johnner

It is an absolute pleasure to write a review for Mr. Radon, not that the company asked us to. We were so pleased with their work that we asked what sites we could review them on. We called 3 companies for quotes but after the phone calls it was really clear that Mr. Radon was the best choice. The administrative staff on the phone were always very friendly and patient with all of our questions and requests. Hearing the answers to our questions demonstrated that they really know what they are doing, and made it easy to decide to go with them. Then a two person crew came out to do the “communication test” and install the system. They were so careful about covering our basement carpet, and their clean up was impeccable. When they did the communication test they were honest about not seeing numbers that they hoped to see and explained about our clay soil, positioning issues, etc. They answered our many many questions without any irritation or attempts to rush us (which is rare among contractors – we have done many renovations from sump pumps to heating systems to kitchen and bathroom). They also acknowledged the additional complications of our set-up as we sleep in the basement, and basements are where the radon system needs to be. They worked with us on a solution that would allow us to not have too much noise from the vacuum while also having a strong enough vacuum to get good results with clay under our foundation. They did their estimate on the “higher” side so that there would not be unpleasant surprises and then were able to reduce costs once they saw that we had sealed much of the basement ourselves. They clearly pride themselves on quality work, checking that everything is level, showing us the test results as the work is in progress, and communicating with such conscientiousness. Given that we sleep in the basement with two young children, we cannot thank them enough for helping improve the health of all of us for the long term. Thank you Mr. Radon.

Michael was very professional and thorough. He arrived early (even after leaving a message that he may be a bit late due to traffic). I found his attention to detail and the amount of time he took to look at everything that he could (within his ability) was fantastic. He had noticed some things that we never did when looking through the property (and we have a pretty good eye) and gave some excellent advice regarding the home, and the things that needed fixing. I chose Michael based on the reviews here on homestars after considering a lot of the larger HI companies, and not being able to get a hold of our really tough one from a few years back, and we were very impressed with the quality of his work. We were particularly interested in the fact that he used the infrared devices to spot issues under the floor or behind walls and didn't charge "extra" for that.

The backwater valve was installed outside after consulting with Slav on pros and cons of outside vs. inside installation. He took lots of time to explain things to us which we really appreciated. We were impressed with the quality of work of his crew, the attention to detail, the fact that Slav organizes the permit, the inspector visit, and the city rebate form. The backwater valve was a fairly straightforward job and all was done well. Even more impressive, though, was that Slav had an excellent solution for plumbing work related to an outside basement stairwell drain. We had 2 other companies out to quote prior to Toronto Drain and Plumbing and they did not come up with the excellent solution that Slav did. Slav's solution helped us manage potential overflow from our external drain from a big rainfall by allowing diversion to our internal weeping tile and sump pump system when necessary but not for every rain. We did not want the sump pump activated every time it rained so this was a great solution. Other companies had said it would be okay if we had a sewer back up into our weeping tiles because the weepers can be cleaned by power washing but Slav explained that you cannot fully get rid of the smell because the contaminated water would have seeped through the weepers into the gravel below. That made absolute sense to us once he explained it but being lay people we could not figure it out ourselves. He set up a one way valve and a Y junction so that no sewer water could get through into our weepers but rain water from the external drain could access the weeping tiles if necessary. I have written this out in detail because we were searching on line for people with this situation (having an external stairwell drain and setting up internal weepers and a sump pump) and could not find any info. Slav understood the problem immediately and had the best solution of the 3 companies we had out to quote. His prices were also very reasonable. We were very impressed with Slav and his company. Thank you!

Kurtis, Colm and George were really great. They did quality work, dug down deep and finished things really nicely. They also answered our questions clearly and reassured us about any concerns we had. They also worked hard and stayed late to get everything done. We had an outside basement stairwell drain that complicated matters. Daniel came back out after the job was done and maintained our warranty even though another company worked on our basement stairwell drain. Daniel also did some nice cosmetic finishes when he came back to check on the work. And he did those graciously without any complaints, which we appreciated. Dryshield clearly wanted us to be happy with the job before settling the account which was impressive.

We have a brick front and there were a number of bricks in various spots that were breaking down and some serious tuck pointing work needed to be done. We found Tony on Homestars and liked what we read. Tony was always very courteous and friendly and really knew his stuff. We were very impressed with how quickly and and efficiently he worked and did miss a few spots after review and came back the next day to finish them off. He did a really nice job matching the bricks to the rest of the house and also mixed the mortar himself to work with the old style of bricks our house used. Very pleased. My only comment would be that he said it would be a 2 day job but ended up being a 1 day job so for a 1day job, the price I considered to be a little high. for a 2 day job it was about right. However he did a great job with no hassle and that is worth a lot in itself. edit: fixed typos

First of all I would like to start by saying overall we are pleased with the result but getting to that result had some bumps along the way creating more stress and problems then I was hoping for during this reno. Ted is a very nice and honest contractor and does decent work however there are some major problems in the area of communication. There was a lack of good communication both between us and Ted, and between Ted and his crew. There was very little attention paid to details and virtually no review of the details before hand. We tried to discuss all these things before the start of the Job but it was left that it would all work out and we didn’t need to do this. To be fair as well we did have a lot of rain and bad weather for the first part of the project and I know this can create some issues and am factoring that out of this review, it has no impact on my rating. There were a number of things I would say were not done “as if it was their own house” which is what I expect for a 10/10 rating. Examples include: 1) not cementing high enough on the fence post that was installed, when I mentioned it they added more, but it was done poorly (rushed I think) and I had to re-do it myself. 2) not taking care when putting in the pavers to use the “nicer” looking side and avoid putting 3 bad corners together. This is another thing I ended up doing myself since it was something I could do in the evening. 3) Adding some cement based caulking at the corner of the house and the cement was done so poorly (I think from a new worker) that it would have caused more problems then it was intended to solve. 4) There were a number of things also done poorly and while His crew attempted to fix them, they were still not done the way it should have been had it been done correctly in the first place but going back a third time seems like too much stress to handle and we can fix it ourselves down the road and frankly I expected a bit of a discount for some of these issues. 5) 2 of the 3 deck lights were visibly crooked and had to be straightened out 6) The lights for the garden and deck took almost 4 weeks to come in yet we were advised to pick them out 1 week before the end of the job when this should have been something done when we first signed to contract so that it could all be done at the same time. 7) tried to talk us out of doing a circular herb garden at least 2 times which was in our plans and something we definitely wanted. We were however very pleased with some of your suggestions and recommendations including the river rock under the fence between our yards and the fact that you re-sanded the entire pathway for the neighbours (due to a few dislodged stones as a result of our fence post replacement request). Also the cedar board in front of the shed was a great idea. I was also very pleased with the attention and quality of the work done for the window sill (your masonry guy does really nice work). In summary I would say as long as you are watching what is going on and make sure ALL the details of your project are worked out before hand. Do a detailed walk around with your drawing and what you are planning and make sure it is written down what is expected and is to be done. Sure things can change once stuff actually gets laid out properly but at least you wont come home to surprises that you were not expecting. I would also suggest to Ted that he take the time to really walk through and look at what his crew has done and he would see these things before we did and correct them himself, thus causing us to be pleased instead of stressed about having to mention all these little problems since it felt like they were received with some apprehension. Aug 14, 2014 edit to correct spelling mistakes and adjust a formatting issue that said 23 times when it should have been 2-3 times. also raised the rating to 8 based on Teds very thoughtful response.

I found M.G.S Lawncare after they ran a daily deal offer and decided to try them out for Window Cleaning since we just had lots of construction done and the windows were very dirty. Not only did Greg show up Early, he showed up 1 WEEK early ? perhaps a mis-entry in the appointment book but I was pleasantly surprised. For $20 I have to say they did a really good job, fast, and friendly. Also a regular rate of only $35 is still a great deal for the work done. I would have liked however if he had upsold me on also cleaning off and washing down the dirt that collected onto the flashing around the windows since the dirt from the windows just ended up on the bottom of the windows flashing and thus still very dirty but to be fair this was not part of the job of what was agreed upon but I wish he had said look, for an extra $10 I will make sure the siding/flashing and window sill are cleaned up too. If he had done that without asking or done it with an upsell, it would have been a 10/10 rating for sure Also the back door which is just one pane of glass was not done (but again its easy to do and I did it myself but it would have made a better impression). I highly recommend them based on the one visit to my house and I plan to have them come back in the fall again to clean the windows. Hopefully all the staff work as well as the owner.

Gator windows did a fantastic job installing the windows. They put down drop clothes and carboard everywhere, and cleaned up better than any other contractor we have had. They are very couteous and professional and showed up on the day they said they would show up which was very important because we had a tennant moving in the next day! They also cordinated the delivery of the Loewen windows to arrive at our house right after they got setup, very impressed by that. The only thing that i find is a little lacking which is why they get a 9 and not a 10 from me, is the fact that it is hard to get Harold to call back sometimes especially before we had even ordered anything (not all the time though). There were a few instances where we had to leave a couple messages or emails before he responded to us. Still waiting on one clarification response, but other than that, a terrific job and we will use them again to replace our doors this coming spring. Also when in the show room the lady that was helping us was not all that friendly or helpful, but Bill and Harold more than made up for that.

not so much the results we did not double check on. They did get out all the stains that we pointed out to them in the upstairs bedroom and the stairs never looked better. The basement bedroom is a different story as we trusted it was cleaned to the level we saw upstairs so we did not go down to check before they left. Unfortuantely it was not. There was still surface dirt in several areas of the bedroom (that should have been vacuumed up) there was some sawdust still left in the carpet from the window replacement, and several dark stains which we of course did not point out to the staff, did not get cleaned either. Also, when speaking on the phone the estimate was $100 for the stairs and 1 room but when it came time to pay it became $120 without an explanation. I was too tired to even argue with it and just figured well I know it will end up in the review.... So the price in my opinion a bit on the high side considering this extra $20 that showed up and not enough detail paid to the dark spots in the basement carpet (not the light ones which we already knew were discoulourations that could not be solved). so be sure to mark all the spots you know of that need cleaning and they will do a good job.

We originally found Granicor from a friend and we had been left in the lurch from our first granite people we tried to get, and John sounded competent and honest and could get things done quickly. The problem is he never returned our phone calls, trying to arrange an install date was a little sketchy but the counter top did finally arrive. Turns out though granicor does not do their own granite, they have other shops do it for them. We were not pleased with the poor quality of the bevel around the sink edge and the front of the counter top and was told that it is very hard to grind it just right and that is partially true but if someone really cares about their work they will spend the extra time it takes to make it look really good. The polish on the front pice of the granite was also done poorly. John did work hard getting it installed and install did go ok however the counter top ended up cracking from the hole that was drilled for the faucet... guess what nothing he could do about it since it didnt show up until a day or 2 later. To his credit he did finally return (after many calls) and rubbed some sealant into the crack which helped a little but we could still see it... yet there was no offer of a discount of any kind. We are still waiting on the promised breadboard that was supposed to come with the counter top and this is over 1 year later! He constant makes promises such as i will be there by the end of the week. The last time we heard that was in October... now its February. So overall the granite was OK and the install was OK but the communication and constant promises of return phone calls or showing up make this a tiring person to deal with. I suggest going elsewhere for your granite.

Brian and Roxanne at Vienna Douglas are extremely helpful and knowledgeable and have helped us to make many design decisions free of charge including helping us map out the design of the tiling, searching high and low for tile that ended up being sold out everywhere in the City and then finding us a different better solution to our accent tile. We purchased the tiles and bathroom fixtures including shower system, towel racks, subway tile etc. They carry high quality products but still at very reasonable prices. We would recommend anyone who does not have a designer to use Vienna Douglas to help them plan and supply the fixtures and furniture for their new bathroom. Their custom made furniture of which we are getting a mirror, is also high quality and reasonably priced.

Dome contracting was once listed on the Holmes on Holmes website and frankly took advantage of that fact. They are deceivers and did sub par work. Also said he needed the final payment before the job was inspected because he had to pay his workers. He seemed honest and nice but don't be fooled! he ran with the money and I spent 2 entire weekends finishing up what he said he has already done right to my face. Here is a list of things not done correctly on the job: 1) Did not airseal bathroom fan or air vent to bathroom closet. Able to put fingers right through and push on bathroom fan from attic. Makes us concerned that no air sealing was done to all other air vents and light fixtures, even though Robert assured us it had been done and it was not. I had to go up and do this all myself. 2) Wall by thermostat not solved. John asked Robert to "do whatever you have to do to fix it". Cold draft still coming in after Robert foamed small amount of area. 3) Insulated Box for air exchanger was not closed at ends and left large opening on back side which makes it of no insulation value at ALL, therefore risk of pipes freezing and major damage. 4) Did not blow insulation properly across back of attic on far side of air exchanger. Found pieces of pink insulation (which should have been removed as per quote) in back section. When lifted up, no blown cellulose and can see right to ceiling boards. 5) Attic hatch is still not air sealed. Air is still coming in. Also styrofoam falling off in one section. 6) Frame around hatch constructed of styrofoam, not wood, and not attached securely at corners. 7) Did not remove debris and pink insulation as quoted. Have photos of all the junk left up there (big pieces of wood, etc). 8) Did not lay catwalk board to air exchanger and actually confirmed with us that it had been done. 9) Did not blow insulation into headers properly. We are able to see the hardware cloth we installed to keep the squirrels out. Also you didn't seal up this hole as you stated you would. 10) Debris from cutting out roof vents dumped in attic (left over sharp metal pieces, wood, roofing) did not complete the installation of 7th vent and left holes in the roof that rain started coming through. 11) One of the air ducts was knocked apart and blowing hot air straight into attic!!! 12) Handyman found drywall cuts on ceiling of furnace room to be poorly done and very difficult to repair so whole ceiling had to be replaced 13) Dripped foam on heaters and carpet and walls very sloppy no drop cloths used. 14) Did not blow insulation under shelf across front of house, had to have him come back to do that.

We found peter after calling around to many places to try and find someone to service a Rinnai (on demand water heater and also our boiler), a few other places we tried came out, looked at it and knid of scratched their heads then said sorry, must be too small to service the house. Well we knew that was incorrect so finally we found Peter and About Pure Air. He instantly dove right into the Rinnai to try and find the problem and did... turns out the whole system has been installed incorrectly and we were days away from losing heat completely! Since the initial work, we had various other problems all related to the poor install of the system as well as some upgrades that we wanted to do and all the work was done professionally and quickly. I can not say enough good things about Peter and his staff and I highly recommend them.

I have to say I was very excited to find a nice carpet at Elte, we got it all picked out and then the estimate came back (this took too long) then our sales rep was away and the others really could not figure out what to do to help us.... the estimate however was a shocker, 400 square feet became 800 square feet, the price doubled!! not impressed at all with this company.

After finding a nice carpet at Elte and ready to get things going, their estimate came back almost double what it should have been. Somehow 400 square feet became 800 square feet - its magic!! It was refreshing to walk into e-floor, and know the price they are quoting you is the installed price with underpad. Lily was tremendously helpful and the colours look great. Although we did have a few irregularities in the basement floor, the installers could have done a bit better job securing things up. We had to have them back to tighten up a few spots, but i must say they returned quickly and did fix the loose spots and efloor was great about following up to make sure wer were happy. I would have given a 10 if not for having to get the installers back. I would use e-floor again and recommend them. Update Nov 2009: a few spots on the stairs had come loose (staples came out) also one of our contractors ripped a run in our sisal carpet. We called efloor and they sent someone out that weekend who not only repaired the damage from our other contractor (you cant even tell) they repaired the stairs at no charge. Still very impressed with efloor.