Cal Preserving

Our 20 year old deck was badly in need of cleaning and repairs. There are several hard to reach places behind benches and railings. Leaf debris had collected between the planks and lichen had grown on the benches, also screws and nails had popped up over time. Over about three days Cal Preserving reset the nails and screws, did a thorough power wash, bleached, sanded and applied preservative. We are delighted with the finished job. Our deck looks new again. We give Cal Preserving the highest possible marks on all aspects and would not hesitate to recommend their work.

They finished the job within two or three hours. They were very polite and they didn’t bother me too much. They gave me some tips on how to maintain the deck. They honored the terms on the coupon. Their communication was good. They checked with me if I was satisfied with their work. Their price was pretty reasonable. The work was good but maybe not the best. They were on time and were pretty professional.

The people who did the work were prompt--in fact, early for their one major day of work, which I wasn't particularly comfortable with, because I drove up as they were preparing to work. This is not a criticism, as at least they were there to do the work, and I had agreed that they could work with no one at the house. The "foreman" was polite and explained the job that was to be performed. He is a very good employee, as he was able to effectively "trade me up" to have the fence powerwashed also, which increased the cost by almost $400. The original powerwashing was done before Christmas, and they did not return until Jan. 2nd (I agreed with the delay), where they sanded the deck and powerwashed the fence. The third day was spent treating the deck and fence with a protective liquid. They cleaned up after each day and were courteous throughout the work performance.

All went according to schedule, workers arrived and finished on time. Process was very thorough, clean and surfaces look fantastic. Feels like I have a brand new deck!

Bruce contaced me and arranged a date to come out to look at my deck, told me what could be done and performed the work. My deck looks brand new.

e I don't remember exactly how much I spent or exactly when the work was performed. I used the service primarily based on price and reviews of the service. The service manager suggested changing the type of finish used for the deck restore and I went along with it. I am not entirely sure about the longer range lasting of the coating that was used but he assured me that it was the thing to do so I went with his recommendation. I don't really understand all of the different types of coatings and what their lasting and protecting qualities are so I trusted his advice. It's hard though when you have a previous service and it looks different and they are very well known and regarded too so I don't know which one is really right. The finished product does not have as much color as previously and it seems to me that the look is not quite as nice and long lasting. That is just my impression. The price was ok, and he did not insist that I sand the deck and do a lot of extra things that would have brought the price up so I think that was very good in terms of integrity and flexibility in honoring the deal. I have since sold the house, but if I were to do this again I would learn more about the various types of treatment and their application schedules and restorative and protective powers before making a decision. This company showed up on time and did good work as promised, so I would use them again once I understood my options on what kind of materials to use and how often.

It worked out good. It met my expectations. They did a nice job sanding and it still looks good a year later.

We had a very good experience working with Cal Preserving. The finished deck still looks good after 10 months and lots of rain. Some of the power washing roughed up the wood too much on our railing, but they sanded it to a smooth finish. It always helps to look at the results in between steps, so I noticed this. They were very responsive and accommodating. I would work with them again.

We spent much more than we intended, but trusted the company in believing we needed to replace the support beam as we too had noticed the bow and slant in the upper deck and two of the original supports were probably over 50 years old. Owner Bruce Watkins was professional and delightful to work with. When his crew did not put tarps down to protect the lower deck as they should have done and it got spotted, he had his crew pressure wash our lower deck at no charge. When we replace the lower deck next year, we will definitely contact this company for a bid.

The deck looked great after the job was done. Everything was done well and efficiently.

Company did excellent job. I didn't think the driveway could be cleaned of oil stains yet company was able to accomplish this. Deck is in good condition now with new coat of oil and stain and repairs, which included replacing broken strips of wood located on side of deck to keep out local squirels and birds.

I bought a Big Deal good for a certain number of square feet. Cal Preserving came out to look and calculated the actual square foot area, which was considerably bigger than the amount the deal covered. He extended the Big Deal price-per-square-foot to the extra area, which was very welcome! Note that I don't recall the actual price I paid, so the amount I mentioned in this review is just a guess. The workers did a quality job, and the people were very professional. They cleaned up afterwards. I recommend Cal Preserving, but have one caution. When they first came out, they offered a few other services, such as pressure washing my house and my driveway. I declined both services. Without my permission, they pressure- washed one small square of my driveway to show me what it would look like. Of course that made the rest of the driveway look dingy by comparison. When I pointed this out to the owner, he apologized and said he usually instructs his workers to do the sample in an out-of-the-way corner. He offered to do the adjoining squares at no cost at some unnamed time in the future, but that hasn't happened yet.

I had Cal Preserving clean and seal our balconies. Since they were small areas, the Angie's List deal covered the total cost. I had used them previously for our larger deck and was very pleased, although not sure how often I could afford to do that type of overall cleaning/sealing even though it's recommended every 2 years. The Angie's List deal was supposed to be for new customers, but I did not see that in the fine print. They honored the deal for me. They didn't even have to come into the house. Everything was done from the outside.

I had no idea how much deck power washing costs. It is more expensive than I thought. My deck did require some overdue TLC. The estimate was given by the owner, Bruce Watkins. He was friendly and professional . The finished work looked great. The estimate was accurate and detailed.

I didn't go. No follow-through.

Estimates gathered, easily. Work fully explained, all done in two days' time.

Our deck is about 35 years old. It has been cleaned, repaired, upgraded, and had preservative applied to it about three times in its lifetime. The last cleaning and preservative application was about 10 years ago; consequently, the wood was very dirty, moldy, and rough. Now it looks almost as good as it did when it was new. The horizontal surfaces are smooth, and water beads on it rather than being absorbed by the wood. In my previous deck cleaning/preserving experiences, the preservative fluids were very offensive smelling and the moisture-repelling finish seemed to last only a few weeks at best. The bleach and preservative substances applied this time did not smell and appear to be more weather resistant. The workers arrived on time and were courteous and conscientious. I felt the price was fair for the work that was done. So I plan to have this company come again on a regular basis to keep our old deck solid and bright.

They did good. There was an area that did not stay sealed and they came back and fixed it.

He did an excellent job and I have had no problems.

Decks were about 12 years old at the time, they did not look "new" afterward but pretty close. The improvement in their appearance was remarkable, especially since I had been waging my own battle with them doing it myself for 10 years. This result was so much better than anything I ever did, and it has lasted 2 years now. Probably due for a refresh, but the color and water resistance is still pretty good. I highly recommend them and their work.

It turned out fine and we were happy with the job done. It cost more than the deal covered because we had a bigger deck done. Bruce was very proactive in contacting me and setting up the appointment. He wanted to find out when he could come by. Setting up the appointment was easy and he was able to accommodate my schedule.

Overall, a good experience. Provider does not do between board areas as part of regular service. This was a bit of a bummer but was told this is the norm. Extra cost for between board areas.

Having estimate done by Bruce eased much of my concerns. His assurance that the deck was still very solid alleviated worries about major repair and/or replacement costs. He said that the deck was in desperate need of serious cleaning though, and we should schedule regular maintenance in the future to keep the deck in good shape. He also gave good tips about how-to and how-not-to keep plants on the deck. The work went quickly and without any issues. It took 2 days: 1 day of cleaning and 1 day to stain. The only glitch was the work had to be pushed back a day because of staffing problems, but other than that the work went as scheduled. The workers were courteous and efficient. What really sold me is that the workers stained the deck using paintbrushes. I was really anxious they would use a sprayer and spray noxious stuff in the air but they didn't. They climbed up the pergola and painted each board by hand. I was impressed and very satisfied with the quality of work too. We had scheduled work in the front yard around the same time Cal Preserving finished up the deck in back. The landscaper had seen the patio deck before and told me he thought we should get rid of it because it was beyond salvaging. Was he surprised when I showed him the deck after Cal Preserving did their work! He was so impressed he asked me for their business card.

Overall the service was great they came on time and did a wonderful job.

Cal Preserving did a very, very, very good job.