Grove Brothers Masonry

My experience with this company did not go well, because they did not return my one and only phone call asking for information and an estimate to repair a cracked concrete porch.

As the work was coming to a completion, which included the mason hand selecting the size and shape of stone on certain walls that would be admired from our patio, for optimum aesthetic value, I decided that trying to strip the multiple layers of paint that the former homeowners' had applied to the brick piers would not produce results befitting such a beautiful stone foundation. So I "added" this to Grove Brothers' work order and Kevin charged me only "their cost" for the brick veneer/ materials and did not mark up the labor in any way wanting to "only reclaim the laborers' time" it would take to do this part of the job. What a phenomenal job they did. And when literally the hottest day of the summer had passed, my home looked more beautiful than I had imagined. Kevin even had his mason's helpers raking and vacuuming my lawn with a Shop Vac to collect mortar and stone debris. I wish this site had an option to show off the work these guys did. Gorgeous! Also of note is the fact that there were three men here working and all of them were courteous and professional. They avoided my plants that line the house as much as possible and wrapped the hose up at the conclusion of each work day, left no cigarette butts in my yard (one of my BIGGEST pet peeves), and their trucks didn't leak fluids on my driveway. Kevin was available via phone, and text and email. He was attentive and highly responsive. A class act! If I had another job like this I'd do it all over again with these guys.

The whole experience was great. Kevin was out quickly to give us an estimate. The estimate was right where we thought it should be based on our research on prices in our area. Within a week we had fully discussed the details of the project and had a signed contract with deposit. It was another few weeks before work started, but during that time we were kept updated of activities related to Miss Utility marking the property and anticipated start date. The job was technically challenging for a few reasons. The largest was the huge well that was in our backyard. The house was built around 1870 and the well was there we believe for drinking water. The well was 25 ft deep, 4 ft in dia and lined with brick. Then the yard and fence were not entirely level or square, which also presents challenges in getting things installed correctly. Prior to starting work, Kevin took a ton of photos of the site and put together a very detailed and complete package for his crew so that there would be no surprises or issues. We could tell that communication with both his crew and us as customers was something he worked hard at and did well. Kevin was great to work with, he visited the site daily and provided at a minimum daily updates on the status of the job. I was really impressed with how he effectively managed his crew to get this work done in about 8 working days. The rain this spring has been unbelievable so working around the weather and dealing with wet ground conditions was certainly a challenge. Kevin also checked in constantly to make sure at each step we were happy with what was being done. This is great, because nothing is worse than getting to the end of a job and having to have something completely redone. I really appreciated that he actively solicited feedback on all aspects of the job as he went. He provided a lot of detail about what was being done and exactly what materials were being used. He was easy to talk to and flexible. The other thing that should be noted is that every day the site was clean and tidy. Any materials or tools that were kept on site were put away. I really appreciated that. Its is a small detail that overall can give a very favorable impression of how a company is run. Finally the finished product exceeds our expectations. It is simply gorgeous. I have uploaded some before and after photos.

Kevin did the estimate and was very accurate in his assessment. He also gave me an evaluation of a wall that needs major work. He created a work plan that was realistic and did not put himself or the wall in danger of collapsing. Other companies gave me very odd assessment of how to fix my wall that included cutting out huge chunks of wall and then filling it in with brick. Even without professional knowledge of brick work, I doubted the plans proposed by two other companies would work without the danger of the wall collapsing. I will consider using Kevin in the future when I get ready to do that work on my wall and other projects.

It went very well. I understood that the job would be scheduled as soon as possible, but because of the beginning of spring , it would not take place for 30 days. Much to my surprise, I received a call that the job could be scheduled much earlier. I was very happy to have the work done earlier. Footers were poured and the work was completed promptly and I am very very satisfied with their efforts. The staff was very friendly, worked very hard and completed the job much to my satisfaction. I appreciate especially the work done by Kevin in his efforts and follow up. If you need any masonry work done , this is the company to work with.

Grove Brothers was highly responsive and very proactive. The work was the highest quality. A pleasure to work with.

Grove Brothers did a great job in very reasonable time frame at reasonable price

From start to finish, process was straightforward, timely, and there were no surprises.

Professionalism and Craftsmanship are the two words that best describe working with Grove Brothers. We were doing a lot of work on our house and had multiple contractors performing different pieces. Kevin and his team stood out because they were always there when they said they would be and did an an absolute high quality job. Integrating the stone fireplace into our screened-in porch posed some challenges, but Kevin and his team went out of their way to meet with us and our contruction contractor (mulitple times) to make sure that we were all on the same page. Kevin also went out of his way to find stone from the same quarry as the stone used from an older stone wall (probably 40-50 yrs old) on our property. Grove Brothers was not the cheapest estimate that we received, but we decided to go with them because we immediately felt they truly understood the job and we had a very high recommendation from a neighbor. Our fireplace and our new screen-in porch look amazing. We couldn't be happier. Over the years, we have renovated 2 older homes and have been through several multi-phased constructions projects-- doing some work ourselves and hiring quite a few contractors. This is the first time I have ever recommended a contractor and felt that the money that we put into this project was well spent.

Mr. Pavuk was a pleasure to work with: appointments were kept, service was performed as promised, and the integrity of our property was honored. Mr. Pavuk brought with him a keen sense of design and worked closely with us to redesign our front steps to be both functional and design specific to our unique home. We appreciated his knowledge of available materials and welcomed his guidance when it came time to choose the stones we would use. Once approved by us the design was implemented by skilled craftsman that were courteous, professional, and extremely neat. They worked with ease and speed to complete the job on time. We were kept informed throughout the project personally at the end of the work day by Mr Pavuk and also by email updates. The end result was better than imagined. If and when the time comes that we would need a mason again we would definitely use Grove Brothers.

I thought the quality was excellent. Our patio was built with steps, a pit and sitting wall and two walkways. All aspects of the job met or exceeded our expectations. The workers worked at our home while we were away on vacation and we did not experience any problems. Its been six months since the project completion and the patio has settled nicely and we are not experiencing any water puddles, etc. We have one outstanding followup for better water flow of the drains that was rerouted as part of the construction. We expect that the repairs will be satisfactorily completed and I will be happy to provide feedback after the work is completed.

They were responsive to our request for an estimate and handled the job extremely professionally and punctually. We were extremely satisfied.

It all went very well. Kevin warned me at the beginning that there might be a footing problem, since it is not uncommon with old houses, so the discovery was not a surprise, though it did increase the cost quite a bit. The whole job, which took several weeks, went very smoothly from my point of view. Kevin came a couple of times while preparing the bid to check details, and he monitored the work closely, including measuring more than once for the new steps. He kept me informed throughout, and was very easy to reach when needed. The crew were prompt and professional, and left the front yard tidy at the end of each day. All debris was removed when the job was completed and fresh mulch put down in the garden where they had been working. Few plants were damaged in the process, and those are likely to regenerate completely in the Spring. Two post-job corrections were made without additional cost: a chipped stone on one of the steps was replaced, and the Gator Dust taken up and replaced because it had not set properly. I am thrilled with the result. The entrance to the house is now handsome and safe, and it should age beautifully. Grove Brothers were terrific to work with. It is clear they know masonry extremely well and their workmanship is superb. It was expensive, but the quality was worth it.

Overall quality of the work was Excellent. Kevin's crew was punctual and polite. Communication was good during the job. However, after the job was paid off, we needed a few touch-ups. Unfortunately, it took repeated calls and delayed response before Kevin and his crew responded to make these small fixes. Again, overall quality was excellent, but somewhat marred by slow response to effect minor touch-ups after the main job was paid for. Kevin was apologetic and gave an explanation for tardy minor post-job touch-ups.

Excellent. Communication was excellent adn they persevered in spite of several delays due to rain. Really very high quality work.

Kevin Pavuk promptly responded to my inquiry. The workers were very professional and Pavuk personally inspected everything and made sure I was satisfied. Great experience. I would definitely recommend them.

The project generally went well, from the first time Kevin came to the house to assess the project to the finishing of the last final details. Grove Brother's assigned project team were professional through the entire project, particularly addressing challenging site access issues and coordinating with the City of Baltimore. The final product and the company's services met or exceeded all my expectations. The project's original estimate was maintained during the course of the project, and only increased when the brick paver patio portion of the project was added. Grove Brother's estimate was competitive and I felt I received value and service comesurate with the project's scope and price. The project's schedule was also maintained and completed within the timeframes promised. The few minors delays experienced on the project were due to weather or other circumstances beyond Grove Brother's control. These delays were communicated to me on a timely basis and I always felt apprised of the project schedule's status.

Excellent. Professional, punctual, friendly, reasonable. I was very confident with Kevin and appreciated the time he spent explaining to me the work that he felt needed to be done. Even thought it was a relatively small job, I felt we got individual care. The masons on the job were efficient and also very friendly. Highly recommended.

Although they have not started work yet, they are professional, flexible and responsive. They are good at following up. They are diligent.

Kevin arrived on time for the estimate, which was at 6 pm on a Tuesday night (which we appreciated). We talked over our project and he drew a picture and took notes. His quote was very competitive, and we liked that his people would be doing the work (not subcontractors), and that they were masons. Work on the patio started about 2 weeks after we confirmed that they would do it. We had some delays for understandable reasons, like extremely hot or rainy weather, which were out of Kevin's control. On the day that the pavers were to be delivered and installed, the supplier told Kevin and that they were on back order. Kevin told us that this was "his problem, not ours", and he offered us a better quality paver at no extra cost, to make up for the delay and prevent further delay. We appreciated that they put a lot of detailed work into sawing the pavers to shape them into a curved pattern around the edge of the patio, and they were very accommodating when we requested minor changes. After the patio was finished, they put top soil, seed, and straw over areas where the grass had been affected. The workers were very friendly (and also very patient with carrying heavy wheelbarrows of dirt down our very steep hill). They did a great job, and we love our new patio!

Kevin met with us for an hour to plan the job and provided a written estimate with several options. On the first day of the project they delivered the materials, tore down and removed the old wooden stairs, dug the foundation, and built the first couple of layers of pavers. The second day they completed the stairs but we did not like the color and texture of the pavers used on the landing so they removed those stones that afternoon and Kevin said that they would bring different stones the next morning. The next morning they completed the project in one hour including all of the cleanup. We are very satisfied with the results and impressed with the professionalism of Kevin and his crew. The new stairs really improve the appearance of our house.

We found Grove Brothers on Angies List, I liked the fact that this company is licensed, insured, and had good ratings on Angies List. So I left a message on their machine. Kevin called back within a couple of hours, and we discussed the job. He came by and gave us an estimate. We were waiting for a couple of other estimates, so it was about 2 weeks later that I called him back to hire his company. He said he would send a contract over for us to sign and we set a date for the work - June 7. I waited 2 weeks, hadn't received the contract, so I called again and left a message. Waited another week, called again. Finally, on June 3, I left a message saying that if this company wasn't interested in the job, I would call someone else. Kevin called back very apologetically and said that he'd been called out of town for a family emergency. He told me that his company could do the work within the next two weeks, but when I told him he had originally said June 7, he agreed to stick with the date. He e-mailed the contract that same day, and added an option to install the run-off pipe to take water away from the house. He said that it was only a recommendation, but that it is the type of thing he'd do at his own house. He also confirmed the June 7 date, depending on weather. We signed the contract, and sent it back. I don't know what time the Grove crew showed up, but when I came home from work, the work was done, the wet concrete roped off with caution tape, the pipe laid and the area which had been dug up reseeded with grass and the entire area had been cleaned up. Everything looked just fine. We're happy with the quality of the work. My only problem with Grove Brothers was the length of time it took for someone to get back to us once we decided to use their services. Although Kevin was very apologetic, and offered an explanation, this lapse somewhat tarnished an otherwise excellent experience.

There were some delays due to weather, but Kevin always called to informed me when there would be a weather delay and when the work would resume. These delays could not be helped and I always appreciated the fact that I would receive a call form Kevin to let me know the status. Still the job was competed in a timely manner. When finished he personally supervised grading and seeding the ground in front of the wall and called me after I saw it to find out if I was satisfied. Very professional - highly recommend.

Kevin and crew were very efficient and professional acknowledging and taking care of our concerns about minimizing any lawn damage surrounding patio. The resulting product looks great and we are very pleased.

The masonry project could not have gone better. Kevin Pavak, our contact at Grove Brothers, was always professional, available, and pleasant. The estimate was very competitive, and the quality of work superb. The masons were also pleasant and professional. The project did go a little bit longer than expected, but through no fault of the company.