Sod Sales Direct

I got a number of quotes, before deciding on the contractor for my driveway replacement. Phil of Sod Sales Direct, had a competitive price, plus he included some elegant upgrades in his estimate. I had been interested in getting a concrete stamp on the apron of the driveway. Phil recommended and included pavers on the apron, as well as a new brick stoop for the front door. Phil oversaw the entire project, with keen attention to detail. His crew worked hard, and although we had inclement weather, as soon as the skies cleared, they were back at work to meet our deadline. Everyone was professional, friendly and accommodating. When the project was complete, they returned to tidy up areas that had not even been a part of the project, just make sure everything looked its best. I highly recommend them, and will use them again for some landscaping and fencing projects in the future.

My experience with Phil is extremely bad. On July 9th 2016, he has taken my money of $1300 (towards half of the money for the sprinkler system) and did not install the sprinkler system. No word from him for a month and then I called and told him that "You have taken my money to install it right away and no clue where you are. So, I do not want to move forward with the sprinkler system and please refund my money". He told he has to talk to his wife regarding refund and he will call me back. He didn't call me and after couple of days passed, he sent a text message saying he is going to install on that day which is Aug 10th. I said, we already had a conversation regarding this and I don't want to move forward as he took my money and no updates. I talked to his son and he told his dad is a good person and he won't do it wantedly and moreover added that his dad had a heart attack and he promised he will talk to his dad and make sure I get the rufund. After couple of days I called him and now he changed the side and saying "please do not contact me regarding my dad's work". Hmmm, I was surprised and thought why in the first place he has to say kind words about his dad couple of days before and now he is saying "do not contact me". SCAM . Total Scammm. From then till now he did not return my money. I waited all these months more than 8 months before putting a review as I do not want to leave a bad review just like that and want to give a chance for him. I have sent many messages and he replied he will refund my money. One time he said he has to refund in two installments. But till now no refund of my money and no more responses, no answer to my phone calls (many phone calls) and no response to my recent text messages. I want to go to Small Claims court regarding this matter but still holding up as I do not want to leave a bad remark on his livelihood. Hope he understands and refund my $1300. First when we spoke, he talked like a gentleman and I never thought he would do that. Even out of 5 to 6 people who got sprinkler system installed through him in my community, only 2 people had good experience which obviously were the first two customers. Remaining people had bad experience. They just let him do the work as they gave advance like me. I just had to give a star otherwise it is not allowing me to post the review. Otherwise I would not give even a single star to this company and Phil Polak. Total Scam. Please go away from him and find another reliable person / company who can do the job.

1. Driveway looks great! Phil's crew demoed the existing driveway/lip and re-poured 3000psi concrete in its place. Crew was very friendly and Phil was very attentive to their work. Professionally done. (2-days.) 2. I had an existing concrete front porch/walkway with cracks due to age and Phil's crew laid flagstone on top. I told Phil what color flagstone I was looking for (Which happened to be a combination of two separate types) and Phil delivered. The finished project looks great. (3- Days) 3. I had a bad water run-off issue in the front of the house where rain water would lie stagnant in pools for days and often times seep into the basement. Phil 's team re-graded the front yard, installed 2- 4" PVC pipes, and 2 collection drains to re-route all the water to both sides of the house and away from the front porch area. ( 2 Days) 4. Phil's team removed old weeds/grass, laid top soil, and ordered/installed 4 pallets of Emerald Zoysia. The grass is growing nicely and hopefully will look perfect in the next few months. ( 2 Days) 5. Phils crew installed flower/bushes and laid mulch to compliment the new sod. ( 1 Day) 6. Installed 2 irrigation systems for front yard ( 4 misters for the flowers/ 4 sprinklers for the sod) and included a timer to program the watering system ( 2 Days) Phil is a one-stop-shop. He can do it all or find someone who can for a decent price. Phil was very professional and easy to get in touch with. I told him I wanted a transformation of my front yard and that is what I got. The difference in curb appeal is night and day and I was very pleased with the finished result on every job he preformed. **The only minor issue I had throughout the entire process was with the estimated price vs. the final price. The initial quote included everything but the actual sod itself. I was only quoted for the labor to lay the sod. Phil quickly recognized his mistake (albeit he was already half way through the job) and provided me a discount on the sod cost ( Even though it was a significant amount more than the original quote). I believe this was an honest mistake, but I would suggest to double check your estimate and make sure everything is included in the quote. I would work with Phil again. His work is very professional and I have already recommended him to my friends.

We have got nothing but complements from our neighbors. It was good value and very knowledgeable.

First, I can obviously only speak to our specific experience with Phil Polak and Sod Sales Direct, and not to any of the other reviews that have been posted re: other job types. This was a landscaping/sod project; not a masonry or basement water intrusion project. So again, cannot comment on those services, but certainly can for landscaping. From the initial contact, meeting, quotation, and actual site work, Phil and team (mainly 'Fran') were responsive, professional, and extremely competent. They also were very flexible to 'audibles' we were calling along the way (basically changes to original plan and quote). They were on time and present until the job was done excluding some terrible weather days. As mentioned in the scope of work, they transformed our hideous dirt, weeds, and crush and run gravel from the home build into a beautifully sculpted front yard that blends perfectly with the natural 'country' setting. There was a lot of work as we needed the water from several gutter down spouts routed under ground away from the house 1st (they actually use 4" solid PVC), irrigation, several trees removed with stumps before any of the shrub/sod work could be started. They also brought in fill dirt prior to sod,etc. Phil was very attentive to our preferences for shrubs and gave us several options. What he/we chose is going to look awesome this summer. The sod is dormant but looks healthy. One other point that is important is that these guys don't know the word 'no'. Anything we wanted, it was a yes (and a lot at NO extra charge---like trimming a huge grass plant for the winter, offering to move a bunch of firewood, etc). If you need sod and or landscaping, give these guys a chance and get a quote.

It was a disaster, and I now have a lien on my home from one of the suppliers that Phil Polak did not pay even though I paid him everything by the end of the project. I originally signed with Phil at the beginning of May 2015. The project was supposed to be two to three weeks. By July 15, the project was finally completed. In the middle of the project, there was a delay in getting the pavers and blocks for the patio and the entire project sat idle for about four weeks with a huge dumpster sitting in my driveway for two months. Before and after that, work was spontaneous and inconsistent. I never knew if anyone was showing up day after day. Once the patio was finished, sod was laid on compacted red clay with no top soil. Apparently, that's an OK way to do it. About a week later, the fence company showed up and spent two days walking all over the new sod and building the new fence. Apparently, that's an OK way to do it. Phil's crew re-rolled the sod, and I kept people off it for a month, and the grass finally came together, but it took a beating and has some lumps in it around the yard. The crowning achievement was the lien notice that I got in the mail at the end of September from the stone company stating they had placed a lien for $2200 on my property for materials that Phil used on my project but did not pay for. I paid Phil in installments per our agreement throughout the project. He was paid a final payment at the end of the project. Phil has all my money, yet he didn't use it to pay for all of my project. I spoke with Phil after receiving the lien notice, and he said to give him some time to do a few jobs and get the lien taken care of. I didn't want to destroy Phil and know that sometimes businesses fall on hard times or hit rough spots, but it's been two months since the lien notice and six months since I started giving Phil money, and Phil has not paid off the lien and won't respond to my messages. Unfortunately, I would not hire Phil again or recommend him to anyone. The three guys who did the actual work of building the patio and laying the sod were kind, hardworking, and did a nice job. The issue is Phil's management (or lack thereof) of his company. I found Sod Sales Direct off of Angie's List, and this is my worst experience thus far with the service. I will be happy to update my review once Phil has paid the bill that is due the stone company, the lien has been removed from my property, and Phil signs a lien waiver stating that all suppliers that provided materials for my project have been paid. My mistake was not getting a lien waver signed prior to the final payment. I won't make that mistake again neither should you.

Phil came out within a week of receiving my phone information from Angie's Listto discuss the work I wanted done. In fact he came by the house and left his card in my mailbox because I had an old phone number listed with Angie that no longer worked. I had some drawings and ideas, and Phil offered suggestions. I had several trees that needed removed before any work could be completed. Phil was very professional when a tree service he uses came to do an estimate and it turned out that I had called them for an estimate also. I hired the tree company separately, and Phil waited to finalize his work until the trees were done. After several rounds of drawings and estimates (because I kept changing my mind based on what I really wanted/needed once I knew costs), we landed on the work that would be completed. Phil's crew came out on time each day, and cleaned up each day. The main work took about a week, then the fence, then the fence painters. Along the way, Phil recommended that I consider sprinklers for the area with the sod and flower beds. He suggested a system that is controlled in a box in the yard and he completed that work for $700 - which I thought was very fair. Every time I needed to discuss the work with Phil, he was more than willing to work with me to come to a satisfactory result. I had concerns that the terrace walls would not be high enough - he made it perfect. I had concerns that the garden soil in the planting bed was not deep enough, he came out and fixed it. Gardening is my hobby, so I wanted to plant my numerous perennials that were in pots, and Phil's crew helped me by digging up several roses that I wanted to move. He offered to have his crew plant for me, but I wanted to do it myself. The flower bed is looking great. Many of my neighbors have come by and told me how much they like the yard and how they are looking forward to seeing the flowers in the spring and summer next year. Phil also gave me a discount for being an Angie's List customer.

First let me just say that Phil and his crew were awesome to work with and we are extremely happy with the results of the project. Now on to the review. My experience with Sod Sales Directs owner Phil began shortly after contacting him on Angie?s list and him coming out to my home to look at my existing backyard. I could not be there due to work obligations but Phil went anyway to take a look and called me while he was there. We discussed my family?s wants and needs for the back yard and Phil made suggestions that far surpassed what we had hoped for. Once we had a basic understanding of what could and could not be done Phil told me he would send me a quote and a drawing of the proposed project, I received that information the following day and my family was very happy with the plan and cost. We decided to have the work done and we could not be happier. Phil and his crew started shortly thereafter and even with quite a few weather delays the project was done in only a couple weeks. Our back yard prior to the work being done was basically only useable for our dog to go out to and now we have beautiful and safe backyard that we can entertain in as well as allow our young children to run and play in. Phil and his crew were always professional and courteous and I will certainly call Phil for work in the future. I have already recommended Sod Sales Direct to several friends and family members and will not hesitate to do so in the future to anyone that I know that needs work done their yard. Thank you Sod Sales Direct from the Thomas family!

I want to share my experience so that others do not get into similar situation with Phil and his company. I rarely, if ever, give negative feedback in a public forum, hoping instead to work out any issues before resolving to post a negative experience. But this problem has gone on for months and has been extremely disappointing. Phil's employees arrived at our home that was undergoing renovation. Phil, nor a manager with his company arrived on site with his workers and he had not reached out to let me know to expect workers that day. The doors were open so that workers could come in and out in other parts of the house because much work was underway. The workers proceeded to go into the wrong room (with the wrong fireplace) and demolish the existing - extremely valuable - antique French marble fireplace. Another craftsman at the house notified me of what was happening, I tried urgently to reach Phil by phone. He did not answer and did not respond to my calls and emails for 4 days. i later found out that he was on vacation. Immediately upon learning that the wrong fireplace was destroyed, I rushed to the house and asked the workers to explain. They had been instructed by Phil to take down the existing fireplace and to begin work to install a stone fireplace. Because no management was on site with Phil's company, the workers made an assumption about which fireplace was to be demolished and went to work. Of course, the wrong fireplace in the wrong room was destroyed and needless to say I was devastated. The fireplace was a beautiful antique from France that I had personally sourced. To date, Phil has said that he would work with his insurance company to cover these damages but I have had to reach out to him many times over 4 months to get updates and to prod this along. I learned today that his insurance company will not look into his claim (as he did not have appropriate coverage). Phil has expressed that he will not pay out of pocket for the damage and loss. I am looking into other ways to manage the issue through my own insurance company or through legal assistance or both. In the interim, the other work that was to be done was left unfinished. I trusted Phil during this process and believed that he would take responsibility for the damage. I had him continue work on the walkway and he was paid for that work with the understanding that the project would be supervised by him. I have paused any work on the existing two fireplaces that were affected. This has been very costly and has delayed the renovation of the house. I am disappointed and wanted to share this so that others could be warned about the possibility of damage and lack of follow up to find a resolution to the problem.

The entire project went very well. Phil Polak provided detailed descriptions and a sketch of everything that would be done. He also explained what to expect, including the materials used ,who would perform the labor, everything involved in taking down the existing walls, preparing the site for the new walls, installation of the walls, and clean-up. Phil walked me through a minor misunderstanding I had about the second wall and made a change to ensure that I was happy with the final results. I am very pleased with this project.

I received the quote from this company, a.k.a. Phil and was shocked to see it was nearly two times more expensive than the most expensive quote out of 4 other quotes. I communicated this to Phil via email, he replied and we engaged in a pretty decent conversation. Phil's plans were to send me some picture examples of his work and also to modify the original design in order to get the cost down. He stated he would get back to me with a modified quote and that he will get my design back to me oh his visit to my home. He never did any of that. At some point I decided Phil had better things to do, which is fine. It was not like I was paying him at this point anyway right? So I should expect to get ignored right? It's what all of the contractors do when they have better things to do. Well, I expected to have the item I loaned to them, that I paid for, returned back to me so that I could show other potential contractors the design and desired end game. I even left messages telling Phil to let me know where I can pick up the design and I will drive to him. No response, he didn't even send me to voicemail. He just let the phone ring 6 times every time and rollover to voicemail. Actually, I guess that is somewhat respectable. Numerous calls, voice mail messages, text, emails, and no reply. It is obvious I am being ignored for whatever reason. I had to pay $75 In order to get a copy of the designs (since I had to pay for the entire set, not just one picture). I am very disappointed in Phil the company, and Phil the person. He seemed like a decent guy. I am sure he will attempt to reply to this post and provide some type of explanation of being busy and that I slipped his mind all 7 or 8 times I tried to contact him. Here is my advice, don't give him anything because he won't return it and don't disagree with his initial quote because he won't respect you afterwards. In fact, he will ignore you. Message to Phil: With the time you may take to read and draft a response to my review (which you may do in an attempt to justify how unprofessional you are) you could have replied to one of my emails or one of my text or one of my phone calls to make arrangements to return my item. Any attempt you may make to contact me will be ignored.

Phil and his team were wonderful! Our neighbors have commented on how much of a change these few things did for the appearance of our house. He was able to develop a beautiful landscaped area full of color without me giving much in the way of direction. The sod installed was high quality and beautiful.

My husband talked to Phil in July and he told him he would be out to replace all sod in 2 weeks and it is August 10th and he still has not shown up.

This company was referred after the first one would not return calls. The price was to be $599.00. This quote came in around $2000.00.

Crew of three men sent to perform work. They were polite, on time, took care not to damage nearby plants, did a very professional job, and left the job site neat and clean. I was surprised to learn that removal from my property of the demolished brick patio would be an extra charge. There was an issue with the manager Phil regarding a charge for demolition of old patio which was included in Angie's List ad cost, but this issue was resolved to my satisfaction after two weeks.

We still have the problem. Their solution didn't help a bit. Subsequent contractors said that the drains were improperly installed: too shallow should have been at bottom of footer. Grading was either not done or done wrong. We still had grading sloping towards the house. They may be OK for sod but I would not recommend them for drainage solutions.

Due to rainy weather our project was constantly being delayed, which was very frustrating. I didn't meet Phil, but John came out several times to address any concerns my hubby and I had. When the job finally started there were two guys who came out and they did a wonderful job. They were quick, thorough and even cleaned up everything. There is one area that isn't quite leveled (we're watching this). I will use them again. You can't beat the price and quality of work. Amazing! Thanks Guys, CPR.

I trust that Phil and his crew would have done excellent work for us. He was very helpful when chatting on the phone about the scope of and plan for our project. But Phil and I couldn't quite get on the same page in our communication?specifically about scheduling. He visited my house for an estimate and project plan without notice during my workday; would have been happy to adjust my schedule so I could have been there to chat in person. And our scheduling of the actual work was a bit sloppy too. Before I had signed any agreement to commit to service, Phil gave me just a couple hours' notice that his crew would be there to complete the project that day. (No work was completed and I never met Phil in person, just had some clunky phone conversations.) I think my small project just fell during the busy summer months for Sod Sales Direct. Again, trust that the work would have been completed well but had some slightly unprofessional phone chats that caused me to back out of the project.

It went really well. Everything went really fast. It was well thought-out. It turned out really nice. He added a flagstone patio, and it stays cool in the summer. The cement was laid real well, it was level. He did an excellent job on the patio and how it drains off into the yard.

Provider did not respond to request for quote.

They did a beautiful job and I am thrilled with the work. Phil was able to get in and get it done in a timely manner - was always responsive to my questions and started and finished when they promised. The stone work is beautiful and really makes the front of my house look much nicer. The driveway also looks great. The guys that did the work were professional and really did a nice job. I'm going to save my pennies to put them to work in my back yard next. I would definitely hire them again.

I purchased a deal from this contractor for a patio. Received an email requesting my contact info within 48 hours of the purchase, which I sent to them. A week went by with no follow up from the contractor. I sent another message asking when someone would contact me to look at the job. Received a response asking if they had been out there. I informed them I had not met with anyone. No further communication from the contractor. I then contacted them again by phone and left a voice mail. Another week went by with no contact from the contractor. I have cancelled this deal and will not use this provider. I have no confidence they would ever complete the job. I would rather pay twice as much and know the contractor will show up and perform the work.

They were super fast and efficient, offering great advice and helping to save money where we could. From the time I gave Phil the go ahead, it was all pretty much done in one week. Their crew knocked it out without me having to think too much about the whole thing - they came up with a plan and adjusted it along the way with creative solutions for a difficult backyard. Their pricing was very competitive and would recommend them to anyone. Our whole neighbourhood can now enjoy our backyard - we had over 80 people over for a cook out the day that Phil finished and we received compliments from everyone! I will be getting them back to do a second phase for us when we get back from our summer break. Great job!

I wanted to take advantage of a Big Deal. I called the provider to come to my house for a more firm estimate before I purchased the deal. He said he would come by after work, however, because of a delay, asked if he could come by on the weekend. I said that was fine. He also said he would call, but, I never heard from him again. It has been a couple of weeks, therefore, I decided not to purchase the deal.

Their initial attempt was clearly poor and they came back a couple of times to try to fix it, but charged us more $$ each time (to address THEIR design flaws). They laid drain lines above the low spots, so the problem still exists. They laid french drains next to the foundation but did not put them at the footer nor treat the outside of the foundation wall, so they too are useless. Our water issues still exist. The $2500 we spent with SSD was a waste.