Durand Group

A couple years ago I had Chris install a new exterior door for me which went well for the most part other than finding a spot at the bottom of the door that he didn't caulk and exposed itself via a horrible draft that winter. Well about a year later I had another rotted door and called Chris out again. This time he ended up sending one of his workers that ended up not doing a very good job. The door wasn't very square to the house and he didn't pay attention to detail ex: using the non colored screws on the storm door instead of the brown screws in areas where they are exposed. Also his drill slipped and left a decent scratch on the storm door.I asked Chris to come fix the door which he did in a rather timely manner however he didn't actually finish the door that day as he wanted to contact the manufacturer or the door as he thought something was wrong with the door itself...

Ever since then It's been ongoing of me trying to track him down and him saying he'll schedule me but then I never hear from him. At first he did give me a $100 credit towards his service for the inconvenience. However it's now been a year later and I'm still waiting for him to come back and button up my door and storm door!

UPDATE October 2014-
Finally got ahold of Chris only to say that I was confused and that there was nothing else he can do to fix the job, which is so confusing as to this was there things were left with this message:

"Please accept my sincere apologies for the inconvenience you have experienced
in respect to the back door I had Kenneth install for you.

I take pride in ensuring my customer’s satisfaction. Unfortunately,
Kenneth’s Installation did not meet my company’s high workmanship
standards. I would also like to add, I did not meet your, or my own
expectations, in regards to following up and resolving the problem.

I have been in contact with the door manufacturer and they are not
willing to replace the door. We can talk in more detail when I come to
your house to fix some of the workmanship issues. With my years of
experience, I feel Mastercraft is in the right by not wanting to replace
the door. Again we can talk in greater detail when we meet again.

I am going to supply new hinges at my expense for the trouble you have
had. I am also going to schedule a time with you, in the very near
future, to personally come over and do what I can to repair, work on the
operation, and seal the door better.

I deeply value your relationship with my company and I am committed to
providing you with the highest level of service. I have added a $100.00
credit to your account, which can be used on any service my company
provides, at regular rates as posted on my website at www.getdurand.com.
The credit is applied to your account and will never expire so please use at your convienence.
If you have any further questions or comments regarding this matter,
please feel free to discuss it with me via email, text, phone, or when I
come out.
I apologize again for your inconvenience. "

At this point I was satisfied with how he followed through but then it went into the trying to get ahold of him again and then finally doing so getting the message below basically complete opposite of his message about of trying to fix some of the workmanship issues his worker left.

From Chris:

Here are the issues. When you told me that you had a problem I stopped by
your place right away to take a look and see what I could do. Once I got
there I found out that the installation was not the problem, but rather
the door itself as you are aware of as stated in your Angie’s List
review. If you remember I talked to my rep at Menards and they talked
with Mastercraft, there wasn’t much they would do about replacing the
door and hinges. At that point I did tell you I would supply new hinges
at my expense (approx. $15) because I appreciated your business and
wanted to help you out anyway that I could.You
also complained about the way the door fit in the opening. The door is
installed properly; the problem is that the rough opening in the house
is not square. Not sure if that is because of the way the addition was
built or the house has settled over the years. I am not sure what you
want me to do about that. At the time of my inspection the door opened,
closed and latched well. There was a little twist in the frame that I
feel Ken tried to avoid but by installing the door perfectly square, it
could have caused more issues with gaps. I ran into the same problem
when I installed the kitchen door. If I remove the door and install it
perfectly square you are going to be very unhappy with the outcome. When
I talk about workmanship I am talking about the trim work and finishing
touches such as caulking around the trim to make it look nice and small
finishing touches like that. Most contractors do not caulk around the
interior trim, it’s just not the standard. Now there are things that can
be done to make the door look slightly better such as cutting some
wedges to slide behind the trim. It will do nothing to improve the way
the door fits. Also, when I run into issues like the trim being uneven
like it is behind the door, I consider it an unexpected problem and I
normally bill the customer for the additional time.The
other complaints you had are storm door related. I will start with the
screws. We use the screws that are supplied with the door; we do not
bring our own screws. The manufacturer supplies the screws with the
door. Sometimes on lower end quality doors they supply some colored
screws and some regular screws. It’s also a fairly common problem, I
sometimes have extra colored screws in my truck and will use them
instead, however only if I have them available. If you go and try to buy
those colored screws you will find it can be difficult.As
far as the small scratch, that can be touched up. The truth is how you
do or I know it was ken that put the scratch on the door. Again, I hate
to say it but with a lower end door the packaging is not great and these
are common problems with these doors.My
intentions were to stop by and caulk the door to make the trim look a
little better, bring some brown screws, foam under the door, possibly
add a small exterior trim piece under the door if needed and swap the
hinges all at my expense. Not
sure what you were expecting but in your Angie’s List review it made it
sound like it was the first door we ever installed. What really got to
me was the how happy you were with the first door I installed and called
me back to do another door but in your review complained about how the
other door was installed poorly and had bad drafts.Why
don’t you detail to me what exactly you want done to the back door?
When you say things like brown screws and hinges, remember that stuff
was not our fault. The is the way the doors came and with the hardware
the manufacture wanted the installers to use. I do not want to offend
you but you truly do get what you pay for when you purchase these types
of products. Mastercraft is very low end, they are hard to get a nice
sealed install and it is hard for them to stand behind warranty. When it
comes to my warranty, I do not warranty manufacturer defects. Meaning
if the door is the if you have is a problem not just with the door, but the house. Like I
said earlier the rough opening is not square to the house.Let me know exactly what you want.
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They're very flexible. They did a good job and they showed up on time. They were very clean and professional. They were very competent and they did the job right.

Chris did a great job. On the original date of service, he did not show up and I left a few voicemails. I finally texted him and he responded shortly after. It turned out that his mother was in the hospital and his son was supposed to contact me to reschedule and hadn't. He was very apologetic, and offered to reschedule within the next few days at a reduced price to "make things right." I greatly appreaciated that, and agreed to reschedule. He was on time and did a great job, and we have had several compliments on how great our bathroom looks after all of the work we had done in it...new vanity/sink, faucet, shower door, light fixture, and towel racks. He let me know that the tub faucet I had selected would not be able to be replaced without breaking up the tile and offered a suggestion of a place to go to find what I need to plate the fixtures instead. He was even done with those projects early so asked what else he could do, so we were able to have our dining room chandelier replaced as well. Again, I cannot stress how impressed I was with his willingness to offer me a discount for the inconvenience of a no-show, which, knowing the situation, was understandable. We have recommended him to others already!

I found him and called him and everything started off nice. He spoke to my husband on the phone and we explained to him we are in new construction home and needed mailbox post installed into dry, hard ground. He said he would do it for $80 basically covering the rental of an auger and his time/labor. Mind you my husband had already mounted the mailbox into the post. All he had to do was dig the hole and get the post in the ground and standing. He told me the ground needed to be marked for all gas,cable, and electric underground lines. Told me he would call Gopher State to have the lines sprayed. Then said they should be out the next day and he would come out and install. I said okay. That my daughter would be home and we would be at work, he said she could let us know if they sprayed and then let him know. I talked to my daughter throughout the day and finally mid afternoon she said they came and ground was sprayed. I texted Chris like I said I would and he didn't believe me that they came out. Said "ARE YOU SURE??!!" In a text to me. Told me Gopher state didn't call him,and that would be the first time in 8 years that he never got a call. Then proceeded to tell me that he was 2 hours away. So then I asked him if he was 2 hours away how was he planning on getting to us that day and if he expected a call from Gopher State and never missed a call in 8 years, why is he relying on my 15year old daughter to let us know if they came. Just a wide note, I also called Gopher
State and they had no orders in the system of him calling for my property!!!! Then he started back peddling, proceeded to tell me he would be out the next morning and would text me a time time to expect him. He texted us saying he would be here at 10:30am. I told him I needed to go out by noon.... He said okay. Then about a half an hour later he texted me to tell me he would be here closer to noon, would someone be here. I said I would wait, even though I was aggravated I was pushing back my time to accommodate him when he knew I was going out. Well he shows up and tells my husband he would go rent an auger and be back. He comes back and asks my husband to HELP HIM DIG the hole using the auger!!!!! I thought the point of hiring someone was so WE DIDN'T
have to do it!!??!! Mt husband wanted it done at this point so he helped him THE WHOLE TIME... From digging the hole with auger, then had to help him hold post straight while he was cementing the post in ground..... My husband had to look at it and straighten it out, if he didn't Chris was going to leave it crooked! When they finished my husband asked to see the receipt to the auger rental because Chris said the price he quoted us included the auger rental. We were okay with that but when he asked to see the receipt, Chris could not furnish one.!! If he LEFT our house to go rent the auger.... How did he NOT have a receipt? So my husband said fine and then Chris proceeded to give him a total due of $120!! Originally it was $80. My husband tells him the price difference and did not like his shady ways of raising the price and could not even show a rental receipt to what WE were paying... Besides the fact lets not forget my husband HELPED HIM MANUALLY DO THE WHOLE JOB and he had the nerve to raise the price!!!! My husband told him he wasn't happy with the difference and no receipt and he helped him. Chris gets blatantly RUDE with my husband. My husband just wanted it done and over with so he paid him and Chris speeds off down our street in his truck.
This man may seem like he can do a job.... But expect to HELP HIM LIKE YOU'RE HIS "HELPER" and then pay MORE!!! Not to forget his ARRIVING to my house at the time I said I needed to leave my house by, then my husband since he was HELPING HIM in 90 degree weather, had to go re shower and change because he could go out like we were supposed to with him all sweaty. This man is a joke.... Keep looking and don't waste your time or money.

Oh and to top it all off, he never said anything about having an issue with coming to do this work on a Saturday of Labor Day weekend. Yet when my husband spoke with him about the price increase, he throws in that we were LUCKY he came out on a holiday weekend and we should feel lucky!!!!!! I never asked him to come that weekend , he made the time and day arrangements!! Don't bother with this guy..... Find someone else or keep your money and do it yourself.....since he makes you work WITH HIM!!