Harmony Basements

I had Harmony work on my basement from Oct until Dec 2017. I had to leave my house for work each day but my wife was at home and she said their crew was always courteous and respectful. That was very important to me.

I was impressed with their "foundation guy" who was able to identify and repair several minor leaks that I knew had previously existed in the basement walls. They were vertical cracks that went full length from top to bottom.

They fixed it by drilling into the cracks from inside the foundation and injecting urethane (I think that's what they used) under pressure. Outside of the house in the areas exposed above ground I can see the hardened filler as it was forced through the hairline cracks until it reached the outside wall. I can see it so I feel confident it was done right.

I had an unfinished cold room that they were able to convert into livable space by bringing in electricity and HVAC. Before going with Harmony I had other basement companies look at it. Many were reluctant to get involved with the cold room because of existing water leakage. Our salesperson Diego had zero hesitation and was confident it could be fixed & converted.

I opted to use spray foam insulation throughout the basement and am so glad I did. After running the furnace for only 20 minutes the basement crew would ask us to turn it off. They couldn’t take the heat. A huge difference from before! I’ve since had to close many of the basement registers as it gets hot quickly. I love it!

I found their tradespeople enjoy their work and take pride in it. A few times when I was home in the evening I had one of their workers wanting to show me their work. The tile guy in particular was extremely proud and rightfully so.

About half way through the project we met with Sasha at their showroom to pick our tiles, flooring, bathroom vanity, etc. It was a fun and easy day with no rush or pressure to get things done.

Over the course of the project we did notice a few miscommunications between Harmony and their workers and between Harmony and ourselves. To be honest I found some of the issues frustrating and stressful at the time.

Leo our project manager was always reachable by phone and was willing to set things right. Even without being called he would drop by and do inspections with my wife. A few times he met with me in the evening to inspect together. I really appreciated that. In some cases it was Leo pointing out an imperfection to me that would later disappear. I liked his drive and appreciated that he was easy to get along with.

I made a few changes as things went along. I think the biggest change was that I decided to replace the basement windows after the drywall had been finished. Leo took the surprise calmly and said he would get his window guy to meet with me to see what could be done. The window guy said he would have preferred to work on the windows before the drywall and framing was completed but said he could still do it without damage. It took 2 weeks for the new windows to arrive. He and his partner spent a whole day ripping out the old glass & window frames and installing new ones. It was more work than I thought it would be. I was expecting a lot of mess and scratches but I really have to give credit here. They exceeded my expectations.

Another example was a pot light that I decided to put in the shower after the electrical and drywall was complete. Leo explained the electrician would have to cut a few holes in the drywall to fish wires. I was really nervous about the holes but after they installed the light and patched the holes I can’t see any imperfection. The dry wall guy who did this is a magician. They took their time and did it right.

The end result is that I felt they did a great job. My basement was completely unfinished when they started. I now have a laundry room, utility room, a bathroom and a converted cold room. I don't know if it's standard issue but in my case they used a glass shower enclosure that is a thing of beauty.

Well done Harmony Basements.

We recently finished the basement renovation by Harmony basements. The project started very well. The drawings and permit were done on time. Materials were delivered by stages on time. The materials are good quality and environment friendly. The workers are professional and worked very hard. They would not leave until job was done. Leo is expert in the project management. Every time when he came by to check, he would write down everything that need to be done/fixed in his phone for next stage. When he said he would send worker to do the job at certain time, they will come . The framing and insulations are well done. They put an extra layer of insulation around furnace room so that all the rooms are quite and noise-free. Right before Christmas, we got a fully finished beautiful basement with a beautiful custom made shower/bathroom, fireplace (which is done exactly what we wanted), all the rooms are quite/warm/bright/healthy, flooring are warm and beautiful. All the jobs are done by Markham city's building code and all are passed the inspection. Thank you Leo to put so much effort.

Harmony finished our basement reno in mid-September and I decided to wait on writing this review until we had a chance to use the basement for a while to see if any problem issues would arise. Thankfully nothing has! We've used other contractors in the past where this was not the case.

The best thing about the basement...it is WARM. This is due to the combination of using Roxul wall insulation, the DryBarrier subfloor and the Torlys luxury vinyl planks (w/ cork backing). When I walk on this floor with the current winter weather we are having, my feet are toasty warm. I've been in other basements where my feet are freezing and I know the contractor either didn't do a subfloor or didn't use a good product. The DryBarrier product is great because it very thin while still providing a thermal break and doesn't use up the limited headspace I have in my basement.

The basement looks great and feels great so my wife and I are happy with the end product. Have a look at our photos! That doesn't mean things went perfectly though. So to be fair, here are my criticisms. First, we were told it should be a 5-6 week reno no problem. Given how simple our basement design is, this really should have been the case. In the end it took 10 weeks from start to finish. Secondly, related to this delay, we were never certain when workers would show up. Some days it was bright and early. Other days it was late morning or early afternoon (or in the evening!). And there were quite a few days where nobody showed up at all. I understand that there are often other jobs happening for contractors/subcontractors but it would be nice if we were told in advance who was coming and when to expect them. Lastly, the order of operations was 'odd'. My father was a plumber and I worked with him in my younger years so I have a decent understanding of how construction process should work. I think Harmony did things as subcontractors became available which meant the ideal work flow was not adhered to...at least in my opinion. This doesn't necessarily affect the quality of the final product significantly but it is not what is typically expected.

I'll wrap this up with some positives. Mold resistant materials!!! Roxul, Drybarrier, vinyl floor planks, moisture resistant drywall, Kerdi membrane behind the shower tiles, steel stud construction...that's all quality stuff! Also it was built with a proper building permit where many other contractors will try to dissuade your from going this route. The folks at Harmony were a pleasure to work with. Diego, Mark and Lawrence are friendly, fun guys at the main office who helped us get this project within a fair budget. There are alot of basement finishes to choose from at their headquarters and Sasha was very helpful there. The bonus is that we were able to supply some of our own finishes and receive a credit on that. All the subcontractors were very friendly, courteous and respectful so we didn't have a problem with them being alone in our home even while we were at work. Lastly, Leo is a very easy to work with project manager and always available by phone or text message.

I really wanted to give Harmony a 10/10 on Homestars. Unfortunately, unless a project runs start to finish without any hiccups and without me having to stress over any aspect of the reno, there's no way anyone should be giving 10/10. So my 8-9/10 still reflects a very good final job done by Harmony but deducts a few points for late completion and a bit of poor work process.

I do recommend Harmony based on the people there and the quality of the materials used in the construction. We have used other contractors in the past for our main bathroom ensuite renovation and business office reno...Harmony exceeded them in every way!

Harmony basements guys were extremely friendly and polled. it was pleasure to meet them, special Diego. We spend long time on the design of my 1200 Sq’f basement specially the stars way and they came out with lots of perfect ideas. i loved every single spot that was designed. The time came to get the price, they announce to me a $100,000.00. i was speechless for a moment, and then they told me do not worry they will make me a special discount, the price came down to $53,000.00. i paid them deposit of $3000.00 and schedule a date to start the project. Be honest i had some personal issues i ask them to reschedule for few times.The day before the beginning the project manager came and to look at the site and told me that there is an issue with my stars way, and we need to redesign it. Next Diego called me and told me that it will cost me an extra $10,000.00. i told him that i did’t hide the stars from him on the date of estimate and price was firmed, i told him that i don’t agree with the price change and asked him for half of my deposit back, i do appreciate the design they did and the time they spend but they can’t change the price after 6 hours of negutiations , my time is also valued. unfortunately by Law he sad you had 10 day after sign the agreement to cancel it, we will not refund your full or partial deposit. Expect your price will be changed.

I recently invited the Harmony Basements team for an in-home consultation on my project. The sales manager, Lawrence, was very forthcoming in that their price would likely not be the cheapest, but this did not dissuade me in the slightest to have them quote my project. What most people fail to realize is that what you can't see behind that walls, under the floor and above the ceiling are what matters most; especially when it comes to renovating a basement space that experiences environmental conditions that differ greatly from the rest of your home. This is where Harmony Basements sets themselves apart from the rest; using quality materials that are appropriate for use in a basement to ensure longevity, and most importantly, health and safety to those who occupy the finished space.

We have just started our renovation with Harmony. We found Harmony through Google while searching for companies that use Magnesium Oxide boards in the basement where moisture can be a problem (i.e. no wood and regular drywall).
On our first meeting, Diego and Lawrence came to our house. After a few hours, we were able to go through an iterative process of making changes to the design and the virtual tour of our new basement on Diego's computer.

On top of the steel framing and Magnesium oxide boards, they also:
1) Use R22 mold-free insulation (we did not see this with any of the other contractors. Some contractors were even going to keep the old insulation we had on top and add to the bottom. Harmony removed the old insulation)
2) Use Torlys Vinal with mold free cork.
3) Have a beautiful Custom Glass shower option.
4) Permits. They get both electrical and building permits (Building permits too). They don't take shortcuts.
5) Offer a lifetime warranty.

I signed with them on the first night. We did get cheaper offers, but we plan to live in this house for the rest of our lives and we wanted the highest quality.
After this I met Leo. Leo has more experience in building homes than anyone I have ever met. He is clear and drives results. His team that we have met so far (Roberto, Pedro, Ron, Eugene, Sasha and Victor) have been amazing.

We have just started, but I am sure we will end of with a perfect basement. We will definitely post pictures and a final review when we are finished the project.

Jason

Very nice and qualified workers. Work was done in an expert and timely manner. Very helpful in planning the work and informative during the work. We highly recommend Harmony Basements.

We went to the Toronto Home Show with a need to renovate our Basement and a couple of ideas. We saw many a builder/renovator but only Harmony gave is the confidence that what we were looking for could be achieved. So we scheduled a Home visit.

At our 3 hour for visit Diego was able to get out of us what we wanted, detailed our needs, measured up and in a very short time he visualized on his computer what it was that we wanted. In that same visit commitments were made on both parts and the construction was soon to start.

The construction went well with only one real little glitch related to getting the floor we wanted. After that it was all just sweat, effort and working together.

In time we got exactly as we wanted and Harmony and their staff and contractors made sure that they looked after every last detail.

We think our basement is AMAZING and meets all our family's needs.

Thanks Harmony for helping us realize our vision with relatively little hassle and practically worry free!

They weren't the cheapest but we DEFINITELY GOT VALUE FOR OUR MONEY!

Thank you FOR EVERYTHING Harmony... A.

We were shopping around for a basement renovations expert and Harmony was by far the best! What stood out to us most was that Harmony uses this 3D virtual reality software to develop a design to show us exactly what the finished basement would look like during our home consultation. We could visualize the space and also got an estimated quote the same day so it was easy for us to make a decision on the spot. That won us over immediately and the work to follow was similarly great.