Nicolas' Hardscapes & Drainage LLC

I can only say I feel like it is Christmas in July! I started writing this within minutes of the departure of Nicolas and his wonderful crew. My husband and I were DIY homeowners until a few years ago. It has been a challenge finding contractors who we trust to work to our specifications and do a quality job. We purchased a great deal offered for a small area project and it was completed today and done beautifully! Julie, his estimator, came out and met with me after the work was put on the calendar in April. She took the measurements and discussed various details to get an idea of what were having done. The project date did not change or move despite the many months between. Nicolas went over everything the same morning of the project start date, because we were unable to meet with him the prior Saturday. He came early with his equipment, ready to start work on time (does that ever happen?!). His crew waited patiently as we discussed the plans thoroughly. It was definitely not in his best interests to keep his crew idle, but he never rushed me through the process and made sure everything was talked through thoroughly. For our project, we needed additional drainage and this happens to be a specialty for him. He doesn't cut corners on materials or workmanship. My husband is a civil engineer and was very happy to know that Nicolas considers all structural aspects, not simply placement and implementing the design. He has confirmed that Nicolas 'knows what he is doing!' For instance, we originally also wanted a patio, but he pointed out some of the issues we would have if we pursued it as planned. He recommended a different approach, followed promptly by a changed estimate and we are considering it as a future project. I was on the schedule, since April, and the work was expected to last the better part of the week. However, the change in plans and scope of the work meant the smaller piece was completed in only 1.5 days. My husband was traveling and we couldn't discuss the patio in time. As a business owner myself, I imagine this created some challenges for Nicolas regarding his crew's schedule. However, he never made me feel uncomfortable about needing additional time as he wanted me to feel we were making the right decision. In addition to Nicolas' technical knowledge, I would trust him, just as much as a good landscape architect, to make a suggestion on design layout. My final thought, when they were finished, was that I looked forward to another opportunity to hire them. He is the first contractor I have comes across, who I completely trust to get it done properly. His crew is professional and well trained and Nicolas properly manages them. He doesn't just drop off and pick up as I have seen with crews working at neighboring properties. Everything was well manicured and returned to better condition that it was found, upon their departure. He does the kind of work that is an investment in your property, not just a luxury to enjoy and I would highly recommend this business!

It went very smoothly. It was hard work but they were obviously very professional. He had to deal with an elevation problem and made sure that it all drained away from the house.

Let me first say we could not be more thrilled with the work Nicolas and his team did. We had high expectations and they were truly exceeded. I watched every step over the 4 days they worked and their attention to detail was impressive. I know my patio and path will last forever. This was a very high quality job. In addition to this they were a pleasure to work with and Julie gave us some great tips on how we could continue our project with some landscaping. Overall are really happy with the work and would recommend Nicolas' Hardscapes to anyone. We will certainly use them again

It went really well. Nicolas and his crew are complete professionals. They did a terrific job, didn't take shortcuts and did a really, really, nice job. We are very happy. He is not the cheapest around, but on a value basis, he is the best. We will be using him and his crew to do additional work. UPDATE 9/25/14: We were so impressed that we had Nicolas and his crew add some walkways in the rear of the house. As usual, he and his crew did an outstanding job. One of the areas that Nicolas put the walkway in has some low spots, but he managed to give enough elevation to the walkway so that it was not under water during our recent heavy rain, and yet it's not obtrusive at all. Great job!

The provider was not aware of the local ordinances and not licensed in Holly Springs, NC which they listed as a serviced area. Unfortunately we wasted 4 months waiting for them to start the job only to have it not come to realization when I asked if they were going to pull permits for the job before the start of the job.

I found this company by searching Angie's list after discovering several inches of water under my house. I called Mr. Isidro and left a message about my predicament and to my surprise he returned my call within 30 minutes. We set up a time for him to come by and take a look. He arrived on time, accessed the problem and gave me his honest opinion of what needed to be done, giving me his best estimate. He invited me to get other quotes but I decided that I liked his demeanor and felt I could trust him to follow through. We decided on a date to start the project, which would take a solid week to complete. Mr. Isidro and his crew arrived early every day and worked tirelessly, bringing me outside as each segment of the project was started and completed to ask my opinion. I'll admit I had no idea of how much physical labor was involved but was extremely impressed with his crew. I had a 17 x 20 deck off the back of my house that was contributing to the water problem and although I loved that deck and it wasn't in the original plan, agreed to have it pulled down to protect the integrity of my foundation. They replaced the deck with a beautiful patio. I really can't say enough about Mr. Isidro and his great crew. By the time the project was over I felt I had joined a new family. I highly recommend Nicolas Hardscapes and Drainage and hope to have his team come back soon.

By looking at his website, you can tell that the size of our job was small in comparison to what he normally does or can do. That did not stop them from being ultra attentive and professional. We received three separate quotes and there's was in the middle. However, the quality of materials they used where much better than the other two. Nicolas was here everyday. They don't work on more than one project at a time. His "assistant" (she seems to do a lot more than what that title infers) responded to my questions faster than anyone else that we spoke with. One of our favorite parts, our daughter was infatuated with the workers who always waived back with a smile when she waived to them. All in all, I doubt we will ever use anyone else for this type of work. I have already referred them to two of our neighbors. Oh yeah, the quality of work was awesome and we have spend most of our time on our patio lately.

Our entire experience with Nicolas' Hardscapes and Drainage was great. To start with, Julie very promptly visited our house after we requested a quote and quickly turned around an estimate which was very reasonable, we certainly benefited by signing up for the special they ran on Angie's list. After deciding to go forward with the work, Nicolas put us on the schedule and about a week later started the project. Nicolas and his team promptly showed up at 7 am on a Wednesday morning, exactly when he said he would, and by the time I came home from work on Wednesday night the project was more than 1/2 complete. My wife and I were amazed by how much work had been completed in the first day, the walkways and patio area had been dug out and prepped, drainage for the house's downspouts had been extended and the grading was completed. He and his team were back on the job at 7 Thursday morning, we briefly spoke and he let me know the project was going well and would be complete by the end of the day. By the time I arrived home the entire project was complete and the walkways and patio looked fantastic, it came out better than my wife or I expected and as Nicolas noted, extending the downspouts to run the water out past the walkways made an enormous difference in keeping the walkway and patio looking great and keeping the way from puddling or washing out the sand/grout. A couple final notes, Nicolas is present during all the work and prefers to go from start to finish before moving onto the next project. This is great for the customer as the boss is there during the entire project and he doesn't move onto the next project until he is finished, therefore the project gets completed quickly without any delays. Lastly, Nicolas is very responsive to questions and his customer service is great, we recently emailed a question about the walk and within 2 hours he phoned us to answer our inquiry. Overall we were extremely pleased with the work Nicolas Hardscape performed for us and would strongly recommend Nicolas for your project.

This was the forth time Nicolas Hardscape and Drainage worked on my home in the past three months. Nicolas takes his work very seriously and the quality of his work and craftsmanship are of the first order. I have rarely seen a company so willing to go the extra mile to satisfy the customer. With Nicolas Hardscape and Drainage this is standard. Nicolas set all the border work in mixed concrete ensuring a permanent structure. The front patio was set into a curved sidewalk and extended to the foundation of my home. His skilled crew custom cut the stone pavers to fit beautifully and aesthetically in the oddly shaped sidewalk. My neighbor across the street loves to look at it and commented on the "beautiful curb appeal".

The owner of the company refused to honor the $2,755.00 value of the deal. He was only going to deduct $1,399 from a project total of over $8,000.00. When I purchased other Big Deal's from Angie's List, the stated value of the Big Deal was always applied to the total cost of the job. Nicholas wanted me to accept a BAD DEAL instead of the Big Deal I thought I had purchased!

Julie M.(who is lovely to work with) met us initially to discuss our needs and to give us ideas as well as an estimate for our drainage needs and patio. Julie gave us a detailed estimate the next day. Nicolas then called us to set up a time to meet us and to review the plan and to get started. Not only is Nicolas prompt and professional, he is attentive and friendly to work with. He showed up with his team of workers on time -that same week- and went to work immediately. They were finished with our job in 3 days! Nicolas reviewed progress with me daily, and after the job was finished he called me several times to make sure that we were happy with the patio. It is gorgeous. I was also impressed how well they cleaned up the area when they were finished. Nicolas also referred me to his brother Simon when I asked him if he knew anyone who could help us with mulching our front yard. His brother came out the next day with the mulch and did a great job mulching our yard at a great price. I would highly recommend Nicolas to anyone. We would definitely use his services again.

Nicolas' was excellent to work with. His assistant came out to provide an estimate and to give us brick choices. They were able to come on a date earlier than originally scheduled and were on time. The team worked hard and completed our new patio in one day. It looks great. I would highly recommend them.

The company wanted to do all sorts of very extensive and expensive drainage work, more than doubling the expected cost. When we spoke on the phone, she told me about the "sale" that was being offered thru Angie's List. Had I known about all the other conditions, I would have never pursued the contact. About the drainage: it's expressly prohibited by my Homeowners Association. I feel like it was a bait & switch (sale prices substantially inflated by unasked for and unwanted addons).

Nicholas and his team were wonderful to work with ... very skilled at what they do! They did exactly what I requested and they did it well. I would definitely use them again.

Jon Overfelt purchased the deal on Angie's list for what he thought was the fire pit as the picture showed for the ad. After being in contact with the company they explained that it was only for the pavers not the fire pit that was pictured. We had them come out to give us an estimate anyway and it was more that we wanted to spend. Julie with their company was completely professional and stated that she would call her Angie's List Rep and let him know to expect our request for a refund.

Nickloas Hardscapes and Drainage exceeded all expectations I had for this project. Nickolas' technical foresight, sound engineering practices, and craftsmanship have made my home, my beautiful home. With drainage being paramount, this project was measured and checked constantly by differential leveling. This construction practice ensured, mathematically, that all grades would flow water precisely. And it has. Andy, Simone, Primo, and Rooster, were a pleasure to work with and they worked hard. Their diligence and constant attention to detail is evident in their final product. These guys know how to do it, and they do it right every time. Nicolas Hardscapes and Drainage will be returning to hardscape the front entrance of my home.

The job went very well. As usual, Nicholas and his crew were very professional and took great care of my wife and I before, during, and after the job was completed. He helped us pick out the right pavers, and really worked with me before hand to understand what I wanted him to do, and we laid it all out in paint in the back yard. When the work got started, everything moved pretty quickly. The job took about a week start to finish. Nicholas and his guys are hard working! They really can bust it out! But, they do fantastic work! I can't possibly tell you in this review how pleased my wife and I are with the work he and his crew performed. What was a bland 10x12 concrete slab is now a tremendous outdoor living area that is so much more. We actually have room for patio furniture now! Don't mess around wondering if those "other" guys you are about to call know what they are doing. Nicholas and his crew KNOWS what they are doing and you won't be disappointed. We went from a 10x12 concrete slab to nearly 700 square feet of paved patio surface area! The backyard has never been better! Thank you Nicholas for you hard work, yet again. Jesse P.S. Yes, I may have you come back and do the landscape lighting in 2014. ;-).

They were terrific. My Prius, which is a low car was bumping and has bumped off and on over the years and they did an outstanding job of fixing that. They re-shaped it and fixed the driveway. They did an A++ job.

Once again, Nicolas and his crew returned for another phase of our hardscape project. Having another area that was hard to keep green grass, we had him design another retainer wall and an area with pavers on the front side of our home to match the previous hardscapes. They built up the area behind the wall for planting or just leaving it natural. After seeing the finished product, we then decided on his recommendation of the LED landscape lighting to enhance the area. Nicolas kept in touch as to when he could installs the lights. Well, as promised, he and his helper came out on March 1st and just lightened our world! As always, Nicolas makes sure that everything is to our satisfaction and when the job is complete, all things are left very clean. He is certainly a man of his word and an honest businessman. We look forward to planning our next project in the future with him.

Every single member of the team was so wonderful - they are professional, friendly, reliable, very easy to work with and each of them contributes to deliver an outstanding product and leave a happy customer. Julie was very prompt and professional in all communication, she offered advice in the design and choice of pavers, she explained patiently pricing options and came out a couple of times before the beginning of the project to ensure everything is captured correctly. Nicholas and his crew are among the most hardworking people I have ever met - they came very early each morning and worked until after dark, and were able to complete the whole project in just two days, despite the challenging terrain! Nicholas is very knowledgeable, professional and meticulous in respect to detail and delivery. He really knows what he is doing, he listened to our needs and made suggestions which we as non-professionals had not even thought of. The four assistants that came out with Nicholas each day were very polite, friendly and hard working too. The outcome of this team's hard work is an amazing outdoor room which we now enjoy every day. Nicholas Hardscapes and Drainage is a company of people that go the extra mile to make their customers happy ? for example, they power washed our back stairs for free for safety reasons but also to make them look pretty and new alongside the new patio, they threw soil, grass seeds and straw on the areas that got affected by the wheelbarrows to make sure they leave the area as they found it. They listen to the customer needs, offer advice and deliver a high quality product, all the while with great enthusiasm, courteousness and professionalism. We are absolutely satisfied with the services they performed and are we will be very happy to have the opportunity to work with them again in the future. We would strongly recommend this company's services to our closest friends and relatives, as well as to anyone else who is looking for a reliable company that does high quality work. Thank you Nicholas, Julie and team! You guys are amazing!

The patio looks beautiful and it also help with our drainage issues in that area. They do excellent work and are very professional in all aspects of their work. We highly recommend them!!

Nicolas was a pleasure to work with. He discussed various options and identified a location where I could see an example of the border we were considering. I changed the concept from flagstone to pavers and increased the size of the patio. Throughout the changing designs, Nicolas was patient, professional, and knowledgeable. We pushed back the start date a couple days to avoid inclement weather, and had to skip a day or so midstream for the same reason, but the crew worked efficiently to complete the job in 3 work days. Nicolas cooperated with me to demonstrate that the proper drainage slopes were achieved during and after the construction of the patio and drains. When the decision arose on the choice of stone to finish the french drain, Nicolas encouraged me to spend the extra dollars on a decorative stone, a decision I made and do not regret. We are very happy with the look and drainage of the pati The last step of the process, however, was a disaster. To repair damage to my lawn, he seeded with rye grass, instead of fescue. This was done because rye grass will germinate in cold weather. Rye grass however is an annual grass that will die each year and does not match the existing grass. I over-seeded three times with fescue, none of which produced an acceptable result. Minimally, Nicolas should have advised me before he took this step.

From the very beginning, Nicolas and Julie stayed in constant contact with us. Given how busy they are, we were amazed by their time and patience. I had originally wanted to use paver stones for the parking area. Even though Nicolas would have made more money from that option, he patiently explained to me why that wouldn't work, given the kind of soil that we had. After we got started with the job, Nicolas came up with numerous suggestions that made a big difference. For example, as he worked on the walkway from our driveway to the house, Nicolas saw that he could improve the drainage by having the walkway drain toward the driveway rather than toward my lawn's French drain. To do this, Nicolas asked if it was ok if he took out our first step. Of course it was! It would never have occurred to me. We had a big rain the past few days and the front walkway, always a problem on rain days, drains perfectly. When you think about landscaping, you might think: "I can put some stones down." Believe me, I've done that and the results were ok. However, the stones didn't stay level, the drainage wasn't quite right and and the stones didn't really fit together well. When our neighbors see what Nicolas has done, they say that it reminds them of what they have seen in Europe. There is a problem with working with Nicolas. After you have let him transform part of your yard, you will want to upgrade everything. A neighbor came over and looked at the walkway between the two driveways. He said, "This looks so good that you'll want to extend this between the two yards." I called Nicolas right after that and asked him if he could add that to the job and he did. I'm very happy to have people come by and see what Nicolas' magic can do. You can get my contact info via Julia, the manager at Nicolas Landscaping.

Nicolas and his company were wonderful to work with. My next door neighbor and I had been talking for about a year about hiring a contractor to resurface our two driveways and create a walkway between them. I also had a soggy back yard and needed to address some drainage issues. Nicolas created a plan with us that satisfied the needs of both homes and is very attractive. He laid a crushed concrete foundation for the gravel driveway, created a quarter circle bump-out drive to accommodate an extra car, installed edging along the driveway, installed a French drain to carry the run-off to a storm drain on the back side of my yard and used paving stones to create a shared walkway with my next door neighbor that leads to a patio at my front door. I have a separate mini-apartment attached to my house which I wanted to be accessible to someone in a wheelchair or using a walker. He graded the patio to create a gentle ramp to the entrance so I would not need to install steps. He was also careful to create level entrances to the storage room where we keep the lawnmower and surprised me with a similar entrance of paving stones to the bicycle shed next to the driveway. I was most impressed with his understanding of drainage issues and the care he took to make sure that the water was directed where it needed to go. He ran new drains from my downspouts and connected them to the French drain. He installed drains at the ends of both driveways to connect to the French drain as well. Our neighborhood has a lot of drainage issues and he really has a good sense of how to deal with them. Our neighbors and Icollaborated on the drainage and walkway. Nicolas and Julie (his office manager) worked with us to clarify who would be responsible to pay for which parts of the project. Nicholas and crew showed up every day early and worked diligently to get the work done. The started and finished on schedule. Overall, the work exceeded my expectations. It takes a while to get work scheduled with this company and they are not the least expensive option, but this is truly a case where it is worth waiting to have the work done right and you get what you pay for and more.

Well. It looks nice, only complaint would be it took them a while to get us scheduled.