Eric Hoghaug Tile

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• By Russ

  July 1, 2019

  Install porcelain tile

  $8,000

  In early November of 2018 I hired Eric Jon Hoghaug install $4163.22 worth of porcelain tile on a 14 foot by 6 foot outdoor foyer at the front entrance to my home. According to filings with the Minnesota Secretary of State the name Eric Hoghaug is involved with businesses organized and renewed. A business with the name of “Eric Hoghaug Tile, LLC” has a “Registered Office Address” at 900 Ninth Avenue South, Hopkins MN 55343 which is an apartment building and a “Principle Executive Office Address” at 3238 27th Street South, Moorhead MN 56560 which is a side by side double house. Also according to filings with the Minnesota Secretary of State Eric Hoghaug has organized a business called “Eric Hoghaug Tile” with a Principle Place of Business Address” of “432 n. wheeler street, st. paul, MN 55104 USA”. Also there are two other businesses that come up when the 900 Ninth Avenue South address is searched. Furthermore, Eric Hoghaug corresponded with me via email and signed the attachment to the email as “Eric Hoghaug Cornerstone Floor and Wall”. I wish I would have researched Eric Hoghaug because all these addresses and companies raises a lot of questions as to why so many companies? I paid Eric Hoghaug $1840 for his labor and I supplied all tiles and materials. Eric Hohhaug told me that he is a commercial and residential tile setter with more than 20 years of experience. Eric Hoghaug also told me that he installs tiles in commercial buildings and hotels in Nebraska. This foyer has an upper landing that is 14 feet by 6 feet then two steps 14 feet wide then a landing 14 feet by 4 feet then the bottom step 14 feet wide. Within a two months of completion the tiles stated coming loose and continue to come loose. During the installation process in early November and for a week after the installation was done, this outdoor area was enclosed by a plastic tarp tent and heated 24 hours per day with 120,000 btu @ about 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure that the thinset and grout dried properly. Eric was required to install the tile and grout pursuant to the tile manufacture’s specifications, the thinset (used to adhere the tile to the substrate) manufacturer’s specifications, the gout manufacturer’s specifications and Minnesota Building Code and the Tile Council of America Handbook (TCAH); Eric Hoghaug did NOT install the tile pursuant to any of these! Minnesota Building Code requires that hard surfaces (ie steps, landings, sidewalks) within 10 feet of a house must slope ¼ inch per foot AWAY from a house. Eric Hoghaug installed the steps and bottom landing sloping TOWARD the house. Snow melt and rain water flow toward the step risers and landing risers (risers are the vertical portion of steps) and puddles or pools so much so that I took photographs of the reflections of tree branches in the pools of water on the landing and steps. During the winter the water freezes and the steps and landing are unusable where the water pools. The tiles on all the steps landings are coming loose. The grout manufacturer (Laticrete “Color Select” grout and caulk) representative and the thinset manufacturer (Custom Products “Prolight thinset”) representative came to my home and viewed the installation. These products were purchased from KateLo and Tile Minnesota Tile and Stone in Plymouth MN respectively and are of the best quality products for this application and are not some off brand cheap box store products. Eric Hoghaug was required apply thinset to the back surface of the tiles and apply thinset to the membrane substrate and then install the tiles and that there must be a minimum of 90% thinset under the tile so that water does not collect under to tile and freeze and loosen the tiles. Furthermore, Eric Hoghaug was required pursuant to the manufacturers and the TCAH to install caulk instead of grout ever 8 to 12 feet to act as an expansion joint. Eric Hoghaug did NOT install any caulk expansion joints. Also, upon observation of the tiles that came loose, NO thinset was applied to the back surface of the tiles. Upon observation in some places near the walls it is visible that Eric Hoghaug applied about 50% to 60% thinset under the tiles as is evidenced by the trawl grooves in the thinset. Water has collected under the tiles and weeps through (via osmosis) the thinset and tiles from the back side. The thinset is disintegrating.
  This past winter when I texted photographs of the above problems to Eric Hoghaug and spoke with him via telephone I told him that when the weather gets warm I would give him the opportunity to demolish and reinstall all the tile, thinset and grout and substrate membrane at his expense his reply was “F*** you. You deal with it” and then he hung up the phone. The weather has been warm for many weeks and I have not been contacted by Eric Hoghaug or anyone representing him or speaking on his behalf so I am doing what he told me to do by dealing with it filing this review and a complaint with the B. B. Bureau.

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