AAA-1 Masonry & Tuckpointing Inc

He did a good job. They were very courteous. I would recommend them and I would definitely use them again.

They were outstanding and excellent. We talked to a lot of people and they seemed to know better than anyone else.

Exceptional work. Rob and his team delivered the quality and care of consummate professionals. Walked me through every step of the process and helped me understand what work was being done and the rationale of the details.

In the meantime they just don't look clean.

He actually provided an educational session on everything I should know about mansonry and roofing. However, he never sent nor responded to my follow up phone call which is why I rated Responsiveness w/an F.

They did a good job, did the entire apartment and I would use them in the future.

Came out and gave a very reasonable quote,then the crew came 2 weeks later, did a professional job and cleaned up very nicely each day

Though the façade repair project to my 100+ yr old home is on hold, I want to commend Robert Reese, the owner of AAA-1 Masonry for his professionalism and thank him for the hours of time he invested assessing elements not original to the façade, how to correct those, and other numerous ill- done repairs, made prior to my owning the house, the most egregious being: 23 courses of yellow brick that had been added to width of the building above the 2nd fl windows, then painted to match the original red brick Approx 7 brick courses removed from the original height of the facade Capstones added to the center of decorative terra cotta detail that runs the width of the house I received 3 different proposals from other companies prior to being recommended to Robert Reese. Of the 4 estimators, only Rob went on the roof to check the parapet, came inside my home to check the terra cotta and limestone detail that could only be viewed accurately from the 2nd floor windows, and went up a ladder to determine the condition of the lintels. He was professional when misunderstandings occurred, which were not his doing, and gave me his opinion when needed: e.g. advised against adding 8? brick columns (which I wanted) to separate three continuous 2nd floor windows, when narrow decorative mullions would be architecturally correct. My only slight regret (emphasis on the slight) is that, at his suggestion, I removed the interior drywall that surrounds the window opening to expose any potential deteriorating brick that lay behind the terra cotta detail, & could not be seen from the outside. Several interior courses of brick were missing and some mortar deteriorating, which are good to know; however, I would not have removed the drywall had I not been fairly confident about proceeding with this project. The upside is no other mason suggested checking the interior brick - I now know there is a problem that I would never have anticipated, and one that could cause a structural problem if not corrected. I did not go through with this project or AAA-1 as the contractor because a "revised / final proposal" was not received; however, I believe my uncertainty of specific decorative details, the amount of his time I was consuming in making decisions, and clearing miscommunication is partially, if not wholly responsible for one not being written. If I had to put myself in Rob?s position I would likely be apprehensive in providing a proposal; but having said that, I would also communicate to a prospective client why one was not provided. I began this process with a limited knowledge of masonry work, and vague idea of what should and could be done, which is probably the norm for most homeowners. Though I had pictures of how I believed the facade should look, I'm sure it would have helped this process if I had been better prepared to convey what I wanted done. Alll things considered, of the 4 companies I contacted for an estimate, Robert Reese provided the most comprehensive assessment, and invested hours of time in this process, consequently, I hold neither him nor his company responsible for the failure of this job to proceed.

I purchased a Big Deal with this provider. They sent me a contract that said they would charge me $28/square foot, when it was estimated at $14/square foot and they also had open ended charges in the contract. It took me a very long time to get this person out to our home and when a younger kid comes into your home and addresses you by first name, it is a little off-putting. When I called the company to discuss the matter they just sent me back to the same person I was dealing with. I am not happy with the price or the customer service. They took the Big Deal amount and automatically deducted the $300 from the estimate and there was not price by the permits and several small costs that were listed. I just wanted to have a small wine closet put in and the cost was way too high.

This is the second time our condo association has hired AAA-1 Masonry and Tuckpointing. We were pleased with the results the first time and called on them again for a new problem. The salesman and office staff are courteous and the work is perfomed on time as scheduled. They set up and dismantle the scaffolding quickly and complete the work on time. They clean up the area when they leave. I would recommend them to anyone.

Dan was really easy to work with - promptly answered all questions and addressed all concerns. Got the needed permits. He and crew arrived on time and did an excellent job. Would definitely use them again

WOW! We had a very small job; just a repair on our chimney, an area maybe 3x4 feet. Robert came by to see, and said it didn't need a whole crew. Since we weren't in any rush, Robert said he'd add it in at the end of a workday when he was in the area. A week later, he called to ask when in the following week would be good. We would be out of town for a funeral, but since he didn't have to come in the house, I said he'd be welcome to any time he could come. And I forgot about it. We got back on Sunday, and this morning I remembered and went outside. I can't even tell that any work was done, because it all looks exactly like the rest of the chimney!!! Robert had bricks that matched the old ones and tucked with identical mortar, beyond the immediate area (I think!). It's beautiful! Friendly, cooperative, tidy, and absolutely lovely work!

The work was completed in a professional manner. I was very pleased with the final result.

They're the standard by which we judge all the other brick work companies because they're the most expensive but they've also done the best job, and they're the most reliable. They do really great quality work.

They were very professional. They went beyond the pale in terms of what was required of them. They took pictures of work beyond what they were contracted to do to let me know it was a problem even though they didn't do that kind of work. They were very neat and courteous and my neighbors even commented on how well it looked.

Run into this before. Need a minor but necessary job done, but provider only wants to commit if it is worth while.

My husband and I hired AAA-1 Masonry & Tuckpointing to restore our front brick parapet wall a few years back and were very pleased with the quality of the work and the professionalism of the men. Our experience rebuilding the side parapet wall this year was equally as pleasant. Robert took the time to educate us about the correct way to rebuild our parapet wall, showed us photos of what he saw during his rooftop inspection, and provided options (and guidance) about how to do the job correctly. Apparently the original height of the parapet wall had been reduced years ago and never rebuilt back to its correct height. We were working on a budget, so we told AAA-1 Masonry not to rebuild the parapet wall to a slightly higher height, even though Robert counseled us to do so in order to allow the roofers to properly re-flash the wall when the brickwork was completed. We had to make a choice, and I really wanted to spend the $1600 for this additional work on new capstones around my front entry (work that Rob also did for us). I spend a lot of time on my porch and our capstones did not look good. Replacing them was important to me. 10 masons made fast (and beautiful) work of our parapet wall. Andy the foreman was a pleasure to deal with, too. My east wall is sited pretty close to the property line, so the men built very narrow pipe scaffolding towers so as not to damage my neighbor's property, and they wrapped their scaffolding in dust-suppressing mesh which everyone appreciated. All of the masonry debris went into a dumpster, and that dumpster was removed the day the job was completed. They even brought their own port-a-potty so as not to be an imposition. Once the job was done, Robert revealed that he and the men had chipped in to rebuild the parapet wall to the proper height (the height he had recommended from the start) for no charge! He said not rebuilding the parapet wall higher would have reduced the life expectancy of his work, and he never would have forgiven himself if he had let that happen. Who does work for free?!? With all aspects of the job, we were very satisfied customers. Thank you, AAA-1 Masonry, for your counsel, work ethic, and generosity. -Linda Orellana

His estimate was very thorough, he said it could go one of two ways depending on what they found when taking the old windows out. I told him we wanted to make sure it would stop any seepage from the window wells. He even provided a great plumber to move some water pipes for the job, who was also very good. Since he got all four windows done quicker than he estimated he also had his crew do some tuckpointing on our brick wall out front for no extra charge and I didn't even have to ask. After two years and some heavy rains the windows have held up very well.

We used the company to seal cracks on the outside of our foundation. The gentleman who came out did an excellent job. It was very precise, thorough and clean. We would highly recommend them. The job we had done was pricey but ultimately worth it as we have a very dry basement.

Aware of issues with other buildings in Chicago with split face block concrete, we hired AAA-1 Masonry to perform tuckpointing and waterproofing work for our condo association. They came very highly recommended from a building inspector we hired to inspect our entire building. They did not provide the least expensive estimate, but they also weren't the most expensive either, and they seemed very trustworthy. And our association was very pleased with the work they performed. The mortar was carefully applied, not dripping all around and not just slathered on and over-applied. And our inspector, who returned to ensure that the work was done properly, was impressed how much care and attention they gave the hardest to reach areas near the top of the building. We had previously had similar work performed, and for cheaper, but the quality of the work by AAA-1 was far superior and the waterproofing material used by AAA-1 is warranted to last several years longer . . . you get what you pay for. Early on, they admitted to us that they underestimated part of the work to be done and suggested a couple of additional repairs, but admitted immediately that they should have recognized the issue when they gave us the estimate and performed the work for minimal additional cost, and I mean very little. And they were very responsive to questions, explained the work to be performed well, showed up when promised, and worked diligently. And from our own research, we learned that they not only applied the premier waterproofing material, but did so with a thick application needed to ensure that water does not penetrate the concrete block. So overall, we could not have been happier with AAA-1. Living in a building with split face block concrete can be reason for concern in Chicago. We were happy to have found a trustworthy and great contractor to ease our concerns.

Very thorough, quality work completed. Great communication and flexible with our needs.

I don't remeber exactly how many masons arrived, but there was like a whole army of them, maybe six or seven. They were prompt and professional; They even brought their own porta potty! They had to remove our downspout in order to access some of the brick, and they did a great job removing and replacng it. After the job was completed, they cleaned everything up perfectly. It took them about a day and a half to do the tuckpointing. Then they returned about a week later to seal the brick. The wall looks beautiful. I cannot see the difference between the wall that was tuckpointed and our neighbor's.

Brent Moore came out to look at our parapet. He then worked up some estimates for our condo association to study and evaluate. He gave us a couple of different options. We could build to the roofline or below the roofline. The prices and amount of work required differed accordingly. We gathered several quotes, because this was such an expensive job. We negotiated on the price with AAA-1 Masonry -- they were willing to be somewhat flexible, which helped. They also gave us references to call and addresses of buildings they had worked on so we could check them out too. We were impressed by their workmanship, both from talking to clients of theirs and from seeing buildings they worked on. AAA-1 Masonry made the final three of the masons we considered. We asked them to come to our condo association meeting to discuss the work with us. Brent Moore was happy to do so, and we were glad that he was able to accommodate us. He was very patient in answering all of our questions. I think AAA-1 Masonry would have done a fine job. We nearly went with them. It was a hard decision...in the end we chose another company, only because that business did both roofing and masonry (and we needed a new roof installed in the same timeframe).

AAA-1 were about $1000 better than any of the 4 masonry contractors I received for the rebuild of the chimney on my new (old) house. They showed up on time and completed the work quickly and with good quality. The estimator, Dan, was always very professional in my dealings with him.

Owner, Dan, was very knowledgeable and upfront. Of the 3-4 companies we interviewed, his quote was the best for the work that was needed. He addressed exactly what was needed without including extras we didn't want or that would cause additional problems down the road. We paid a deposit ($6,530.00) to start. We were advised the work would take approximately 2 weeks, start to finish, which was more or less correct. The men who were hired to do the work were very experienced, professional, and efficient. They wasted very little time during the job. They always cleaned up after themselves and the area, sweeping up debris and carting it away with them, using our hose to wash down surfaces. A few comments for improvement - I want to reiterate that I highly recommend Dan; these last suggestions for Dan would truly set AAA-1 apart from everyone else. (1) Dan showed up the first day of work. We did not see him again after that. We expected him to come by to inspect once or twice during the work, and then do a final inspection of the work before confirming the job completed. My husband inspected the work and found brick that still needed to be replaced, and seams that hadn't been mortared. These were significant areas, that would need work down the road if not done then. Dan did come out to look, and he agreed it was work missed. He said he would have his men come finish the areas missed. They finished the follow-up work about 1.5 weeks later, but we were not advised when they would show up. (2) There were a few days where it was too hot for the men to work. We were not notified that the men would not be coming, when they would show up. We assumed it was the heat, but we didn't know, and we didn't know when they would return. This was unsettling for me. (3) We received a 2nd invoice for $1500 after paying the final portion of the contracted payment. This was for City Permit fees (which we thought were in the final invoice) and the cost of fixing the brick around a window. We were having it replaced and asked Dan to have the window replacement people give him the measurements. Dan did this, and the men did a great job with it. However, we were not notified during the job, nor prior to receiving the bill, how much the window would cost. I don't have an issue with the cost; I have an issue with the lack of follow-up. When we first received the 2nd invoice, we were confused by it and weren't sure what the invoice was for. I then had to contact Dan to ask about it. He was apologetic, that he'd been out-of-town and his office sent the 1st invoice before he could talk to them and include the additional fees. I recommend Dan invest a little more in his office, or an office manager, who will think of these things and is given the authority to follow-up on this sort of thing -- it would make his service superlative. I would use Dan again, and I would not hesitate to recommend that someone contact Dan if they're needing any kind of service done that Dan provides.