Hardscape Solution

The retaining wall was completed and really looks very nice. We were very satisfied with that portion of the job. The drainage pipe from the rear gutter however was only buried halfway to the rear of the yard and very shallow at that. The first rain storm we had after the work was completed and paid for created a real problem for us. The was pushed all the drainage stones to the surface and the flow of the water created hugh ruts in the sand. The sod could not be installed under these conditions. I called Mike Jeffers, the person who actually estimated the job, three times, leaving messages requesting a return call. Never received a call back from him. Then I started calling his partner Ben Forcucci at his office at least three more times, once from California, with the same results. On my last call to Mr. Forcucci I explained the sod installation was being held up for weeks because of this problem. I "begged" for a return call, again to no avail. In the end my wife and I ended up digging the trench out to the back yard and laying new drainage pipe which resolved the problem. It's too bad that what started out as a good relationship between a businessman and a homeowner, had to go sour because of the lack of professionalism to return a client's repeated calls.

Michael Jeffers, one of the co-owners, came out promptly after I contacted him. He was very nice, even gave me some suggestions and an estimate on the spot. He also handed me a catalog with pavers he recommended using. I vividly remember him poking the pavers of the walkway in front of the house (was already there when I bought the house) saying that was not quality work because some of the stones were moving and weeds were pocking through the cracks. He said they would do a much better job. He also said either him or the other co-owner would come out every day to supervise the work done by their crew. After I checked out the pavers in a nearby garden supply store, I decided to hire them and we agreed on a start date. Things started going downhill from there. Hardscape Solutions in fact outsourced the job to another crew which did not show up at the expected date. I was told that the machine used to remove the sod was broken. Many phone calls, messages and two weeks later a crew showed up. They removed the sod by digging it up in small and useless pieces with shovels and piled them up at the back of my property. It turned out that another, bigger and more important job came up, so they decided to delay my patio. The broken machine was just a lame excuse. The pavers sent to my house were the wrong (cheaper) type, and the crew had no idea about what needed to be done exactly. They did not even have a copy of the plans. To make a long story short, the execution and the workmanship was below my expectations. When the crew left and the patio was considered to be done, some of the stones were moving, especially around the edges, and the surface was uneven in some places. The surface of the patio looked worn off. The cracks between the pavers were supposed to be filled with polymer sand that supposedly rigidifies after treating it with water, so the weeds cannot grow there. That was not properly done: lots of gaps remained unfilled, or filled with the wrong type of sand that just came out when touched by a broom. One of the pavers used for the stairs was slightly shorter than the others. When I called Mike to let him know about the problems, he came out with his partner. Mike acted very angry and told me that the work was done perfectly well. At last, he had someone come out and replace the bad size stone because I refused to pay the total amount due until that was corrected. The very same piece of stone got dislodged less than a year later when I stepped on it one day. I feel lucky that I did not break my leg. I will have to find proper size stones to prop the edges of the stairs because the overhang is too deep, and I?m afraid more pieces can get dislodged by someone stepping on the edges. I was not satisfied neither with the management of the project, nor with the quality of the work or with the attitude of Mike Jeffers. I would not hire Hardscape Solutions again.

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We had the company tear up our old cement entryway to our home and install a new stamped concrete one. The job went fine and we were satisfied with the way it looked. It has since become very faded and has a large crack. I don't have an issue with this so much as the fact that no matter how many times I call, I don't get a response back. Over the past two summers, I have left messages about having it resealed and asking if it can be restained. I never got an answer and just gave up. This summer I have called 6 times!!!!!! Finally, Ben returned the call. He told me he would pass it on to Mike and he would get back to me. Here it is, three weeks later and no call. I wonder how people stay in business when they treat customers this way. I would NEVER use them again based on this. I feel like they might do a decent job, but you can't rely on them for help in the future.

Not good.

They left me with an awful situation. Whenever it rained I ended up with a huge pond of water on top of the patio. I had to attempt to correct the problem myself. I had to basically install a drainage system that I shouldn't have had to install. They never returned my calls or even attempt to correct the problem. They did a terrible job. They have the audacity to still send me advertisements. Unbelievable. Nightmare.

The project turned into a nightmare due to continual delays from Hardscape Solutions. We received multiple promises that they would show one week to the next. This continued on for over two months. Relations between the pool contractor and Hardscape deteriorated since the pool contractor kept having to reschedule his work. Eventually the delays became so unacceptable and appointments not kept that a second concrete contractor was hired to perform the "tear out." Hardscape agreed to reduce the price of the agreed upon contract by the amount the second contractor would charge for this part of the project. That contractor showed on time and performed the "tear out" in four hours. Difficulties then developed as to when Hardscape could perform the second part of the project, setting of the forms and pouring the concrete. A date was finally set and they came and installed the forms. The pour was suspended because the pool contractor (and the homeowner) did not find the set up for the forms acceptable. Rather than agreed upon four inches of concrete, the forms laid out around the pool had as little as two inches. Three feet of concrete around the entire pool produced disagreements about how they were measuring since it seemed about three inches less in many places. Other problems existed as well with the way the forms were laid out which would have caused problems with the stability of the pool according to the pool contractor. Hardscape eventually said they wanted to withdraw from the contract since their competence and professionalism was being questioned. They agreed to refund the deposit minus material costs and wave labor costs. The "tear out" concrete contractor agreed to take on the pouring portion of the project and that was completed within a week. A project that had dragged on for over two months due to Hardscape delays was completed within a couple of weeks once they were replaced. The quality of the work of the second concrete contractor and the pool contractor was excellent.

Havent' heard from them

They offered the best design and plan for us, the cost was reasonable compared to other estimates, and everything was done in one day. We are satisfied with the work.