BARRIER GEOTECHNICAL CONTRACTORS

Did not use this contractor.

In mid-July 2008, we had serious water intrusion in our crawlspace which led to mold issues that affected the crawlspace as well as the HVAC system. Prior to remediation, we had to stop the water intrusion. Keep in mind that getting the water intrusion problem resolved was the single most important step on which all of the other work ($10,000+) was based. After searching on Angie's List, I contacted Barrier Geotechnical for their assessment. In their professional opinion, an exterior foundation drain needed to be installed to re-route the water around the house since our front yard slopes down toward the house. The salesman definitely did a good job of convincing me of their knowledge, professionalism, and going above and beyond to get the job done right. He repeatedly mentioned that they were not just any old contractor, but rather a geotechnical engineering company that had knowledge and expertise with these situations. The contract we signed specifically said that Barrier Geotechnical would "stop the water intrusion into the crawl space along the front of the house". I never again spoke with the gentleman who came out for the assessment. The project manager seemed capable when he came out the first time; however, once the work began, he didn't come back out until it was finished, which was about a span of 7-10 days. Luckily, I was home during the majority of the work to photograph their progress. I was a little irritated about the lack of attention from the project manager during the process. In September, after the remediation of the mold had been completed, heavy rains proved that their work was a failure. I contacted the PM and it took several more days and phone calls on my part before he would call me back. I do not take kindly to companies where I feel that I'm having to harass them with phone calls to get a response. Once I could get him to come to the house again, he took the defensive that their work was solid and insisted that the water was coming in under the drain; however, after several tests of spraying a hose directly into the areas that he felt were the breeches, he could not prove his theory. My husband and I had been diligently checking in the crawlspace whenever we had rain to see where it was coming in and we could tell that it was along the wall where the drain was installed. Again, we took photographs. We were quite offended when Barrier did not believe us. In the end, the PM had to concede that the drain was not functioning as it should. After at least two weeks (as it took many, many days to get him to come out and then come out again to perform the tests), the crew came back and dug up the drain to find that it was faulty installation. Common sense would tell you that a drain must slope down and away from the house; however, the drain sloped down towards the corner of the house and then sloped back up before it turned the corner. This was allowing water to pond at the front of the house and seep into the crawl space. If the project manager had been out to the job during the actual installation, I believe he would have seen this and could have corrected it before we had yet more water intrusion. The crew took another 2-3 days to reinstall the drain. The following May after several heavy storms we discovered that water was still getting into the crawlspace. At that point we had already spent thousands of dollars on remediation, a new HVAC system and paid Barrier for their work, so you can imagine our distress and concern that the issue still had not been resolved. Many, many phone calls to the PM again and he finally came back out to look in the crawlspace. Tensions were very high on both parts, but we felt that Barrier had not lived up to their end of the contract as they did not solve the water intrusion problem. Upon further assessment, we were told that an interior french drain, a sump pump, and full encapsulation would be the best way as it was obvious that water was going to get in somehow. Then, Barrier gave us another estimate for this work (~$6000). At that point, we were utterly shocked that they expected us to pay another dime for work that should have already been resolved. This sparked a long series of emails and phone calls of negotiations about scope of work and cost, all the while still only talking to the PM. We never spoke to anyone else at Barrier; however, we did CC the owner on all correspondence. By this time almost a year had passed since they originally started the work. They finally offered to install the sump pump and drain for no additional charge, but if we opted for the encapsulation that we would have to pay for that portion. We agreed to the former and in August 2009 the work was completed within a couple of weeks. Overall, our experience with Barrier was frustrating and time consuming on our part. We would call and leave messages 3-4 times, only to wait for weeks to get a response. Barrier's poor communication and poor workmanship exacerbated what was already an intensely stressful situation on our entire family. I encourage anyone to think twice before hiring Barrier for any work at all. I have dealt with many contractors in my career for many years and Barrier was one of the most difficult experiences I have ever encountered.

they seemed to be very professional inthe beginning last year, but now that the work has proven to be less than optimal they will not return our phone calls to come back out and redo the work...very disappointed in this company, we feel like they just took our money...

They promptly and professionally designed and did the repairs with excellent results. My house has not moved since this work was done. Everyone involved did a great job.

Barrier was contracted to locate subterranean water that ran underneath the house via a Civil War era culvert, and provide and engineer a solution to divert it. However, they did not source the water prior to excavation, and suddenly changed approved plans without consent because they discovered that their original design was "too close to the property line." Perhaps if they had bothered to locate the property line before submitting the original plan, they wouldn't have had to re-route mid-project. Rather than diverting the water outside the structure as contracted, it still runs underneath one corner of the house. Barrier's crew was consistently exposed to dangerous work practices. Excavation was not properly shored up and caved in, nearly trapping a worker, and almost collapsing the front porch. Although power, water, gas and cable lines were clearly marked, all were breached(some more than once). City services were called in several times. The most egregious incident involved the main power line, which we discovered had been rendered "live" at the meter after being struck by a backhoe. We were told had someone touched it, they could have been killed. When informed of this problem, the president of the company responded: "No harm, no foul." That is a direct quote. The original French drain installed was inadequate. During the first rain, the entire yard flooded and several sink holes developed. A second line had to be installed on top of the first. A huge sinkhole developed under our air exterior conditioning units that nearly swallowed them up. Barrier's solution was to fill the hole with gravel, but only after another contractor had shored up the units with heavy beams. The job was scheduled for 15 days. My backyard looked like Beirut for more than three months. Trees and other decorative plantings were destroyed. We were told prior to signing the contract that our property "would look better than before they started." It has still not gotten back to what it was. They also left a large bulldozer parked on the property for almost two weeks after the job was done. Whenever I voiced concerns, or suggested that I wasn't happy with the work and wanted to put the balance of the payment into escrow until I was sure the job that had been done was satisfactory, I was verbally browbeaten and threatened with legal action. Subsequent inspections by other engineering professionals call into question whether the design solution Barrier provided will shore up the foundation, or cause it to settle even further. I would like to say that the members of the crew did their best under trying circumstances. I felt that they were caught between a rock and a hard place, and just wanted to keep their jobs, but I would never recommend Barrier to anyone, except maybe Osama Bin Laden.

Barrier was very quick to come out with an evaluation and estimate. We felt they were thorough and more competent than other companies that we spoke with. The contract and deposit were finalized very quickly and we were scheduled right in. The problems then arose with scheduling. They were supposed to start on a Tuesday and after waiting all day, no one showed and no one called. This continued over several days. Calling the office made clear that the office and crews were not in good communication regarding times and schedules. Finally over 7 frustrating days of scheduling, the work was completed. It is hard to know how or what is done because the results are not visible with foundation repair. Barrier claims that they have actual engineers on staff and this sets them apart. I had to request to speak with an engineer to get any information about the work done. For the amount of money spent, a post work assessment or summation from someone was expected. Lastly, even after knowing that I was upset with the service, they were a little pushy about collecting the final payment. Their work may be good, but their professionalism was lacking.

They cleaned out the basement and waterproofed it. My experience with them was great. They were excellent and did a wonderful job. I would recommend them and use them again.

I DECIDED TO GET AN INDEPENDENT ENGINEER TO GIVE ME A SECOND OPINION AFTER THEY SUBMITTED THEIR PROPOSAL. THE INDEPENDENT ENGINEER STATED THAT I PROBABLY DIDN'T NEED PIERS, AND THAT I NEEDED TO CORRECT SOME DRAINAGE PROBLEMS--A MUCH CHEAPER SOLUTION. I DECIDED TO GET A THIRD OPINION AFTER BARRIER VEHEMENTLY DISAGREED, AND THE THIRD ENGINEER AGREED THAT I DID NOT NEED PIERS, AND THAT BETTER DRAINAGE WOULD LIKELY FIX MY PROBLEM. I FEEL LIKE BARRIER WAS TRYING TO SELL ME SOMETHING VERY EXPENSIVE THAT I DIDN'T NEED, TAKING ADVANTAGE OF MY LACK OF KNOWLEDGE, AND I DON'T APPRECIATE IT.