which are then to be filled and leveled. Sod company web sites list these basic instructions as do numerous other Landscaping and sod experts. This includes the application of a starter fertilizer either between the soil and sod or immediately on the sod. Neither was done even though [redacted] told me he would be applying the fertilizer.

In addition, my side yard has no definitive boundary between my property and my neighbor. Sod was laid continually over my property line and onto my neighbors in a manner with total disregard for drainage, appearance, and local industry practices.

Lastly, the garage side of my front side yard was not even close to being finish graded to within the industry standard. The sod is a good 2 inches below the level of the driveway nearest the garage and slowly proceeds to go above the driveway as it reaches the road.

I contacted [redacted] with the above information. He stated he would come up with a solution and get back to me by Friday. He contacted me again stating he needed more [redacted]e. I stated okay and 3 days later responded by asking when I could expect his proposal and that I needed it by the next day. I have not heard from him since so I have decided to file a formal complaint here with the Revdex.com and now seek a refund.Desired Settlement: Initially I was seeking correction in the way of having the yard redone properly, per local industry practices. Since I do not believe The Bulldog Landscaping Company has any intention of coming up with a satisfactory proposal, or any proposal at all, I am seeking a refund of at least $5,000.

Business

Response:

This is the email we sent directly to [redacted] on 8/18Mr [redacted], Our companydisagree with you that the sod was not installed to industry standards. Wehave done numerous sod installs with the same system and had very good results. We would behappy to meet at your home to discuss but at no point would we be installing anew lawn without compensation. By your own admission you walked on and lifted areas of sodany and all areas of the sod install after we had laid it(from our contract: 1. “Contractor cannot acceptresponsibility for settling due to new construction, utility lines or any otherexcavations not performed by or supervised by Contractor”) We as a company have installed numerous sod jobs with noissues of unevenness or lumps using the same process used at [redacted] .The difference isthat the other jobs were left undisturbed by the customer to make a symbioticjoining without lifting edges or foot traffic. We have spent [redacted]e and company money (rentals andlabor) trying to help you out. Also correcting settling of dirt and mulch,replacing perennials which by contract we are not responsible for, andreplacing irrigation heads that were not damaged during install. When installing lawn we install over the rough grade thatwas completed by customer or another contractor, (2. It is the responsibility of the customer to ensure thatrough grades have been established according to municipal drainage plans andwithin 2” of finished grade. ) Referencesfrom agreement, 1.Contractor cannot accept responsibility for settling due to new construction,utility lines or any other excavations not performed by or supervised byContractor 2. It isthe responsibility of the customer to ensure that rough grades have beenestablished according to municipal drainage plans and within 2” of finishedgrade. Thank you,[redacted]

Consumer

Response: