I had been saving up for engineered wood flooring for my foyer/hallway for a few years and got quotes from Empire and Home Depot on what I thought were comparable products. I decided on Empire because the price they quoted me was a few hundred dollars less than Home Depot. I was told by the sales rep that I had to get the floor installed before end of the year to lock in this low price, so I agreed to the install. I trusted the supposed excellent reputation of this company and was impressed by their 'A ' rating (though I have no idea where this rating came from after reading all the complaints). The floor they installed looks much cheaper than the sample that I chose (although similar in color). The installers left behind a partial box of leftover flooring w/a product info slip, and I looked up the manufacturer, only to find that the floor I unwittingly purchased is the lowest quality, cheapest product made by that manufacturer. I took a piece of the floor to Home Depot and compared it to their samples, and it was clear that Empire's product was of MUCH poorer quality. The floor looks cheap, and to top it all off, the white baseboard is equally tacky (and I have found out it's unpaintable, so it will never match the rest of my home). The installers also damaged the molding around my closets and left a mess when they left (cigarette butts, saw dust, pieces of molding, etc.). The installation is inconsistent with some large gaps between the boards. After saving for years for what I thought would be a good investment in my home, I am now stuck with this crappy flooring and baseboards which look nothing like what I had expected.
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