Laminated Seams at Beveled edge are visible

[zeusecho]

We just had ~165sq/ft of Galaxy Black installed yesterday and could not be more disappointed with the quality of the fabrication and installation.  The main issue is that the seams between the slab and laminated strip for the edge are clearly visible (almost white color).  Is this because the epoxy was not tinted black?  Also none of the of edges are polished as well as the top.  There are several places along the very edge of the bevel that are dull like they were never polished at all, and most of the supposedly fully polished fabricated edges are vary from almost polished to dull every 6 inches or so.  Additionally the seems of the laminated edge piece were not mitered to the corner but there are vertical (visible) seams all along the main visible edge in the kitchen, some of which were the broken strip pieced back together and glued in.  I have several other issues, including pretty serious scratches in the top both from transpiration and installation.  The installers arrived at my house with all the granite loaded into the a tiny pickup truck with granite surfaces (faces) against with other with no protective material in between.

What should I demand of the fabricators and installers to fix this situation?     

Thanks in advance for your help!   

[Stone Dude]

sounds like you hired the wrong guys to do the job, thats too bad. the scratches in the top of a new piece is absolutely unacceptable. as for the other stuff can you please post some pictures so we can give you some advice. sometimes the glue in the laminations will appear to be white after it has been razord bladed, most of the time a little steel wool will clean it up.

[zeusecho]

Thanks for the feedback Stone Dude!   

I will try to post some pictures when I get home tonight.  It's difficult to capture dull surfaces and cracks in the black galaxy.

I shouldn't have trusted one of those large depot type places  to contract out the job I guess.

[zeusecho]

Stone Dude,

Also wondering if I can polish all the edges as they were polished very poorly.  I have allot of experience polishing as I used to paint cutom motorcycles.  I know it's not quite the same but I do understand the importance of completely sanding with a certain grit before moving to the next finer stage.  And perhaps it's more forgiving then acrylic clearcoat less than 2 days old.  How much would the proper tools and materials for the job cost? 

Thanks!

[Mark D.]

Remember that granite is a luxury and should be luxurious. I would have the contractor make it right!

Mark

[Stone Dude]

i would recommend, like mark said, having the contractor make it right, and if they cant, they need to pay someone who can. you shouldnt have to spend more money to buy the tools to make the mess that you paid someone else to. they are responsible for making it right. ALSO, if the scratches are too deep to be ground out without making a dip in the stone and leave a break in the reflection, they need to replace the entire piece. be very polite and understanding with them the first time you call them back. if they dont respond too well you might want to have an attorney write them a letter, that usually gets things moving. bottom line is you paid a lot of money to have a lot of beautiful stone put in your home, and they didnt do what you paid them to do and they need to make it right.

[zeusecho]

The mess is what I'm worried about, that and them damaging my cabinets even further.  I would feel beeter about the controling the mess and damage by doing it myself and I plan to ask for some money back.  That I'm sure will require a lawyer.

[zeusecho]

Cameron,

I sent you an email with pictures of a few of the issues.  The file was too large for this website.

Thanks,
Zak

[Mark D.]

Zak,
send me the pics also.
mark@defusco.com

Mark

[zeusecho]

Hi Mark,

The fabricator came by today to inspect the job along with a rep from the depot, and he basically tried to say that most of the edges are in fact fully polished and that they just needed some treatment.  He applied this black thick liquid stuff to a portion of the edge, let it dry for a minute and then buffed it down with steel wool and said that would need to be done to all of it and this was standard procedure that everyone does.  Although it did look better, after they left I cleaned the edge with granite cleaner and the shine came off revealing the same unpolished surface that was there before.  I told him I want a list of all materials and procedures he plans to use so I can verify with other professionals that it's the correct way to fix it and not just a band-aid.

He also told me that all Black Galaxy is resined in order to achive the shine.  Sounds like BS to me though.


Thanks for all your help.

Zak

[Mark D.]

What did  he put on it?

This job sounds like a mistake - I would have Home Depot replace it!

Mark

[zeusecho]

I don't know but will find out when he provides the list of material he plans to use for the "repairs".

Thanks,
Zak

[Stone Dude]

black galaxy can be polished to match the factory finish, what he told you is complete B.S. if they cant get it right they need to pay someone who can.  i apologize for not getting back to you but when i opened your email i could not look at the pictures. can you please send them again or post them here? thank you.

[Mark D.]

Cameron, the pics are embedded in a Word document. You can open them with Microsoft Word. The whole counter looks like crap! I can do a better job and get a better polish on Black Galaxy with dry pads than his Home Depot contractor did. I think he should get them to replace the whole thing!
But then again...I could be wrong...

Mark

[Stone Dude]

all that comes up is a bunch of computer mumbo jumbo. i have windows vista, that may be the problem.