DFW LEAK DETECTION

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Ricky, first came out a few weeks after my initial call. He said he did a leak detection (I was not home) and he covered a small crack about an inch long in the skimmer opening with some cement filler. He sent me a $425 bill and said he hoped that fixed the problem. I was taken back by that comment so I decided to wait a few days before paying to see if what he did fixed the problem. Unfortunately the pool continued to leak. I called Ricky back a few days later to tell him the news and asked him to please hurry back because my pool sits on a hill and it had been leaking now for many weeks. At that time, Ricky told me that he thought it was leaking from a small crack in the bottom of my pool and that he would be back the following week but that never happened. For the next three weeks Ricky continued to tell me he would be back in a few days but every time no Ricky. Finally after 3 weeks after the initial visit, so 5 weeks after the initial phone call, with my pool continuing to leak, I had words with Ricky over the phone. Ricky then told me that he doesn't repair cracks in the plaster and that he was doing it only as a courtesy to me. I asked him why he never told me that before and of course he didn't have an answer and was upset because I was upset and hung up the phone. Stunned at his lack of professionalism.

In 2012, we re-plastered the pool and replaced the tiles. In summer 2013, it looked like we might have a leak. Our pool company recommended DFW Leak Detection. He came out and did a leak test for about $400. Nothing conclusive came out of it and no repairs were made. We continued to frequently add water to the pool. Things got worse. Our pool was in terrible shape during the summer of 2014, requiring a lot of water and chemicals and green most of the time due to adding water all the time and washing out the chemicals. We contacted DFW Leak Detection again. We agreed on a date for him to come out and repeat the leak test. He couldn't make it on the agreed-upon date. This was a pattern: we'd agree on a date, he almost never came on the day he said he would, and often came weeks later. Sometimes he would call, sometimes not. Nevertheless, he agreed there was a leak. He quoted $1800 to fix things (by phone; my mistake was not to get a written quote). He plastered over some cracks but that did not help. Then he decided that it was the wall fittings, which he said were not properly sealed back in when the pool was replastered. He fixed that, and sent me a bill of $2800, without ever telling me that the work would be more than he had initially quoted (or maybe he had forgotten the initial quote). For some reason during these repairs, he changed out the eyeballs in the spa. These did not fit, and water was rapidly draining out of the spa and into the alleyway. My pool company figured out the problem; Ricky denied changing out the eyeballs even though we had seen him changing them, and he left the old eyeballs by the side of the pool. He claimed a pipe had burst. My pool company changed the eyeballs back and the problem was fixed. Throughout this months-long ordeal, he told me he never has a lack of business because the ground is always shifting in this area and causing leaks. So I guess he doesn't care whether customers are happy with the service or not. In the end, he did fix the problem, but I will not use him again because: 1) it took so long; 2) required so many phone calls; 3) cost much more than was quoted; and 4) created a new problem that then my pool company had to fix.

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Rick, the owner, was rude and unprofessional. He failed to provide the service and when I refused to pay until he made the repair he filed a lawsuit . I paid 1400.00 him to get him out of my life and then spent another 1500.00 to find the leak and get it repaired. Not only did he not provide the service, but cursed and shouted at me on the phone when I refused to pay. If you choose to use DFW Leak Detection -- good luck!

O K I guess. I've never owned a pool before. I could not believe how many companies obviously don't care wether they get your business or not, and how many will tell you one thing and do another. Such as when they will show up and how much it will cost. DFW Leak detection does really great with price and work. It's the logistics they have a problem with. I really believe this is a one man show and has too many clients to care for. But, Rick,the owner, seams to be a really nice and caring guy. I haven't seen the final bill yet so I don't know if he stayed at his estimated cost.He did.

My first contact with Ricky was over the phone and he was very professional. He took the time to explain several aspects of pool leaks with me and even gave me some pointers to help try to find the leak myself. When I was unsuccessful, he quoted me $325 and said he would dive the pool to close off drains and make sure there were not multiple leaks. He said the whole process would take between 2 and 4 hours depending on the number of water features and other things he might encounter. When he showed up on the scheduled day, he found the leak within one hour and left. He only checked the return lines and when he found the leak he stopped. I probably should have said something but I was relieved that the leak was found and just wanted to get it repaired. He provided me with an estimate of between $225 and $600 to repair the leak. When I questioned the big gap in the estimate, he told me that since he can't see the leak until it is uncovered, he wasn't sure what he was getting into. Fair enough. I decided to dig a little myself to see if this was something I could tackle on my own. After a few minutes of digging, I found the cracked pipe and determined I was probably not going to be able to take care of it. I snapped a few pictures and sent them to Ricky and asked if they provided enough detail for him to provide a more specific quote. He responded and told me it would be $225 and looked relatively simple. I told him to go ahead and get it fixed as soon as possible and also asked him to let me know what day he would be there so I could make sure I was there. I decided to take the next day off work just in case they showed up. Sure enough, they arrived at about 10:15 without letting me know. They got to work quickly and came up with a plan for getting the leak repaired. The and quot;headand quot; guy was very popular that day and received several phone calls and was probably on the phone for 10 or 15 minutes. This didn't bother me too much as I had been quoted a firm price and they appeared to be making progress. I watched as they chipped out a little bit of the gunite to get better access to the fitting. After about 10 minutes of chipping, he had good access to the pipe and was able to start cutting and fitting the replacement pipe. He got it all glued up and they pressure tested it to make sure it was holding. From the time they showed up to the time they left, they were there about an hour and 15 minutes. I received a call from Ricky and he informed me that he would need an extra $75 since they had to chip into the gunite. Since I saw the whole process, I was furious. $75 for an extra 10 minutes of work is ridiculous. Besides, his laborer could have told me as soon as he arrived that it was going to require additional labor before he continued. When I protested, Ricky complained that I was an hour away from his shop and he had to cover fuel and insurance and whatever other excuse he had. The bottom line is that he should have told me before the work started that he was going to need more money to repair the pipe. Since I had already uncovered the pipe, his laborer knew exactly what he was getting into as soon as he arrived. Trying to get more money AFTER the job is complete a is unprofessional in my opinion. UPDATE - Ricky is now suing me in small claims court for $50.

DFW Leak Detection is not 'in our neighborhood', so heavy traffic that morning delayed the technician, but once he arrived he got to work and made good time. I was even able to make a scheduled appt. I had that morning.

The person who answered the phone and set up my appointment quoted me one price and the technician who did the work quoted a price that was $50 more. When I questioned this the technician apologized and contacted the office who refused to acknowledge that they had quoted me a lower price. The technician was very professional and nice to work with, the office was not. The guarantee on the compound to seal the pool is only good for les than a year. So I could end up spending the same amount next year on the same leak according to the technician.

He had come out when he said he would. It’s a small one-man business. He also delved into the pool to check for leaks. He found a leak in the skimmer and fixed it. He was very businesslike and did a great job. He was more reasonably priced than any others that I had checked out. I also got a warranty on the repair work that he did.

The secretary answered the phone and handled the scheduling. She was as helpful as Ricky, the man that took care of my job. I believe he was the owner also. He did a very good and advised me about the proper ongoing care of my pool and equipment.

They answered the phone professionally, explained what they would do and the price, and we made an appointment. They showed up early, performed their work, and cleaned up. I am very pleased with their work.