DTKuo from Toronto

We contacted the team to get a repair done on the handrails on our front steps after a rebuild... we were reluctant to have to order new railings because the ones we had were weathered and old, but still totally functional and in good shape. The team at Art Metal was responsive very quickly and communicated well. Everyone involved was on time and everything went as expected with little intervention needed from us. Our neighbours also used them for new railings and we were really impressed with what we saw so know for future, if we're thinking about replacing anything of that nature, where we're going.

We have old stone steps that were sinking but the porch seemed to be fine for the most part. The house is old so we were not looking to do a full rebuild or spend an exorbitant amount of money for something that may not be appreciated in the future. Surprisingly, this option was difficult to find because most people suggested a full rebuild with new materials etc. Unsurprisingly, this was always an expensive option. Brick and Stone Guys offered a way more reasonable strategy to rebuild the steps and leave the rather solid porch and tuckpoint the cracked areas to extend the life of the steps and porch. This was the perfect solution for our situation. They worked around the existing plants and left no noticeable damage to the plants. The debris was cleaned up and there resulting job was probably better than the original! We got to keep the original stone which meant the look remained the same and they were able to piece everything back together. They were also able to smartly manage a couple areas that were discovered to be somewhat problematic due to inferior methods previously used to construct the steps. They also did some stone pathway tuckpointing to further extend the life of the pathway but that was not as big a win for us as these steps were. We are extremely happy to have found Shams and his team to work on our stone projects around the house. We are happily hiring him again to do additional work in the future.

Our backyard is open and only boarded on one side with shrubs and maybe 15 ft of fencing (open). We actually got Daniel's contact through a neighbour who got some work done. Daniel was prompt and professional when arriving to give an estimate and able to quickly assess what needed to be repaired as well as outline the details of what we wanted done. The recommendations Daniel provided were modest and reasonable. He didn't try to swindle us by telling us to repair the entire wood fence and said that the posts just needed to be repaired and realigned, which cost us a lot less. The work was done in a timely fashion and he also accommodated our finicky neighbour's requests. The only "short-coming", if you will, is that Daniel is super busy during the late fall/early winter and I found it a little bit challenging to contact him via email (my preferred mode) but never had an issue to reach him by telephone. There are no complains but I suppose that it would be helpful for customers reading this (who don't know) to recognize that there is a seasonality to his work. Would certainly recommend him, or do repeat business with him.

The City sent a requirement that 3 shrubs on my corner lot be trimmed to 0.85m from the road gradient. They were rigid about the height but did give me some leeway to get it done. That said, things got busy at home and I let it slip until a final notice was provided and requirement of job done within 48 hours. I was not impressed. Don gave me an estimate a few weeks back and was readily available to help me deal with the city by discussing with them, to get the job done when they'd be available to do so. A day or two before, Don called me and told me he'd be here in the morning of the 30th and sure enough, they rolled in with 3 large trucks! What an operation, I thought, for a piddly little shrub. But they were FAST. In and out all within 30 minutes leaving no trace of being there other than the mulched stump. First, they were bright and cheery and polite at 8am and rarin' to go. Reviewed the job briefly to ensure there wasn't a misunderstanding. It was so fast I didn't even get a chance to see the guy use the stump remover machine. Don really knows what he's talking about and isn't just about getting the job... he has a great deal of respect for the needs of the trees too, so that they aren't stressed or killed during pruning. I would highly recommend Towne Trees and will use them to properly do the city tree that they haphazardly pruned a few weeks ago (which they shouldn't have because fruit trees are to be done late fall or early spring).

My partner was moving to our house in Etobicoke from his downtown condo. We looked at other moving box companies and prices are all within one another... but City Boxes is the most economical. Despite the lower price tag, Andrew Applebaum does a great job in terms of service. He is pleasant when interacting and he is professional in terms of expectations and always keeps you abreast of what's going on (e.g. delayed delivery due to traffic). The product itself arrives in excellent condition and the boxes were intact and clean. He provides those snap tags and labels. There is an up sell at the drop off of the boxes... he brings packaging paper, bubble wrap and the dolly on which the boxes come on. I'm not sure if he mentions these at the get go (my other half booked him) but he does provide these additional items right when he delivers the boxes. We did need those items so I'm not really annoyed at the opportunity he took--it's smart--but I wonder if he brought it up sooner. That said, whatever premium you'd pay is probably just for convenience so take it or leave it. He also says that if we don't use a box, we just tell him upon pick up and he'd discount us the box. We needed to extend the box rental by a week to get the time to unpack and it was just an additional $20 (varies depending on number of boxes). He didn't need much notice and it was easy to do. I like doing these boxes versus the cardboard ones b/c I don't have waste when I"m done and the durability is worth it. Pay in cash (upon delivery/pick up) or email money transfer for a better rate. Overall, I'd say the experience was pleasant and as expected. I'd recommend this service to others if they are looking for it.