Kourtis Flooring

Our company refinished the floor at Jeremy's home through a general contractor. We did not install the flooring- it was existing. We have nothing to do with the condition of the existing floor nor the environmental conditions in the house. Months after we finished the work, we were called in to review the flooring that had gapped in the dead of winter. We noticed gapping between the boards in some areas (due to lack of moisture in the environment) and in another area we noticed cupping (from water damage). We went to the basement and noticed that there was NO HUMIDIFIER working in the house- we also noticed that the water damage was caused by a water leak from the fridge- Jeremy failed to mention this to us. The general contractor confirmed that yes, there had been months where there is no humidifier because the existing one broke down and the decision was made not to repair it but to leave it and have a new one installed when the new furnace was purchased. The general contractor also confirmed that there was a water leak on the floor from the fridge. We explained to Jeremy that you can't leave your house with no humidifier- gapping will result from the excessive dryness- gapping that may never correct itself. this gapping condition has nothing to do with us resanding and refinishing Jeremy's floors and the water damage from the water leak from the fridge had noting to do with us refinishing of the floors. Months later again, Jeremy contacted us once a furnace was installed and i offered to come and help with some filler in the gaps- simply out of courtesy, i was not contractually obliged and the gapping condition had nothing to do with our refinishing of the floor. I agree there were a couple postponments/re-scheduled appointments but i was not adverse to sending someone by for a couple hours at no charge to help Jeremy out- i hadn't heard from jeremy for months- had he called again we would have rescheduled- again out of courtesy at my expense for something not my responsibility. The part about another flooring company condemning our work is complete nonesense and Jeremy is free to contact me and put me in touch with the other company. 100%, without a doubt, the gapping of the boards were from the lack of humidifier for what could have been for a better part of a year and the cupping of the boards opposite side of the wall to the fridge is for sure from the water leak in the fridge- as confirmed by the general contractor. please refer to the National Wood Flooring Association- once a floor is severely damaged from poor environmental conditions- be it dryness or excessive moisture- there is no promise once conditions are restored to normal, that the floor will relax and come back to normal- THIS IS A BASIC AND COMMONLY KNOWN FACT about hardwood flooring. Again i will reiterate that there is NOTHING in my refinishing process that could cause gapping of the floor nor the cupping from the water leak. I personally saw the refinishing job and it was top rate work as is every single refinishing job we do- and the general contractor that we did the work for at jeremy's home can attest to that. You don't need to be a professional to know a good floor refinishing when you see it- and if Jeremy didn't- well the General Contractor did and if our work wasn't top quality work- we would not have been thanked for a great job and paid in full. the only thing i'm guilty of is forgetting about our appt - we spoke on the phone while driving about 6 months ago and didn't put into my schedule later. had jeremy called again, i would have sent someone over to try and fill some gaps for him with filler-not my problem to fix- but i would fix none the less. We refinish approx 3 wood floors per week- and each customer is elated. regards, Danny Kourtis, Owner.

Dear Homestars readers. I am compelled to break my silence and reply to this review as I cannot permit 40 years of serving the GTA, over 2 generation and a track record of thousands of delighted customers to be marred by one scathing review. while it would take pages of writing to provide the full picture from my perspective, i will simply state facts as i recall them: jan 2010, we were invited and provided a quote to refinish existing EXPOSED hardwood and stairs. there was carpet contractor on hand to measure for carpet- two rooms on second floor had carpet and my impression was that would be replacement with new carpet- i was not advised otherwise. our quote was subsequently approved, signed and $1,000 upon acceptance was paid. directly beside client's signature, payment terms- clearly and plainly indicated another $5,000 upon commencement and balance upon completion. feb 2010, an hour + visit to our showroom to select stain samples- no selection was ultimately made. start date was pushed back by client approx 3 times due to delays and problems with trades. On day of commencement, my staff contacted me to indicate that 2 additional rooms- that were previously carpeted had the carpet removed and was now in scope of work. Also, $5,000 owing upon commencement was not provided. On day 2 of sanding, i contacted the client and enquired why $5,000 was not paid, indicated that stain must be selected before any more sanding can occur and revised contract adding the additonal 480 sq ft of refinishing for the 2 extra rooms at the same rate of $3.50/ft for resanding/staining and refinishing of existing prefinished floor $1,680.00 would need to be signed. The client was resistant to pay for the additional 2 rooms, and arbitrary decided she would not pay the $5,000 owing as per the contract and pay a lesser amount. At that time, i instructed my staff to stop working (and of course take our equipment with us as we cannot leave $12,000 of sanding equipment in a home with other trades etc. I advised the client, santo would return in the afternoon to a) work with client to finally pick the stain colour needed to proceed, b) sign the revised contract providing for the addition of the 2 extra rooms and c) to obtain the $5,000 payment that was due upon commencement as per the contract signed in january. I indicated that our staff could return the next morning and we would still finish the work within the one week alotted in not ahead of schedule. the client's reply was we were not to return and they would get another floor contractor. i agreed that would be best. i explained to what level of sanding the 2nd floor was completed. i provided important information as to what to look for and insist upon with a new contractor and also offered to review any other quote and provide feedback etc all complimentary. No requeste was ever made for the return of the $1,000 deposit as i feel the clients recognized that we had spent approx $1,800 in labour and materials. i wish the client all the best with their reno. i know she's been stressed throughout the process and has had some bad luck with others but we sand approx 200 floors per year and have for decades and i cannot be expected to add 500 ft of work at no cost and cannot have our contract and payment terms ignored and new terms dictated after we've commenced. this is my only reply and will not reply again. Best Regards, Danny G. Kourtis, President. KOURTIS FLOORING LTD.