Grout Grouch

Having Gary from Grout Grouch was one of the most unpleasant experiences of being a homeowner. I got Gary and his company from Angie's List, so I thought I was dealing with someone professional. When I first met him he seemed knowledgeable and his prices were reasonable. We looked at the bathroom where most of the grout was missing. He suggested staining the floor which was a good idea I thought. I showed him the kitchen tile (wall tile-old cape) where another contractor 15 years ago went over the existing grout and it looked terrible. We talked about re grouting vs. sheet rock and I decided it was more cost effective for him to remove the existing grout and put in white grout. Here's what we didn't discuss but I assumed (you know about that): 1) How much grout was he taking out-I thought he was taking out all of the grout 2) How was he going to protect my kitchen, bathroom that was not being grouted- In other words was he going to be a clean worker? Put drop cloths down, hang plastic in door ways... I was there in the morning when Gary and his helper did arrive promptly at 9:00 am. He moved a few things in the kitchen. I had a physical therapy appointment and was gone 45 minutes. Before I left I looked into the kitchen and saw that Gary had not removed all the grout and I questioned him about it. I remarked that there was still the original grout there and I was surprised he hadnt removed it. Was he? You thought I had insulted him! He flew into a semi-rage questioning whether he should stop the job right away. I was floored. I replied why was he getting so insulted? I was willing to compensate him for any more work he had to do. He told his worker to stop. He said he was afraid that he would do the job and he wouldn't get paid. I said you already started and I never said I wouldn't pay him. He then did a sample for me to look at but admonished me and said he was wasting time doing this for me. I told him look I'm the customer. So he taped off a portion and his helper mixed some grout and it did look acceptable so I told him to go ahead with the job, which he did. I had plans for a few hours with a friend (my vacation week) so I left them in my house (big mistake). I didn't feel like I had to lord over them. It was 12:30 pm. I asked him when he thought he was going to be done, and he gave me a window of 4:00-7:00 pm. I said okay. I traveled to Newark Museum 20 minutes away. At 3:55 pm, we decided to get a quick bite to eat. At 4:20 pm, Gary called and said he was finished and he wanted his money and also he wanted to see if there was any thing he needed to do or correct. I told him we were still eating and I would be home shortly. I told him that I would be there in the morning as early as he liked to come and get the check. He should go home, because we were in the middle of our meal, and reminded him he said he would be there up to 7:00 pm. He called me back again and said he was going to get something to eat and wait in my driveway. That was fine. We pulled up at 6:55 pm and went into the house to look at the work. My girl friend noticed a few spots and I thought everything looked fine. What I didn't look at was the complete coating or layering of grout dust in the kitchen, the dining room, the living room, and the bathroom. He hadn't put a thing down to cover any of the kitchen or anywhere else. His helper had asked me for towels and I gave him three big towels which I found in the corner on the porch. I have never seen anything so dirty in my life. It was alright for him to wear a mask, but what about the particles that were airborne as he scraped and grouted my walls. I didn't notice this until after I had paid him and he had left. I couldn't get him out of my house fast enough. He actually scared me. Yes, I should have stayed and watched over them. I always do. I trusted him because he seemed so nice. I'm lucky he didn't rob me blind. As far as the sealing, I am hiring someone else to do the work. I would never ask him back.

I used them within the last couple of months. I was going to schedule them to come to my home because I needed regrouting in my bathroom, but after reading the reviews and after what he did to my Mom's home, I would not use him again. He was expensive. It was around 400 dollars. He had to start from the very top of all 3 walls. It had not been done in years. My Dad used to do it. All 3 walls had to be regrouted all the way down in my Mom's house. I disliked the fact he complained the house was too hot. He was a heavyset man. My mom had the air on in the house. Even though the window was open, for him to work, it was too overwhelming. He kept complaining the house was too warm. I don't know if that was appropriate to say. He did a good job of grouting the shower, as I checked it over with a flashlight. It is dark and it does not get a lot of light. The job itself he did was great. Except for the kitchen sink. This was poorly done. It all had to be dug out and redone. So, I won't use Grout Grouch again. I would not recommend him.

OK

The tub in our master bathroom was always growing mold under the clear grout. We kept having it removed and reapplied, but the mold kept coming back. GG came in , filled the tubs, left them to sit overnight and returned to apply the grout. Problem solved, no re-occurance of mold, grout has held for over a year now, no peeling or flaking. We will use this company again. There was no mess after the job was done, the rooms were left clean and tidy.

They were rude, sloppy and unprofessional. When I called them back to redo a month later I was ignored and when I became persistant with phone calls Gary was extremely abusive on the phone. I would NEVER use again

Less than a year after having the bathtub caulking done by the Grout Grouch, the caulking failed. The caulking split open along the seam between the cast iron tub and the ceramic tile wall, as well as the seam between the tub and the ceramic tile floor. There is no shower and the tub is not frequently used. It had been a surprisingly expensive undertaking to start with, so I was amazed to hear when I called that they do not stand behind their their work, and only guarantee it for six months! The work had not been done by the owner; he had sent another worker. I was told on the phone that the charge for repairing their own failed caulking would START at $145 !!! Not a company I will use again.

Their price was twice as much as someone who actually did the work for us.

Gary did a great job - he showed up on time and as promised and finished the job on time. He has lots of patience and removed the mildewed and old grout and cleaned the tile of all the soap scum - the new grout and tile look great. He came back the next week to seal the grout - again, on time and as promised even though he was dealing with a sick employee and had to cover other customer service requests. I would use Gary's services again...

You never know what you will get when hiring a franchise of a company. You think to yourself, "how much will this person really care about getting my job done correctly and efficiently?". I received a recommendation, however, from a friend at work who had used Brian, and the Grout Grouch of Union and Morris Counties before, so i decided to give him a try. From the minute he came into my house for my free estimate i felt at ease. He was very friendly, concise, and seemed quite knowledgable about his craft. After spending about fifteen minutes at my house, he provided me with a written estimate on the spot for the work i needed to have done. I told him i wanted to talk it over with my roommates first and i would get back to him. He was totally fine with that and did not pressure me at all to make a decision at that moment. I called and left him a message a few days later to set up the job. That night he called me back and we set it up for the following week. When it came time to do the job, he showed up when he told us he would. I like that! After about three quarters of a day, the job was done. There were no snags, hidden fees, or changes made or suggested even, to the original work order. When he was done he called me in to take a look and i was blown away! Our old, outdated, and frankly gross looking shower looked brand new! One of the best things about this was i couldn't even tell there was work done in the bathroom (besides the look of our shower), he left it spotless when he was finished. He then provided us with very clear and simple instructions on how to care for our new shower and told us if we had any issues or questions to call him and he would be there to help. One of my roommates did NOT follow one of the rules the first night. I called Brian and explained that the shower was used inside the 24 hr DO NOT USE time frame. I didn't think there was any damage, but he told me he would come back to look at it when he was in the area. Two days after, he returned, free of charge mind you, just to inspect the shower..NOW THATS SERVICE!......luckily, everything was fine.