The Excavators LLC

My wife and I are Sellers in a real property transaction on the West Slope. Eric LaRue provided prompt, informed advice about sewer line inspections. The buyers' real estate agent obtained a scope and then prepared a report claiming $4500 was required to dig out and replace part of the sewer line. We sent the video scope to Eric for independent evaluation. First he analyzed their film to determine that a tree root which caused a 'failed inspection' did not clog the pipe. Next he evaluated the lay of our private line with the City's main segment, and explained a method for entering the City main to take a better look at the roots' location. Eric counseled us on how best to approach the City Public Works department to get them involved. A rigorous inspection by the City showed the tree root was in their pipe, not the homeowner segment. Further, the root was diminished in size compared to claims made by Buyers' agent, and posed no obstruction. Eric's calm, fact-finding approach helped us fend off a faulty inspection report. His knowledge of sewer scopes, pipe materials, and how older lines are conjoined is superb. Not every job will result in such a quick or favorable outcome. But I trust Eric LaRue to figure out what's needed to solve sewer problems -- whether "the issue" is above or below ground.

It's your worst nightmare, right? Having the pipe replaced from your home to the city line? Never fear, the Excavators are here. Eric's company delivered supreme customer service; on time with all of the equipment and staff, job done efficiently, cleanup done perfectly and NO EXCUSES, NO DELAYS. He communicated with me throughout the process, addressing all of my questions. They even identified a problem with the City of Portland water line and called them in to take care of it pronto. I'm not sure I can say replacing a sewer pipe is a pleasant experience, but it certainly was painless.

Shortly after our home sewage-disposal system failed, we requested bids from several contractors to fix the problem. We chose The Excavators because of the company's excellent reputation, as indicated by former clients. Our house, situated on a low hillside, was serviced by a 60-foot-long, outdated "Orangeburg" sewer pipeline that was installed in 1962 when the house was built. This pipe joined a larger pipe that extended for several more feet under the sidewalk in front of our house, eventually connecting to Clean Water Services' main line located in the street. Initial camera footage of our 60-foot-long pipe indicated that it was highly deteriorated in several places, including places where it had been compressed to a point where it was nearly blocked. At least one place along the pipe appeared to be breached. Camera footage also revealed that the larger pipe was blocked with various sorts of debris, including root fragments, pieces of concrete, soil and solid household wastes. The work performed by the contractor was outstanding. As promised, the contractor completed nearly all of the work within five days. An additional day or two was spent cleaning up the site and restoring relatively small areas of our yard that had been damaged by equipment, all of which was unavoidable. Replacement of new pipe was accomplished using a technique that didn't require trenching. The sidewalk, which had to be removed to gain access to the larger pipe, was replaced. Subsequent inspections by Washington County and Clean Water Services approved all of the finished work. Throughout the project, the contractor kept us well-informed about scheduling and work progress. We are extremely pleased with the completed work and would certainly hire The Excavators should we ever require the company's expertise.

Called numerous times and never returned calls. Very frustrating.

Great. Priced as agreed and punctual.

Great job and great communications.

The Excavators LLC came in after another plumbing company unsuccessfully tried to fix the problem. They were able to determine what the problem was and it was really significant. The problem was really complicated but they told us what was needed and were super helpful and supportive every step of the way. We had to have the street closed off, involvement with the City, major digging - and it got done with minimal hassle. They were outstanding and we are forever grateful.

Eric was able to determine that a very costly sewage pipe block extended farther than was originally identified, he was able to get City workers to come out within an hour, discuss how the problem might have come about, and in the end the City will be fixing the problem the next business day. We were so relieved by Eric's being readily available to help us and his expertise in solving the problem.

Very Well! The Company exhibits a good work ethic

How often can you say "wonderful " his team even saved our underground sprinkler systems!

Never went. Made appt. for a Tuesday to survey project, Eric never called to cancel nor did he show up. Left a message again for him on Thursday, no response. Called him again on Monday and he was here in about three hours. Surveyed project and said he would send me a quote. It is now three weeks and no quote.

Eric was very timely for a bid and when we contracted with him he did his work on time, on budget and very thoroughly considering this was for a Real estate transaction!

See above. Couldn't have gone much better. Except if it hadn't rained and gotten so muddy!

Eric was very punctual and professional. He scoped the home's sewer lines and created a video.

Although it took a while to get the project off-of the ground, both Gary and Eric asked a lot of questions and made smart suggestions of how to prep the site to build a new garage/workshop. Once they started working, everything went smoothly and the job came in on budget with no surprises. Their quote was the only one that included all of the required tasks for this job, including the excavation, hauling the dirt and old wall away, brining in the fill, building the walls and installing the dry well, and it was also the cheapest.

Thanks to his resourcefulness in contacting the City, it was discovered to be the city's responsibility! That was super awesome and I will definitely use Eric in the future. Really appreciated his approach and desire to make sure it was done by the book.

Eric provided a detailed bid that included all the specifics that we asked for, including removal of debris, compaction, and other site-specific requests. We were really specific, and Eric was really accommodating, never getting frustrated with how particular we were. Eric definitely understands the idea of customer service, and will bend over backward to ensure the job gets done to his own high standards. There were a few dings in some of the surrounding landscape, but Eric made sure everything was "reset" to the way it was when they showed up. Eric's crew was punctual, and worked through a very hot week to get the job done. Eric's reviews of their progress was thorough and he made sure they stayed on task. This was no easy task considering the access to the backyard, but the team provided professional service, were great communicators, and made sure we were happy with the outcome before taking final payment for the job.

The owner provided a complete and professional quote and delivered on the time frame, despite very cold and inclement weather. Everyone who was onsite was very nice and professional. He subbed a plumber to to the interior work and that part of the project was well coordinated. The plumbing company he used was also top notch and I have subsequently used them for additional plumbing projects.

We are highly satisfied with the service Eric LaRue has provided on two separate occasions. We hired him to scope the sewer line at two older homes we had made offers on. He was prompt and professional. The sewer clean outs were not easy to find but Eric did not give up. We watched the camera scope via a laptop screen while Eric described what we were seeing. He explained the type of line , probable age and condition. We received a thumb drive of the scope with narrative. A written report was received via email. If we find we need a future consult and/or repair work, we will not hesitate to hire Eric LaRue of The Excavators.

Gary came out on the same day I phoned. We had a leaky sewer line and I was anxious to get the work done. Other companies were unresponsive and he had a good recommendation so we went with him. He performed the work to our satisfaction a few weeks later. I would also note that when a problem developed - this was an underground sewer line and a sinkhole developed - his company came out the day after I called and filled in the area.

They will gladly take your money to fix something that's not broken! We called on The Excavators to give an estimate after the following: We got the Portland Bureau of Transportation/Maintenance Operations to come do a dye test where our sidewalk had been slowly sinking over a 4 yr period. The city confirmed a leak, but not whether it was on their side (beyond curb) or ours (inside curb line). So, The Excavators came with their NON- HDTV equipment & marked the property in a few places that corresponded with what. their equipment showed of active water in the sewer line from our home into the street. I was then given their estimate of $6,550.00. I made a few more calls & brought in a highly recommended sewer scope specialist who charged just $100 to show me on HDTV equipment that our line from home to street was new & undamaged. After viewing the HDTV scope, the city found the leak on their side far too negligible to repair. Honesty saved us $6,450.00!

This is a family owned business. At first I had a slow time getting a quote out Gary, the dad, but Eric, his son, was the one who came and summed up the job and I felt comfortable with him from the get-go. He was the most thorough of all the bidders in sizing up the job. His quote was in line with the other bids I had which may seem high for the work done, but given our situation, it was reasonable, and more importantly, I felt I was in good hands. The scheduling of this job was complicated first by the fact that my neighbor hired another crew that to do his portion of the work, but once on the job their low bid began ballooning before they even started, so my neighbor ended up canceling their contract and going with Excavators and now that the job required more time, Gary and Eric had to shuffle another job ahead of us, but even then, most of the delays were due to the poor quote from my neighbor's first hire. Then, because we needed to coordinate this job with more work on our house, we asked Excavators to be present at a pre-construction meeting at our house with our other contractors, and Gary came to that. The other contractor's on our job both mentioned to me later that they were impressed with the knowledge that Gary had. Once Eric and his crew were on the job, everything went very efficiently and professionally. I documented everything with photos and they didn't seem to have any issues with that; I even got a group photo of the crew! I cannot express enough how nice these guys were, how professional, and how knowledgeable. The only bad thing I can say about this experience is that after nearly a week on our job (neighbor's and mine), I feel like I have lost some friends! And with their professionalism and expertise, I feel certain I will never need to hire them again, so let me suggest you not waste any more time and just HIRE these guys to do your work.

Eric was wonderful! He was very responsive and professional. He originally quoted me $150.00 to camera our sewer line. He came out hoping to use his new camera to do the scope but it had not arrived yet so he told me it would only be $75 to do the work. Then, while he was at our house, he got a call that his new camera had arrived and he asked if it was okay if his co-worker brought it to him so that he could try it out and said he would do the work for free. I said this would be no problem. He and his co-worker used the new camera and then gave me the video and discussed the results. Eric stated that he felt that the issue we were having with roots in our line originated in the manhole, which was the city's responsibility to maintain. He gave me the phone number to call and asked him to let me know what the city said. He did not even want to give me a bid for the repair job because he felt the city should take care of the issue. I contacted the city maintenance staff and they came out right away and assessed that the issue was their responsibility. Eric was kind and knowledgeable and saved us thousands of dollars! We highly recommend his services.

I had a sewer line that was continually backing up . After getting two estimates from a "Rooter" company and then another Angies list provider I fortunately called Eric to give me a third estimate. He came and took a look at the previous companies video inspection and gave me an estimate for $850 and said he could come the next day. Eric arrived right on time on the agreed upon morning and didn't stop for the donuts and coffee we provided. He and his helper Anthony got right to work. He used his video camera to scope the sewer to double check the problem and then began to hand dig access the broken concrete sewer later pipe (this is the pipe that carries waste from your house to the city sewer system) They were careful to pile the dirt on a piece of plywood. After a couple of hours of hand digging the old broken concrete pipe was exposed and it was clear where the failure causing the sewer backup occurred. They repaired the section of concrete pipe with new plastic drain pipe and covered of the section all before noon that day. Total professional, friendly and very skilled and honest company. Based on my experience I would STRONGLY recommend Eric for any excavation or sewer repair work he is the best!!!file://localhost/Users/daltonhobbs/Desktop/P1030498.JPGfile://localhost/Users/daltonhobbs/Desktop/P1030501.JPGfile://localhost/Users/daltonhobbs/Desktop/P1030500.JPG

His team was very professional and courteous. The job was done quickly and the clean up was good.