Ken Retter Construction

Dear ***, Below is my response to the complaint filed by Mr [redacted] – ID#: [redacted] In response to your complaint, Mr [redacted] , you did hire Christians, Inc(not Christian Brothers) in March of Per your request, the repairs were delayed due to your wife’s health issues Christians, Incsubsequently began repairs after Mrs [redacted] passed away when we reached out to you to see if you were ready for us to start Christians, Incdid not tell you that there was an ordinance that would not allow you to have attic storage (cubby holes)We did, however, inform you that your reoccurring moisture issues were related to heat loss, insulation and ventilationWe also informed you that in order to provide the best chance of fixing the problem in your story-and-a-half home, it would require a continuous vapor barrier (spray foam) to eliminate the heat bypass issue, and it would require no longer having access to the area behind the knee wall, which is where the cubby holes were locatedWe also informed you that this would be the only way Christians, Incwould be comfortable doing the project, and you agreed Christians, Inccontends the drywall is installed to industry standardsThe attic previously had tongue and groove paneling boardsChristians, Incadded some framing to help with the existing 1950’s framing, but we did not reframe the entire attic\room nor did we charge for it The tape lines that are not straight that you are referring to are due to the original framing never being straightChristians, Incadded a trim to the areas where the wall and angle ceiling meet and where the angled ceiling meets the flat ceiling, which is common in this type of spaceYou were happy with the work when we leftThen you decided you were not happy so we met again to take a look at the workmanshipYou showed me a picture of the molding that was installed with the original wood paneling; it was a larger crownAs I explained, they originally used a large crown molding to cover up the uneven lines with the original paneling/framingI offered to install a similar larger molding to achieve the same cover-upWe went ahead and put this molding in and you stated you were happy once again As far as the nail popping, this is common, but Christians, Inchad no problem coming back to address any nail popping, and we in fact did return to the site on two separate occasions for these repairsWe also requested that you allow a season change for the new products to adjust to the space and that we would address any issues after this time passes, not because of settling of the home as stated in your complaint I do not believe our workers cracked the tile that is nearly years oldHowever, as a good faith gesture, Christians, Incdid install carpet and pad in this area at no costWhether the tile has asbestos is irrelevant as we were not removing it and at no time made it friableIf you were concerned after years of having asbestos tiles in your home, we would have been happy to give you a cost estimate to have it removed had this been requested Christians, Incdid not use cheap paint in the four times we repainted trying to satisfy youWe changed the sheen from a satin to eggshell as you were not happy with how shiny it wasThe paints used were Premium Glidden and Cashmere by Sherwin Williams There was no mention of a scratch in the window until the very end of the projectYou say the air conditioner has never been in that window because the breaker blows when the unit is plugged inHow did you discover this if the unit was never put in that window? I’m not sure how we could make the exact same scratch as the one that is in the window where the air conditioner currently sits You also complained about a scratch in the front door and large amounts of debris that we left in the yardWhen [redacted] came over to address these complaints he found a small smudge on the door that was cleaned off with just a wet fingerHe also found two very small cut-off pieces of trim and a lot of roofing and metal from the roofers you hired to do other workI don’t believe Christians, Incshould be blamed for the mess made by another contractor In conclusion, Christians, Incskimmed the areas to your initial satisfaction before we left the home on more than one occasionWe installed and painted moldings, which you approved and originally were happy with, only to change it to a larger molding, which again you were initially happy withWe moved the closet rod to your daughter’s specific location after she was not happy with the first location she choseWe were accused of breaking the floor tile so we installed new carpet and pad at no costWe fixed nail pops on two separate occasions and basically repainted the entire level four timesEach time Christians, Inchad you check the work before we left, and each time you stated that you were happy with the workmanshipWe ran out to the home and cleaned a smudge off your front door, and we picked up your roofer’s debris in the yard that you accused us of leaving, all at no charge So when I spoke to your daughter and she told me that another contractor told her the trim boards come 20’ in length and there should not be any seams in the trim, I reached the conclusion that after everything we had done, and the numerous times you inspected the work and felt everything looked good, that we had exhausted our efforts to try and make your daughter happy Christians, Incis a small family business that, over the last years, has repaired over 14,homes to homeowner’s satisfactionUnfortunately, this seems to be a project that we will never be able to satisfy you, Mr [redacted] , or your daughter Sincerely, [redacted] Christians

Dear [redacted],   Below is my response to the complaint filed by Mr. [redacted] – ID#: [redacted].   In response to your complaint, Mr. [redacted], you did hire Christians, Inc. (not Christian Brothers) in March of 2015. Per your request, the repairs were delayed due to your wife’s health issues....

Christians, Inc. subsequently began repairs after Mrs. [redacted] passed away when we reached out to you to see if you were ready for us to start.    Christians, Inc. did not tell you that there was an ordinance that would not allow you to have attic storage (cubby holes). We did, however, inform you that your reoccurring moisture issues were related to heat loss, insulation and ventilation. We also informed you that in order to provide the best chance of fixing the problem in your 1939 story-and-a-half home, it would require a continuous vapor barrier (spray foam) to eliminate the heat bypass issue, and it would require no longer having access to the area behind the knee wall, which is where the cubby holes were located. We also informed you that this would be the only way Christians, Inc. would be comfortable doing the project, and you agreed.   Christians, Inc. contends the drywall is installed to industry standards. The attic previously had tongue and groove paneling boards. Christians, Inc. added some framing to help with the existing 1950’s framing, but we did not reframe the entire attic\room nor did we charge for it.    The tape lines that are not straight that you are referring to are due to the original framing never being straight. Christians, Inc. added a trim to the areas where the wall and angle ceiling meet and where the angled ceiling meets the flat ceiling, which is common in this type of space. You were happy with the work when we left. Then you decided you were not happy so we met again to take a look at the workmanship. You showed me a picture of the molding that was installed with the original wood paneling; it was a larger crown. As I explained, they originally used a large crown molding to cover up the uneven lines with the original paneling/framing. I offered to install a similar larger molding to achieve the same cover-up. We went ahead and put this molding in and you stated you were happy once again.   As far as the nail popping, this is common, but Christians, Inc. had no problem coming back to address any nail popping, and we in fact did return to the site on two separate occasions for these repairs. We also requested that you allow a season change for the new products to adjust to the space and that we would address any issues after this time passes, not because of settling of the home as stated in your complaint.   I do not believe our workers cracked the tile that is nearly 70 years old. However, as a good faith gesture, Christians, Inc. did install carpet and pad in this area at no cost. Whether the tile has asbestos is irrelevant as we were not removing it and at no time made it friable. If you were concerned after 70 years of having asbestos tiles in your home, we would have been happy to give you a cost estimate to have it removed had this been requested.   Christians, Inc. did not use cheap paint in the four times we repainted trying to satisfy you. We changed the sheen from a satin to eggshell as you were not happy with how shiny it was. The paints used were Premium Glidden and Cashmere by Sherwin Williams.   There was no mention of a scratch in the window until the very end of the project. You say the air conditioner has never been in that window because the breaker blows when the unit is plugged in. How did you discover this if the unit was never put in that window? I’m not sure how we could make the exact same scratch as the one that is in the window where the air conditioner currently sits.   You also complained about a scratch in the front door and large amounts of debris that we left in the yard. When [redacted] came over to address these complaints he found a small smudge on the door that was cleaned off with just a wet finger. He also found two very small cut-off pieces of trim and a lot of roofing and metal from the roofers you hired to do other work. I don’t believe Christians, Inc. should be blamed for the mess made by another contractor.   In conclusion, Christians, Inc. skimmed the areas to your initial satisfaction before we left the home on more than one occasion. We installed and painted moldings, which you approved and originally were happy with, only to change it to a larger molding, which again you were initially happy with. We moved the closet rod to your daughter’s specific location after she was not happy with the first location she chose. We were accused of breaking the floor tile so we installed new carpet and pad at no cost. We fixed nail pops on two separate occasions and basically repainted the entire level four times. Each time Christians, Inc. had you check the work before we left, and each time you stated that you were happy with the workmanship. We ran out to the home and cleaned a smudge off your front door, and we picked up your roofer’s debris in the yard that you accused us of leaving, all at no charge.   So when I spoke to your daughter and she told me that another contractor told her the trim boards come 20’ in length and there should not be any seams in the trim, I reached the conclusion that after everything we had done, and the numerous times you inspected the work and felt everything looked good, that we had exhausted our efforts to try and make your daughter happy.   Christians, Inc. is a small family business that, over the last 28 years, has repaired over 14,000 homes to homeowner’s satisfaction. Unfortunately, this seems to be a project that we will never be able to satisfy you, Mr. [redacted], or your daughter.     Sincerely,   [redacted] Christians