We recently purchased a 40+ year old home in the west end, and while a lot of interior work had been done, the outside back 'patio' was a complete mess - it was an ugly cement pad made of that awful aggregate concrete crap that's so prevalent in a lot of Edmonton architecture from that era (late 70's). It was horrible to walk on, it was uneven, cracked, sinking, and pooling water. And it runs the entire back length of the house, so we knew we were in for a pretty major project if we were to go through with it.
We got a few quotes, but after seeing all the signs for Concrete Replacement Experts in our neighbourhood (along with lawn signs of people actually getting work done by them), I called them to get a quote. Wade (owner) was there almost immediately, did some measurements, and had a quote to me within 15 minutes.
The job was originally supposed to take around 3 days, but due to our miserable summer of 2019 Edmonton weather, with nearly 2 months of daily rain, it did end up delaying the process, ending up taking more like 3 weeks lol (TOTALLY not their fault whatsoever!!), but they never complained, they just did the work! When they started ripping out the old concrete and steps, they found pockets where the concrete was much thicker than it had originally appeared to be (along with some water damage along one section of the house, which they were also able to completely fix for us!!). This not only added to the length of time for the job to get completed, it also added a little bit of additional cost to the total project, which was not a huge surprise, but we were not told about this until presented with the final bill. For future reference, I would suggest they give a heads-up midway through the project if it looks like it's going to go over budget. Avoids nasty surprises 'after the fact'.
Once the work was completed, the patio and new steps surpassed even our most optimistic expectations. These guys did absolutely outstanding work, and I wouldn't even dream of going with anyone else if we ever need work like this done again. Nor would I ever hesitate to recommend them WHOLEHEARTEDLY to anyone looking to get concrete work done. These guys work HARD, and obviously take pride in their work. They even seeded our lawn after the fact, to restore the patch that was trampled by their (very) heavy equipment.
My only issues with them were relatively minor, but in the interest of a balanced review, I feel they should be mentioned:
1. The communication from Wade and Rick (the project manager) was phenomenal at the beginning of the process, and even until about the midway point, but at some point (I think because of all the delays, and all the other projects they had on the go), the communication just kind of...'stopped'. For the final week of the project, the only way we could get any sort of update was by us having to reach out via phone or text to ask 'is anyone coming to do some work today', 'how much is left to do' etc. We felt they should have kept that high level of communication going until the end, as that's the bar that had been set from the outset, AND it's one of the things that I think really sets them apart from a lot of their competitors.
2. One of their guys - without asking us - decided to use our hose and hose trolley, both of which were basically wrecked by the end of the project, as they were covered in cement. The hose I didn't care so much about, but the hose trolley was a gift, and those things aren't cheap, so when I pointed that out, while I did get an apology, there was no offer to reimburse us for the damages. Since we were getting such fantastic quality of work done at a fair price, I didn't push the issue, but I did find it odd that they wouldn't even offer to replace it.
Again, those are relatively minor issues - overall, we are over the moon happy with the quality of the work that was done, the friendliness and professionalism of Wade, Rick, and crew, and the overall experience as a whole.
I honestly don't think you could find a better company in Edmonton to do this sort of work. I can't recommend them highly enough.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $10,000.00
- Company Response
Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, and how happy you are with the work that we did. It means a lot to each of us to know that our hard work is appreciated!
The weather was not on our side, but your cooperation and understanding was great. Doing concrete in poor weather conditions leads to poor quality work and we will not do that, it's nice working with a client who understands it's in their best interest to wait a few more days rather than get an inferior product. We move our projects along as fast as we can, without sacrificing quality, and your project is a great example of that. It took a little longer, but as you said, the end product is phenomenal and adds to the value of your property.
I also appreciate your feedback on the small items that you feel we can improve on as well. We certainly try to ensure the price we quote is the price you pay unless there are issues uncovered once we break-out the old concrete as was the case with your project. This is why we have clients view the work area as needed to discuss unforeseen issues as we did with you.
The existing water damage on your home was outside of the contracted scope of work and created another minor delay but after discussing estimated cost with you we were able to repaired the area quite quickly. All things considered, I feel the minor difference in timing & price was good value for all the extra work we did.
Your comment about keeping the communication up throughout the job is also appreciated - with the weather setbacks, we were definitely trying to catch up and focus on getting your job done. Rescheduling all of the various crews and equipment to keep things on track made it more challenging in the moment. Going forward however, we have implemented some internal systems to ensure that communication with clients stays high all the way through the project, and I appreciate your feedback to help us add this extra level of service.
In terms of the hose and trolley, as I said at the final inspection, we would be more than happy to replace that trolley for you. You said at that time not to worry about because everything else had been handled so well, but if you want you can certainly reach out to me now and I would be pleased to take care of that.
I am very proud of the work we did at your property, and I am grateful for all of the great feedback and that you're so happy with what we completed for you.
Sincerely,
Wade