LAMORINDA FLOORING

Nice people. Referred to me by my realtor. I honestly expected to use this firm, so initally I wasn't seeking other quotes. They had my business in their hands...but due to the lack of followup and responsiveness, they lost the business. Pros: Showed up quickly to give a quote. Seemed experienced. Personable. Cons: Could NOT get the quote back. They committed to give me the quote back on a Monday. On Tuesday I called. No response. On Wednesday I called and was completely dismissed. At a minimum, I would expect that they would be appropriately apologetic. They were NOT--and to make matters worse, they were condescending (the tone was "now, now, little girl...I told you I was busy and I will get back to you when it's done). I believe I got the quote back on Thursday, but by that time I had already reached out to two other firms. I just have too much on my plate to chase people around for quotes. I'm sure they ARE busy. They sound as if they do good work. I went however, with a small outfit that was experienced, timely, responsive, did great work...and was less expensive.

We were not very happy with the installation, they measured incorrectly for the base board, that we didn't have enough base board, they didn't keep the appointment that they made, they did not correct some problems that we asked to be corrected and they charged us $200 for that correction. We will not use them again as an installation company, we were satisfied with the product itself, but we were certainly not satisfied with the installation.

Kristen was our first contact at the store and was very helpful in showing us a variety of options and price ranges. She point out a very nice wool carpet that was on sale and in a color that would go with our new paint. We also decided to purchase new base board from Lamorinda to be delivered, painted by our painting company and installed by the carpet installers. So far a great experience. Things started to go wrong with the carpet installers. My husband wanted to fix a few squeaks in the floor. No problem the installers would take care of it. We then produced a detailed map of all the places to be fixed. The installers showed up the first day without the diagram. They worked until after 10 pm without lights. We do not have overhead lighting and all the lamps had been removed for the paint and carpet work. Our neighbors were kind enough to tell us. They ran out of baseboard and failed to tell anyone until my husband showed up the next morning to let them in. After waiting for awhile he contacted the store and was told about the missing baseboard. The installers had no intention of showing up the second day and no one told us. Two days later they showed up with the additional baseboard which the painters had to paint after installation. They charged us $200 extra to fix the squeaks that were never fixed to our satisfaction. I would not write this under the Lamorinda heading except the installers are somehow connected with their company. We still have not had a response to my husband's letter of complaint.

We were looking for new flooring for the kitchen, wasn't sure which kind, and dashed to the store on a Saturday about 30 minutes before closing--not the best time probably from the store personnel's point of view. We were served as if we had arrived an hour earlier. Kristen, one of two sales people there, was absolutely wonderful--knowledgeable, patient, and efficient. The store carried most everything we could have used. The selection was wide and included everything from hardwood to laminates and linoleum, and few ceramic, along with great selection of rugs and carpets. They also referred us to other nearby stores--with names and phones numbers--to enlarge possibilities.

Two workmen arrived to perform the job. It took about 3 hours. After they left I noticed that they had carelessly nicked the baseboard in several places, and scraped the sheetrock in one area (and tried to use touch-up paint to cover up the problem but the paint didn't match). Additionally, they announced prior to leaving that my washing machine connection was faulty when, in reality, when my plumber later assessed the problem he told me it was clear to him that they carelessly destroyed the threads when they re-hooked up the hoses. The final problem they left behind has to do with the metal runner that allows the louver doors to open and close and conceal the washer/dryer. They had to remove the runner in order to install the lino and when they replaced it they failed to insert the screws correctly into the floor. As a result, my louver doors are no longer able to open and close. In the wake of all these problems, I paid the painter $300 to repair the sheetrock and baseboard and touch-up paint. I paid the plumber $200 for parts and labor. I have yet to hire the handyman to deal with the metal runner for the louver doors. After I discovered all the problems that the Lamorinda Floors workmen left behind I wrote the company a letter to let them know what happened. I never heard a word from them. Clearly, they don't care that their workmen are careless and have cost me money and aggravation. As far as I know, the linoleum was installed properly. But the problems that they left behind and the indifference of the company to the carelessness issues makes me want to warn others who may be considering hiring them for a flooring job.