Bibi in Calgary

I put in a request via Home Stars, and 888 was the first company to contact me in response. I wanted my garbage disposal removed, since we no longer use it. Because we weren't replacing it, this also required reconfiguring the plumbing under the sink, including the dishwasher drain. They did a good job, and were efficient, courteous, and pleasant. They cleaned up after themselves. The cost was reasonable. I've run water in both sinks and have run the dishwasher. Everything is working as it should, and there are no leaks. I'm happy now that my sink is more usable, and there's more room underneath it.

We hired Wes and his crew to replace our fence upon the recommendation of a neighbour. We had previously contacted two companies that had high ratings here, but neither had the courtesy to respond at all. Wes was very professional and thorough, checking with us about all the details, and explaining things to us, when needed. He and his crew were ready to begin four days before the estimated start date (our last fencers came five MONTHS after their estimated start date). They had the job done with 2 days. This was great, as it minimized disruption to our household, especially to our dog. The crew did a good job and were courteous and cleaned up the job site well. We are very pleased.

Had this company out to wash my outside windows and skylight on my 1 1/2 story home. The company was easy to deal with and communicated well. They did a great job, and I thought the cost was reasonable.

We booked bathroom tile installation through Rona Calgary West. We also purchased all the materials from them. (Note: Rona subcontracts out the installation.) Overall, this was a great experience. The salesperson at Rona helped us to take advantage of a promotion in such a way as to save us the maximum amount of money. We are thrilled with the way the bathrooms look now--so much better than before--and the installers corrected problems from a previous installation that was not done properly. However, there is one issue. We paid approximately $1500 for in-floor heating in the master bathroom. I assumed it would be a wired mat that lays under the tile, like we have in another room. However, the salesperson chose a type that has to be cemented in. Not only did this mean pouring cement on the bathroom floor (and some of it going into the drain), but it also resulted in uneven heating. The tiles in the first part of the "run" (from the thermostat) heat up well. The tiles in the second half barely heat up at all, meaning that where we step out of the shower, the tiles aren't very warm. It is disappointing, especially given the amount we spent, that we ended up with properly heated tiles in only half of a very small room. I wish I had been told in advance that this type of in-floor heating would be used and that it heat unevenly, so that I could have made a different choice. (I wish I had thought to check, but it didn't even occur to me that it wouldn't be a mat.) Another small issue is that the openings for the floor registers were cut a little too large. I had to figure out a way to make the registers stay exactly in place, so they wouldn't slide over and expose part of the holes. Other than that, we are very happy with the job and plan to use Rona Calgary West again for future work.

We contracted The Door House to install a new, insulated steel, double garage door, replacing our 38-year-old wooden one. We chose this company based on a positive experience with them years ago, replacing an opener, and the positive reviews here. It was very easy to deal with the company's representative over the phone and by email, and to choose an option that suited us. On installation day, the installer arrived exactly at the time specified, on the dot. He had our old garage door removed, the new one installed, rails and all, and everything cleaned up in just over two hours. We were amazed. We love the new door so far (almost 2 weeks later). Compared to our old door, it is much quieter, better sealed, and cleaner and more modern looking, both inside and out. We had a row of frosted windows put into the new one (the old had none), and that makes a huge difference to the level of light inside the garage. Given that ours is a front-drive garage, the new door adds curb appeal to our home, too. We are very happy.

I called Knight Plumbing to fix a kitchen drain that was clogged. The technician discussed the cost with me in advance. He solved the problem within 30 minutes. He showed me that the drain was working properly afterward. He was courteous and clean. I thought the cost was too high, but then this is typical of plumbing services, and it had to be done.

I hired Imagine Plumbing to install our new Bosch dishwasher, because they were recommended by the appliance store where I purchased the dishwasher. We purchased this model of dishwasher specifically because of its decibel rating and the reviews we’d read that said it was very quiet, as our kitchen is in the centre of the house and open to the other rooms. We paid more for this specific model than we would have for a model that was not designed to be as quiet. The plumber mentioned several times while he was here that he preferred a different brand of dishwasher, that he would only use this other brand, etc. I’m not sure what the point of this was. He was also on his phone A LOT while he was here. Apparently, someone in the company had fallen off a roof, so he was dealing with calls and messages regarding that and regarding rescheduling things. I don’t have an issue with that, of course, and I was happy to learn later that the person who fell was going to be all right. However, I was charged for time he spent on his phone. Furthermore, I was charged for parts he didn’t use. He used the existing drain hose extension and the existing electrical outlets, took the ones that came with the dishwasher without asking my permission, and then charged me for those parts. (I did end up getting that charge reversed.) Worse, though, was he removed and took the insulation that was supplied with the dishwasher, apparently because he was having trouble getting it into the space (even though the space meets the minimum measurements required). And, worst of all, he did not admit to it until another service person discovered the issue. When the installer ran the dishwasher after installing it, I was shocked at how noisy it was. I mentioned my concern to him, and his response was to mutter, “First world problems.” That would have been his opportunity to tell me about the insulation, but instead he chose to hide that information and make me feel as if I were being unreasonable. Then he tried to blame the dishwasher, saying that the Bosch is not as quiet as his preferred model. Ultimately, I ended up having a Bosch serviceman out to see what the problem was, and he quickly discovered that the insulation was missing. When I called Imagine Plumbing to request that the insulation and other items that were taken be returned, I was informed that they had been thrown away. Bosch ended up replacing the insulation for free, which they did not have to do, because it was the installer’s fault and not a manufacturer’s defect. Yay for Bosch. I did ultimately get an apology from Imagine Plumbing, which I appreciate, but I still never want to deal with them ever again.

In April of 2014, we went to Hearth Fireplace Depot to look at 3-sided fireplaces. Phil, the salesperson who helped us showed us a floor model we were interested in, and after discussing its features with him, we decided to buy it. We put down a deposit on the fireplace and on installation. One of the features we discussed was that, according to the salesman, a fan was optional in this fireplace. This was what we wanted, since we find the fans too noisy, and we also wanted the fireplace to be a backup heat source in case of a power outage. Phil asked about the square footage of the rooms we wanted to heat and said that the fireplace would throw more than enough heat for that space, with no need for a fan. At the end of April, the fireplace was installed. It looked great, but there was a problem. It kept shutting off. The installer said that the safety mechanism was doing this because the fireplace needed a fan. I explained what the salesman had told us and that we didn’t want a fan. (We wouldn’t have minded an optional fan, but we didn’t want to have to have the fan on in order to use the fireplace.) When I spoke with Phil, he said he could get us a newer type of fan that is quieter, so we agreed to this. However, he later told us this would not be possible. He said that the safety could be disabled after the gas inspection, but I would not agree to this. I contacted the manufacturer who said that the fireplace should not require a fan, and if it wasn’t working, the company needed to fix it. Phil said that the manufacturer didn’t understand how old the model was. He then offered to send the installer with the regular fan, so I could see what it sounded like. If I didn’t like it, he offered to sell us a newer model fireplace for an additional $1400.00, and the vent hole would be a few inches higher. We hadn’t planned on spending that much, but as we now had a hole in our wall, I agreed. When the installer came, he had been told to install the fan, instead of to let me hear it first. I straightened that out and upon hearing the fan, decided it was, indeed, far too noisy. I said that I would like to purchase the newer model. As he left, he told me he had disabled the safety on the fireplace that was in our house. I don’t know why he did this. When I spoke to Phil again, he said that the boss wouldn’t go for selling us the newer model for $1400, but instead it would cost another $2050.00. I said that I would like a refund on the original fireplace, and I would like my wall repaired to its original condition, then. A couple of weeks went by, and I had heard nothing from the company. When I called back, I learned that our salesperson was no longer working there. Cliff, the owner spoke to me and said that we had bought the floor model “as is” and we would have to live with it. I disagreed, saying that we would not have bought it had the salesperson not given us incorrect information. He said, “Well, I’ll have to take your word for that,” in a tone of voice that indicated he did not believe me. He was rude and belligerent, but I finally managed to get him to listen and said that I was willing to purchase the newer model but didn’t think it was fair to have to spend another $2050.00 to get what we’d been told we were buying in the first place. He said he would see what he could do. A couple more weeks went by, with no contact from the company. I left messages for Cliff a few times, but he did not return my calls. By this time, it was the middle of June, and we were going to be away for most of July. So, upon a friend’s advice, I called the City gas inspector. I expressed my concern that we had a fireplace installed that we could not have framed (we were supposed to have the inspection after the framing), because it wasn’t working properly, and I was concerned, because the safety mechanism had been disabled, and the company was not returning my calls. I asked if I could have it inspected before it was framed. He said he would do so, but suggested I first contact Hearth Fireplace and let them know that I’d spoken with him. So, I left this information in another message for Cliff, and, lo and behold, he got back to me 20 minutes later. He then agreed to sell me the newer model for an additional $1700.00, and I agreed to this. Unbelievably, he then told me that the original fireplace did have a fan in it, but it was hidden. This makes absolutely no sense, given the previous occurrences (such as the safety mechanism being triggered and the installer bringing a fan over that time), so I don’t know why he would make such a preposterous claim. The newer model was installed at the end of July. The metal patch that was put over the lower part of the now too-large vent hole was unsightly, but I decided to live with it. I was unable to get the framing done until September, and then I had the gas inspection on October 2. The installation failed the inspection, because the vent was installed too close to a exterior wall that was perpendicular to the wall with the vent. As a result, the fireplace had to be moved over 4 inches. This would not only require the vent hole to be enlarged further, requiring more patching, but it would mean the lovely oak mantel I had had custom built would need to be redone, as there was a jog in the corner of the wall that it was built around. I called Cliff to discuss what would be done and express my expectations. I said that I expected the wall to be patched in a more professional manner, and I wanted to make sure that there was proper insulation and vapour barrier added, as well. He refused to guarantee this, saying that his installer would “do his best,” but would not tell me what would be done. I also said that the carpenter was wondering if he could invoice Hearth Fireplace directly for rebuilding the mantel (as the carpenter assumed that, naturally, Hearth Fireplace should and would take responsibility for that), but Cliff said that we had already cost him enough money, and he would not pay for the additional carpentry work. My husband spoke to the owner, as well, who kept threatening to “leave it” (the City gave him several months to comply with the inspection report). At this point, we had already waited 6-months to have a fireplace that was safely installed and that worked as we’d been initially told it would. So, we agreed to have the installer come and move it. I discussed with the installer, when he came, about how the hole would be patched, and the new patch job looks much better. The carpenter, who had to make three additional trips to my home (1. to dismantle the original work, 2. to take measurements of the new configuration, and 3. to install the new mantel and framing), as well as purchase new materials and spend time rebuilding the mantel, invoiced me $504.00 for all of that. In order to be reimbursed for this from Hearth Fireplace, I had to file a claim with a consumer organization. Hearth Fireplace waited until the very end of the final day (November 11) the organization had given them to comply (or else the complaint would appear on the organization’s website and affect the company’s rating) to notify me that they would be reimbursing me for the $504.00. This, they did, about a week later. Dealing with this company has been the absolute worst consumer experience I have ever had. It was a 7-month long nightmare. The owner does not take responsibility for his employee’s errors, whether they be errors in information or, even more serious, in installation. This ended up being not only extremely frustrating and expensive for us, but our family’s safety could have been jeopardized. I could not recommend this company to anyone.

I recently hired this company to move several large pieces of furniture (an oak dining table with 6 chairs, an oak dresser ith mirror, 2 oak nightstands with drawers, a reclining chair and a reclining loveseat) from the home of one elderly family member who was downsizing to that of another elderly family member who needed furniture. I no longer live in Edmonton, so I was trying to make the arrangements from a distance, and on very short notice, which was a bit intimidating. At first, I tried a company I had used years ago, but their quote was more than double what The Mover Guys quoted. I was a little bit hesitant, since I had seen some negative reviews of this company, but I decided to give them a try. My family members report that the men were professional, courteous, clean, and efficient. They arrived about one hour late, which was not unexpected, since our move was at the end of the day. However, they called before the scheduled time to say they would be late and give an estimated arrival time. The job was completed within the time estimated, and the cost was as quoted. My family members were extremely pleased, and so am I. If you read my other reviews, you will see that I do not hesitate to criticize when I am unhappy with work quality or lack of professionalism. That was not the case with The Mover Guys, and I would not hesitate to recommend them, based on this experience.

My husband and I stopped by this store to look at Central Vacuums. I had done some research online and had narrowed down my choices to 3 brands, and this was one of the stores that carries these brands. Even though we stopped into the store a few minutes before closing, the staff spent time with us helping us to make a selection and did not make us feel rushed. We ended up choosing a Drain Vac Generation II, and we are very happy with our choice. The difference between this vacuum and the old one it replaced is phenomenal. It really does a good job. The installation was fast and efficient, and the installer even provided us with a hose hanger, when he saw that the one we were using was too small for our existing vacuum hose. Edited to add that I don't know why this is showing up as the "Priddis Location." The location we used is in Calgary, on 37th Street near 17th Ave SW.

We had a large tiled shower stall with a cracked base, and we hired Benner Plumbing to tear out the old shower stall, replace the pan, put in aqua board, put a light in the shower, and retile. Their designer/estimator was very pleasant to deal with. The company did the work in a timely manner. The shower looks lovely and is once again functional. Putting in lighter tiles and a light in the shower made it much brighter and more pleasant to use. There was some confusion about the trim tiles, however, as the colour of the ones I chose from the sample, which were suggested by the designer/estimator, did not look right in the bathroom, even though they looked nice against the main tiles. The company did not exchange the trim tiles, and I ended up having to go out and purchase more suitable ones (in terms of colour) at my own expense (in addition to what I was paying the company). The result is worth it, but this was a minor annoyance. Also, there was a miscommunication regarding the step/threshold piece. The installer started tiling it, even though Ruth and I had discussed putting in a single piece of granite similar to our countertops. However, after I pointed this out, the error was rectified, and I'm very satisfied with the result, although it did delay completion of the project somewhat. There was also an issue with chunks of grout in the drain which, a few weeks later, caused the drain to clog. The company came and cleared the drain at their expense. Finally, the company installed a showerhead that would not have been my choice, and, in fact, is far more expensive than the one I would have preferred. They offered to remove it, but did not offer any compensation for the difference in price. I opted to keep it, under the circumstance, but I wish I had been offered the choice at the beginning and, perhaps, would have been able to lower the costs somewhat by choosing a less expensive showerhead. However, all these issues are minor in light of the overall experience and results. The final result is beautiful, and the company responded promptly to any concerns I expressed. I would use this company again, but I would request a more detailed quote (with all the materials specified in detail on it).

Our kitchen drain clogged, and our own attempts to clear it using a plunger, a snake, and a chemical drain opener were unsuccessful. I called Instant Plumbing, because I've used them before to supply and install Toto toilets and a water softener. They were able to come the same day and had the problem cleared up in short order. They also serviced the water softener while they were here. The plumber was pleasant to deal with and efficient. They are a little on the expensive side, but I find them to always do good work and have good products.

We hired this company to remove a very large spruce tree, as well as a small one, in preparation for having our back yard relandscaped. They were very pleasant to deal with. They responded to my calls promptly and came and did an estimate in a timely manner. The estimator was friendly and helpful. They removed the trees on the date promised and did the work quickly and efficiently. It was amazing to watch how they dealt with such a tall, large tree. We thought it would be a big problem to remove it, with it being close to our fence and our neighbour's garage, but it didn't take them long at all. One minor details is that the estimator told me that they would remove the small spruce for free. (We didn't ask for that. She made the offer.) However, when we got the invoice, we were billed $50 for the small tree. This is a very minor issue. We were expecting to pay for this anyhow, until the estimator said it would be free. But it was a bit disappointing after being told this. This is not something that affects my opinion of this company, however, and I would certainly use them again, if necessary.

We hired this company in the Spring of 2011, and the work was supposed to be completed in mid-July. However, they did not show up to do the work until September 28!!! They kept promising to start on various dates and not showing up, with no communication unless it was initiated by me, and slow (i.e. days or weeks later) responses to my emails and calls. We wanted to give up on them, but we had paid them a substantial deposit. They did a decent job on the patio, although I did have to remind the owner of what we’d talked about regarding the steps, as he was going to do something completely different from what we’d discussed. The sidewalk leading to the front gate isn’t really wide enough, and, oddly, does not match the width of the gate, which meant we had to stick a brick at one end, to close a gap where our puppy could escape. Also, the company slopped water used to mix cement on it, so the beautiful pattern of charcoal and brown is spoiled by dribbles and large splotches of grey that I’ve been unable to remove. The sod and mulch looked beautiful after the company laid it. We were very careful not to walk on the sod for a long time afterward, even after the owner said it would be all right to do so. However, months later, after the snow melted this spring, we found there are numerous places where the lawn is very soft and our feet sink in when we walk on it. The lawn has many dips and bumps in it and is very soft and squishy in places. The owner told us that there was a one year warranty on the sod, but he has failed to honour this, even though we informed him of the problems 2 months ago. In addition, we have found that the grade does not slope properly away from our foundation, which is important for keeping the foundation and basement dry. For some unknown reason, the company decided to build an unusually short fence (5 feet). This reduces the sense of privacy in both our yard and home. The owner did not consult us about building a fence that is non-standard in height, but I felt that I could do nothing about it, as nothing was specified about the height on the contract. Unfortunately, it didn’t occur to me at the time of signing the contract that this would be necessary. Worst of all, the owner of the company convinced me to have a double gate installed, so that large items or machinery could be brought in through the back in future, if necessary. This was entirely his idea. We did not request this, but he made it sound like a good idea, so we agreed, assuming that he actually knew how to build one. Unfortunately, this turned out not to be the case. All winter, the back gate did not work at all. Then, the brick holding the cane bolt, which is supposed to keep one side of the gate in place, became dislodged and the two sides of the latch stopped meeting up about mid-winter. The two sides of the gate no longer cleared each other completely, so they would knock into each other whenever we tried to open and close the gate, making this difficult and requiring us to use a lot of force. The gate was several inches lower than the fence on one side, and the two sides were not level with each other on top. I did point out these latter issues to the owner when the gate was built, but he said it was like that because our yard slopes. This is true, and yet all our neighbours, who also have sloping yards, manage to have gates that match up with the fence. Also, my husband was able to manage this the last time we rebuilt the back fence, and it was his first time ever building a fence or gate. But my biggest frustration was when the gate became no longer functional, and we had to resort to using a bungee cord in place of the latch. I contacted the owner on April 22. I had no response from him, so I turned the matter over to the Better Business Bureau. After the Bureau contacted the owner twice, he stopped by and spoke with us about the problems. At that time, we told him that we wanted a single gate, instead, as clearly a double-gate was not going to work in our situation. He said he would put in an extra-wide single gate. We said we did not want that, as it would be too heavy. We feared that it would be difficult to manage and it would start to sag because of the weight. We said we wanted a single gate that was of normal width. At that time, we also discussed the concerns with the sod, and he said he also noticed that there were some spots where the sod was not doing well, and he would replace those spots and deal with the soft, squishy areas. We did not hear from the company again for several weeks, until after the BBB had sent a 3rd notice. We then heard from the owner on the very last day the BBB had given him to respond, and he promised to fix the gate and the sod problems the following week. He did finally show up as promised (2 months after I had first informed him of my concerns) and when he explained to me what he planned to do about the gate—cut it down so that the two sides would clear each other and put cement in the ground (in the rain) to help hold the bolt in place—I reminded him that we wanted a single gate. The owner refused to listen to me and kept arguing for his solution, and I had no idea what to do about that, so I decided to wait and see how his solution turned out, since I was unable to get him to listen. Unfortunately, the owner and his worker did the work that the owner described (not what I wanted), and the work is very shoddy. There is now an unusually wide gap between the two gates. The gates don't line up nicely in the centre nor along the top, although the company tried to improve the appearance of the top by raising the top board (leaving a gap below it, where I fear that moisture and debris will easily get in). They damaged some of the wood on the gates and around the latch in the process. Furthermore, there is now unpainted, exposed wood, and I expected this to be painted, as I paid professional painters to paint the gate after it was built last fall, and I don't think I should have to pay painters a second time. The company put on a new latch that is extremely difficult to use from the outside, when we go out the back gate, as we have to try to reach over and line up a bolt with a little opening on the other gate, and the gates don't line up easily to facilitate this. Also, in order to keep the latch from sliding back, allowing one side of the gate to swing open, a lever has to be lined up just-so in order to be placed over top of a piece of metal that juts out. This is difficult to do while trying to reach over from the outside. So, the gate is still not easy to use. It is difficult for me, and it will be impossible for children to latch the gate properly when leaving the yard. (We have a neighbor child who frequently comes into our yard to retrieve balls, etc., and if he can’t close the gate properly, our dog is at risk.) We need a latch that latches automatically when the gate is closed, and I did specifically request this last fall when the gate was built originally. However, with the large gap, the latch that was on there before, that did latch automatically before it stopped meeting up properly, no longer reaches from one side to the other. In spite of all the money we paid and all the time we waited, we still don't have a gate that functions as we need it to or that looks like a professionally-built gate that adds value to our home. I am also not convinced that this will be a long-lasting solution and that we won't have problems again within a few months. For instance, it would take very little (expansion, contraction) for the bolt on the latch to no longer line up at all, and with such a wide gap between the two sides, security, privacy, and aesthetics are all compromised. When I expressed my concerns to the owner about the gap between the gates, etc., the owner asked me what I wanted. I said that I wanted a normal, properly-functioning, single gate, as I had already twice requested. He argued with me and denied that I had requested that, even though I had done so twice, the second time being right before he started the work!! Had the workmanship been better, I might have been willing to accept his solution, instead of the solution I had repeatedly asked for, but I am not satisfied with the workmanship nor with my treatment by this company. The sod problems were not addressed at all. Unfortunately, I do not have much to say that is positive about this company, except that they do beautiful brick work (at least, before they spill cement on it). However, dealing with them was an extremely negative experience, and I would definitely not recommend this company for fence or gate building, unless you are happy with a shoddy, amateurish job. I feel that the owner and his workers rushed through the work because of the late start and the lateness of the season, which may have contributed to the problems, but they are clearly very inexperienced with building gates and with building fences on sloping yards.

I hired this company to install Bruce Ellington Antique prefinished hardwood floors. Terry, the company's owner, was very pleasant to deal with and seemed to know what he was doing. The floor was installed in August, 2010. It looks beautiful, and Terry and his assistant were nice to work with. However, after the floor was installed, I noticed that there were a few spots that made little creaking or clicking noises. I chalked this up to the floor being new and decided to wait and see what would happen after going through a couple of seasons, with the expansion and contraction. What happened was it got worse, and there are spots where I can actually feel a plank move under my feet. We paid extra for an additional layer of plywood subfloor, and my concern is that this subfloor may not have been properly screwed down. I called Terry in the middle of July, 2011, to let him know about the problem and to ask him to come and evaluate the situation. I got his voicemail, so I left a message and waited for a reply. After 2 1/2 weeks, I still had not heard back, so I called again during the 1st week of August. This time, I reached Terry. He said that he would call me back the following Monday (August 8) to set up a time to come in and inspect the floor. He did not call the following Monday, and to date, October 28, he has still hasn't gotten back to me. It's clear to me now that he has no intention of doing so. Here is a link to a video I made in August, so that you can hear for yourself the problem I am having with this new floor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtThR5D5O7M