DCI Landscaping

Dave and his crew did a wonderful job. They conversed prior to starting the job to explore all options before deciding on installing two retaining walls with a pass through drain. The walls were reinforced with commercial gravel and then finished with a layer of landscape cloth covered by river rock to slow the water flow and add yard appeal. The crew cleaned the work area and also installed fresh mulch over the disturbed earth which turned a messy yard at construction site into a attractive area of the yard. I will certainly use Dave's company (DCI Landscaping. Inc.) for my future landscaping needs and highly recommend others to do the same!

The contractor showed promptly for the estimate and the work was performed when promised and quickly. When we called about a gap in the sidewalk left due to moving the wall, they came the next day and fixed the problem. The neighbors were amazed at how quickly the work was performed and how efficiently they cleaned up afterwards.

This is the second time that I have used DCI Landscaping. David and his crew are professional, thorough, and efficient. I plan to keep using his company in the future. Since DCI Landscaping worked on my house, I have no more water issues. Previously, I had a major grading flaw in my driveway. The water was running toward my house. There were some foundation holes, basement door holes, and the downspouts were draining too close to the house. Now, I have a dry house, and it looks beautiful, too! I have before and after pictures that I will figure out how to post. Thank you, David!

The work was completed with little oversight and the final product met our expectations.

After contacting DCI by phone, Dave Irwin, the owner, came out the next day to look at the scope of the job with us. He offered some helpful suggestions, but ultimately left the design up to us. He was polite and easy to work with. He told us that he would need about 3 weeks lead time to order material and schedule the work, but we pushed it out further to allow the work to start after our vacation. When we returned, he scheduled the work for approximately one week later. Dave stopped by on the evening before (on our schedule) to walk through the project one more time to make certain of all of the details. We made one slight change to the fencing, which involved ordering more posts, and Dave got on it right away, but let us know that it might take a couple of extra days to get the fence posts in. His crew (six men) showed up as scheduled, and began working on the patio, planting beds, and sump pump hose right away. They were quiet, polite, and hard working. On the next day, they started early and finished everything except the fence, for which we still needed the extra posts. The following Monday, they came back to finish the fence and had it done in the morning. Everything looks great, even better than we had expected. We had neighbors stopping by to let us know how good it looks. We are very pleased with the way it went, from start to finish. We are already thinking of using them again for a couple of other ideas that we have for landscaping projects in other areas of the yard. We highly recommend DCI.

The patio is fine but the work on the front walk was very poorly done. Several problems: 1) large gaps between stones were filled with mortar rather than smaller stones. These areas are deteriorating. 2) The stones were just set on dirt rather than stone dust and a bed of mortar. Many stones have come loose. Last year we complained about this and rather than fixing the problem in a more permanent manner, he just used some adhesive caulk. These stones have again come loose. This presents a serious hazard. 3) This spring I sent an e-mail and left a phone message asking the owner to contact me about repairing this poor work. I am still waiting for a reply. I would strongly advise against using this company.

Dave was great from the get-go. He is busy and is in demand, but worth the wait. His crews came in and worked unbelievably hard and long hours. They worked non-stop and we couldn't believe the amount of work they were able to get done each day. I highly recommend DCI. Dave was aware of our tight budget and worked with us to come up with affordable solutions.

Dave and his crew did a great job. Basically converted what had been a muddy mess, and turned it into a landscaped yard. No more lakes of mud every time it rains- the swale has worked wonders. Now there is grass and shrubs where there had been nothing but mud and debris. They were on time, quick, and efficient. They did what could have easily been 2-3 days work in one long day. Dave was present the entire time working and supervising his crew.

DCI Landscaping did a superior job. Dave, the owner, met with us, went over samples, listened to what we wanted, provided a fair and timely quote. HIs workers showed up on time, did the work quickly and efficiently. From a desgin standpoint, Dave's ideas were great. He kept them in character with the neighborhood, classic and not cheesy or overdone.

IT DIDN'T GO! THEY NEVER SHOWED!

I called DCI last fall to get an estimate for some much needed landscaping along my new fence. After coming out to do a quote I realized I could not afford to do the work at that time. When my tax refund came in I was able to call them and have the work done. It was only a 2 week wait from when I called. Everything looks beautiful.

David and crew arrived on time to do some spring clean up of cleaning garden beds and mulching. We also have had some drainage needs to re route gutter drains into the yard. David and crew are outstanding. We have used them for several years and David understands and cares about how the yard should look. The crew works quickly and with attention to detail. You would never know he had to dig in the yard to install new drains. The sod was taken up and put back with care and even where a piece of sidewalk was removed was fixed as though it had never been disturbed. We are very pleased.

Overall, I am extremely pleased with the project. I couldn't have asked for anything more. It turned out fantastic. Now I'm waiting for the plants to green.

Dave responded quickly to my initial request for an estimate and came out within a couple of days. I don't get cell service at work and he was easy to communicate with through email. When he came by for the estimate he talked through the work I wanted to get done and gave me many ideas about possibilities from fencing to the driveway to covering my AC unit. I changed the scope of work on him a few times and he was extremely willing to work with me and understanding. There was a minor hiccup with scheduling due to weather delay but work ended up starting on time and finished within the expected time frame. My neighbor also decided she would get work done on her house and he was able to work with both of us to fit her job as well as mine into his busy schedule. He completed her patio (which also looks great!) and my parking pad but kept the jobs separate. His pricing was extremely competitive with other estimates I had done but he made me feel comfortable throughout the entire process and I am glad I went with him. He was extremely professional and his entire team was respectful. Both of the jobs turned out great and I will absolutely use him in the future for any jobs I may need!

David talked with me a lot to figure out what I did and didn't want and what options I had for the type of parking pad I wanted. They were able to start and finish the project in 2 days and it looks GREAT! I get lots of compliments from neighbors and random people.

Dave did a great job, he was very professional and even came back out to move a bush to a new location. I plan on using him again soon to install some trees.

Dave and crew did a great job on several items in our new yard. Including paver patio, sidewalk and landing areas, EZ french Drain work with sump pump burial, several large flower beds, and rock to fill under a large above ground deck. The job took about a week and the crew was prompt and courteous. Dave was on site everyday working with the crew and there to add or change plans if needed. We spent a few weeks deciding on the specifics of the job and Dave took all the time we needed walking the plan with us twice! We highly recommend Dave and DCI and will be using them in the early Spring for a few new jobs in the yard.

Dave was great to work with! We had some water damage to our interior walls. Our house is a contemporary design with the main living quarters about three foot below grade. We had several different companies come out to give estimates which was quite frustrating. We had several waterproofing companies give us estimates -- they either wanted to dig up all of our existing landscaping and install a French drain around the entire exterior of the home -- including demolishing an existing patio OR, and this was hard to take, jackhammer the entire perimeter inside of our home which would require removing our staircases, removing our kitchen cabinets, removing our shower, and damaging our slate floor. Of course, the "removal" and installation of these structures and items would be OUR responsibility. These estimates ran from $8,000 - 30,000. Even if we went with installing a French drain on the exterior of the home, we would still have to open up our interior walls in order to dry them out and then replace the walls. We decided since the house was going to be a construction site we may as well remodel our existing bathroom. We had several construction/remodeling companies come out and they all agreed that jackhammering inside the house was NOT necessary and that if we installed a French drain in front of the house it would resolve the water issue. Several of these companies recommended contacting a landscaping outfit -- great idea that was! After extensively researching landscaping companies on Angie's List, I found DCI Landscaping. Dave came out surveyed the perimeter of the house and told us exactly what the construction companies said -- a French drain along the exterior wall in front of the house would solve our water issue -- at a fraction of the cost that we were expecting. Dave's crew hand dug down 18" in front of the foundation and installed an impermeable barrier along the foundation. Dave assured us that if he saw any cracks or evidence of damage to the foundation the crew would dig deeper and that the defect would be fixed. Thankfully, nothing was wrong with the foundation! The crew then installed the French drain and covered the area with a winding trail of beautiful river rock. In addition, they relocated some existing stones to our back patio (also made of natural stone). Dave even installed a drain over an existing exposed drainage pipe running through our back patio and covered some bare areas near the pipe with the same river rock. The job took two days and the crews were meticulous in making sure our yard was not destroyed in the process. The river rock in front of the house is beautiful and the back patio now was a finished look that it didn't before. After several hard rains -- no water! We could have ended up spending a fortune and had the interior of our house destroyed for nothing because the problem was on the outside, not the inside. We have some other outside projects in mind and we will be calling DCI back when we are ready to move forward.

Quick response to my inquiry; David had excellent ideas and made suggestions to improve the project. The price seemed a bit high but I decided to go with them since the company has such good reviews. Crew arrived on time and the beds were just as proposed. The leveling of the surrounding area will make maintenance much easier. The only issue turned out to be whether the ground inside the boxes had been tilled before the boxes were built (especially on the low ends where beds are raised only a few inches). When re-planting some items it seemed that at least the low end of the new beds had not been tilled, making it difficult to work the soil. A long string of confusing emails followed, with the crew returning at no charge. However, they apparently tilled the mulched (non-bed) areas instead of inside the boxes. I highly recommend this company, but suggest communication by phone or in person rather than by email (seems that email messages may not be carefully read).

My husband and I bought a townhouse and we knew that we wanted a patio in the backyard, though we didn't know when. After getting a quote from Dave (and another one from another contractor), we decided to have Dave and his crew build it a few months later. This was because he was professional and helpful, he obviously loves his job, and his price was very fair. The patio came out beautifully and they were able to save us some money by putting some of the dirt that they dug up on our sloped yard. The job took a little bit longer than expected (3 days instead of 2 days), but it came together beautifully.

Experience was great, just as others have written. Dave was very accommodating to my requests & even did little things that weren't in the official proposal. My house's curb appeal went from non existent to one to admire in the entire neighborhood. The lights really do wonders to the look of the house. Can't wait till spring time to watch my plants blossom. Definitely would hire again for additional work.

David gave us an excellent price for a job this size. He was easy to work with when deciding exactly how we wanted things done. Got several estimates for this job, and he was by far the most enthusiastic about the work - threw out lots of ideas and seemed to genuinely want to please his customers. He was also flexible to slight changes in plans up to when they started the job and even some after it was started. He was out with his full crew for about 4 days in extreme heat during the summer. All the work was done as we discussed. Their workmanship was good and they cleaned up completely when they were done. Access to our back yard was inconvenient due to the position of a large shed. It required them to jack hammer and then wheel barrow out large amounts of concrete. Everything looked good after the job - my wife and I are very satisfied. A few of the arborvitae trees don't seem to be in great shape, but we'll see how they look in Spring and contact David if we're unhappy with it. There might be some other things we want done at that point anyways. Had some initial issues getting the estimate done, but once that was worked out, working with David was great. I think he's just really busy. Be patient if you want an estimate done - does good work and the price was excellent.

The owner Dave replied to my email request promptly and arrived at the specified time. He was very professional and helpful. I was uncertain what and how I wanted the front yard landscaping to look but he was able to generate a plan that was exactly what I wanted. Dave met me very early in the AM before I had to work to walk through the plans with both my husband and myself. His team arrived on time, finished that day and cleaned up everything. I did not shop his quote but sometimes you meet someone you know has integrity and I felt that with Dave. We have received many compliments on his work and can't wait for the spring when everything is in bloom.

I contacted them about getting and estimate for have a hedge removed and some other possible work on the yard, including fencing. I received a prompt reply to my email asking where the house is, then another asking when I was available. I sent a day and time but never heard a reply.

I waited to do this review because a major reason for the work was the hope that we could end the basement flooding that was occurring on the left side of the house without having to install a French drain. Dave Irwin worked with my husband to come up with a plan that would remove the raised flower bed which he thought might be the cause of the problem along with a need to move water away from the side door and out to the front of the house. After a year of rain storms including the big storm this past summer and then Sandy, I was delighted to have a dry basement for the entire time. In addition the original plan was to replace the back patio and install a new fence and gate leading to the alley behind our house. However, the weekend before he was to start the work we lost a huge old oak tree when Irene hit. The tree not only took down the power lines for our entire block but also ripped up most of our backyard. My husband and I realized that the loss of the tree gave us the opportunity to put a small parking pad in the back area. Dave Irwin was very patient in working with us on a new design and gave us a new estimate while we waited for the tree to be removed. The requested changes meant a delay in getting the work done, but we were delighted with the result. The alley behind our house is heavily used by people in the neighborhood for walking their dogs or just taking walks and we have received so many compliments on how great our back yard and patio now look. My husband was very pleased with the daily work done by the crew. Once they got started everything went very quickly. I would definitely recommend DCI Landscaping and would use them again.