Backyard Paradise LLC

Work was unprofessional and Mr. Dooley refused to correct bad workmanship and/or clean up debris.

Very well. Randy was eager to please and told me if my ideas worked and he had options to improve them. We got what we wanted and more.

Called twice, left messages twice - no response. Who knows if they're even in business?

It actually went great! They made quick work of the projects and they turned out better than expected. We had an area next to the dry creek bed that didn't grade well, so water would pool up and not drain. Randy's team offered to fill that space with the dirt dug from the new creek bed. We said yes, and they did. However, they didn't add grass seed, so we're left with a big dirt patch in our yard. Truly, that's the ONLY issue. I've never worked with a landscape company before, so I am honestly not sure if the pricing was comparable, but I would use Randy and Backyard Paradise again.

Excellent. They are very good and knowledgeable and they explain very clearly their written bid so us older people really understand

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Randy, his son and their crew did a great job. It took a couple of weeks to complete, which was very close to the estimate given. Randy has followed up since completion to check on a few details and make some small adjustments. I am very pleased with the work and will definitely use them again on future projects.

We met with Randy a couple of times. He had some great ideas and spent a lot of time with us discussing what we wanted to accomplish and suggesting ideas. We did decide to go with another company.

We met with Randy at our home on 4/18/2014 to begin the design work for a proposal to replace our current deck and patio. We spent more than an hour discussing options and reviewing photos of previous projects which Randy supplied. This enabled us to get ideas of stone paver products and fireplace design preferences. Randy took measurements in order to be able to estimate material and labor costs. At the conclusion of the meeting we agreed that the next step was for Randy to estimate the cost and give us a proposal. Randy said he would get back with us "in a week or so". As of 1 month later: Never heard back from him.

I used them, that's the only reason I activated Angie's List, because I was trying to find a contractor for that. I used them last October. It cost about eight thousand dollars. I had them go in and take a courtyard that was natural with pine bark and dirt. I found a house and had them concrete it in and then put the stone down and the build a stone porch and steps. The work was good. It was reasonably good work and that's about all I have to say.

Overall, the job went very well. They were punctual and professional with their work. WE are very pleased with the patio and would recommend them. The owner. Randy, could be better organized, but this was not an issue with the job.

I found Randy Dooley, the owner of Backyard Paradise, at the 2012 Birmingham Home & Garden Show (found out later he won first prize in his category). I was planning a full backyard renovation so I received quotes from different contractors. I didn't meet him at the show, but based on his website and materials from the show, I called and scheduled an on-site appointment. I created a plan for my vision of the backyard. I wanted a stone patio, a leveled backyard with no grass, and a living wall of trees to block the view from the open alley. I found by doing my own research and having a plan that the communication with landscapers went more smoothly. I also contacted 3 other landscapers for comparison quotes (all on Angie's List): - the first quoted on the spot, was extremely overpriced and very generic, did not make me feel comfortable about the process - the second was on time, the hardscaping was same pricing as Backyard Paradise but the landscaping was significantly higher - the third didn't show for 1st appt, was 1.5 hrs late for 2nd appt, and then never followed up with a quote We chose Randy based on price (landscape pricing was more reasonable), his ability to show his skill level and knowledge, and we felt comfortable working with him - there was a great flow of open communication and full discussion of creative ideas. The job started a few weeks after our initial meeting because he had work scheduled in front of us. They showed up on time every morning and I was able to have a quick meeting with him before I left for work to discuss details for each days activities. Randy's input was very important to the final product; in one instance I decided to extend the length of the stone wall when he mentioned the impact of the view from our dining room windows. He laid out the shape of the patio and the wall prior to construction and his symmetry / layout of the patio and wall was exceptional (our backyard sloped in two directions), They cleaned up every day, hauled away the debris and easily accommodated any changes I requested. The drainage through the wall was very well done, the arborvitae trees were excellent quality and will grow together nicely to create a courtyard effect. Randy was able to find the stone mulch I wanted (slate chips which look a lot like wood mulch chips, except for the gray color). I am a perfectionist and I have no complaints about the work Randy performed - I am extremely pleased with the results; he does high quality work, is very knowledgable about his business and pays attention to detail. I also hired him to build a fence (which is on a separate review). Once I live within this new space a while I will hire him to complete a planting plan for the backyard courtyard area; but for now I am very happy with the initial result. We also get a lot of cars stopping so people can stare at our backyard... so the privacy effect we wanted isn't exactly working out for us - lol, it will be better once the trees grow together. In late Nov., a garbage truck ran over the corner of our planting bed and did a bit of damage, we hired Randy to complete the repairs and he picked out some big rocks and cemented them into the corner to prevent future damaged - and placed them to flow with the existing edging so I am very pleased with the result. Hopefully, people will watch out where they're driving in the future or they're going to hit some big rocks.

I found Randy Dooley, the owner of Backyard Paradise, at the 2012 Birmingham Home & Garden Show (found out later he won first prize in his category). I was planning a full backyard renovation so I received many quotes from different contractors. I didn't meet him at the show, but based on his website and materials from the show, I called and scheduled an on-site appointment. Randy quoted the fencing along with a full quote for my hardscape/landscape project (refer to a different review about that job), but I wanted a comparison so I had 2 actual fence companies quote the job in addition to a handyman. The results were: 1) Handyman = came out to look at job but never called back with a price 2) Shelby Fence = bid a comparable price, but with inferior materials (most fences in my neighborhood are built by them, but my neighbors fences are warping so I didn't choose them). 3) Another Fence company = the secretary gave a price quote over the phone, comparable with other quotes. Didn't come out for a site review; plus no other info about what materials they used so I didn't bother to go any further. I chose Randy to build the fence - it was completed within 2 days, the posts were difficult to place because the ground is clay but they did a fantastic job. Two neighbors just moving in saw his work and they both hired Randy to build fences in their yards. One neighbor had just moved from a different part of the subdivision and had a fence built by Shelby Fence that she wasn't happy with - she liked the quality construction on my fence so she hired Randy to build her one like mine on her new house. Our yards are sloped, but I wanted the fence to be level across the top - so the fence is staggered on two heights. I plan on installing post cap lights eventually. My neighbors' fences had to be built on top of small concrete walls due to the more extreme slopes in their yards. They used non-sagging hardware on the gate and leveled the ground - Randy took time to move the sprinkler boxes up to the new ground level so I could still easily access the meter. His quality is excellent and he pays attention to the details.