Advanced Restoration & Waterproofing

It was great. So far they've been very supportive and taken care of everything. There is just one other thing we need to wait on but other than that, they did well. The work is not totally complete yet. They were supposed to restore my yard and I got a hunch they don't want to do it. I had to call them out because they had covered the water meter. It took a couple of calls but they came out on time and got it taken care of. I didn't pay $49, I paid for the full amount that they charged to do the work. What stood out about the experience was that the owner took extra interest. He was involved in the negotiation and he came out before and after the work was done. Any time you get the owner involved in something, that's great as far as I'm concerned. They did everything they specified on the contract except the little bit where they had to come back and straighten the yard out. The owner was there to make sure that all the questions I had were answered.

This is a top notch company, and the decision to use a different company was not easy and one I hope to not regret. Mike and Marty both were very respectful and knowledgeable. I would recommend speaking with them if you have a need for this type service.

Provided a review of the drainage issues at our home. Provided an estimate to resolve the issues. They were attentive but quite focused on "closing the deal". Their plan was well-presented and comprehensive, but we ultimately went with another person to place the drain tiles and provide the excavation services due to a lower quote.

Marty came and gave us an estimate on a house we were looking to buy that we thought may have some foundation problems. We didn't have a purchase agreement, and he still came to take a look for ABSOLUTELY FREE! He was very thorough, and checked the outside for water to make sure none was coming into the house. He then gave us a very reasonable estimate to fix the damage to the foundation he had found. Would definitely recommend ARW!

My fiance and I are in the process of buying our first home. We had our home inspection done and were a little worried about a bowing wall in the basement, as the home was built in the 1950's. We wanted to be sure this would not cause any problems in the future. We called our realtor to get her thoughts and she highly recommended to have ARW and specifically, Marty Mainzer, come take a look at it. I called Marty and he was able to move his schedule around a little and come out within 1 day! I met Marty at the house with our realtor and showed him what we were looking at. Marty not only took a look at the basement but also walked around the outside of the house to get the whole picture. He gave us his professional opinion of the situation and recommendations. My fiance and I discussed the options and also looked information up in regards to ARW. Not surprisingly, we found that ARW has won numerous awards for their work, including 11 super service awards in 2015. I have talked to Marty a couple of times since the originally meeting and he has been very helpful and honest in regards to his opinion. Being new to Indianapolis and finding a local company that I can trust for the most important purchase of our lives to this point really gives us peace of mind moving forward. We will be moving forward with ARW after our closing and I would highly recommend calling ARW if you have any questions or concerns about waterproofing your basement or drainage needs.

I highly recommend Advanced Restoration & Waterproofing (ARW). Ten out of 10 on everything. I am more than completely satisfied, my life is much improved for having chosen ARW. I had suffered from a periodically flooding basement for years and now I wonder why I put up with it for so long. I had always assumed that waterproofing a finished basement would be ridiculously expensive and too drastic to consider. Boy was I wrong. My installation was in spring 2015, so I have been living the dry life for a while now, including 3 days of power outage during heavy rains. I met ARW at a home show in Indianapolis. There were other similar exhibitors but I liked the design of the ARW system and the pricing was competitive. They also spent a lot of time answering my questions about the system and process. When the estimator visited, I was very impressed by his level of detail and honesty and shocked by how little time the entire project should take as it seemed like so very much work. I knew that my old house presented some unique challenges but he assured me that I really had to do very little, just give them space to work along the walls, they would move the washer and dryer and would be able to burrow behind water heater. I was honestly relieved to not have to do much. I received a very thorough estimate for waterproofing the entire perimeter of my semi-finished basement with multiple rooms, dual sump pump with or without backup battery. I chose With and am so glad I did. Their price was already incredible based on the extras, like 2 buried downspouts included, but I was offered an additional discount to move up by several weeks when there was a cancellation idling a work team. They also made it very convenient for me, coming to my workplace so I could sign the contract. Work began and I couldn?t believe how so few people did so much in so little time and left the place so clean. I?m still blown away by how great my basement looked! Be prepared for dust and noise, but the mess is short-lived and the work is top notch. There have been no problems, everything works perfectly, no leaks, no overflows, and I no longer have to mop or wet vac my basement or keep everything on tables. Just last week I needed someone to look at my backup battery because it was beeping and still under warranty. While they were here, they replace a buried downspout that another contractor damaged by ripping through it with a backhoe and didn?t charge me! Note that it was cold and snowing that day, and they not only fixed it but improved it! Just one more way that ARW is committed to its customers. I can?t say enough about the people, the workmanship and service. Every single individual I have met has been friendly and honest, and unbelievably hardworking. All work has been exactly as they said it would be. When I asked about other projects I need to do here, for work they don?t do, they referred me to other vendors instead of just saying they don?t do those projects. They have more than met their obligations of the original work, they have far exceeded my expectations. Go with ARW, you won?t be sorry. In fact, you will sleep well even when it rains heavily for days and you?ve lost power. I don?t dread heavy rains like I used to and can put my basement to full use. If you?re not sure you want the battery backup, I think you do: if I?m at work and my house loses power, the sump pump texts me to let me know! And then texts me again when power is restored. If that second text doesn?t come, I know to arrive home with batteries for the flashlight and maybe some candles and take-out dinner. My life is drastically improved with peace of mind and full use of my basement again. Thanks, ARW!!!

The guys were all very friendly and hardworking. They showed up in snow, ice, rain, on New Years Eve... and did an incredible amount of work in a couple weeks of brutal winter weather. I'm very happy with the retaining wall they rebuilt. It looks great, and they did a great job patching the crack in my foundation. All in all, excellent service.

I’ll begin by saying that I am very pleased with the work that was done, but glad that it is done. Due to factors beyond my control I had to move up my installation date and had to have a family member on site while the work was done. ARW was able to accommodate my situation by rearranging crew assignments, which I much appreciated. Mike, the owner, made several calls to me to provide progress updates and answer any questions I might have. He was definitely interested in making sure the job was executed well. The crew came in well prepared and organized; it was clear that they had worked together for a while and had completed a number of these projects together – they definitely had the requisite experience to properly complete the work. The crew was courteous and easy to work with throughout the experience. This is hard work, but I did not observe them standing around idly – they would arrive and immediately hit it. They happily completed a couple of minor modifications for me and made additional suggestions while putting in the waterproofing system. The perimeter drain works as advertised. We had a good bit of rain a few days ago and the basement remained dry. I feel comfortable continuing with my plans to finish the area for a home office, exercise room, and expanded laundry room.I'm am also very pleased with the wall reinforcement system. It consists of high strength straps that are mechanically attached at the top and bottom of the wall; the strapping is attached to the wall with epoxy. To ensure a completely solid bond to the individual concrete blocks the paint had to be stripped from the walls. As a result one is left with a flat wall that can be painted as part of the wall - the system does not take space away from the room as alternative solutions do. This is a messy job, but one I don't regret having had done. Before the Crew arrived I had to have everything moved away from the walls. The Crew began by laying protective covering on the floor in route to the basement to avoid tracking dirt in. They also covered with plastic the furnace and the water heater and the remaining items in the basement. A couple things I would do differently: first, I would make sure that everything that was wrapped in plastic was completely sealed with tape and sealed at the floor. Secondly, I would have stapled plastic to the basement rafters. The concrete dust that results from removing the concrete from the basement perimeter is pervasive – it was a job vacuuming afterwards. But as I said, when the rain came and the basement remained dry, I had no regrets. I recommend both systems.

Marty determined that we would need to waterproof one wall of our finished basement. The job would require digging a trench along that wall, installing a pipe to collect water that enters through the basement wall, digging and installing a new sump pump, and installing a buried downspout carrying water away from our house. This proposal was very similar to another company's proposal. The price ARW quoted was a bit higher than the other company. We have postponed this project at this time.

First of all, it started with the very competitive bid, that was not only 25% lower than the next closest bid from a reputable Water Proofing company, but also provided 5 year warranties on the sump pumps compared to a 1 year warranty from that same competitor, as well as a text alert system that sends me, my wife and ARW a text message if any of the sump pumps ever fail. Additionally, the bid also included the installation of 2 underground rain gutter downspouts extended 15' out from the house. Something the competitors bid did not include. So not only did i spend less with ARW, but they offered more for my money than their competitors. Secondly, the 2 main individuals who did most of the work on the project had been working for ARW for several years. One individual in particular had been with the company for over 6 years and the level of commitment and dedication to my project was evident from the start as every day i came home from work, he showed and explained to me everything that had been done that day. Including additional work needed because of the unique basement layout that has 2 levels and has footers that are bigger and thicker than most footers ARW encounters because my house was built in the 50's. The two main workers were not only very knowledgeable, but were very personable and polite and easy to work with. Their work also included having to remove an older, previously installed drainage system that added to their workload. But in spite of the extra time and labor involved in dealing with these unexpected issues, ARW did not come back and ask for more money. They stuck to the original quote and provided all the extra work without charging any extra. I was really impressed with that! Overall, i could not have asked for a better experience or a better result working with ARW for the installation of a quality, superior Interior Drainage and Water Proofing system for my entire Basement that covered over 165' linear feet. I would not hesitate to use them again if i ever own another house that needs an Interior drainage and water proofing system and would highly recommend ARW for any of the services that they offer with complete confidence! My wife and I get to enjoy the peace and security knowing that our basement is guaranteed to be dry and problem free for a lifetime! Thank you ARW!

I had three companies come in and survey my basement and recommend solutions. All three were professional and knowledgeable, but ARW was especially thorough and walked me through the pros and cons of different approaches. The quote was very reasonable and fair in my opinion when compared with the other two. I had to delay the work until this fall due to unexpected circumstances and got an updated quote in October. ARW was able to honor the original quote with only a small increase in cost due to increased material costs. However, following new technologies closely, they informed me about newer solution to shoring up my basement walls that has proven itself to be quite effective. I researched the new technique and was likewise impressed with the results - in addition to having many advantages it was a less expensive solution. I opted for the new approach. ARW has been responsive to all my questions and I like the fact that they stay cutting edge. I will do a follow-up review after the work is completed, but so far I have been very pleased with them. My impression is that they want to do it right, which for me is always a priority.

It all went very well. There was some delay because of rain and waiting on rock, but when you deal with other vendors beside yourself, you are at their mercy. The number one reason we went with ARW is because they were willing to do what we wanted. They were flexible and easy to work with. After the original quote we came back with them on two occasions and wanted to change things and they were very willing to change to our wishes and were responsive with adjusting the quotes. We were very concerned about our front porch. We originally thought we would have to have it torn off, but ARW was willing to work with us and since the footer on it went down as far as the rest of the house they were glad to go around it just like it was part of the house. The second reason was the price. We had a total of four quotes and two of the quotes were what we felt excessive in price. One was reasonable, but he wasn't willing to work with us on what we wanted. One of the companies that was too high called on multiple occasions trying to get us to talk with them again and they might be willing to come down some. I wasn't buying a used car. This was my house. My safe and happy place. I don't think that is the kind of thing you dicker on. ARW didn't do that, they were up front with their price but were flexible when we wanted to do something more or take something out. They gave us a price that was fair and didn't try to buy us. They could have sold us a sump pump system that was in the quote, but when Mike got out there and actually saw the lay of the land advised us that we didn't need that. They would be glad to put one in for us, but he said with our slope, that gravity is all we would need. Saved us another $1,000.00 Flexibility. Not only did ARW work with us on what we wanted to do, they were willing to work with our schedule. The high priced company kept saying if we did it in this certain time frame they could give us a special price. Well what would happen if the rain, which it did, delayed things? Would the price go back up? I did not feel comfortable with the other company. I felt much more at ease with ARW. Landscaping: We did what we could to dig the smaller bushes up, but there were some that were just too big for us. Mike Bird Jr. came in with is digger and did a very nice job with digging those out and putting them aside for us to put back in later. Not going to lie to you. The yard was a mess for a while. Big piles of dirt, but the boys did their best in keeping it in check and afterwards made sure things were cleaned up. Leveled out the yard and cleaned up all the extra rock and even took some of the brush away that we didn't want. Accidents happen when you work around a house. A phone line to the garage did get cut, but they owned up to it without me asking. We had seen it and were just going to let it go since we had cordless phones, but Mike told me about it and fixed it without us having to ask about it. No drama. They came, they worked, they didn't bother us with every little thing. We know they had issues with cars not working and getting people to bring the rock, but they just dealt with it. We even had some hornets apparently nesting in some siding we didn't know about. They just sprayed and got rid of them. Even when one of them got stung, they just dealt with it. No drama. I hate drama if you could tell. I get enough of that at work. We are still waiting for the ground to all settle, but are happy with the results. It is a relief to have gotten this done with so little drama. We have had a couple of rains since then and are glad to see no water standing on the plastic under the house. There is come water under the plastic, that may have been from before we had the work done. We had a couple of rains that delayed things. We thank ARW for the speedy and drama less service.

After the large amount of rain we had early this summer, we went down into our basement and found that the carpet, outside wall and trim were wet and moldy. After some investigation, we found that we had a hole in our foundation from an old pipe that had been removed and patched poorly. We have two young kids and our basement is their big playroom. When we removed the carpet and drywall from the water damage my entire family was very upset about the loss of our basement. We were very anxious to get the foundation fixed and get our basement back. I called numerous foundation and basement waterproofing companies. Many did not return my calls or just stated they were too busy with all the recent to rain. I was told by many that their next available appointment was in the late fall. I was also told that they would take my number down and call me when they were available. I never heard from most of them. I spent several hours calling numerous companies with the same results. I then called Advanced Restoration & Waterproofing and spoke with Mr. Mainzer. I called Advanced Restoration based off of their excellent Angie?s List reviews. Mr. Mainzer was very knowledgeable. I was very pleased that he said he would be able to come by the house within a few days. He explained the entire process on how they would fix the hole. He spent around an hour explaining the repair and giving us all of the details. He was able to offer us a repair date within a few days of giving us the estimate. Remember, that many companies had yet to even call us back. Their estimate was very competitive compared to the other quotes I had received. The day the work was done went very well. Their entire team was professional and easy to work with. They explained the entire repair and cleaned up after they were done. They completed the job right on time with no issues. They were very nice to work with and we would definitely use them in the future. It has been a few months since the repair was done and I still get an occasional phone call from the other basement repair companies asking if they can come by and give an estimate. I let them know that Mr. Mainzer and Advanced Restoration and waterproofing fixed the issue months ago. I would highly recommend this company to anyone needing the foundation repaired on their home.

I found ARW on Angie's list and asked them for a quote based on the great reviews that had been posted. The quote they provided was very competitive and there was no high pressure sales for additional products or services. ARW arrived on time and employees were very polite and completed their work in the time frame they committed on. My need to have the back up sump pump installed was rather urgent and they were on-site quickly to do that. The outdoor projects (French drain and Basement) were prescheduled to meet my schedule and they were very flexible. ARW reviewed in detail what the projects would consist of and recommended what plants I would need to move if I wanted to save them, which was very much appreciated. We have had rain several times since the work was completed and we no longer have any leaks with the wall and the French drain is working just as the ARW had stated. The drain draws the formerly standing water away from the foundation. ARW called to follow up and verify that I was happy with their work. You don't see this much anymore, so I was very pleasantly surprised by this. I would recommend using them to anyone looking for water proofing services.

We recently discovered water on our basement floor. Although our home is older (1937), the previous owners had not experienced any water problems in the basement and we hadn?t either during the four years we have owned the home. The source of the water was mysterious as it was not located near a drain. We also eliminated the possibility of an overhead pipe leak. Our next step was to contact a professional contractor to explore options. We selected ARW (Advanced Restoration & Waterproofing) since they have an excellent reputation on Angie?s List. The company representative spent a significant amount of time with us discussing the issue and possible options. When he was uncertain about the answer to some of our questions, he sought out the answers with the owner of the company and some of the crew that would actually be doing the work. Since the water was seeping in from an invisible crack in the floor and the problem was isolated to one corner of the basement, we opted for a ?mini? waterproofing system instead of a system for the entire basement. This seemed like a good first step to determine if it would take care of the problem without the expense and extent of construction required for a full system. The system we had constructed consists of a sixteen-foot trench along the basement wall that terminates in a sump pit. ARW installed a high-quality sump pump and a battery back-up. The logic is that the system will relieve water pressure underneath the basement and eliminate the water seepage through the basement floor. The ARW crew was very courteous, informing us along the way which task they would tackle next and the approximate time they would start and end each day. The advance notice was extremely important to us when they began using the 90 lb. jack hammer! The ARW crew had everything covered in sheet plastic and cleaned up the dust and debris nicely. When it came to the outside work, we understood that some of the plants and shrubs would be in the path of the drain pipe and might be destroyed. With the advance notice given by the ARW crew, we were able to relocate most of the plants. We were impressed when the crew actually helped us move some of the plants. They were also careful working around those plants & shrubs that were not relocated. Although we have not had the quantity of rain we had earlier this year, there have not been any water issues in our basement since installing the mini waterproofing system. If, in the future, we need to install a more complete system in the basement, we will not hesitate to contract with ARW.

For over 20 years we have had issues with our sump pumps running constantly and had to worry about flooding our basement every time it rained. We have spent thousands of dollars, and have worked with some of the largest plumping companies in Indiana and no one fixed the problem. ARW was the only company that completely understood what needed to be done and took the time to make sure it was done correctly. Since they have fixed the pipes and pumps, our pump pits do not run non-stop and the water that is coming in is very minimal. Mike Bird, Owner, is very Advanced Restoration & Waterproofing is very conscientious. He takes great pride in his work. All of the people that work for Mike also are very knowledgeable.

We were purchasing an older home that had a significant amount of crawlspace damage caused by powder post beetles (as well as other things that needed attention) and to see what we were getting in to, I wanted to call a few different companies to come out and give an estimate on the areas of concern (found on the inspection report). Being in the service industry myself where we thrive on our customer referrals and online reviews, Angie's List was the first place I turned. ARW was one of many companies I pulled up but one of a few that actually had an A rating. They also had a number great reviews to reflect the quality of service I was looking for. I called them to give us a quote while the home was still under contract and not completely in our possession, which proved to be quite difficult with some companies because I was not the actual homeowner yet, but I was going to be the one doing the hiring after we closed. Marty had no problem with this and he understood this was work to be completed after closing so of course I only wanted quotes from companies I would actually consider doing the work. Makes sense right? Marty, by the way, was our Sales Engineer and he came out at his convenience since the home was for the most party vacant and worked up the material and cost to do the job. He had it emailed to us immediately so we could negotiate this, along with some other contractor's quotes (like the exterminator), to our seller. About a month or so later, we closed on our home and I immediately called Marty and his boss, Mike, to get put on their schedule. They were pretty busy not only from work coming in but the heavy rains caused a delay with some of their jobs but they were reworking each and every day with their crews to maximize their work load efficiency. The nice thing with crawlspace repair, is it wasn't affecting us moving in but it is something that needed to be done because of how much damage there was, so I was happy to be worked in whenever they could so they could take care of jobs that needed immediate attention. I would want the same response if our situation was more severe. I understand things happen so I really appreciated their communication and the overall customer service I received. Not to mention when their crew came out, they started in the late afternoon and did not stop until they had the job done which was well into the evening. Despite the long hours I'm sure they had endured for the last several weeks, they were very polite and courteous. It's hard to find people with a great work ethic paired with an even better attitude. I don't remember their names but they definitely deserve a kudos! All of this is the exact reason why I am awarding them the Angie's List Page of Happiness. Stellar service and workmanship. Thanks again!!

We had some false starts in scheduling, but once the job was scheduled, the crew was prompt, hardworking and got the job done quickly. It was messier than I expected, but they did a good job of covering things up. I think I was a bit unrealistic in terms of what we'd have to do to return the room to use. We have a bit of drywall repair to do along the bottom of the wall. Waiting for a good rainstorm to see how well this worked.

We had two quotes for this job, and ARW's was the most reasonable. We have worked with Mike Bird and his company before and were very pleased with the work. We planned to expand our home with two different additions, and we needed to correct the negative grade sloping into the west side of our house. The area in which the ARW crew had to work was very constricted, and the cement for the footers on the west addition had to be transported manually from the cement truck due to space and access problems. This was very demanding, laborious work that also required a great deal of skill in order to match up existing foundations with new ones. The mason was very professional and took great pride in his work. All work was performed as agreed in a timely and professional manner. All trash was removed from the job site upon completion of the work. The retaining wall looks great, and we were very pleased with the slab and the foundation. I would highly recommend ARW for any type of foundation work or water problems.

On time. Crew were hard working. Foreman was responsive and cooperative and had great ideas when challenges came up. Crew was responsive and cooperative. Problems/Challenges were overcome to my satisfaction. My concerns were welcomed and satisfied. I am a micromanager and as much as I could I watched and commented on everything they did. My comments and concerns were welcomed and addressed at every turn. I appreciated this more than they could know. I had numerous companies that claim to be foundation repair experts look at my basement wall problem over the years (the old poured cement wall was crumbling away), at least 5 different companies in the Indianapolis area, and ARW was the only company that came in and said, "Yes that wall needs to be replaced (none of the others were willing to take it out and replace it). Unlike the others the said "We can do it" In addition they said "We can solve all your other problems including coming up with a comprehensive plan to solve your properties drainage problems. In my mind "Outstanding" Now that the project is done... This company is the gold standard in foundation repair, crawlspace encapsulation and property water drainage management, It may not the cheapest, but you get what you pay for. The owner of the company took my calls/concerns anytime I called him which was almost nightly. The foreman took my calls anytime I called him. The quality level of my overall solution exceeded my expectations. The price was market value for this level of quality. I am extremely impressed with this company, the Owner Mike Bird, my Foreman Matt Beninghaus and his crew.

I can't say enough about Mike and Terry and Marty and the entire ARW crew. They not only did their work with excellence and professionalism and care, they offered it with a spirit of kindness and joy that was quite extraordinary. What's more, my children were home for the summer and the crew interacted with them gently and patiently, even when their "help" wasn't necessarily helpful. I heartily recommend ARW for whatever water issues in your home you may be seeking to address.

Bottom Line: We would definitely recommend this company. We noticed that there were stair-step cracks in a few places in the mortar of our brick home and a one large crack in the ceiling dry wall. We believed we had a problem with our foundation and wished to have it stabilize before we made any repairs. In July 2015, after checking Angie?s List Magazine, we contacted Advanced Restoration and Waterproofing, LLC (ARW). They sent Mr. Martin Mainzer within three days. We accompanied him as he inspected the house inside and out. Later, he entered the crawl space and took pictures with his cell phone to better show us the aspects of concern. Basically, he confirmed and documented what we already suspected. He explained the ?Stabil-Loc? foundation piering system ARW uses to stabilize sinking foundations and gave us a written, itemized estimate. He explained there might be extra charges after the installers assessed the wood. He recommended we have two additional electrical outlets installed in the crawl space (only one was currently present) for the sump pumps and recommended we install a dehumidifier in the crawl space once they completed their work. He also recommended a company to eliminate the mold problem that had developed in the previous wet conditions. Mr. Mainzer answered all our questions, and did not push us to any decisions. He told us they may not be able to get to our project until October. We gave him a few dates we needed to avoid and one-quarter of the total cost as a deposit. A few weeks later we received a phone call from ARW saying they could schedule us in September if that was ok with us. We requested a ballpark estimated of time to completion (time from start to finish) and were told two to four weeks depending on conditions. Mr. Cory Cooke, the installer and crew chief, kept us appraised of the work as it progressed, answered all our questions, and asked our preference regarding placement of restoration materials and the refuse container. Communication was very good and our wishes were honored. Mr. Cooke and his crew were polite, friendly, and hard working. As the work progressed, the need for additional sill plate replacement became apparent. Mr. Cooke showed us the rotten sill plate material. The work was completed in three weeks. The ARW crew didn?t leave any mess and the lawn around the newly installed downspout extensions looks good. From start to finish we are very satisfied with the work done by ARW. We are sure the value of our home has been improved.

Tough to get ahold of them to get someone out here. They came out. Surveyed the property and recommended an multi thousand dollar fix. Seems wierd to have paid $50 for a quote.

We were told this project would have to wait until the end of September due to ARW's busy schedule, so we were pleasantly surprised that they got it taken care of on 09/12/15. The crew was very polite and professional. They carefully put up the plastic sheeting that I provided in order to keep dust from spreading through the house. I was impressed with how little dust there was despite them having to work with a jackhammer in my basement for a few hours. The project took about as long as they anticipated and the final product looks clean and solid.

I don't see any value for the work they've done. I'm not really happy with them. They didn't charge anything extra. I paid for two "Big Deals" and both ended up with the same experience. They really are no good. They come and they go. They were supposed to go out but it was raining. I was expecting completely a different one. He gave me recommendations. The work for the recommendations was way too high comparing to what I'm getting in the market.