Caulking peeled within days - required us to hire new contractors in the end
This is the first negative review I have ever posted (before now, I have only ever posted positive reviews). Unfortunately, Bascos work and our experience with Simon, Bascos current owner/operator, warrant the above rating (see enclosed photos).
We paid $2,173.50 for Basco to re-caulk the windows in our home. Unfortunately, the caulking began peeling within days. Although Bascos quote clearly stated all old caulk would be removed before re-caulking, they did not do so (as removing old caulk is labour-intensive). This is why the new caulk failed to bond.
Simon, the business owner/operator, returned several times at our request to make repairs. However, he insisted his caulking bonds well to old caulk (which is incorrect, as a quick google search will show) and was largely unwilling to remove the old caulk.
As of todays date, the master bedroom and guest bedroom window caulking is already peeling again. The old caulk (white, compared to the new tan caulk) is clearly visible under the (peeling) new caulk.
Basco has also indicated they will not return again to correct the work. I recognize it has been labour-intensive for Simon to return multiple times, but this was necessitated because of the initial failure to properly remove the old caulk as set out in the quotation. In case Basco seeks to frame this as a dispute with a difficult or unreasonable customer, I have kept time-stamped/dates photos of the work in question and have included them with this review (the first photo is an example of the original work, which they returned to correct; the second is an example of another peeling window after it was fixed taken today. As you can see, the old white caulk is clearly visible and the reason the new caulk did not bond).
If you are considering this operator, I would exercise extreme caution. The 10-year warranty on this work is meaningless, since the product has already failed yet again and the operator has indicated he will not return to remedy it. Unfortunately, we already paid in full. We have also been forced to spend time retaining a new contractor to remedy the work.
Based on my experience, I suspect Bascos positive reviews either did not deal with the current operators of this franchisee, or were posted by the operators family/friends.
In short: For a relatively simple job, this has ended up becoming a time-intensive and difficult process. The caulking peeled within days and we are now spending funds (and, more importantly, time) remedying the peeling work.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $2,173.00
- Company Response
We are sorry that you are unhappy about the services provided, but feel the need to correct several erroneous things mentioned in your comments.
We did come several times after the initial application to assess / fix some issues. It is worth noting that most of the subsequent visits were not in relation to caulking peeling off, but rather in regards to very minor visual imperfections in the caulking bead. During every of these subsequent visits, we had to look at less than 30cm to actually see the imperfections in the caulking beads. Nonetheless, despite the obsessive need to find imperfections in our work, we did rework the areas that were, in your opinion, not acceptable, even though they would be perfectly acceptable by industry standards.
I will mention that 2 areas did not bond properly after the first application, and this was fixed in the subsequent visits.
It was also noted during 2 subsequent visits that the caulking had straight cuts on two windows, indication that either a knife or a nail had dug into the fresh bead after we applied it. This was still fixed on our end.
Your statement that the old caulking had not been removed is incorrect. The old caulking was indeed removed prior to applying the new product. There can always be a bit of residual caulking left behind. During the last visit, where fresh caulking was removed, then reapplied, we could see that pulling the new caulking was pulling some of the old caulking that was in the "crack" or gap between the window frame and the wall. Although this is impossible to cut off when removing the old caulking, it was clearly bonded together with the new caulking, highlighting your false claim that the 2 surfaces would not bond.
From the pictures attached, other than the duplicated pictures trying to amplify your false claim, we can see the 2 areas that hadn't bonded properly after the initial application, and that were fixed during the subsequent visit. One other picture reflects the bead hidden behind your sash lock, where access is very difficult due to the tight access. We also took pictures during the last visit to highlight the non-reasonable nature of the ongoing requests to have the work redone, and to reflect the quality of our work for our own protection. I am fully committed to showing these pictures to anyone who would like to validate this case (this system does not allow a contractor to attach pictures to responses to reviews).
Now, as for your baseless and incorrect claim regarding the authenticity of our numerous positive reviews, please be aware that every single one of them can be backed by an invoice, and that HomeStars actually validates the reviews to ensure their authenticity.
And lastly, Every one of these reviews are in relation to the same ownership, as I am the one who has owned and operated Basco Calgary since its inception in 2014.