SAM'S RETAINING WALLS & HOME REPAIR

Sam did a great job- regraded lawn, installed drainage and dry rock bed, rebuilt retaining wall, planted sod. Very pleased and absolutely no more drainage issues or swampy lawn!

Sam and his crew did a great job. We are very happy with the outcome. In fact we are planning on having them do our front sidewalk in the near future.

This is the fourth project we have had performed by Sam's Retaining Walls. Sam and his crew are always reasonably priced, professional, timely and provide superior quality. Our first project with Sam, consisting of several retaining walls in 2008 still look as if they were just installed yesterday.

The project turned out much better than we ever expected. Sam and his crew were very professional and trustworthy. Best experience we have had with a contractor. Have already gotten compliments about the work done. Would definitely recommend for hardscape projects.

The total job took 3 days. The crew of 4 including Sam were punctual and very professional. We adjusted the price for the job based on the materials I had selected. This is small business that will not over price the job but also do the work right. Due to the weather it was difficult to get the job scheduled, so the only critique I have is that I would of liked to of been kept informed of what their schedule was looking like and potential dates when the job would start.

Highly recommend these guys. We really could not be happier with the way our project turned out. Sam and his crew did a fantastic job on our walk, patio, and retaining wall. The end result is much better than we had imagined. No fuss. Just great work for a fair price. Will hire again for our next project.

Sam was great in fitting us in when we were under a deadline.

Sam and his crew were punctual and hard workers. They installed our patio and sidewalk in February during the coldest days of the year yet managed to do a beautiful job. They were very accommodating when a few little changes were requested and quickly made the changes without making us feel guilty about it. His crew worked well together. We especially enjoy sitting on our beautiful patio in the morning as we drink our coffee and watch the hummingbirds. We highly recommend Sam and definitely would hire them again. Thanks, Sam & crew!

It went great. Work was done earlier than expected and we done very well. I would hire again.

Several years back, Sam had redesigned our exterior drainage system and replaced our back walkway and patio. He and his team did a great job. The drainage system continues to work very well and the pavers look wonderful. Sam has just completed a new project to cover our concrete front walk and stoop with natural stone and pavers. The stoop and walkway look gorgeous. Sam and his team are professional and good to work with. The job gets done efficiently and well.

This is the second time I hired Sam's Retaining Walls. The first time, they repaired a retaining wall that was threatening to collapse. Sam devised a clever fix that resolved the problem in a sound manner that was both attractive and not very expensive. The current job involved a small garden wall that Sam's crew fixed in a few hours using the original materials. Both the workmanship and aesthetics were top-notch. Sam is a very good and ethical man - his crew are great and I would hire them again in a heartbeat.

Sam did a wonderful job building a paver patio off of my basement walk-out. The area was unusable before he and his crew came. I bought a four year old Condo that had a deck upstairs off of the kitchen but basically dropped off into mud from the slider in the basement. Now I have a gorgeous private patio with vinyl privacy fences on each side and a picket fence along the front. Sam is Professional, works within the timeframe promised, does gorgeous work and is always very responsive to calls . I even added on to the project and he was accommodating I highly recommend. Sam and every member of his team.

I just wanted to leave Sam a good review for following-up with us and visiting us on a Sunday morning - Mother's Day to boot - and giving us his time for taking measurements offering a bid. He was very nice and actually gave us the lowest bid we could get. We went in another direction for other reasons but would have hired him otherwise.

Looks great. Great job! We love it!

Sam and his crew came out in September of 2017 to install a wall and a French drain. Sam and his crew was extremely pleasant toward my boyfriend and I. They DEFIITELY knew their stuff. Sam and his crew was great with picking up after themselves making their work area look tidy at the end of each day. They went above and beyond cleaning off our driveway once the job was completely finished. I can say above all that if you envision something sam and his crew truly create a masterpiece. Thank you guys so much for giving us something wonderful.

We hired Sam's retaining walls to build a patio around our pool. We were very hesitant when we started the bidding process because out of several bids that we got no one could give us exactly what we wanted, we heard several good referrals from friends about this company so we contacted Sam to get a bid. Not only did Sam give us a great price, he made our patio look just like we wanted. Sam and his guys were very professional and polite through out the whole process. We are overwhelming pleased with their work and look forward to enjoying it for years to come. We will definitely hire Sam again when we have our new paver sidewalks done.

Wonderful... Sam was on time and very considerate of my children and dog coming and going from the house. My neighbors are so jealous of the beautiful driveway he installed for me. He was done on time and was always pleasant to speak to. Can't wait to have him back to do a backyard patio for me.

Great company all the way around. Addressed any concerns i had. They went above and beyond to make sure it was whay i wanted. I will recommend to everyone.

Beautifully. We signed the contract in the fall of 2017 and were told that the work would be performed in March. Right on time, Sam called and told us they would begin the project on March 6th. They were contracted to build versa-lock steps, 3' in width, topped with tumbled pavers in our very steep front yard where they had simply been lawn. When Sam and his crew arrived, we asked about widening the steps to 4'. He agreed that could be done and adjusted the contract. We also had decided that we wanted the shape of the steps going up the front yard to be slightly serpentine to add interest. He said that would be no problem. His crew showed up each morning at 7 am, worked until 2:30 pm each day until Friday, the 9th. The final result is beautiful. We can't wait to finish our landscaping to really show off these new steps. We have gotten so many compliments already. We run up and down them several times a day just because we can. Thank you, Sam and crew, for doing such a great job!

This is the second job that we have had Sam install for us. He and his crew did an excellent job on both projects. The quality of the work is excellent and he has great ideas and solutions to challenging landscapes. He is willing to take on unusual projects as well. He is on site all the time and makes sure that the job is done to perfection. We had a few months wait for him to start the job but he was up front about the time table. I would highly recommend Sam's Retaining Walls.

Truly no words to know how disappointed we are in this job. We waited 6 months for him to do the job. He lied and said he was an engineer and served in the military, which is a true insult to everyone who has accomplished either of those. He did not use geo grid, the compaction is all wrong, he told the City of Des Peres he was building a 3 foot wall. As you can see, after three months the wall is moving, patio is cracked, fireplace is not done correctly and we are completely furious at this guys inability to perform a job he promised. Please do not use this guy. He will not respond, so we have to get a lawyer and hopefully make sure he can no longer do this to someone else. UPDATE 04/27/2018: My husband and I clearly did not misunderstand that he attended military school, he said he SERVED in the military, this is a mistruth, not a misunderstanding.. He did not address that he is NOT an engineer. When you are building a structural wall having an engineer is a definite benefit in the sales process. You can not present yourself as an engineer when you do not have a degree in it. My review was accurate, you were late, the work was performed poorly and you have not honored your word. I want my money back, or you to get a permit and have a professional engineer enlighten you on the proper way to perform the job. a. Our patio has developed two large sets of separation cracks and has settled significantly next to the house, due to the overall five foot high sitting wall structure beginning to collapse b. Additionally, the soil behind the lower wall below the sitting wall is also separating c. The soil along the lower wall bordering our neighbor's property is showing signs of cavitation indicating improper drainage d. A reputable company has examined the work performed and has stated that the entire project needs to be redone, which will cost $55K+ e. Beyond the questionable quality work detailed above, we believe that the following violations of contract were committed at a minimum: i. Sam's Retaining Walls did not obtain a building permit from the City of Des Peres. According to city ordnance, a permit is required for any projects containing a wall taller than three feet ii. While installation forensics can only be completed upon tear out, we strongly suspect that Sam's Retaining Walls did not properly prepare the soil below/adjacent to the three sets of retaining walls including per the Versa-Lok installation instructions including: 1) Failure to install Geo Grid 2) Likely not utilizing minus rock 3) Failing to install proper moisture drainage paths

If you are in a big hurry, you might be disappointed that Sam frequently schedules jobs months out. Call him anyway. You'll be happy with your results. We contacted Sam based on other positive Angie's List reviews. Upon hearing his suggestions, and looking at his portfolio, we were confident he was the man for our project. He did two jobs for us. Our pool patio was not properly installed the first time, and there were a couple of sections where the pavers either sank or buckled and needed to be repaired. Sam's crew, who, by the way, were friendly and professional, carefully plucked out the uneven pavers, repaired the base, then reset the pavers. They also added a section of new pavers where we decided to extend the patio by a few feet. Finally, the entire patio was weeded and resanded (using a polymeric sand). It looks so much better now. The second job was to install a new set of steps, as mentioned above. This required some planning and expertise on Sam's part, as the stairway curved and had terrain to consider. The risers are now all the same height, but the tread part of the stairs still varies, which is necessary. We also had the challenge of mixing old pavers with new. There were slightly different sizes and colors due to age and weathering, but Sam was able to make them work. Now that the stairs are done and newly landscaped, they look very natural in the environment. People who have seen the new stairs comment on the great improvement to our home and to our landscaping. Finally, we had one small section of patio which needed to be completed after our irrigation system was repaired. Sam agreed to come back for that, and he was true to his word. Everything is now completed and we are very pleased.

I called Sam to talk about moving the outlet position of some drains he had installed for me in January of this year. He came out on a Saturday to see what needed to be done, and within a month he managed to work this job into his busy schedule. He made the modifications today and the area is all ready for my spring gardening plans.

Sam came out and reviewed a small paver patio repair job. He provided me with a bid and when I attempted multiple times over and over to get in touch to set up the job, Sam never responded and hasn't replied to our online messaging through Angie's List either. If this is what super service is suppose to be, I don't want any part of it. Very disappointed in Sam and at this point, in Angie's List as well.

I was hesitant to begin the whole process of bidding out three separate jobs; retaining wall, patio, and privacy fence. After meeting with Sam in our kitchen on a Saturday morning, I felt very comfortable working with him and decided at that time to sign the contract for the retaining wall and patio after having seen pictures of his work and speaking to him about my concerns. A neighbor had just recently had a patio put in and it was already falling apart. Sam has a degree in civil engineering and assured me that I would be happy with his work. I looked on line at the reviews from Angie's List and couldn't find anyone unhappy with his work, in fact, all I found were residents gushing over his expertise. After the retaining wall was almost completed and the patio nearly done, I mentioned that I had to begin looking for someone to replace a 4 ft fence with a 6 ft privacy fence and he told me that he could do it! He said that he doesn't market himself to do this kind of work, but he does it for his customers! I was so relieved that he would do this for me! After all was said and done, Sam ordered 2 cubic yards of the best soil to backfill the new retaining wall as a surprise to me on the very last day! I was shocked! That meant that I could begin transplanting my hydrangeas from pots to the new soil that afternoon! I would highly recommend Sam and his crew for completing hardscape made of concrete, stone, or wood!