Sandra in Etobicoke

Last fall the original fireplace insert was red tagged by Enercare due to CO leakage which could not be repaired. A delay of several months occurred as I waffled between returning the fireplace to the original wood burning or going with a new insert - decided on the new insert. Got several quotes from different companies and Marsh's was the best price, plus they had fireplaces where the pilot light would remain on (a necessity for prevent humidity from building up causing rusting). All of their technicians are fully licensed and able to sign off on the fact that the old insert had been properly replaced by the new. A brief delay occurred due to the COV-19 outbreak, but they were only a couple of days beyond the original date for installation. Were very neat - taking great care to put down tarps and remove their shoes/boots before entering the house. Very pleased with the outcome and the new fireplace works like a charm. I also like the look of the newer fireplace rather than the original which was 23 years old and if there was no power would not really provide any heat as the fan needed to be operational in order to get heat into the room. The new fireplace also has a fan, but will heat up the room, a little slower, but just as well without the fan. Glad I went with the new insert instead of returning to wood burning.

August 5, air conditioner gave up the ghost in the evening. Called and left a message with S.A.R. Returned by call next a.m. and sent a staff out to check it. Absolutely no freon in system - so there was definitely a leak somewhere; however, due to age of air conditioner no parts would be available, so arranged owner to come and present options for a new air conditioner (not, also checked other companies). S.A.R. had the most reasonable priced and were able to install new unit the following Monday. Staff arrived early (yeah!) and were polite, knowledgeable and efficient. New Air Conditioner works well and I am definitely happy with the service. (NOTE: we have used S.A.R. for servicing our Air Conditioners for years and have always been pleased with the work done.)

On August 1, had Davey Tree come and prune 3 large mature trees - 1 Norway Maple, 1 Crimson King, and 1 Birch Tree. Because of the size of the Norway, it turned into a 2-day venture with the arborist coming the next day to complete the job. I have always been pleased with Davey Tree staff's work, but this time it was beyond exceptional. The Norway required a lot of pruning (note it is so large, from across the street it looks like 2 trees in our backyard) it was done with the utmost care taken to ensure no damage to the surrounding area and the cleanup was excellent. There is also a tall cedar hedge in the back that required trimming and this too was done extremely well, with excellent cleanup. The 2nd day was the 2 trees at the front and the cedars as well. Again, an excellent job and cleanup. (NOTE: the price quoted to me was lower than it should have been as the staff who quoted forgot to add the 2 front trees; however, he confirmed we had discussed doing all 3 trees and Davey honoured the quote.j)

Kitchen table was refinished years ago (by a family member) and recently found 3 additional leaves to the table that had not been done at the same time. The original stain was very dark brown, almost black. The table had been stained a medium brown, as had the chairs. One of the chair backs was badly scraped. Had Angelo refinish the 3 leaves and chair to match the table. There was a bit of a mix up as his assistant had originally used the wrong colour stain; however, it was corrected and the final product is beautiful and matches the table perfectly.

During the May 5th wind storm 2 sections on the east side of our fence were blown down... Contacted First Choice and once was able to give measurements they gave me a quote which was what was charged. They came May 12th to remove all the sections of the east side and were unclear when they could begin as they had to get clearance from the "dig" people before they could start. Pleasant surprise when on May 22, got a phone call asking if they could come and do the fence as they had the papers, the weather was iffy, and ours was a 1 day job. Arrived shortly after 9:30 a.m. and were finished around 4:30. Tried their best to clean up, but Etobicoke clay is incredibly hard to wash away. Job appears to be secure and looks good. West side post was reinforced with another post next to it and it now seems secure. Small issue of having a fence belonging to a neighbour behind us being attached, without our knowledge, to the south/east corner of our fence. That fence is also structurally at risk of falling so I requested First Choice unattach the neighbour's fence. They were a little reluctant as it would destabilize the fence further, but upon discussion with my next door neighbour it was decided to have an addition post put on his side of the fence to which the old fence would be attached and the screws, etc, holding the fence to our post removed. It was an excellent solution as we were unable to contact the neighbour whose fence it was. Many thanks to Pratema and her people. Plant destruction was minimal and the job done well.

The space above the garage door was in serious need of either a repaint or having siding put over the peeling paint. Decided to have the siding and as we wanted to keep the window which provides light in the attic of the garage went with professional company rather than DIY. Dorian was very knowledgeable; gave us a number of choices and gave best quote for the work. Removing the lights was a challenge as they had been there for a while, but got them down and did leave a hole for new lights to go up (they do not do electrical). There was also a bit of a struggle getting the house # off, but they eventually succeeded without damage as we wanted to reuse those. Resulting work looks very good and although it must have been frustrating removing the lights and #s, they were exceedingly polite and cleaned up after themselves. Highly recommend them.

Late in October noticed a small leak of water obviously coming from the roof. Was familiar with Jerry's Roofing work from neighbours, friends and family who had used them - also used them in 2008 when last company to replace roof put flashing on upside down resulting in leak running down wall. Bob showed up the next day and quickly identified the problem (shingles breaking down in one spot to point where plywood was visible). We were qiven a very reasonable quote with potential additional costs explained (wouldn't know exact cost until shingles off). Came the next day and did a temporary fix. Called day before they were able to come to arrange to do job. Arrived just before 7:00 am to set up to begin work exactly at 7:00 am. Took them 1 day to do entire job. Clean up was excellent. Explanation as to what to watch for until shingles settled. If any came loose before due to high winds to call and they would resolve the problem ASAP. Very professional in their work.

Desperately needed to replace wooden railing on a raised deck (too wide and plenty of slivers) and wanted to go with aluminum and glass. Joe was very personable upon first meeting.... honest about cost difference between putting railing on deck boards or mounting on outside. Decided on 1 six foot glass rail with picket rail for the rest of the deck and stairway. When we decided to go with RJ Aluminum Railings, Joe brought samples for us to determine width preference for railing and cap choice. Because we have a small deck, chose to go with outside mounting which meant Joe had to order rails from a different company than his usual supplier. About 3 weeks wait and rails were apparently ready and Joe called to inform us his co-worker Nico would be arriving with rail to install. Taking down old railing took longer than expected, and when Nico began installing discovered supplier did not provide all plugs, etc. required. He completed what he could (was very meticulous with checking of levels, etc.) and had informed Joe what was missing. Joe came by to check on what was missing, also indicated post caps were wrong and arranged to come back once he got the plugs and correct caps. Work was completed today, even in the rain. Rail looks great, it is so nice to look out and have a unobstructed view of our backyard now, and to feel secure holding onto the rail and we go down the stairs (no more slivers). Took away old rail remnants. Many thanks to Joe and RJ Aluminum - he is an excellent worker and cares about the quality of the work he does. Highly recommend RJ Aluminum Railings.

Old door had been damaged years ago and we were having difficulty getting it to stay down. Previous times called Dodds and suggested remediation given over the phone worked; however, this time nothing was working so made decision a new door was required as possible old door damage was causing enough of a vibration to throw off motor calibrations. Salesman was very professional, Garaga Doors were on sale - so we went with this (Canadian product - Yeah!). Salesman gave lengthy time frame due to excessive orders, and was extremely close with his guestimate. Installer arrived within time frame and worked diligently on putting in the new door. Initially worked well, but then old problem resurfaced and made decision for new motor to be installed. Again Installer was on time - offered us a choice of his fixing the old or going with new (which would have warranty) - we went with new and he did an excellent job, although closing worked for 1 day, then old problem arose. He was unable to come due to an emergency at another location on the day stated, but came 1st thing the next day. Door is currently working like a charm. Thank you Dodds. October 17, 2015: I did not originally have a problem with Dodds, however, early this summer I realized that the new runners for the door are much longer than the previous runners making it impossible to easily access a small cupboard on the side of the garage (did not notice it earlier as I only use what's in the cupboard late spring/early summer). Communication between Dodds and myself promised a quick remediation - our last communication was July 17, 2015.... since then no one has called to arrange to have the runner cut. Not great follow up service for this small issue!

Had GutterFilter install filters in 2005 - original work was excellent and until this year we have had no problems with our gutters. However, recent storms have had water running over the sides of the gutters on the west side of the house, indicating a possible problem. Attempts to contact the company (3 phones calls and 2 e-mails) have proven useless as they obviously have no intention of honouring their 20 year warranty. Customer service stinks when problems arise. Definitely not happy with this company and would hesitate to refer them given current problems.

Needed to put in a proper edging to our garden in the front yard and saw a write up in the newspaper about Curb-Ease which installs decorative continuous concrete borders - The company has a number of choices of colours/brick looks/styles. Initial confusion due to head office being in British Columbia and time difference not taken into account by person setting up app't. But Brian arrived at a new time the same day, once direct contact was made. Took a measurement, then calculated out the cost - we settled on a colour/finishing shade to go with the house/walkway brick and the following week Brian and his staff came in and did the job. It is a 2 day process - 1st putting in the curb - letting it dry, then putting on the protective coat. It looks great and now I have proper garden edge to work with.

Contacted Davey Tree as the ice storm brought down branches from our Maple which took out the cable and had trapped the Bell line such that we were hesitant to cut the branches ourselves in case we lost Bell Service. As well, we were unable to access the back yard from the side of the house due to large branches which had fallen in such as to impede access. We also had a large branch from a Birch in the front yard which blocked the driveway (we were able to deal with that one). Davey's arborist came on the Friday after Christmas and he quickly cut the concerning branches, explaining that due to extreme call volume that was all he was able to do at this time and that due to high volume Davey was charging an additional 30%. Was very apologestic for this additional charge; however, given the circumstances, the price was cheap at half the price in my view. We now have additional access to the backyard and the Bell line is free from branches which we can now clean up ourselves. Will definitely have Davey Tree prune our trees early this summer for sure.

After the flood and having our floors torn up, decided that before we had new flooring installed to have entire basement decontaminated with a non-hazardous product. A friend recommended Eco Mist and their products. Main rep, Ted Fagan, came by and gave a quote; explained it would be best to wash the floor first with a solution of their floor care product (wash and let dry) before they came in went throughout the basement with the fogger. Once I had floor cleaned (they do not wash floors) a call had them coming within days and although delayed, did arrive not too long after scheduled time. The result was amazing! Until they came, the basement had a constant moderate smell of damp concrete. Once the Eco Mist people were done, no smell at all which lasted, certainly until we had the new flooring installed, about a month later! Great product - they also sell their product on-line (may be in Canadian Tire soon, as Ted indicated CT had contacted them indicating interest in the Eco Mist product line). Ultimate cost was determined by any purchase of additional product. If your house has strong odours you want to get rid of, highly recommend Eco Mist.

Due to the July 8th flood we had to replace the laminate flooring (installed 2009) and old tile that had been installed in the 60's in our basement. We needed to have the concrete floor recovered in the basement and as we liked the laminate we wanted to have that throughout the main basement with vinyl in the laundry room. We went with an Oak 12.3 laminate and had they also install quarter round. Except for brief glitch in the delivery of the product (salesman recommend it be placed in location of installation 48 hrs prior), everything went well thereafter. Install took almost 3 days with workmen starting at 8:00 a.m. every morning. The installation of the laminate and vinyl is absolutely beautiful. The fit of the vinyl flooring around the furnace and water heater in the laundry room is perfect. The installers really knew what they were doing. Highly recommend this company for flooring. (NOTE: ultimate price very much depends on which choice you make in laminate/hardwood/vinyl flooring.)

Excellent experience with this company: did not try to push additional work (i.e., sump pump) and clearly explained process. Tended to arrived early to start the job and used tarps to keep area as clean as possible. A scope of the pipes revealed a rather large clog beginning in one of our drains which, for a small additional cost, was cleaned out quickly and efficiently. Overall an excellent experience with all steps and questions clearly explained and answered. Provided the Application Form for the City Rebate with their portion completed and explained all the steps we needed to take to access the rebate. An excellent company: highly recommend.

Late last fall we had Delta replace the walkway along the west side of the house and right in front of the house as the previous walkway kept lifting and was tilting towards the house. They were extremely professional (although they ordered way more screening than required). They met all concerns and explained what we would have to do this spring. I chose to hold off writing this review as I wanted to make sure the walkway survived the winter without heaving, which it did.

Made to appointment early: once established locations of gas main started to work ensuring area was kept clean with a drop cloth. Checked all valves and gauges - bled air quickly from hose (used larger tube instead of pilot light which can take up to an hour)- a couple of minutes and proceeded to check all valves and flames. Cleaned fireplace thoroughly and area around it - put on specialized fibres to give a more realistic flame - patiently answered any and all questions asked. All in all a pleasant contractor who knows his business.

This was 2nd hiring of Just Junk - arrived 3/4 of an hour within 2 hour window. Had them break down and remove 2 old wood sheds at side of garage and finish cleaning out the items accumulated in the garage attic. At one point they had to empty truck as total amount took a load and a half. They left what we had indicated was to be left. Very thorough, swept up garage floor afterward. Job took 3 hours of a lot of hard, heavy work. Staff were extremely polite and efficient.

Wood deck around large Norway Maple was built in sections and had begun to heave as a result of tree roots and trunk growth. Deck requires shortening of boards and resetting to obtain a flat surface that would last a number of years. Clifton and his helper came on a Saturday to pull up the sections and determine requirements and then came the following Saturday and completed the job in one day. The deck is in very good shape now and we are using it regularly.

Got company name from flier and after reading reviews in HomeStars made an appointment for the following day between 10:00-12:00. True to their word called 15 minutes before arrival (apologized for calling 20 minutes after 10:00). Truck and young men were clean and very presentable. Identified wood and a few other items to be removed from an old shed at the side of garage and from garage floor and attic (very hot day). They very quickly went to work. Moving some items brought additional items into view which they removed - did indicate at one point that removing additional items would put load into 1/3 load and up price, but was still reasonable and they quickly removed the newly identified items. Also, indicated do light demolition and gave an estimate to removing 2 old sheds at side of garage. We will definitely have them back in the fall to remove the sheds and additional items now that we can actually move and look at what is in the attic storage (will have to wait until late fall as bees/wasps have a hive in the smaller storage shed and do not want bees attacking the workers).

As Davey Tree had pruned our trees in 2006 and removed one birch which had birch minor last year, we went back to them - as before having a real live voice when making our call was a definite plus. The men arrived at 8:00 a.m on the Saturday and went to work. Watching them at work is a fascinating process, and the individual assigned to the birch did an excellent job - Given these trees do not have the large sturdy branches of the maples, it was breath-holding time for those of us watching him work. Nonetheless, he did an excellent job and our neighbour, whose property the tree partially overhangs was extremely pleased with the results. The cedars hedges: one of a smaller between 2 properties and the 2nd covering the back of the yard were pruned back and now look much neater. The maples were pruned away from the house and wires and the Norway Maple at the back with the uneven growth this year evened out. Anytime there was a choice of whether to prune a branch or not, the arborist would check with us for our decision. Clean up was excellent - the men were finished by noon... All in all another excellent experience.

We initially approached Royal to repair our foundation which was seriously leaking as winter moved into spring as they were recommended by a neighbour and I had found a number of good reports on this website. Paul came across as very professional and was prepared from the outset to provide quotes which we had to wait for from other contractors whom we had approached – his quote was within the amount of other quotes for the initial job. Upon discussion we were informed Royal could arrange for the moving of our pool equipment from the basement to a shed they would build and build a deck to replace the deteriorating platform and steps at the back of the house. The initial project of repairing the foundation went well – it was expanded to include the one side of the house that had a crack which was not leaking, but held the potential of leading and the back which with the removal of the pool equipment would have left holes requiring in the foundation requiring repair and waterproofing. The workers were there 1st thing every morning and within 1 week the repair work was done. The workers gave the impression of being knowledgeable and caring. Clean up was well done. There seems to be an ongoing problem with one high traffic area where the patio stones have shifted creating a tripping hazard and are sloped towards the house. It was corrected once, but the problem reoccurred after a heavy rain and Paul promised to connect the 1st week of September to ascertain the problem (see below). The contractor hired to move the pool equipment quickly removed the old (we decided to up-date old equipment) and we were introduced to the electrician. Both these individuals impressed as having excellent knowledge in their areas of expertise and a strong work ethic. Everything went well until the shed and deck – Initially there were 2 workers, 1 of whom was the carpenter, who built the frame of the shed and deck. Unfortunately, although pleasant and a hard worker, the individual left to complete the deck did not impress as a skilled carpenter. The platform of the deck was solid; however, we were constantly pointing out balusters that were cracked, or had holes and at one point the railing had to be replaced as the corners were not mitred with the result that the railings did not meet properly and moved when leaned against. The biggest issue for us was that as Project Manager Paul N. was pretty much a no show and so it was left up to us to point out the problems and to call him about them. Currently, the deck, while adequate, looks like it was built by an amateur-the mitred corners are not well fitted and edges of the lattice around the base were left rough and exposed and in some places are pulling away from the frame - not the professional quality we were used to when my father did carpentry. As well, the shed, while well-build, was not properly aligned before securing it to the platform – not noticeable until the siding was added – it is out just enough that you notice the misalignment. While we are grateful for the excellent job of coordinating Royal did with the different aspects of the job; the one area that needs improvement is the woodworking. Also, leaving 1 individual to complete the job, who was not a professional carpenter, resulted in it taking much longer than it should have, as it resulted in wasted time and money when things had to be redone. Unfortunately, because she was desperate to get her backyard back and the pool opened, my mother signed off on the deck, and has regretted the decision since. As promised, Paul N. did connect with us and on Sept. 8th came to look at both the deck and side of the house. He acknowledged our anxiety about the delay in opening the pool probably had us signing off on the deck job prematurely, and has promised he will have a carpenter come around and correct the problems. As well, after looking at the side of the house he believes he knows what the problem is, which will require relifting the stones and regrading to ensure the problem does not reoccur. He has promised to personally oversee this aspect of the fix to ensure the problem is resolved. Unfortunately he was unable to give us a specific date, but assures us the work will be done as soon as he can manage. At the end of September, the foundation repair contractors returned and the problem seems to have been resolved - even with the heavy rain last weekend, the stones seem to have settled into place without creating a tripping hazard and the stones no longer slope towards the house. As for the deck; unfortunately Paul sent the original worker to fix the problem. As noted, this individual is not a trained carpenter - he is a hard worker, who impresses that if he had proper training, could be an excellent carpenter. His finishing of the deck has ensured the lattice will not pull away from the deck; however, corners were not mitred and it still looks like an amateur did it. As we have decided we do not like the current style of deck (our fault, not Royal's), we are not pursuing the issue of the deck finishing.