Dianna from Surrey

This company took over from a botched job left by another company. The difference was obvious from the start. First of all the owner (Darrell) of Captain Concrete gave me the quote and was very knowledgeable (the other company sent an inexperienced guy who provided me with very misleading and, as I learned AFTER the job started, wrong information). Darrell's quote was higher than the first company but he lived by it. The first company gave me a low quote BUT, immediately after the job started, manufactured excuses to demand more money AND they refused to help with any small issues that came up where Darrell installed extra pipes under the concrete, made sure my gate was reinstalled correctly, etc... The quality of the framing was also obviously superior in comparison to what the first company had begun. The job is finished except for final sealing (included in the quote) and looks good. The only problem I had was choosing colours based on paper samples. Had the colour turned out better (more true to the sample), I would have given Captain Concrete 10 stars.

The owner of this company (Matthew) did a good job for the installation of new TV, receiver, sound system etc.. I was very happy with that. However when things go wrong, he won't answer his phone. The big problem is the remote. It is an RTI remote -cost $1000 up! - A great remote when it works! I have had TWO of them now and have had LOTS of problems. The newest one was 2 years when it went to a dead white screen for no reason. It is rarely used, never dropped, always safely stored in its charger. This white screen is called a "bad board" and cannot be repaired, leaving me with ONE choice =upgrade AGAIN and put out more money (MINIMUM additional $700). I bought this second remote only because Matthew promised me this white screen problem I had with the first one, would not happen with the new model!! I BELIEVED HIM. Matthew also claimed the cable provider remote cannot work on this system (tv, receiver and vcr plus cable box etc) and my cable provider agreed. So Matthew has hooked me into an expensive addiction! This $1000 remote lasted just over 2 years - my FREE cable company remote (and all the other remotes I have) work fine after 10 years!!! This "company" is one person (Matthew). When his "wonder" remote died, he promised to drop by but never showed up and will not answer my calls. I should never have believed him! I called RT1 but they say i must deal through Matthew. WHAT AN EXPENSIVE MESS Matthew talked me into! Despite Matthew claiming a cheaper remote would not work, I finally bought a $50(sale) universal remote at best buy and it does everything beautifully! And I bet it will last longer than 2 years - but if not, considering the price difference, I can buy TWO DOZEN more remotes (1 EACH MONTH) and still not spend what Matthew charged me! -oh yes and did I mention he also charges extra to upload programs into the remote so it can be installed to your system? NEVER AGAIN! This "company" is one person (Matthew). When his "wonder" remote died, he promised to drop by but never showed up and will not answer my calls. After calling Matthew many times, for many months, I called RT1 but they say i must deal through Matthew. Choosing to buy an expensive remote is one thing. Being told you need (not one but two) very expensive remotes that you do not need is another and makes one wonder about the rest of the bill.

I hired Avante to put in a large new patio covering most of my back yard. I found their quote/price for this job to be fair. There were no surprises and the job was finished as I had asked and I paid for it. I hired them some years later to do some work and their new appraisor gave me a lot of wrong information and a quote that was not what I asked for but difficult to prove by his wording. When problems occurred,they were never helpful and when the foreman pretended to have a solution at no extra cost, the next day I was billed $2500 extra.. I complained and they walked off the job. Good thing because I found out later that they used the wrong lumber for framing, had steps with illegal height and much more! What little work they did had to be torn down and replaced. WATCH OUT!!-they are not the same company I experienced in the past.

The representative (Sue) came to my home and assessed my requirements and designed the closet with me. This was done in a very professional manner (they provide computer generated photos of exactly what the closet shelves and hanging areas will look like from every angle). The installers showed up on time and did a very nice job. I have a bit of a problem with "would you recommend this company to your mother" because the answer is "yes" = 5, in terms of a job well done and having a nice closet, but I lowered the rating a bit because my mother would find the cost too high as you can get similar closets installed for less money (but I doubt the quality is as good?). I actually chose the lower end of what california closets offer and the costs were still high!.

Marble Art installed sand stone flooring in my home ($40 per sq. ft.). I dealt primarily with one of the owners, Marizio Grande. He is very professional and knowledgeable and has exclusive access to some very fine sand stone - not to mention a warehouse full of fine granite and other stone to choose from!. Viewing the granite and marble, etc.. in his warehouse is like going to an art galary. I found this company to be VERY expensive but I must say the workmanship ( and actual product) was outstanding. It is annoying that this company does not do any plumbing or preparing of floors or counter tops for installation. It is up to the homeowner to hire other trades and co-ordinate this. PS. I found the rating a bit difficult because the quality would certainly be up to expectations regarding "recommending to my mother" but she would find it difficult dealing with other trades and then she would "pass out' when she saw the price:-)