Albern Home Improvements

I am very satisfied with the products that were installed except for the front storm door. However, there are a number of concerns that I have.
I was told that installation would start after 6 weeks. It was more like 12 weeks before work began. The installer for the garage door did an excellent job but for the rest of the project I had another installer whom I didn't feel comfortable with. The drywall at the front entrance way was damaged when he was putting in the front entrance way. He did not own up to this and repair it. He didn't put all the screws in the side storm door frame. I indicated this to him and he corrected the problem. He also did not install the push buttons for the door chimes, a small but critical issue. The wires were just left coming out the side of the entrance ways. I went down to the company office and spoke to Paul Goddard about this issue and I also arranged a second contract in which I wanted my front bay window capped. This second contract was drawn up on Nov. 23, 2009. It's now Feb. 19, 2010 and the work is still not finished. He sent a installer to do the push buttons but unfortunately this individual really did not know what he was doing. He was unable to put in the push button I had selected for the front door so I gave him an alternative. He didn't have the proper tools to install the side door push button. I gave hime one of my own screwdrivers to use and when I looked at the job he'd done the casing for the push button was all scratched up and he had put in two different screws. He replaced the one screw with the proper one after I mentioned this to him. I don't expect this kind of work from people who are supposed to be professionals. The capping for the front bay window still has not been done. Also the storm door at the front entrance has a locking latch where there is too much play between the door and the frame (about 0.25 inches). I'm not sure whether this is a design fault or whether it can be adjusted to fit more snugly. The installer for the push buttons did not know what to do about that. Finally, Paul had told me to call Albern any time if I had any concerns which of course I did, leaving messages on the answering service. I have also e-mailed the company. I have received no replies to any of the calls or the e-mail. The only way I got any service was when I and my wife drove down to their office and asked when the work was going to get started. When the first contract was completed the installer asked for the cheque for the final instalment. I was a bit surprised at this as I thought he was just an employee for the company and that one of the owners would come to see the work to make sure that it was properly done before picking up the final payment. All in all I give a B+ for the products, an A+ for the installer of the garage door, and an F for the rest of it.