Fine Design Tile LLC

unknown

Our brick steps on our front porch were falling apart. Also, the cement footers that the brick side walls sat on were crumbling. We had a neighbor who had Fine Design do a similar re-build of his stairs and we liked the finished look that he got with new brick sidewalls and replacement of the brick steps with colored cement, so we decided to ask them for a quote.
When Phil Caccamise came for the original quote, he based his estimate on the volume of cement needed for the entirety of the steps. The quote came to $6400 for the list of work above. He was able to salvage the cement caps on each side wall, and gave us a $400 credit for those. However, when the demolition of our old steps was performed, most of the old filler rock was left in place. We were told this was to protect the integrity of a basement storage room directly beneath the porch. Whether or not that decision was sound, we did not receive any credit for the volume of cement that would not be needed due to the filler.
The steps and sidewalls were completed as of 9/15/2010, but there were gaps at the joints of the steps and the side walls. We requested that these be filled in, and some silicone caulk placed along seams where the new work joined the old work, which was done in a week. The surface of the steps did not have a finished look, so we requested that be touched up. They placed a thin layer of cement on top of the steps, which quickly deteriorated and left pock marks. It continues to chip off. I used a plastic shovel through the winter as instructed.
Several cracks developed after one winter, the two biggest being where the first step meets the sidewalk and in one section of the walk that connected the asphalt driveway to the new sidewalk. This section split along the complete length. I emailed Phil the next year to describe the quick deterioration of Fine Design's work, and to request some sort of follow-up to mitigate the damage. I received no response to this request - just a Thanksgiving card in the mail the year after the work was completed. We received a LinkedIn request from Phil about two weeks after our complaint, but no response to the complaint.
Overall, the work looked good, but deteriorated quickly in key places. It looks better than it did, but not as good as it should for what we paid. Phil made a lot of statements like and quot;we'll do that for youand quot; concerning various small touch-up cement things around the foundation, but none were written in our contract, so they never happened. As soon as we cut the check, we didn't hear from him again. If you go with them, make sure to get your contract adjusted as you go, if any work is promised to you that wasn't on the original contract. And of course, don't pay up until you're happy with the work. In our case, the deficiencies and cracks did not appear until after one winter, but we expected to get more than six months out of a $6k job like this. Their work is not backed up by any guarantees in the contract, and based on our experience they are not willing to back up their work after quick failure.

They did a wonderful job and they were all great guys. They were very professional and skilled craftsmen. I will use them again.