We bought a new house from a National builder back in May. We noted, right after move in, that grout was coming off. We were given the run around with our warranty requests (there is no grout problem, your house is dirty, you amhave a basic grout, you are using a steam mop, it's your cats) for many months.
In October, we had a representative from grout manufacturer come to our house, who verified that we, indeed, had a house with grout problems.
Builder recommended to have grout removed. So, they brought the subcontractor that did the floor to do the work. As grout removal was started, we noticed that they were damaging the tiles. The damage consist in chipped tiles, cracked tiles, having glazed damaged (removed), chipped corners. We requested to have all damaged tiles replaced.
Now the Builder and subcontractor are stating that they will repair (use epoxy) and not replace the tiles citing TCNA standards. We know that the TCNA Handbook for Ceramic, Glass, and Stone Installation states regarding Visual Inspection of Tilework states that there are acceptable tolerances and variations but they do not mention anything about damaged tile.
We requested the literature stating that they can repair a ceramic tile with epoxy as an industry standard as well as literature stating that they can damage a tile and get to choose whether to repair it or replace it. Of course, they have not produced any such documents.
Have anyone had a similar situation? What was the outcome?
Any recommendations besides retaining an Attorney?