DCI Landscaping

Dave Irwin is a consummate professional. He was very responsive to our concerns, which were quickly resolved, and the project was completed on schedule. We have received many compliments on the patios and walls. We highly recommend DCI Landscaping and will, without hesitation, offer our future projects to DCI Landscaping.

Called Dave for an estimate to do the work and he came out within 2 days. Looked at what I wanted to do and emailed me an estimate a few days later. His estimate was very competitive with other estimates that I had gotten. After confirming I wanted him to do the work, and waiting for the weather to clear up, Dave came out with his crew and did the work, surprisingly in one day. Dave stayed, worked with, and supervised his crew throughout the entire job. The work he did turned out a bit better than I had expected. Dave covered the areas where they dug up the yard very well and planted grass which is now growing. We had 2 very heavy rain storms and hurricane Sandy soon after installation and the drains work flawlessly. It absolutely saved my driveway and garage and from getting flooded as they had in the past. My neighbor, who watched them do all the work, had nothing but praise for Dave and his crew as to how well they worked, how well they respected her property (our houses are close together) and she has stated more than once that she will be calling them to do work for her as well.

On the scheduled day of the job, Dave had a large crew out at my house working like a well oiled machine. They accomplished nearly all of the tasks on that first day. Toward the end of the day, I was able to walk around and point out specific things that needed to be taken care of and they handled them immediately. Dave came by at the end of the day and noted some additional tasks that needed to be done. He came back out a few days later with a smaller crew and took care of the final items. Things that I really appreciated: -Dave took the time to explain how to water the new sod. He even came out a few times to set the water timer and move the sprinklers when I was unable to do so. -There was a question about how a hole may have been punched in the sewer clean-out cap by the tiller. Dave replaced it without question. Overall he was very easy to work with. He got the job done well and quickly. I would definitely hire him again in the future.

Here is what was done: Excavate left side of house and seal foundation with plastic barrier to 14" depth. Install EZ Flow French Drain and bury 2 downspouts releasing all drains to front hill area.(install separation fabric and #57 stone on left side of house. Will be sure to remove fence and seal hole associated with fence post. Remove concrete from driveway to house. Bury right rear downspout and surface drain as necessary releasing to rear ally area. Replace removed concrete with reinforced concrete. Remove loose debris from sidewalk and house foundation seam on right side of house. Seal seam with Red Devil Outdoor waterproof sealant. This was no small job! David made sure to answer all of my questions. He completed the job in a timely manner - even though we had a record rainfall this past season. He also checked in with me to make sure everything was done to my satisfaction.

It was a great experance and love how it turned out.

David Irwin is very responsive and professional, and so are his employees. Work was done promptly and it was done to all contract specifications. The quality of the work was very high and we no longer have a lake in our backyard every time it rains. Our yard also looks twice as large now that all the overgrown/dead/dying trees and shrubs have been removed. Due to the equipment and licensing required, a lot of this was work we couldn't have done ourselves. Many of the trees removed were quite tall with very thick/heavy trunks and 5 bordered the road. We felt the price for this job was very fair. I would hire David againand have recommended him to friends and coworkers.

They gave me a free estimate. It took them a week for them to get back to me after I called them. By the time they called me back, we had already chosen another company. They had the best bid by $200.

Dave was very prompt in returning my email for an estimate and came out at 7am on a Saturday morning to give us the estimate. Once we let him know that we wanted to go ahead with the work, he got us on the schedule quickly. He and his men were late getting to our house due to being caught up at another house but they did stay until late in the evening to complete the work. Dave and his men were very professional and hard working. I would definitely use this company again.

Not much to say except that David did exactly what he said, at exactly the price he estimated within the time frame he indicated. I would definitely use DCI again and have recommended them to a number of friends.

Dave was easy to work with - responsive, informative, accommodating. His price was so reasonable that after receiving his estimate, we added on a bit more landscaping, which we hadn't thought we would be able to afford. Much of the work was done while we were away, and we returned to find a big problem - the dimensions of the walkway around the front door were not what we had requested. We contacted Dave right away and he was very quick to identify and correct the problem. He handled this issue extremely well,very professional in his approach to us, promised a fix and promptly delivered. He also had/has to coordinate with our contractor about finishing the area around our front door (waiting to have a new one installed) and he has offered his assistance for finishing touches if needed. We were very pleased with the outcome, and would contact him again for further service.

David was very professional but easy to interact with. He was onsite for parts of both days of work and did alot of work right along side of his crew. Results on the cosmetic work is wonderful, many neighbors have dropped by to compliment. The drains look great and the backyard was put together nicely...the acid-test will be a good, hard rain to see how functional the work is. I'm very pleased so far.

Had consult with David on yard landscaping. He was very polite, listened to my ideas and made suggestions as warrented. Provided a written estimate via e-mail several days after the consult. Upon agreement a date was scheduled for the work to commence. Due to weather, the original start date had to be posponed. David contacted me as soon as possible concerning the rescheduleing. Work commenced on 4/25/12. David and the crew arrived on time. David reviewed the work to be done and introduced me to the work crew. He encouraged me to ask questions concerning the work whenever necessary. The work crew was polite and professional and very hard working. When David was not available the workcrew foreman, Luis, was there to answer all my questions. The job was originally scheduled for two days but the crew really kicked butt and had everything done in just one day (10 hours). All agreed upon work was done properly. David walked my wife and myself around the yard for a final inspection. Everything looked great. David provided suggestions and written guildlines as to care of the lawn and the new plants/bushes. Overall a very satisfying experience. I will definitly use DCI landscaping for any work of this type in the future.

They did an outstanding job. They are very attentive to details of what you want done with the job. The owner actually works on the site with the guys which I think is a big plus. They are all very professional. The quality of the job is very good.

Terrific deal! A great job for a very reasonable price. Prompt, efficient, good work. Will definitely use again.

Dave was professional from the start. He provided a timely and thorough estimate. He was extremely responsive to our many questions. The price estimate was much better than all other quotes we received (4). Dave and his team performed the work more than a week ahead of schedule (after confirming it was okay with us). Before starting the job, we walked through the plan step by step to make sure we were on the same page. Dave was present during all vital work and paid close attention to every detail. The result is amazing! It is clear he takes pride in his work. We are very pleased and highly recommend Dave and his team.

David of DCI Landscaping was extremely professional and courteous from beginning to end of the project. He was prompt in responding to my request for an estimate - had to re-schedule the first visit out due to his being stuck at another job waiting for an inspector, but he called to let me know right away and re-scheduled for a couple days later. I had an idea in my mind of what I wanted done with our back yard. When David came out, he spent a good 45 minutes helping me figure out exactly what I wanted done and helped me refine my ideas. He came prepared with catalogues of different kinds of patio pavers and fire pits. David got back to me by email within several days with a quote, and after getting some other quotes, we decided David's price was right and to hire him. They started about two weeks later, and amazingly, the project was done in a week. David's crew was extremely hard-working, even showing up on a day it was raining and working in the rain. They were courteous and took care with my dogs in the yard. They arrived bright and early every morning and cleaned up every night and went above and beyond in the little details. There were holes in the siding where the old deck was attached to the house, and they did their best to repair those. David was on-site almost every day with his crew. I couldn't be more pleased with the end result of this project, and we are hiring David again to do some planting this spring. ****Update: We recommended David to some of our neighbors, and there have been some issues with his finishing up some work for them. They have contacted him over and over again, David has promised to return and has not shown up on several occasions. I feel bad now for recommending him. I do believe the work he did was good, but he cut an electrical wire that provided electricity to their shed, and has not come out to repair or replace the wire. Also, I did contact David about coming and doing some planting for me, but he never got back to me. I wouldn't recommend him to any other friends based on this experience. It's embarrassing.

Working with DCI Landscaping was a fantastic experience. The house we recently bought still had the original landscaping from the early 90's and it showed. All of the plants had reached maturity and were beginning to crowd us out or slowly die off. With a one year old boy and a large dog, we also needed a backyard that we could use throughout the year. We interviewed three highly recommended landscapers in the area and DCI Landscaping stood out head an shoulders above the rest with regard to punctuality, professionalism, and expert advice. DCI Landscaping was the most responsive company I have had the pleasure to work with. All phone calls and email were returned same day and all of our questions were answered instantaneously. We are fairly demanding customers and required a number of very specific items be addressed during this project; DCI Landscaping had no problem taking it all in stride. From the start we stated that we needed a beautiful and low-maintenance landscape that would protect our house from water runoff. DCI "got it" right from the start and helped guide us through drainage options and plant selections. Other landscapers were non-committal about what they might do, but we had a signed design plan within a week. On the start day for the project DCI Landscaping arrived ready to get to work. The entire crew was friendly and professional. Since we have a toddler and work from home we asked for specific quiet hours throughout the day. They were wonderful about respecting that and planned their work accordingly. The plan originally called for a four day project, but we had a complete new yard by the end of Day Two! The good weather helped, but it was mostly due to the extra efforts of the entire crew. The price was an exceptional value as well! I would absolutely recommend DCI Landscaping to anyone who is looking for an exceptional landscaping experience.

Once they started it was amazing. David was courteous, present in person whenever needed and his crew was polite, pleasant and respectful. They were courteous to our neighbor (our work required relocating the fence on his side). David even made sure that shrubs our neighbor had were carefully removed and replanted after he was done. Our neighbor was so impressed he took David's contact information from me. As the work progressed, I asked him to do additional things including replacing a rickety wooden fence with a safer, city-specified required black aluminum fence that made our backyard much nicer. When I asked him to go back and move it and push down so that our toddler couldn't crawl under it, he did it without a problem. I then asked him to add expansion joints between our concrete slabs and to remove broken wooden panels and nails and to dispose of the old fence, he did it all in record time. After all that (retaining wall, hardscaping, fence and some other little things here and there), his total bill was ~$20,000!!!! Which was a fraction of what the other company wanted. To top it all, his crew cleaned out the leaves from our backyard (no small feat since we have a lot of trees in the back and it was early December). I will definitely ask him to do the rest if the wall when it needs to be done and will recommend him to anyone else.

David promptly returned my e-mail and met with me to finalize plans and develop an estimate. His estimates were competitive and his Angie's List ratings were excellent so we contracted with him to perform the work. The first retaining wall completion project was accomplished in one day, on date promised, and as estimated. The work was excellent and the crew cleaned-up the worksite prior to leaving. In addition to completing the retaining wall, mulch was added to the enclosed planting bed. Next we reviewed and finalized the front walkway. Again, David met me when planned and kept me informed throughout the project. This phase was completed in two days and again, the crew cleaned-up and replaced grass prior to leaving. The final phase was 2 low retaining walls to terrace a hillside beside a garage and add steps. David kept me informed of his work schedule and everything was accomplished as planned. He made a cost-saving suggestion regarding the types of steps, which we implemented. This savings allowed me to have him put in a single course, relatively short 'deflector' wall to control drive runoff at no additional cost. David replaced clay with topsoil for the planting beds behind the retaining walls and mulched the beds. He also added topsoil over the areas in front of the retaining wall and over the downspout drain laterals' trenches; a pop-up and stones were used to avoid erosion at the outflow. The work was excellent and his crew works well together. They minimize and repair 'collateral damage' to surrounding sod and moved existing stepping stones to a different location when they installed the walk. All work was accomplished as scheduled, weather considered, and within estimated costs. We're very pleased with the results. David was a pleasure to deal with.

They did the work when they said they would. It was incredible. They had so many different workers all geared towards completing the task at the same time. A supervisor came by everyday to check on the progress.

David was a pleasure to work with as was his crew. He is easy to communicate with and worked to understand our needs and create a design. We love the design. The plants seem hardy. He prepared us well for what to expect and gave us simple instructions about the importance of watering the plants in first two weeks. About 10 plants (some periwinkle and some of the short striped grass) weren?t actually planted, they were just sitting on the mulch. We didn?t notice until they started to die. Those didn?t do well and are still catching up A few drawbacks: The tilling was incomplete. We should have checked. Wedidn't realize how important this step is to a successful de-grassing. Some of the old surface was not well turned under, but only covered with mulch and so the weeds and old grasses popped up the next day and were hard to pull out. The edges of the yard were hardly tilled at all. Old logs and metal pipes remained, just covered with mulch. The drainage system works pretty well. The corner which was the biggest problem is much better, though still damp. The drain ? collects water, as it should, but the water which stands in the drain and creates a breeding ground for mosquitos. We communicated this with David who came back out and deweeded the backyard for us for free and also worked to improve the drainage system. It is better but the ground is still marshy after a rain and the parts still collect water that sits there.

When he came to give an estimate, David helped us with the design layout and the selection of pavers. He then waited patiently while we got necessary approvals from the Columbia Association neighborhood covenant committee and the Howard County Dept of Roads. The paved areas in the rear of the house had not been on the original plan. He gave me a verbal quote for that addition on the first day of work, and it turned out even better than we had imagined. All of the work was done quickly, neatly, and with minimal disruption to our lives. It looks beautiful. Little things, like adding a subtle grade to the walkways, has made us particularly glad we chose DCI. Just by raising the front walkway as it meets the stoop, he turned two awkwardly large step-ups into a manageable pair of 6-inch rises that are lots easier on my elderly guests. The same is true in the rear, where the new walkway meets the garage. We no longer have a deep drop down to the ground when taking the trash or recycling out to the cans. Throughout the inspect-design-price-wait for approvals-deconstruct-construct-cleanup process, David was attentive, responsive, and really friendly. His crew was good folks. I was confident I was getting what I wanted at a really good price, and I have not been disappointed.

I called to see if DCI would be interested in coming to take a look at a sink hole in our yard and give a quote on fixing it. I described the problem briefly and the gentleman asked right away where we were located. When I told him he indicated that we're a little on the edge of his service area and as they are very busy right now he declined to provide a quote on the work since he couldn't be sure he could give us service at the level that is their standard. He proceeded to provide me with some thoughts on what we might want to consider in terms of a remedy to the sink hole. I thought he was very professional.

Adam August scheduled a time to come out and here about our project. He showed up on time and listened to our ideas. He made some very good suggestions and we agreed on what work he would bid. He got back to us very quickly with a competitive bid. He scheduled a date and time to do the work, came on time and completed the work in one day. It turned out exactly the way we wanted it to. We were very happy with his work.

It went well. Dave was very pleasant and professional. We needed to postpone the first date due to wet weather. In fact, we had down pours again after the work was done. I let Dave know and he sent his staff out again to fill in what the rain had washed away. They reseeded as well.