NV Waterproofing & Foundation Repair

I live in a 100 year-old home with an old crawl-space that has been dug out for a little more standing space (with a retaining wall) to fit modern things like the water heater, sump-pump, furnace, etc.. There is periodically some slight water on the floor and there was a small fissure/crack in the foundation wall. I had gotten a home inspection when I bought the place a few years ago and no concerns were identified, but I have been thinking recently that its better safe then sorry -- hence, my call to NV Waterproofing. They were able to accommodate my crazy schedule and send out a rep on somewhat short notice. The rep (Bruce Finnley) was great. He called ahead to let me know his ETA, and when he arrived he was very pleasant, professional, and thorough. He answered all of my questions and put my mind at ease. His recommendation was that I didn't need any work done by them, but he gave me some pointers on how to best ensure that my basement and foundation stay in good form. Overall, I was very pleased by the fact that Mr Finnley didnt try to sell me things I didn't need, but he still took the time to answer all of my questions and to explain what to look for in future which might indicate need for a re-check.

Michael came by the house and gave me a recommendation and estimate on what it would take to guarantee that my basement wouldn't flood. He was very knowledgeable and professional with his quote. He had recommended widening my drain and installing a french drain as a surefire way to fix the problem. However, he did say that if I don't decide to install the additional french drain and only go with widening the drain, he recommended that I go with a plumber instead. That helped solidify that he was giving an honest opinion an estimate of the work to be done. I ended up deciding to do the work, at first, but after having a weekend to think about it, I was reconsidering my decision since in the past I also wanted a patio done and decided to kill two birds with one stone. I had put down a $1100 deposit and since I cancelled the job within three business days, they refunded me my deposit, no questions asked. It was relieving to see that I didn't have to jump through any hoops to cancel after I had changed my mind. I will definitely reach out to them in the future if I need other drainage solutions but at this point I decided to forego the drain solution and see if I can fix it with building a patio instead.

Michael Hahn came to my house to give us an estimate on fixing two cracks in our foundation and other leaks. He arrived on time, was very professional, and wrote up the proposal at our house prior to leaving. Most of the other contractors told me that they will send me an email with the proposal. After a month, I am still waiting for those emails. Therefore, I was very happy to see how professional and accurate Michael Hahn was in his proposal. We had a couple of questions later and called Michael Hahn. He always responded immediately. The office at NV Waterproofing also called back to see if we had any questions. They have immediate response and follow-through. I was very impressed with both Michael Hahn and NV Waterproofing. Thank you!

Called them on June 1st and they were very courteous and professional. They scheduled an appointment on June 3rd to come inspect the area in the yard where we were having drainage issues. The gentlemen who showed up was a late by a few hours. Once he arrived he was professional and definitely knowledgeable. They had a minimum charge of $3,000 even though the work would have resulted in something less; we ended up going with another group who didn't have a minimum and therefore it only cost us $1800.

NV Waterproofing successfully solved a leakage problem in the rear section of my basement around 9 years ago so when I encountered water leaking into my storage room in the front of the basement this summer, I immediately called them for an appraisal and solution. Jim McCabe arrived at the promised time, did an inspection, and concluded that I would not need the extensive work (French drain, sump pump, etc.) that had been necessary in the earlier work. He explained that the solution would be better handled by a landscaping company and listed exactly what a landscaper needed to do to solve the problem. As in the past, NV Waterproofing was extremely honest in handling my situation and did not try to convince me to do something that was unnecessary. I knew beforehand that they would react this way because that was the experience that I had with them in the past. Back then, they were the only honest and only reasonably priced organization doing this type of work - at least among the few that I had called for estimates and appraisals. I strongly recommend them to anyone in need of the services they provide. One cannot go wrong with them or with Jim McCabe. They are definitely not your usual "run of the mill" waterproofing company but one of the most exceptional companies I have ever dealt with ---- and this includes every type of home service company.

They actually had to come out two or three times to get everything correctly installed, but they lived up to their guarantee and got us taken care of without upcharging for the extra visits.

Bruce came to look at our basement to see if we needed additional waterproofing - we have an existing French drain and sump pump. He was on time and professional, nice to our dog, and patiently answered any questions I had. He said we did not need work done at this time. I appreciated his honesty and the fact that he didn't try to "sell" us a product we didn't need.

Jim arrived promptly and spent time with us walking around the yard, discussing our concerns and making suggestions for how to solve water issues that were eroding the foundation of our house. He clearly knew his subject well and offered excellent advice. We live on the lower end of a hilly street, where water regularly flows into our yard headed for our back yard stream. Jim prepared an estimate and provided a detailed illustration of how his company would resolve our drainage problem. We decided to use a landscaping company to address our water issue because of other work that needed to be done in our yard.

We had talked to other companies about the crawl space and removing the existing old nasty insulation and cleaning up some efflorescence and then replacing the insulation. The tech that came for the estimate upon seeing the crawl space told us he had bad news. We thought that meant the space was is very bad shape.... but no. He told us he could not help us -- not because it was so bad but because the crawl space was in good shape. He explained that although NV Waterproofing does in fact encapsulate crawl spaces, ours was not in need of it. He spent the next 20-30 minutes answering our questions and helping us understand what we should do. He said we needed to actually get the joists and floor boards sealed with spray foam insulation, but NV didn't do that. He was incredibly patient and helpful in answering our questions. If we have any need for their services in the future we will be more than happy to give them a call.

The job went extremely well - the technical advisor (Bruce) and service advisor (Roberto) were both punctual, professional, and well-versed in their trade. Jane who worked at scheduling and answering general questions was always extremely pleasant, responsive, and professional as well. The crew that showed up was punctual, professional, and fast. The foreman explained everything thoroughly and made sure that we were comfortable with and understood each step in the process before moving forward. At the end of the day, everything turned out great and the team did a fantastic job.

No work performed.

Although they put up plastic barriers inside the house, a considerable amount of concrete dust filled the house and central air system. All installations appear to be working well.

Bruce F., the person whom I meet first, seem to be a nice, personable and professional. My experience with him was excellent! The work was managed by a person other than Bruce and the manager in charge (Roberto) showed up ones and never followed up again. The crew were late on the second day and he never bothered to keep me up-to-date as a project manager. He seem to be a dis-engaged manager. The crew were just hard working individuals and tried to be very courteous and understanding.

Horrible. I picked this company based on the reviews and am overall disappointed. Not disappointed in the product, but the customer service and finish work. I had made arrangements for access from back fence neighbor's, as due to the slope of my yard, they could not bring in the backhoe through my yard. It was a one time in and one time out. This was clearly communicated to their crew supervisor, but not made clear to the work crew. They continued to use this access until I caught them a couple days later. And didn't seem that concerned, but their English was so limited it was possible they did not understand. Even when discussing my concerns with the owner, there was an attitude of "they use access from other yards all the time". May be true, but they don't have to live in the neighborhood, so I think they should follow the job owner's guidance. When they finished the job, they just came and picked up their equipment on a Saturday while I was out. No "Job is done, do you have any questions/concerns?" I would have loved to discuss the mud pit that was left in my yard. The fact that my exterior pump has a long extension cord running to the outdoor outlet that was not even concealed. The yard was not even finish graded. Granted I did not pay for fill to be brought in, but they left pits where the backhoe had sat. And there are pieces of concrete slab that they were supposed to have removed, all over the yard. Again, a phone call to the owner with not much success. For the amount of money I paid, I would have liked to have had a visit from the crew chief at closing of the job. And if you have called the owner on no less than 3 occasions for issues, a visit from him would have been appropriate as well. I know I have more waterproofing to do in my old house. This job was just the first step. They lost a lot of potential return business by poor customer service.

AFTER applying the 10% Angie's List discount, NV was the lowest price and the solution that worked best. Jim McCabe, the estimator also said they could do it about three weeks after I signed the contract. Then, when I signed the contract, I was told six weeks or more... when I told Jayne that the three week window was one reason I chose them, they worked with me to find an earlier day - in fact it did occur in less than 3 weeks. John and his crew of two more workers were neat and amazingly polite. They did the interior work the first day and the exterior work the second day - hand digging the exterior french drain on the hottest day in September (about 95F and humid). The work looks fine. They left it fairly neat as well Today's 1.5 inch thunderstorm reminded me to write this review. Prior to now, such a storm would always leave a seepage puddle in our basement, and standing water in the low spots in our backyard. Today, neither problem occurred. Peering into the sump pump well, I can see the french drain pipe is wet, which means it is working in capturing the water rise and keeping it from seeping into the basement.

When the work was initially performed, they were surprised to see a construction defect that was somewhat unusual and indicated surprise that the construction had passed inspection. We had already learned by that point that it had not passed inspection since the work had been done by a previous owner through a contractor who did not pull proper permits. Because of the problem, the made a few modifications including installation of a deeper well and larger sump pump than usual. Also, we had a furnace installed in the corner of the property, and to save us the cost of removing and reinstalling the furnace (which would have been about $3000), they decided (with our approval) to trench around the front of the furnace saying that, at some future time when we were ready to replace the furnace, we could coordinate with them to come back between removal of the old system and installation of the new system, and they would trench behind that corner at no additional charge to us. Prior to the work, we had water in that section of the basement with every storm. After the work, we have had no water at all, and we know the sump pump has been doing its job because it was originally draining through a pipe into the yard. They were not able to connect it to the drainage system because there were problems with that as well (which we also knew about), but did it in a way so that it could be tied in when we eventually did that work. Later, we had the drainage system repaired, and the people who did that were easily able to connect the output of the sump pump to the drainage system. But the big surprise came 18 months later when it came time to replace the furnace. I called them up, reminded them of their promise, and they said they would make good on it. Back in July, I arranged with them that we would have the work done in October when it was pretty mild and things were slower for the furnace people. October came along, and we had the old system removed on a Wednesday, and NV waterproofing came back on Thursday and spent 2.5 hours trenching out and filing in the eight feet needed to get back to that corner. They did this without charging us, just like they said. I have to say that I have been quite pleased with the work and with all my interactions with their staff and their office, and I was quite pleasantly surprised to be able to call them 18 months after the original work and have them make good on a verbal promise to come back and fix something up without any additional charge. The original job of trenching around the furnace was actually okay in that we had no issues with water at all, but when presented with the opportunity to do it the best way, they were quite cooperative. This gives me confidence that they stand by their work and their word.

If you 1) are comfortable with NV Waterproofing deciding the location of your basement sump pump without calling you and 2) have intimate knowledge of your county's inspection processes... use NV. But if you are a homeowner expecting that a company will ask you where you would like a 16 in. hole dropped in your basement and have passed a contractor's test including the details of county permitting and inspections, then hire them. To begin, NV was within the price ranges of the three quotes I received. About $4,500 to dig a trench along one wall, install a channel drain for a door, and drain it all into a sump pump. Why did I want this done? I am refinishing 3/4 of my basement and wanted to ensure the basement was waterproof before putting $75,000 investment into it. Waterproofing was the first step. NV's proposal included plans without the location of the sump pump detailed, only detailed the location of the trench and channel drain. Instead, the contract included this language: "sump pump location to be decided on the day of install." Words that would haunt me. They arrived on time on the agreed upon day of install (note that we had to wait weeks until they were free and they had sent the original proposal to the wrong email address). I had specifically asked if I needed to be there for the install and they said no. I received a call mid-day asking for confirmation of the location of the channel drain. I instructed NV to put the channel drain where it was drawn up in the plans because I am refinishing my basement (which they knew based on previous discussions and also one of the contractors we were considering using reach out to them as well.) But on that call, there was no discussion or questions about the location of the sump pump. I had no idea how long it would take them to complete the job. I came home to a finished job with the sump pump located--not near the HVAC drain--not near the utility sink--not near the washer or dryer in the part of the basement that was going to be unfinished. It was placed where I intended to place a bar area. To be clear, NV never saw my basement plans. But... they knew I was finishing it. And when asked, "Why did you place it there?" I received no reason why it needed to be placed where it was. And we were told "90% to 95% of people don't care where we place it" Why no call when the contract states: "sump pump location to be determined on day of install?" I was told because NV puts that language in the contract for laborers discretion to place the sump pump in the best location for drainage. If they put the exact location in the contract, and they can't reach the homeowner if it needs to be moved to an alternative location, this could delay the project. But this didn't seem to be the rationale in my case. They had no reason why it was placed where it was. So I can only assume, it was easiest. What to do? After it took me nearly a week to finally get to the owner to resolve the issue, he arrived at our house with the sales person to layout the following options. 1) leave it and we should design around it 2) move the sump a few inches, raise the bar area up 4 to 6 inches than the rest of the basement and cover it up with a panel (~$200) 3) move it to where we had always wanted it, near HVAC drain, etc. (~$2,400). As a favor, they would do option #3 at a reduced cost, reusing the materials and charging us a reduced labor cost. Only $2,400, not $4,500. So, in total, it would cost us $6,900, as we would pay for the original work and then pay to fix it. NV pushed responsibility on me for not showing them the basement plans. NV stated "It wasn't their fault for not asking me where to put the sump pump. If it really mattered that much where they put it, than why didn't we tell them" Remember - I have a contract that states "to be determined on day of install". We decided to get the job done by NV. It would have delayed my basement remodel to go with another company and would have cost me ~$4,500. Remember, I was still on the hook for their original contract. And we are working parents without the time or energy for a legal path. But the story isn't over... Independent of any information from NV, we learned you need a permit for sump pumps and they need to be inspected. We were told that they always tell customers that the homeowner, not NV, are responsible for inspections. Can you believe it! They never indicated anything of the sort! So before signing a new contract we asked NV to add language "payment contingent on passing inspection." When we got the contract, we didn't take much notice that they had included our inspection language but added "or by 30 days". The laborers came on time the next day. I walked them through the location of the sump pump which "wouldn't be a problem in the unfinished area." (I wonder why it was a problem before.) And I signed the contract. Later that day, my wife calls me. I told her that the guys were finishing up and the location was correct. The job looked good. Then she dropped the bomb, that the job couldn't be inspected. "Why?" She said, "Because the county must inspect the trench before it is covered up." They had already poured the concrete over the trench! There was no way the county could inspect the job! Awesome. They never communicated with me about the location of the sump pump, charged me to move it, and then made it impossible for the job to be inspected.

Punctual arrival. Explained the process; however, the estimate was strictly hand-written with only and did not provide exact details of the procedure, the type of sump pump being sold, or the scope of the work, which WAS provided on the three other estimates we received. Did not use -- went with another service contractor for around the same cost.

From my initial contact and beyond job completion I was totally impressed with their professionalism and attention to detail. My home was treated as if it were their own. My basement has never looked better and I no longer worry about potential water damage. The work crew and supervisor worked hard and long to do the job correctly. Prep work con trolled the dust generated in such a job. I am very pleased that I went with NV Waterproofing and give them my highest rating.

They did not show up and did not call. I called their office and they said they would contact their staff. I received no call from the staff.

The provider was very knowledgeable and although he was not able to pinpoint the reason for the seepage (it had stopped before he got there.) he was able to rule some out some possibilities for me. What I most appreciated about him is, he didn't try to sell me any type of drainage system or foundation sealant. He clearly explained the possible issues and solutions. Because it is an intermittent problem, he explained what to look for if it happened again. He also told me different tests that we could do ourselves to try and diagnose the issue. He didn't charge me anything for the visit and gave me a good starting point to start working from. If we need any kind of basement waterproofing in the future, I will definitely call them back.

Overall it went very well - there was a small "hiccup" with regards to placement of the outtake of water - it was originally to be incorporated into the drainage with the existing gutter downspout but the person performing the excavation discovered a leak (thank goodness!!!) and it was switched to drain out the side of the yard. My original concern with the side drainage was spillage over into my neighbors yard but after all was said and done, my worries were allayed as the system comes out about 10 feet and the way it is set up there is no way it can spill over into my neighbor's yard unless it rains for 40 days and 40 nights. The sump pump was installed because during heavy downpours the water in my driveway has no where to go except into the garage due to a slight incline of the driveway towards the garage. it rained heavily the other night and for the first time I was not worried - I checked the garage the following morning and it was dry as a whistle.

So far, so good. The project is still in progress, but they are professional and we are very pleased so far.

I would use this company in the future. They were very professional and courteous with a lot of experience. Their price was reasonable as well.

The team arrived on time and installed the sump pump and drainpipe to the outside plus the vapor barrier in one day. We were concerned about the location of the pump and talked with NV about that. NV offered to put in a pipe drain from the center of the crawl space to the sump pump if it there was any problem with water in the space after the pump installation. In April 2014, there was such a problem and after working with NV, they came out and installed a pipe drain from the center of the space to the sump pump at no additional charge to us. Their follow-up team arrived on time and spent a good 6 hours working on the pipe drain, all at no additional cost to us. Everything is now very satisfactory. I am very pleased with the responsiveness and customer service of NV waterproofing and would recommend them to others looking for these type of services