BERGQUIST MASONRY LLC

From the start, David and his team were very professional. David Berguist specializes in repairing chimneys and lining flues in historic, colonial, and federal era houses. He is very knowledgeable about the chimney construction methods and materials found in colonial and federal buildings. He came out to review the job, arriving at the scheduled time, discussed alternatives up front and provided a detailed quote. He noticed that the main chimney was cracked down to the attic floor, a fact which had eluded not only the home inspector two months prior, but also a chimney sweep who had cleaned the flues and another chimney lining contractor who had also estimated the lining work. He also let me know of any project uncertainties up front with the quote, due to the fact that not all job details could be visible As the house was under a preservation agreement, he provided the local historical commission with sufficient detail, his credentials and experience to secure approval for the renovation. As he was working on another job for 6 months prior to our scheduled work, he provided regular updates as to when he could start the work, and started within a day or two of his promised start date. During the project, he kept me apprised on the progress, notified me promptly of any delays due to deliveries. He and his team were very professional, respectful and courteous throughout the renovation. My wife and I felt very comfortable leaving his team alone in our house and his team always kept the jobsite very clean. The project scope came in very close to his original estimate as did the final project cost and schedule. We are very pleased with the quality of his team's work. My wife and I would without any reservation recommend David Bergquist for chimney repair and lining, especially for old houses and would use him for any chimney project we might have in the future.

We had a persistent leak around our original central chimney and a similarly persistent leak though our outside front entryway into the sub-basement below it. Particularly when rain came on a north wind, we had water inside. Also, when we used our upstairs fireplace, the smoke was sucked into the adjoining flue,filling the lower level with smoke. (Yes, the damper for the lower level was closed.) David's explanation of the problems gibed completely with that of other contractors who had tackled other jobs for us and with information provided by the original builder. He is a "do it right or don't do it" kind of guy. He carefully explained the steps in the process, which happened exactly as he had laid them out. He took great pains to ensure that the new exterior brick looked so much like the original that it was undetectable (even though it has very different properties). He agreed to try caulking and sealing our entryway, but gave us a clear 50/50 prediction as to whether that would solve the problem. It didn't, but we were neither surprised nor out a bunch of money. David and his laborers worked their rear ends off when they were here. Everything happened on schedule. And our chimney doesn't leak water or smoke any more. We couldn't be happier with the work.

David did an excellent job and we would hire him again. He is the best educated and most experienced chimney and fireplace specialist we have met in New England.

GREAT WORK! DID EXTRA FOOTWORK TO FIND BRICK TO MATCH THE EXISTING CHIMNEY. VERY CAREFUL WITH TAKING BRICKS OFF CHIMNEY AND DOWN THE SCAFFOLDING. WE ARE EXTREMELY PLEASED WITH THE QUALITY OF THE WORK. DAVID CLEARLY TAKES PRIDE IN HIS CRAFT.