GENERAL BRICK DESIGNS

Ed Constanza is a man you will love. He is a very intelligent, down to earth, perfectionist, caring person with wonderful work ethics! We had a horrific, disgusting ,smelly, moldy, dysfunctional crawl space as a basement. Which we had to take the oil burner and oil tank out of because of numerous water problems coming into our space. Ed and his crew came in and cleaned it up, waterproofed it, put anchors in, stones, a layer of concrete, wire mesh, then more concrete. Made it look so smooth. All this was done by the crew along with Ed. The crew, Wilson ,Darwin, Manuel, and Angel did all of this by hand!!! What excellent workers.. very hard work lifting wheelbarrows of cement and stones from the front of the house to the back 50 times for each, cement and stones in hot, humid conditions!!! They cleaned up anything that was laying around. Our place looked better than before they came to work, honestly!! We were scared to start this project at first, will all the other things we have done at our house that other contractors have done, and wound up being a mess and they could care less.. Its was that they got their money now try to get them to fix and redo the mess they made. NOT WITH ED CONSTANZA with Wilson, Darwin, Manuel, and Angel!!! Well worth every dollar we spent!! Nobody does it better in our opinion! They were such a Blessing!!!!! They are like our extended family now!! If you need a basement done or mason work, contact them for the best job and work ethics and price!! We are so happy we found Ed and his crew. We can't say enough about this whole experience !!

Incredible gorgeous work! Mr. Ed Constanzo is my Knight in Shining Armor! I am beyond happy, beyond blessed with the work completed. I had previously hired a landscaper/contractor to install a bocce ball court, 2 horseshoe pits, with ties on each side and area for cornhole,. I thought he had my vision, however, after 3 months of him "working" on my the game area, this "professional contracter" walked off the job with materials I previously paid for, unfinished work, and verbal bullying. With that horrible experience, a sick special needs daughter who is legally blind, has brain tumors and currently on chemotherapy ,and my husband in the hospital in NYC for going on three months....... all this left me in a dire state. I was very angry and heartbroken that this play area was taken from my daughter, especially since this was her birthday gift. However, Mr. Costanzo heard about my experience and offered to help. Talk about blessings!!! He came by the next evening and saw what needed to be repaired or redone. I told him of my vision of the area, He was so well mannered, knowledgeable, and precise with detail. But get this, he wanted to have everything done in time for her birthday and to my surprise, was at my house with his crew the very next day! Now, that is a Knight in Shining Armor!!! He and his crew worked with such perfection. I was floored to see that every inch of that play area was evened and leveled. The bocce court was finished to perfection. It is tapered done smooth. It is beautiful. The horseshoes were leveled and I asked his to use ties to keep a big lane for the horseshoes. Done! He removed grass that should had been previously picked up and leveled out the pea gravel in the whole court, so it looks and is precise. But my biggest surprise was that I had mentioned that I was thinking of putting a seating area in the corner, and he gave me a stunning stone patio. All this in one day. With professional accuracy, precision and creativity. I am so grateful and my daughter is ecstatic on how beautiful it came out. I have never seen a crew that worked so hard for a result of perfection. What General Brick Designs does cannot be matched. If you want your project to be a precise work of art, then this is the company to call! General Brick Designs, Thank you- Donna and Gina DiMartino

Working with Ed and his crew was a great experience! Not only is he incredibly skilled and knowledgeable, he is also a true gentleman. From our first phone call to Ed (which he answers himself or calls you back immediately) to the day that he and his crew finished our patio, he was a true pleasure to work with. Always looking for ways to go above and beyond to help, and extremely good at what he does. He and his crew went out of their way to help me solve a problem we had for years with a previous stone job (done by someone else) that was really bothering us for a long time. Not only did he tell me how to fix it, he went ahead and did it himself (at no charge to us). Who does that? Ed does! Not because there was anything in it for him, but because he truly cares about people and is always looking for ways to help. He is also one of the most humble people we have ever worked with. Our patio came out beautiful! Ed and his crew showed up when they said they would, worked hard the whole time and left our home neat as a pin. I am so happy we found Ed and his crew and look forward to working with him again real soon. Honestly, if you are looking for someone you can trust and truly know their craft, Ed and his crew at General Brick Designs are the ones to call.

I purchased a home whose property was severely neglected. Multiple sinking concrete slabs made up a so-called patio and an in-ground gunite pool was surrounded by a rotted railroad tie retaining wall holding in more concrete and loose stones with hideous bushes all around it. The whole backyard needed a re-do. Enter Eddie...I first discovered him on a forum and researched his company. Obviously all of his stellar reviews forced me to call him. From our first conversation, I immediately felt confident that he knew exactly how to handle my yard. In particular he gave me an education on the proper way to work around a gunite pool, which many contractors are not familiar with as it is a bit of an unusual pool structure in my area. Because he is so popular he was booked solid, but out of his humble heart he really wanted to help me out, even if it meant just consulting with him when I hired a different company. I know it sounds crazy, but he REALLY is that kind-hearted. Genuinely. Because I wanted to start this project right away, I got estimates from other companies in the following two weeks, none of which gave me the confidence Eddie did when we spoke. To my surprise, Eddie called me again to tell me he was coming over to discuss the scope of the project with me and to help me sort through all the different contractors I spoke with to see who might be the best fit for my project. I was impressed he did not forget about me and I wasn't even his client yet! Well, he gave me his estimate and as life would have it, things worked out in such a way that he was able to start my project almost right away. As I mentioned from the outset, this property was very neglected and as such, there were a dozen issues that arose once the work started. I am a new home owner who has never had a pool before. Not only did Eddie take the time to help me work out all the snags and I mean ALL of them, but he never once made me feel bad about it even though it meant A LOT more work for them. He went out of his way to make sure everything was done right even if it meant driving across Long Island to get special parts or extra material. And by the way, he did not charge me any more than our agreed upon price even with all the extra labor and supplies that were needed to complete my project. I can not say enough good things about him and his team of true master masons. Not every paver company employs true masons. His team works together seamlessly like clockwork. They started early in the morning every single day until the job was complete. They only take one job at a time which is so important. We had their full attention. Their experience shows in the way they handle dilemmas, the way they coordinate tasks, and the talent set forth in the work product. Quality craftsmanship is obviously important, but I would also argue that the customer experience is equally as important. And this one was mind-blowingly positive. I can't say enough good things. I almost folded multiple times over the stress of our renovations and because Eddie was there to take on the brunt of the outdoor issues, we got through it all. I am 100% sure that no other contractor would have gone out of his way like Eddie did. Plus he provides a 10 year guarantee on his work, namely because I'm sure we will never have to use it. Everything is solid and beautiful!! We couldn't be happier. I will update my review with pictures in the near future. Stop looking. Hire General Brick Designs even if you have to wait for them. It will be worth it.

Our brick chimney was falling away from the house. There were no ties in the mortar when it was built. Much of the brick was damaged, fallen off, or disintegrated. It needed to be rebuilt from the shoulders up. Eddie used a moisture meter to show us how badly the brick was saturated and where exactly it started. We had 3 other estimates, but none of them cared to explain any of that to us. Eddie's team did a wonderful job. It turned out that when they removed the top half, the inner chambers were not built correctly. Of course, because his foreman is so skilled, he caught this right away and he and Eddie agreed without hesitation that they had to address this for us before rebuilding the chimney. The care they take to ensure their work is of the highest quality is seriously impressive. They go above and beyond. It's very rare to have a contractor that cares that much and doesn't try to nickel and dime you at every turn. They are very clean and respectful of the property too. Would absolutely hire them again and plan to!

They did a fabulous job, they were professional, on time, and cleaned everything up when they were done. The patio turned out better than we expected and we would highly recommend them.

So if you read the reviews by many others here you will get an idea of just how good Edward Costanza and his crew are. He takes pride in his work and the results speak for themselves. This was a huge job and he not only completed it in 6 long days but also did a whole variety of things as extras for no additional charge. Let me begin explaining what he did. He had to tear down most of the pre-existing wall which was hand built by the original builder/owner of this house in the 1960's. This wall had gradually deteriorated over 60 years and was failing in many areas. It turned out that it was built to very high standards originally (PSI of over 5000!) which meant Ed had to cut it down with a diamond tipped rotary saw. That took lots of extra work. He removed all that material. He then was nice enough to inspect the foundation of my house since he has that equipment and was happy to inform me that the house was extremely well built. Ed used only the highest grade material and since I have a bit of OCD when it comes to repairs he spent hours with me going over everything that was being done and why. He is the most pleasant and honest fellow you will ever meet. There were few things that I asked to change and he quickly did exactly what I suggested including curving the wall at the beginning to feed it into the land nicely. I also asked him to install a landing where the steps were being built. Since I had extra bluestone slabs from a previous job he simply told some of his crew (Wilson and Darwin) to install these bluestone pieces instead of just pouring concrete. That process took an extra 3 hours and they made it look beautiful. Ed was here every single day watching the work being done and sometimes doing it himself. He also helped me restore a crack in another wall in the backyard. He installed anchor ties along the length of the wall to complete the structure and prevent it from ever breaking down. His mortar mix was specially prepared each day and the crew worked together with each mason doing their specific task for the day. It was amazing to see how well they worked together. When the wall was finally completed they cleaned up the entire yard and removed all the rocks, cement and debris that occurs when you do this kind of work. Just understand that you are getting an expert in the field of masonry and he will do everything to make sure you are satisfied with the job. He will be returning in a few weeks to waterproof the rear of the wall (that is always very important) and he uses Thoroseal (now called Master Seal) which I have used in the past for other work around the house and know how good that material is for waterproofing. So I know this is a long review but I will simply say that Edward Costanza is the best in the business and you will certainly be assured of getting a job well done.

This morning I received a phone from Eddie while watching ESPN Sports Center. It was great to hear from him! Eddie and his crew worked on our home back in January. The work came out better than expected. We gave a great review then; this is a second review! The phone call I received this morning from Eddie was to inform me that he had conducted a second inspection of our home and all looks well. Thanks Eddie! To find someone who takes pride in their craft in 2021 is a rare find. Eddie is that rare find!

Another job was done with excellence by Ed Costanzo and his crew from General Brick Designs. We were so happy with the wall that Ed built for us that we had him replace our side steps that were falling apart. While at it he found some old termite damage and took care of it without a hitch. You don't find many men like this in today's world. It was a pleasure having Ed and his crew around. They were prompt, neat, and masters at their craft. I'm having him back again in a few months to do a driveway when some front-of-house modifications are complete. You won't be disappointed with General Brick Designs.

We were in need of a new retaining wall that was leaning over and some chimney repair. My wife found General Brick Designs here on Angies List. More than that she found Ed Costanza a master in his field. He came by and took a look at our job and gave us a full explanation of what was going on. There was never any pressure that we had to do the job immediately. Ed even offered to come by and check it for us once in a while when he was in the area. I liked Ed from the start. He was friendly, knowledgeable, trustworthy, and really just an all around great guy to meet. Ed was on the job overseeing the project the whole time and his crew worked like a well oiled machine under his direction. Ed and his team were really a pleasure to have around. I was in awe of how much work they accomplished and how neat they left everything nightly and at the end of the project. During the project we found a real foundation problem and Ed made the repairs for us immediately no hassles, no fuss a real pro and a good man. On Angies list they ask a question would you hire again? Not only would I... I already told Ed I'm hiring him to do my driveway because of him. Look no further, this IS the man you want you won't be disappointed.

This is the second time I relied on Ed and his team to do a difficult job with promised results - and again, it was PERFECTION from start to finish. They identified the problem quickly and jiggled their calendar to do the job asap. I will never take General Brick Design off of my contacts lists. Great work, excellent skill, polite.

From the initial phone, Eddie was our guy! His knowledge on home repair, structural issues, water damage and more is second to none. But it is not just his craftsmanship and expertise that stands out, it's his personality. Eddie is exactly what I am about to say and more. Honest, humble, trustworthy, caring, communicative, transparent, and so on. For years I paid contractors to solve my water issues in the basement. And year after year after being fixed, the issue would come back. Eddie explained the reason why year after year I had these issues. He took the time to really make me understand, veins, footings, cement mixing, cracks, water damage, building foundation, wood and moisture. His crew follows his lead! Eddie stays on the site until the job is done. The only part that was difficult, was saying goodbye. Sounds corny, but if you meet Eddie you made a friend.

We called Ed soon after we moved into our home, and became aware of multiple issues present within the house. The issues included several cracks in the Concrete Foundation of the Basement, an ongoing problem with High Basement Humidity, cracks and loose mortar around the bricks of the wood burning fireplace, and cracks in the tiling of the Center Hall Foyer. Ed came over right away, was able to measure the level of humidity in the basement walls and floors to determine the severity of the problem. In addition, he was able to point out several major contributing foundational issues. He determined the root cause of these issues and provided a solution that would prevent further damage to the structural integrity of the home. Ed was able to design a plan to correct the deficiencies both inside and outside the home which included insufficient and compromised footings, a sinking foundation, a failing support structure to the basement staircase, improper waterproof coating on the basement floors and walls, and stress cracks in the foundation walls. Ed’s Team worked diligently and installed multiple footings to stabilize the foundation, including rebar, hydraulic cement, wire lathing and titanium strapping to provide maximum support and stability to the foundation of the home and garage inner wall. The team built scaffolding to reach the height of the exterior chimney and rebuilt the compromised chimney footing, cracks in the chimney shoulder, and detached flu. On the inside his mason repaired the facial mortar and gaps between the chimney and the wood flooring. Ed’s Team was in my home for nearly 2 weeks working to correct these serious issues. The amount of digging and handling of heavy construction equipment they had to utilize was massive. They all worked tirelessly and went above and beyond. They were courteous, productive, and did not impact my daily activities of life during that time. They meticulously cleaned all the areas and left no debris. We were so pleased with their attitude and work ethic. Ed is knowledgeable, meticulous, patient and great at what he does. He provides the utmost of care to be sure his customers are educated with regard to the problem, the solution and the plan he will execute. He truly cares about his customers concerns and insures that they are satisfied with every aspect of the job. Ed will do whatever it takes to achieve that end. He invests himself one hundred percent in the job. This is an honorable business man that you can rely upon to stand by his company’s work. We highly recommend Ed’s Services for Foundation, Chimney and Moisture related concerns. You will have peace of mind knowing the job was done right and will look for opportunities to hire him back.

I had a leak in my foundation in my crawl space and found General Brick Designs on Angie’s list. I had other contractors look at the problem but found Ed to be more thorough and knowledgable when he came to evaluate the problem. He came in with his crew, was on site the entire time and was able to complete the job in less than 1 day. The work area both inside and out was left spotless. It has been a few weeks and we have had heavy rains and not one drop of water has come into the basement. Ed is a true professional who is a master at his craft. I strongly recommend if you have any masonry needs that you contact General Brick Designs. You won’t be disappointed!

Excellent service! Would highly recommend to anyone who needs professional brick work done! Thanks again!

Excellent work!!! Ed is a true perfection and his guys are extremely skilled. The patio has really transformed my backyard; I wouldn’t use anyone else.

I've already left a review for this company about 2 weeks ago. I have received calls from this provider complaining about the "F" rating I gave. PLEASE NOTE: No work was ever done @ my house & the "F" rating does not reflect the company's work. My "F" review was for non-responsiveness. I'll revise to a "C" rating. I've dbl & triple checked my call logs & messages,,,, I NEVER received a call or spoke to this company. Perhaps you've got me confused w/another prospective customer. With that being said, I have moved on & suggest you do the same,, doing the LARGE jobs out in the Hampton's (as you indicated not being able to do work elsewhere) Then you don't need my small repair/replacement. Good Luck to you & your company

We hired Ed and his crew to install a patio, stoop, and fire pit in our backyard and we know we hired the right guys for the job. From start to finish it was a pleasure working with Ed. All the guys worked super fast and efficient while producing a safe, sturdy, beautiful product that we know will last us a long time. Ed and his crew are exceptional artisans and we are beyond pleased with the final product. You can't put a price on the peace of mind that you know the work is being done correctly and that's what you get when you work with Ed. We are looking forward to working with them in the future!

We found General Brick Design and Ed through Angie’s List. Our house was dealt a bit of blow when we discovered our home had significant foundation damage and structural issues. I started my search for a contractor on Angie’s List and General Brick popped up first. I wasn’t sure they could repair what we would need done so I started reading the reviews. Most every review on this list is a short essay on why you should hire Ed and his crew and this review won’t be any different. One review below mentioned that this contractor has now set the bar so high for contractors and I couldn’t agree more. So here is our story. One Friday not too long ago, we have a home inspection and find out its bad, like real bad. Saturday, after drowning our sorrows I start researching contractors determined to get this done. Sent an email and within about 2-3 hours Ed was on the phone with me. I explained what the issue appeared to be and he gave me his background. He was on his way home for the day and offered to stop by and give his opinion. By hour 4 Ed was in our basement showing us around and explaining what he preliminarily thought could be wrong. By Sunday, Ed had called us back with a price and a scope of work. I am fortunate that I work for civil engineers and architects and have related expertise at my disposal. I took the scope of work and had someone I trust, review the work to be done. The scope of work was very clear as to what needed to be done and in my colleague’s opinion was that it was a solid way of fixing this type of issue and the price was very fair for the level of work. Armed with some reassurance and knowledge on just what it all meant, Ed came by Tuesday to give us another tour of exactly what he was going to do and explain everything. Being in a similar field, I had a bunch of questions and Ed took the time to answer every single one. We were lucky he had an available slot in July and put a deposit down. I just didn’t see the point in finding anyone else because Ed has such superior knowledge on this work there just wasn’t any point in my opinion of looking elsewhere. So at this point it has been 4 days that Ed has been in our lives. By the following Saturday (exactly 1 week) Ed called to tell us that he knew we were under a bit of a time crunch and rearranged his schedule to start the work that Monday. The work went so smoothly. The guys showed up on time and ready to work. It was neat to see all the progress being made each day. We weren’t quite ready for the work to start thinking we had a few more weeks and really didn’t have the basement super clear. The crew moved everything to the side themselves and even moved it back when the work was done. Part of the work required the deck to be removed and they did that too and even put it back nicer than it looked before. They even replaced a bored or two in the deck that needed it. I mean who does that!? Ed showed up with extra people on a few days just to make sure the work would get done in a timely manner. Ed worked along side the crew for our job and of course was onsite each day all day. They finished the whole job in 4 days and the work looks absolutely amazing. Our house feels so solid feels so safe. I had no idea it needed this work, but glad we ended up doing it. Everyday he would wait for my husband to get home and explain everything that was done that day and give him the run down. Needless to say a bunch of my engineer friends at work want his number for some of their projects after showing them his brick work. Honestly temped to throw him some money to get on his schedule to do something next summer…anything I don’t even know what. Don’t hesitate. Just give the man the money. You won’t regret it.

We found Eddie Costanzo when we decided to upgrade our driveway, walkway and stoop with pavers. With his testing gear and extensive knowledge, he found that we have too much water under our driveway and moisture was getting around our foundation which would structurally compromise our house and become more critical. He took as much time as needed to explain what was happening and what was needed for the job. You won't find a better person or mason/engineer then Eddie. He really does care about making the job better and what is best for the customer. Even though our job took a while before it can start, it was worth the wait. Eddie was on the job every day to make sure everything was done perfectly and that our job was his only focus. He made himself available to answer any questions we had and always took his time to make sure we were happy. He proposed several alterations as the job progressed. He and his crew are top notch and they worked in sync and responsibly handled all aspects of the job. They even found that I was missing a footing with a corner of my house due to the amount of moisture. I am convinced that if I hired any other contractor, they would not have been able to find it. They were able to fix the issue and without charging extra. Eddie and his team worked extremely hard and exceeded our expectations. I would recommend General Brick Designs for any masonry job. I have already asked him to get an estimate for a new driveway over at my sister’s house. They are true master masons and can tackle any job. I have no doubt that the work they did will last for many years to come and you can trust that he will make sure the job is done right with his 10-year warranty.

Ed was very professional, worked with us even though we are out of state, scheduled job and then moved it ahead and was done quickly. From pictures it looks like a job well done!

Eddie was wonderful from start to finish. He explained the scope of work with great detail and made our house a priority. We had major foundation issues and our house was basically about to collapse. This is a very stressful situation for any homeowner but Eddie's knowledge and 40 years experience eased our minds. He made himself available to answer any questions we had and always took his time to make sure we were happy. The job was done in a timely manner with professional expertise. During the job, Eddie made sure everything was done perfectly. His team worked extremely hard and exceeded our expectations. As homeowners for 30 years, I have never felt more secure and confident in Eddie's ability to fix our home. I definitely recommend Eddie for any phase of masonry job. He was very neat, organized, and went above and beyond our expectations. We would absolutely hire again!!! General Brick Design is a great company run by a great guy and awesome team. They are true master masons and can tackle any job. YOU ROCK EDDIE!

We like the estimate, which would need to be negotiated. We liked that Eddie would be on-site for the work as he's very friendly and would pay attention to the details.

My house was quickly sinking on one side, I had hired another company which charged me a lot of money to repair the foundation which turned out to be, at best, "band-aid" work. The house continued to sink after they were done. I then hired Ed Costanzo to do the job before my house collapsed. Although Ed had other jobs before me, he made the time to work on my house ASAP. Mr. Costanzo came in and thoroughly took care of the situation making sure the house would be structurally sound and stabilized. He went out of his way to explain the process to me so I could understand and feel safe about the process as well as being inside the house while the work was being done. Ed's team of workers were very clean working..professional masons as well...and Ed was "hands-on" at the site most of the time. Now that the work is completed, I want to offer this honest review. . The house has not shifted or sank any deeper, no new cracks in the walls since the job was completed. I feel relieved that the house is good, and that I was able to find the right guy who is an experienced structural engineer and mason who is also a very clean, ultra-perfectionistic, thorough, honest, genuinely concerned, fair business owner. He's "That Guy" you want fixing your foundation and masonry jobs. He's familiar with the town code and is resourceful in his work connections. Mr. Costanzo went above and beyond to beautify my crawl space by cementing cracks in walls and reinforcing old support systems in place as well as was kind enough to patch my neighbor's concrete walk for free. Ed also installed a gorgeous patio... and cobblestone/gravel driveway. After the work was done Ed called to check up a few times to make sure I did not have any current issues or questions about the house and to be sure his work addressed all original and secondary concerns well after all was completed. On a personal note, I cannot brag about this guy and his company enough. I feel I was Blessed to find him and he's an Earth Angel that came just in the nick of time before my house collapsed. Unfortunately I had not hired Ed Costanzo first, and so I lost money with the original contractor (Killpatrick Construction) who.. byer beware... only wanted cash for his work. But, I did get the job done and it was done thoroughly and rightly by Ed Costanzo! Who came with a contract, and only accepted checks and provided receipts.. all above board. I hope you will consider him before you hire anyone else. He's a good guy and he does exceptional work... Worth Every Penny!

I can't say enough about Eddie Costanzo. I had foundation issues in my basement. I purchased the house a month ago. The support walls and some of my support beams had been compromised by previous owners. Part of my basement also had dirt walls. When Ed first came to my house he had a devise that determines the density of the soil; which enabled him to know where there were gaps in the foundation. He explained to me what my structural foundation issues were, and what he would do. He also told me which issues should be addressed immediately, and which issues can wait awhile longer. Halfway through the process, he determined that one corner of my basement was missing the footing for the foundation; in other words, nothing was supporting the wall. He knew I was cost conscious on the project, as I had numerous other repairs made in the home and spent the night determining all the options I had. The next day he explained to me the most cost effective option. Along the way, he also determined an excess amount of moisture on the other side of the wall they were erecting alongside the dirt wall. He added many layers of waterproofing to ensure no leakage would ever occur in the future. He also added a lot of rebar to ensure support. Not only did this make my foundation very structurally sound, the masonry work, angles/ level planes, and overall quality of the work was top notch; it could not have been done any better. He added a nice concrete platform for my washer and dryer. I am convinced that if I hired any other contractor, they would not have been able to determine that I was missing a footing. If that part of the wall would have caved in, it would have compromised the entire structure of the house and would have ruined any other repair work made. Also, this wall was right next to the burner and oil tank. I had other contractors state that I would have to have the oil tank moved before they would be able to do any repair work. One contractor said I even needed to get an engineers report before he could do anything. Eddie truly cares about doing a good job and what is best for the customer. In this day and age of people trying to bill as high a price as possible, it is truly a rare thing to find someone that is in the business for quality repair work, rather than just for the money. I was quite impressed with the work that was done, I thought I had entered the wrong house. By the time you finish viewing what he has done, you are going to want to hug him. He is the best, the Holmes of Holmes of Long Island. I will always hire him and his crew, they are magicians.