The job was to wallpaper one wall and paint three walls, not including the trim or ceiling in a small bedroom. The owner presented himself quite well, stating that back home in England he had to take a three year course to learn how to wallpaper and paint. I was quite confident he would do a professional job so I did not think anything of his price. I was watching him do the wallpaper while his helper was doing the painting and sometimes helping with the wallpaper. I noticed there were quite a few bubbles between the wall and the wallpaper. When I inquired about these bubbles he said it was glue and they would dry up and flatten out in a few days. I remember his helper by the name of Russ telling him that he was applying too much glue to the back of the wallpaper before putting it on the wall. I felt he must know because I had already pointed out the bubbles in the wallpaper and the owner of the company said they would go away. After he finished the job I paid him $1,000 plus HST. It has been two weeks since the job was completed and the bubble in the wallpaper are still there and at the top of the wall it is not straight where the wall and ceiling join. Also the wall -paper was left with a film of dirt so I had it wiped it off. I feel so bad because I hired someone thinking he was very good and professional but received a substandard job that you would not expect from someone who cares about the customer and doing a quality job. To be honest most of the wall has bubbles all over it and the owner of the company told me the quality of the wallpaper was good and it was only one 9 foot wall. Your employee told you, I was sitting there when he said ''you are putting too much glue''. Now you are saying it's because it's on an outside wall or there might be something wrong with the wallpaper, the temperature or I manipulated it and stretched it I did not do that. I pointed it out to your employee Russ and he may have manipulated it and stretched it out. I can't reach it because I am in a wheelchair, so I can't be blamed. I was in the construction industry and it sounds like allot of excuses for work which is not repairable without redoing the whole wallpaper job.
There is a picture of how the wall looks. I asked my mom and she says there has been no attempt to contact her, no phone message or E-mail. I am acting on the advise of my mother because she paid for the job and really expected someone who would do a professional wallpaper job, unfortunately it cannot be fixed without removing and replacing the wallpaper and it was expensive, she is very disappointed. He should of just did it properly the first time, without rushing and not put too much glue on the paper, you told me yourself the bubbles were from glue and would dry out in a few days. The bubbles and dirt are throughout the whole wall, is he going to replace all the wallpaper, so many excuses.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $1,000.00
- What could this company do to improve their services?
- The company should follow up on the phone personally and ask the customer about their satisfaction in the job.
- Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
- This company may be ok at painting only, I would not recommend them to do wallpaper.
- Company Response
If I had been called and had already followed up and Paul wasnt happy then I could understand this review. But this is the first I'm hearing that there was a problem. I thought you were happy. If you had phoned I would have come over and rectified any issues immediately.
I will respond in this forum as with what I would have told Paul himself if he had called .
Not all wall papers and walls are created equal and so different papers react to different home environments ie- furnace too high , too low ,cold exterior walls, types of paper ,etc. If bubbles appear and remain after a few days, you simply had to phone and say, "Gareth its been a few days and they are still here" I would have come and repaired any areas or issues. Some times paper can have bubbles after applying , and they are best left to dry out rather than manipulate the paper which can then cause over stretching.
It was a difficult situation as it was, as Paul did not have enough paper and I had to piece together what he had.
The" film of dirt " Paul is talking about that wiped off I'm guessing was glue. This glue is often hard to see when cleaning off the paper as it is clear, the same colour as water and the area would have still been damp when we left. I would have come back and swept this off for him if he had only let me know. As for the ceiling edge, I'm not sure what he is talking about. It may possibly have shrunk as it dried/set at a different speed than its neighbouring piece due to the temperature? Once again, an easy fix with a straight edge and a knife which I would have done. I strive to make my clients happy, but if I don't know there's a problem, then how can I follow up? Yes Paul , we do care ,so if there is still a problem, simply phone. I will come tomorrow.Update:
Paul has now revised his original review upon reading our response and enhanced his,making it sound like we have had some conversation. We have not . Nor are we trying to cast blame as he suggests,it could be enviromental; he wont let us see it to determine anything. We have tried to contact him via email asking him to hold his comments here until we resolve the matter. We received a response in an email from his mother who tried to make an appt with us,but he prefers to do this instead....................
He has once again revised his review,this will be our last time.If anyone wants to they can email for his mothers response and also glue would not cause what he suggests.
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