Strait Flooring

We contracted Strait Floors on 9/1/2015 to install new carpeting and linoleum in several rooms; carpet in the master bedroom and family room, linoleum in the master bath, kitchen, back hall and guest bath, new Formica in the master bath and a single row of ceramic tile around the sinks. For this we paid about $5100 up front.

The master bedroom carpet, master bath linoleum and Formica was installed within 2 weeks. The workmanship was acceptable and the workers were punctual and cleaned up after themselves. The paint in the master bath was somewhat nicked up by the flooring installer when putting down the new underlayment, but nothing that a little paint touch up couldn’t fix.

The carpet in the family room was to have been seamless, we ordered it in a 15’ width, but it was only available in 12’ width which required a seam. We considered ordering another carpet to avoid the seam, but Steve (owner) reassured us promising “you won’t see the the seam and if you do, I’ll tear it out and install it myself”. When the installers came, they installed the carpet backwards (180 degrees out) which put the seam line up against a wall. The error wasn’t discovered until after the installer had cut around a pair of support posts. Consequently, the installer had to seam the wrong (non lined) side. Having already cut the carpet at the shop, he had to cut the approximate 1 foot wide seam piece in half, reverse the pieces and butt them together in a kind of T shaped seam. Not only is the seam visible, but it frayed where the 2 ends butt together. When we complained about the seam, Steve defended his worker and sent up another person with scissors to trim the frayed ends. We’ve since parked our sofa, a piano, and 2 end tables over the seam.

The linoleum Strait Flooring installed in the guest bath is a ‘Soho Slate’ marble style which has a repeating pattern in what’s called a “half drop match”. The installer did not match the pattern where he seamed the linoleum around the toilet flange. There is also visible glue atop the seam. It is less noticeable with a toilet installed and a trash can over the top of the seam. Nevertheless, failure to match the pattern is a disappointment.

Getting Strait Floors to complete the ceramic tile row around the 2 master bath sinks was a frustrating experience. Not until 12/3/2015 did they finish the job. First, they did not order enough tile to allow for breakage; then they ordered replacements in the wrong color; they missed appointments and canceled others; workers showed up without the tools they needed. They used blunt face tile rather than bullnose and smeared colored caulk on the uncolored / unglazed exposed edges to match the tile color. When the painter’s tape was removed, it left a ragged and crooked line of caulk on the wall which looks amateurish.

Steve, owner of Strait Floors, wrote up our contract and arranged all the schedules for installation. He was often forgetful and did not return several of my calls after saying “let me check with my guys and get back to you (tomorrow, or Friday, or by the end of the week)”. It took 3+ months to get Strait Floors to finish the job we had already paid for in full when we entered the contract.

I can’t imagine that we would ever use Strait Floors again after our disappointing experience with them. We learned a hard lesson about paying incrementally rather than “in full” up front and getting all promises, assurances, and guarantees as well as schedules, in writing.

They were quick and efficient. They did the installation and it was a smooth process. I plan to use them again.