Chestnut Flooring

CONSUMER BEWARE
- GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING: Paying the final balance the owner claimed to have missed charging for something and was surprised that I have kept and brought along a copy of his own estimate with his own hand writing.
- HAVE A WITNESS: If you’re negotiating bring a friend as a witness or risk divergence by Chestnut Flooring if and when problems arise. (Read review bellow regarding the under-layer, agreeing to use the same under-layer initially and denying it later when he could not find a proper glue)
- BEWARE OF FRIENDLY OFFERS: Do not accept friendly offers of getting at least one item or service from another source in order to save. They use this excuse to void their warranty in case a problem arises. (Read review bellow under “A LOATHSOME OFFER“)
- DO NOT EXPECT SERVICE: Expect your phone calls to be ignored; delayed and rushed service especially if you’re a small customer of Chestnut Flooring.

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WRONG TIME ESTIMATE:
On Feb 2015 we were introduces to Chestnut flooring by a friend. I brought a cut piece of my old flooring to the owner Nemo during initial consultation to estimate the time needed for removal and installation. He also came to my condo to inspect the old flooring and measure the area.
His time estimate: 2 days for removal & 2 days for installation. Actual time took: 2 weeks.
It is impossible to remove a glued down floor of a 700sqft area in 2 days if a typical 2 men crew were assigned to the task. Since the estimate was way off and it took much longer than expected and the fact that he lined up contracts one after the other with not even a day gap in between in case of delays, he called me in the middle of my contract asking if he can send his installers to another place for 2 days because he promised the same to the other customer.

ILL-EQUIPPED INSTALLERS:
The installers tried their best and worked hard to remove the old flooring but they were ill-equipped and the owner felt no obligation to provide them with necessities because they are not Chestnut flooring employees, rather general contractors working for the company according to what the installers have mentioned.

A LOATHSOME OFFER
The under-layer requirement of our condo is to have a material other than cork with an IIC of 70 or greater. I requested the same from the owner Nemo. In the first meeting he could not find his own sample of such material which he found on the subsequent meeting. He called the underlayment company acquiring the price; next he called me and offered me to buy it directly from them saying that I could save a lot by doing so.
On April 06, 2015 right in the middle of installation the owner called stating that he cannot warrant his work because he cannot find proper glue for this under-layer that in his word “YOU BOUGHT” and the fact that I took his offer to purchase the under-layer myself is an excuse for him to void his warranty. It is the obligation of any professional and honest firm to be upfront with all the necessary information especially those which somehow affect the warranty, workmanship, quality or insurance. By withholding this information (that he could not find proper glue) till mid-work and the fact that no other company was willing to pick up his half done job, he is violating the consumer protection act generally stating that a consumer has the right to choose unconditionally.
Having had known that he could not find a proper glue in the initial consultation, I would have chosen another company who could; in fact, 3 of the previous companies that I have researched before carried the same under-layer and were willing to use it. Despite his argument, the very fact that he agreed to install the under-layer will not in reality void the warranty.

IMPROPER INSTALLATION
A week after the completion of the job, I’ve noticed gaps starting to appear between planks in more than 20 places, mostly around the area where the installers were rushed to finish the job on the last day.
Yet another misconduct was his miscommunication with his contractors to install the bedroom planks flush to the door railing. To amend, he ordered his contractors to install T-Moldings in order to hide the uneven ends and accepted to cover the cost himself. Even further errors were made upon installation of T-moldings by using two totally different types of material that does not match neither in color nor thickness. (Please refer to photos attached)

IMPROPER CONDUCT
I followed up with them for over 7 months to arrange a time in order to fix the gaps and the T-Molding and was purposely delayed using different excuses every time. On my final conversation with the owner on November 11, 2015 I insisted on a set date for them to correct their mistakes. The owner implied that he has no obligation to the matter, adding that nowhere is stated that the two adjacent T-Molding pieces of has to be the same.

CONCLUSION
I’ve learned dealing with Chestnut flooring that you should listen to cues. There were three cues that initially indicated, despite recommendations, that Chestnut flooring is not a professional company to deal with.
1- When on the initial meeting the owner Nemo insisted to only sell the hardwood and letting us to find our own installers saying “we really do not need more headaches” which I thought was odd because the other three companies that I’ve talked to prior to choosing Chestnut Flooring insisted on getting the installation from them.
2- When his time assessment was so far off that even surprized his own installers.
3- When on average it took over 5 phone calls for him to return your call.

Currently I have gaps on more than 70% of the area and two spots are showing signs of warping. On a personal note, I’m interested to inform others of my experience with Chestnut Flooring and help others to make a wise decision on a quite a costly investment. I would not recommend this company to anyone.

Ramin

Best experience I have ever had! Nemo and his staff explained every little detail to me and made sure I was well informed before I made a decision. Workers showed up on time were clean and respectful. I would definitely recommend them.

Since my negative review last week, Nemo (the Owner) reached out to me to apologize and try and explain what had gone wrong. My salesperson was making promises and deals that he could not deliver. That person is no longer employed there. Nemo went over and above making this right for me. He has a really nice showroom, lots of choice. John in the back was great too!! Will return for sure! Very poor customer service. Was in showroom, was told to check measurements and call in to place order, which I did and was told an incorrect price that they would not honour so I went ahead anyway and then drove 50 minutes to pick up promised hardwood and nosing that was to be ready last week and found out no nosing and could not get it for at least 10 days. I was told they could rush it in 24hrs a week ago. Manager really didn't care, offered me a refund and no apologies at all.

Mix up with the vanity, but Nemo explained the fault was with the distributor, I am very satisfied with the vanity I did get from Chestnut flooring. thank you again

Nemo provided unbelievable service and guidance. From the moment I stepped into his store, to the moment I stepped onto my new floor, the service was spectacular. John, their demolition/leveling guy, also provided exceptional service.

There were some hiccups with my condo/noise complaints, and John and Nemo figured out a solution, and still got the job done on time.

I will definitely be recommending them to anyone I know that is doing flooring in the future.

PERFECT from start to finish! From the moment we first talked to Don on the telephone we knew we were in great hands. He was knowledgeable, thorough, made excellent suggestions, and helped us in every way possible. We were lucky enough to meet Nemo (the owner) on our visit to the showroom. He, too, was amazing to work with. The installers arrived when expected, were respectful, personable, and did exceptional work. Saeed was a laminate installing expert, Amir ensured that cleanup was done to perfection, and Joe was a carpet-laying artist. We enthusiastically recommend Nemo, Don, and their team. Exceptional service, highest quality products, and outstanding workmanship.

Okey everything workout in the end... Nemo is a trusting professional business man who make good on his word... I would recommend Nemo to anyone who needed flooring.. Chestnut flooring is good in my books and the help out. It is also nice to know that Nemo helps support rescue animals.

thank you

Gary

Great work by the installers. The installers were on time. They did the work perfect. They were quick as well in their work. They were very careful with the furnitures, walls and base boards. They even arranged the old carpets well for waste collection. Overall it was a great service though we had to wait for almost a month to get the carpets delivered to the store. Moreover, it would be great if the store officials update about the status without follow up calls from customers.

They did an awesome job in assiting us with a replacement carpet for our upstairs. From color, to style to instalation. They really care about customer service and know their products. Have no hesitation in recommending