Croixside Home Improvements

I would wholeheartedly encourage anyone who is looking to remodel or repair any part of their home to NOT GO WITH CROIXSIDE HOME IMPROVEMENTS. I apologize in advance for this long review, but I want potential customers to be aware of just what they’re getting into.
We are now on an eight-month process that has been a non-stop nightmare. When Bob and Mike first came to our home, they were polite, ready and willing to do whatever they could to get our near $18,000 contracting job to replace the windows in our new home. They promised their windows were reliable – even stomped on it to show that the windows themselves to show that they were quality windows. However, once the contract had been signed and money changed hands, the nightmare began.
What was a 9-11 week start to finish job turned into a near 7-month ordeal. For months, Mike (the owner) told us that the windows were being delayed as a result of COVID shutting plants down. For weeks we would reach out to Mike and Bob for updates and answers as nearly $18,000 was a lot of money for our family. Bob rarely returned our calls, emails, and texts. Mike was the same. It was always the same answer – I’m on vacation or I’m busy. We finally had enough and called Alside, the company who made our windows. The windows that were supposed to be ordered in November 2020, but we learned Mike had not been ordered until January 11, 2021 – the week our windows were supposed to be installed. We have no idea what Mike did with our money in that time frame. MN Law says he was supposed to put in a special account, but we have no knowledge of that. We immediately began asking Mike for a copy of an invoice, anything to show us that he ordered the windows, but he wouldn’t do so.
We went back and forth with him for weeks, reminding him the contract had lapsed and by his own standards, we were owed our money back, but he also refused that too. When we decided to call the company back to ensure the windows they showed us, the windows Bob (the sales manager) had told us he would order, were the ones in production, we were saddened to learn that Mike and Bob didn’t order those windows, but a cheaper version.
The windows finally arrived in March, but we noticed a few things around that as well. The sub-contractor he hired was a great guy – someone we’d recommend in a heartbeat. The energy star stickers on each window showed that they weren’t energy efficient for Minnesota – despite that being a promise early on. Mike and Bob attempted to play it off as they had promised us generally accepted energy star windows, not ones certified for our state. Then we noticed the vinyl on the windows had been warped, which did not allow for the mesh screen to sit properly on the window leaving gaps for bugs to get through. We attempted to get this fixed before the final down payment was made, but Mike kept saying it was a warranty issue. I told him it wasn’t since the windows hadn’t been in a week, but he threatened to put a lien on our home within two weeks of installation if we didn’t pay him right then and there. This violates MN Law where he’s supposed to notify us that he plans to put a lien on our home if he hasn’t received payment from a written bill within the allotted 15, 30, or 45 day window stated on the bill. Then he has to wait an additional 45 days after that before he can do it. But Mike’s deceptive and aggressive behavior in the past, along with his tone with that threat forced us to cave. We handed over the money and he promised to have the sub-contractor come our and fix the windows by April 15.
We then learned the sub-contractor no longer worked for Croixside and as such, did not want to come out and fix the issue and had repeatedly been told by Mike and Bob that THEY would handle our fix. Now, we’re noticing a clear, silicone-like substance leak from the windows. Despite spending the past two months attempting to get ahold of Bob (who refuses to answer any form of message) and Mike who says he’s too busy and our windows are fine, Croixside has refused to honor their own warranty by coming out to fix our windows.
Mike and Bob are the worst types of contractors out there. Ones who use a pandemic as an excuse to do shoddy and incomplete work. Once they’ve had their fun and money, they no longer care about warranties or their obligation to their customers. They will lie and do whatever they need to make a quick buck. Please be aware of these guys and their history and don’t suffer the same way we have.