Roy from Burnaby

An update to my earlier review (see below) - after several weeks, the owner responded with an apology for the poor communication and offered to redo the work. This time they did an excellent job and to my complete satisfaction. Original Review: A small blacktop pathway job (8'x12'). Owner said that they have a minimum $1300 call-out fee but accepted $800 which was the same as two other quotes that I received. A tricky job that was handled well (I thought) - it required blending into an existing driveway and included working around a couple of utility covers. That job was done reasonably well. One of the workers convinced me to seal the driveway and new blacktop for a discounted price of $300. It was about $100 more than it would have cost me so I agreed. Unfortunately there were a couple of scabs that lifted off the next day and they had sealed the City water shut-off cap. I contacted the owner the next day and he said he would send somebody to fix it. I reminded him a week later and he said he would send somebody to fix it. That was one month ago and nobody has contacted me yet. I've since cleaned up the water shut-off cap so it can be removed and it looks like I'll need to fix the job myself. Poor work and poor follow-up.

Complete re-roofing including removing old shingles, adding sheathing and wrap and installing a ridge and two cap vents. BestWest provided excellent presales consultation with product samples and discussion options. Products and workmanship were excellent and price was very reasonable.

Up until 9 months ago, I'd been a very happy customer of Sears. Over the past 35 years, I've purchased all my kitchen appliances (stove, fridge, dishwasher and hood-fan), my clothes washer, my vacuum cleaner, garage door openers (2) and dehumidifier from Sears. And I have purchased many Craftsman tools - electric drill, tool cases, router. It took more than 20 years for my vacuum cleaner and drill to die. The rest of my purchases are still working well. But when we needed a new vacuum cleaner, that's when the problems started. Consumer Reports provided performance and reliability information about Sears (Kenmore) products in the U.S. but Sears could not provide information about the equivalent Canadian models. I was not able to get any information from the local Sears (Burnaby Metrotown). The Sears parts and service were not helpful but they, unlike the local store, made an effort to help me by comparing features of the U.S. and Canadian models. In fact, they did a much better sales job than the sales staff. It turns out that our local store no longer has staff familiar with vacuum cleaners. When I came into the store to ask a sales person about information that was no available from the website, the sales person read the information on the website (rather poorly, I might add). They did not address my questions but rather made an effort to direct me to another product. The product that I was looking for was on-sale and I wanted to see it. I thought perhaps the carton or product manual could help. However, the product was not in stock. I could not see it or read anything about it. The sales person admitted that they knew nothing about vacuum cleaners and seemed to be a a loss as to how to find information about the products. I did, however, have enough information to purchase the vacuum cleaner. It has been great so far and I wanted to provide some feedback to Sears through their online rating system. There were a lot of questions about the product that I bought. What disturbed me was that Sears provided no information and in some cases incorrect information about the product. One customer was unable to locate the product that I had just purchased and Sears responded that the product (that I just purchased) was unavailable. Customers asked about such features as weight and if there were reusable bags. Sears posted answers that we incorrect and I tried to post the corrections with references to their own documentation. My postings were bounced (rejected and not published). After more than 35 years of doing business with Sears, I can not rely on Sears to provide me with reliable information about their products.

Called Malani during regular business hours to repair what I assumed to be a faulty thermocouple on my 8-year-old gas hot water tank. Dispatcher was very professional - took down information about the tank, said that there would be $180 charge for the first hour and $98/hr thereafter, said they'd come sometime during 12-5pm and that I'd get a call 30 minutes ahead. Within an hour, they called and a technician arrived. Technician was very polite and got down to work immediately. Problem was with a limiter switch but asked if I wanted the thermocouple replaced at the same time. I agreed. Everything was done within an hour. Service charge of $180 seemed a little excessive ($90-120 seem to be the norm) and the parts were marked up by over 250%. E.g. Charged $24 for the thermocouple. Retail price at Home Depot is $8.99 (Honeywell 24" Thermocouple Model Q340A 1413). I completely understand mark-ups of 100-150% for this type of service. They must buy, retain, transport, inventory and deliver parts used for service. But marking up parts by more than 250% is excessive.

Initially contacted Vancouver Locksmith (http://247vancouverlocksmith.com) to re-key 3 entry locks. Quoted $35 for the service call and $28 & up for each re-keying. Technician responded and arrived promptly. After assessing the locks, quote was changed to $85 each. After re-keying, one lock was not functional (could not be unlocked). Technician encouraged cash payment and did not provide a receipt. Just under 3 weeks the key cylinder on a second lock fell out while trying to unlock it with a key. Contacted the company to resolve the problem. When I did not hear from them after an hour, I replaced the lock myself. They did try to reach me until 30 minutes later. I would not recommend this company. They do not appear to be bonded and according to the Better Business Bureau, "As of September 20, 2013: BBB has been advised that 24/7 Vancouver Locksmith Pro's is not nor has ever been licensed to act as a locksmith in the Province of BC through the Security Program Division, Ministry of Justice".

Casa Madera supplied and installed hardwood floors and baseboards for our main floor. They have a great selection of quality flooring at reasonable prices. Work was very professional, done right and right on time.