JES Foundation Repair

I was impressed with JES from the moment the first rep came to my house. He went out and looked at and photographed the problem area and discussed possible fixes and we set up a timeline to do the work. It was a ways out but I did not need to be in a hurry. They came at the prescribed time and went to work and got the deck leveled. During that process, they noticed that the northeast corner of the house had sunk and that was what generated the deck problem. We decided on push piers for a fix. The push piers were a bit harder as a lot of the digging was under the deck and they had to fight the elements as well. In fact, after the piers were in place it took a while before the holes could be refilled as the piles of dirt had all frozen solid. Once the weather broke, they returned and the job was completed. This outfit was very responsive whenever I called and I would not hesitate to use them again or recommend them to someone else.

Chris, Jack and Lance did a great job. I was a top notch pest asking all kinds of questions. They are very patient and understanding. I could not have asked for anything more. They were kind, professional and polite. Each day they cleaned up. I could not have asked for more.

It went really well. Chris Tesi was really great in explaining what needed to be done. He also gave me a reasonable estimate. My house is built on a concrete slab and I guess the builder didn't pack the soil well enough so the house started to settle and sink resulting in a cracked slab that you could see when pulling up the carpet on the lowest level in the house. Then when the forman/construction guys, T.J. King and Cortez showed up, they did a great job of finding all the areas that needed to be drilled and filled. They filled the voids underneath the house with polyurethane foam fill in order to stop the house from sinking further, and raise the slab back to its original position/level where possible. They even filled and patched the concrete porch in front of the house. They also took care to put all the carpet back. I highly recommend this team.

After agreeing on work to be done work was scheduled .Work crew called before arriving and arrived on time.Tarps were used to put soil on that came for holes that were dug which was appreciated.Work crew was very friendly and professional in doing their job.During the work that was done I checked on things several times and asked several questions that they did not hesitate to answer and explain what was being done. Once all work was completed they explained to me everything they did and we checked the job site to make sure everything was cleaned up,they did an excellent job on the clean up. I would recommend JES to anyone looking for this type of work.

The work overall was good work. It didn't come perfectly, but rectified well. First, I want to state, that even with these issues, these guys come with a good recommendation. They did very fine work. There were a couple of things against these guys at the start of the project. Against my better judgment I agreed to a Winter/Feb date, thinking it would be a bad idea if snow or other conditions didn't allow for a decent job. And just like Murphy's perfect law, the work was during the coldest week in history with temps around 8 to 12 degrees. But they still started. Due to that cold, my yard looks like a cross between Mars and a landfill. I have sunken holes, rocky clay dirt unevenly fill back in, and dead vines where the dirt was placed. They said that they will come back and normalize it though. Communication was a struggle. My house is vacant and I was having this done before moving in, so I wasn't on site during the work. So the main reason for the job, was to straighten a leaning column at the corner of a house. The other underpins (total of 5) were additional to that initial reason for the job. They did the underpinning, but never attempted to straighten the column, so they had to make a second visit and dig up the area for the column again to gain access. The actual work went very well, though. It was simply mis-communication. Here is a bullet point summary, to save writing: * It was miserably freezing, and they still did the work. Boy, I feel that really workers cannot take their time and do a great job if weather conditions don't allow a person to function well. Their hands would have to freeze in a matter of minutes, especially working with steel and concrete. It was truly commendable, but made a terrible issue with the yard at thaw time. But they are re-visiting to repair (a date has not established at the time of this writing). * They made a second visit to complete the work that was mis-communicated. It was during a warm (yet wet) April week. They were extremely accommodating, very helpful, and did an excellent job with the correction of the leaning brick pillar. Overall still an excellent job. As I said, I'm still waiting for the fill-in and normalization of the areas that were dug up, but that is only because of weather. It's been too wet and the marine clay dirt turns to slimy awful mud. When it dries a little, they will be back. Sales folks are sales folks, and all sales folks will try to sell you what they can... but my rep for JES was smart, evaluated things well, didn't go overboard on "over-selling". He would like to see me have more pins under the home (obviously), but didn't push too hard understanding my budget. The neighborhood I'm in has used these guys (JES) at several places, and they all appear to be very pleased and recommend them, as well. So, the neighborhood of homes are satisfied, the work they did for me was great, and they are not your typical slimy, sales-snakes that I've experienced with other basement, waterproofing, and foundation companies... I would absolutely recommend.

Chris was very knowledgable in all aspects of the brick, foundation and drainage. He indicated that the crack was not an immediate concern, but to keep an eye on it. He said the vapor barrier in the crawlspace was ripped in places and I could repair myself. He did recommend a SilverGlo insulation be installed on the crawlspace walls and explained why. He also recommended a sump pump installation and a foundation drain leading away from the house. A second company offered to do the foundation drain at a cheaper price (JES does have a price match), but could do it within 3 days, where JES was looking at 30 days and I wanted to get it done.. I will be calling JES back if brick situation worsens and/or if I decide to insulate crawlspace walls.

They are good and professional. They got the job done in about 2 days. They came and did the job when they were able to.

The crew was extremely professional. They went through the house and listened to any and all concerns and then promptly went to work. The inspector went from room to room communicating to the crew under the house giving detailed instructions on what to do with each jack. I was very impressed with how thorough they were going through the house inspecting for any damages. The guys even fixed my front door. Really great job.

The job was a two day project and they completed it in the timeframe they had projected. They arrived right on time. They took a lot of care in yard. They provided their own generator to support the power for all of the tools they had used. At the end of the job, they had to come into my house for the leveling. They were very careful not to track anything in. Everything went exactly as they had described. Their pricing was comparable to what I had researched. They even honored a discount by paying with cash on time. The job went very well overall

We are completely satisfied with them. They were prompt. They were on time, very professional and did a great job. We are just very pleased overall with everything.

The evaluation phase went exceptional well, Chris gave me a complete report on the conditions he found and answered all my questions. He and I reviewed a contract together to accomplish the work required to correct the problems noted. I felt the cost was in line to meet my needs and was a true value. A date to accomplish the work was set. I received a reminder call the day before the work was to begin and all was in order. The team headed by Scotty arrived at the appointed time and started to work after checking in with me.The team members were technically competent, productive in the work agenda and cleaned up behind themselves. They removed all the falling insulation, wrapped all my foundation pillars, removed and smoothed out the ground, placed insulation around the entire outside foundation walls - then covered the ground with a high grade plastic. They completed the project with the installation of a new crawler space entry door called a turtle. They lastly installed a electric dehumidifier unit to maintain a appropriate moisture level. When done the team leader checked in with me and showed me pictures of what it looked like under my house. Due a lower back injury I had experienced, my wife and Scotty crawled under the house to check out the finished work. It was letter perfect in line with the initial contracts requirements. On a scale of 1 to 10, I'ed give this job a score of 12.7 - it was that good! All my expectations were by far exceeded!!

Instead of redoing the foundation, they only patched it. The wood was also not flush with the wall, so they filled those spots with a foam spray. Animals could still get in with this foam. They also destroyed my tile and some furniture. I would have moved the furniture out if they would have asked. I feel that I was taken advantage of because of my age. They gave me $500 back, but I do not feel like that is enough. I would not recommend them at all.

Initial evaluation and visit was very through and answered questions. Called as promised the next week to follow-up with quote, however the technician was sick and had to cancel the visit at the last minute. Rescheduled the following week. Estimate was as expected. We were also going to do Flood vents in the house and decided to do only the garage as we would be changing elevations in the yard/crawlspace which would impact FEMA compliance. Let us know we should get a call in about a week to schedule days for work. About a week later the Admin assistant called and scheduled two days, Day one to remove the current failed pier, and also place the foundations. The second day to place the support smart jacks, and also sister a beam. The workers were scheduled to show up about noon, but called at 1pm to say they were running late. They showed up about 2-3pm to do the work. They brought extra help and still completed close to the expected time. The second day they showed up as scheduled and completed the work. There is noticeable difference in "solidness" of the floor in that area, and the gaps in the trim/floor are essentially closed. The flood vents in the garage, they had a concern due to height above ground and compliance with FEMA requirements. Since we would be changing, they suggested not completing that work and waiting until we finish with the yard landscaping when we know the final elevations. They removed that work, and redid the bill to charge for the foundation work only. We plan to have them back to do the Flood Vent work once we finalize the yard and crawlspace elevations.

We were told it was going to take a week to two weeks and it went into months. The actual workers were really pretty good, but trying to call the company and get a phone call back was really difficult and very frustrating. They were very expensive too.

In early March, I noticed the plastic sheathing in my crawlspace had started to deteriorate and causing some dampness to the ground. I contacted JES for an estimate for replacement. Within several days Mr Bryan McRae contacted me for an inspection and estimate. He arrived on the scheduled date and time and we discussed estimations for 3 options: 1) replacement of existing sheathing, 2) encapsulation and sealing of the crawlspace, and 3) encapsulation and installation of the "Cleanspace" system which included the addition of a dehumidifier and several sump pumps. He then conducted the inspection and took numerous pictures of the existing condition. He also took humidity measurements. The pictures were revealing in that there was some initial start of undermining of an area of the foundation and at one of the foundation piers. I decided to go for #3, the complete encapsulation and Cleanspace. He also stated that as part of the work, the undermining would be backfilled with tile fill. I received a call within a few days with a work schedule date within 2 weeks. I informed the JES receptionist that the initial date was going to conflict with a previous commitment and that I would prefer a later date. I received a call within a week with a new date that was satisfactory with me. The crew arrived on the date and within 5 minutes of the indicated time. The crew foreman discussed the procedure the crew would use for the repair and was polite enough to request a suitable area for them to have the material (gravel, crushed tile and material) delivered. The foreman stated that the work would take 3 working days but in actual fact they were able to complete it in 2 when an additional crew was brought in. He also kept me completely informed as to the progress of the work and kept the work area around the house and trucks clean and neat. The schedule of contractors such as the material delivery and electrical contractors (to wire in the dehumidifier and sump pumps) appeared to be well coordinated. When the job was completed, the foreman and I went under the house and he described all the work that was performed and took the time with me to discuss the workings of the mechanicals. I was very impressed with the professionalism of all the JES personnel from the estimator (Mr McRae) to the foreman, crew and phone receptionist. They were respectful of my property and performed the work as described. The foreman also repaired a hole in my foundation that was put in by a plumber to run piping and never filled in. With the experience I had with this company and the work that they performed, I would highly recommend them for crawlspce work to anybody and would use them again if needed.

The support beam was installed well. Our bouncy floor is now firm. The JES Smart Jack system looks very sharp (if you care, because of course it's in the crawlspace) and it does exactly what it was advertised to do. Our new sump pump is awesome. It's keeping our basement dry, which I never thought would happen (because who has a basement in Norfolk? Our house is 100 feet from a marsh, and we have a basement. Crazy). Thanks JES for leaving us with a sturdier and drier house!

The company's estimator came out within two days of my inquiry and was very thorough in explaining how the work would be performed by their company and the methods other companies used. I obtained one other estimate which was similar in price to JES but they did not offer any discounts - so I used JES and saved $500. I received a phone call 2 days after I signed the contract scheduling my work. The men who performed the work (Armando and his assistant) were most professional and meticulous in every detail. They protected the surrounding area and thoroughly cleaned my property before leaving. The stabilization they put into place I am sure will prevent any future problems and they were able to raise my chimney back into place. They tamped all the dirt removed to prevent any settling problems then put in a layer of bed rock, followed by 5000 lb concrete. I couldn't be happier with my whole JES experience and most highly recommend them for any chimney stabilization / raising work.

great they installed sump pump and added rock , leveled off underneath house and created drain system to help drain water out of crawl space and still make it blend in as much as possible on the outside of the house. they were very professional and completed the work in a timely manner

Gave us an estimate for our foundation which was WAY over what was needed. We hired our own structural engineer and JES wanted to charge us $18K more than we needed. Estimated Cost: $30000.00

The person who came to do our estimate was late and clearly in a hurry to leave. He did take photos and gave a rough estimate to put a girder from end to end to support the center of our home. While completing the inspection, he did not however go under our addition. We discussed the addition while I was telling him about my concerns. I was unaware he did not do a full inspection until we had another company come out for a second opinion. The other company discovered the brickwork under the addition was crumbling and it is also in need of girders to provide additional support. I appreciate it was late in the day and it was around the holidays so he probably had something to do but this is my home and the consultation was not for a cosmetic overhaul it was to make it safe and keep it from eventually falling in on itself (his words). If I had just taken him on his word that he did a comprehensive inspection and hired them, my home would still not be repaired or safe. That is completely unacceptable. I did not hire them nor would I ever, I would attempt the repair myself first.

The sale person came out to see me, and I have not seen him since. The house is now settling in a different direction but I can’t find anyone to come out and do something about it. I think it was a complete waste of money.There was no engineer on site doing the work.

Charles Hartz was the first man to come inspect the crawl space. He altered hours for our convenience and was prompt, clean, and professional. Service was arranged and performed on time so we could sell our house as planned. All workers were professional, nut Charles Hartz was our main point of contact and was extremely helpful and nice to deal with. He is highly recommended.

Hands down the shadiest company I have ever dealt with in my life. They gave me the original quote around $11,000.00 and when it came time to sit down and sign the contract, the quote jumped to over $22,000.00. At no point did the salesman "inspector" talk about encapsulation, but when it came time to sign the contract it magically showed up. The "inspector" went from inspecting mode to straight salesman in a blink of an eye. After reluctantly signing the contract, I later changed my mind and wanted to deduct services from the original contract, the inspector then made multiple appointments with me to bring the changed contract over for my signature, but neglected to show up to all three rescheduled appointments. TOTAL LACK OF PROFESSIONALISM. After being blown off for three straight appointments, I then terminated my contract with JES. On top of all that, their management told me that they weren't going to give me the discount that is offered through Angie's list because the inspector was already giving me a "discount" and that "discount" was more then Angie's list discount. Nowhere on any paper work did it display any discount of any kind. Like I said, shady at best. Not sure how this company is still in existence, you would think that this companies lack of professionalism and dishonesty would have caught up to them by now. I would assume that JES is more focused on the bottom line and making money, more than it is worried about taking care of its customers. No worries, I took my money to AMC Foundation repair. - David

The Sales Consultant seemed pretty professional and reassured me that my structural foundation concerns were not so dire as to need correction at this point. As for the sump pump situation, I wanted to install a permanent pumping system so that I could evacuate during Coastal Storm events rather than worrying about pumping water to prevent damage to my hot water heater, heating/AC unit, washer/dryer, etc. I explained that with my "pool-type" pump, I could keep the water level down to about 5 to 7 inches, but that it required me to check it regularly, and sometime flush out the pump to keep it running. The Sales Consultant recommended the Triple Safe Sump Pump which has a main pump, a backup pump (in case the main pump fails), and a battery-operated third pump (for if my power should go out during a storm.) This sounded pretty good to me, however, I was concerned that the entry point for water on the top lid of the pump was only a small plastic grate and reminded him (pointing over the Chesapeake Bay Horizon), that white water does surrounds my house, and seeps into the garage during Coastal Storms. So, I asked "But what if this gets clogged like my pool-pump sometimes does?" He said that if I was really worried about that I could "always take the lid completely off, but that I really wouldn't have to". Well, I figured he's the consultant, so, I agreed to have the Triple Safe Pump installed. On the day of installation, the JES Quality Control Manager called me to say that he was sending out a couple of his best technicians, but that if I had any concerns or questions, I could give him a call. The technicians were friendly, and seemed knowledgeable and hard working - however, their skills in speaking English made it difficult for me to get answers to some of my questions about pump operation. And the electrician that JES arranged do the electrical part of the installation didn?t come that day, so there was no way I could test the system. But, after the electrician came, I did call the Quality Manager back and asked him if he could come over to look at the installation and answer questions I had ? particularly the positioning of the pumps, since once installed, I had new questions about how this system would actually work (i.e how much water would have to be in my garage before the pump kicked in? And what if that little drain did get clogged - COULD I take the lid off without compromising pump operation? Are the new electrical plugs safe being so low and close to the pump discharge lines, etc?) Well, the Quality Manger sent me another Technician a few days later, rather than come himself. This technician was EXCELLENT. He was clearly experienced with this type of work, and the type of flooding conditions I experience here at the edge of the Bay. Although he was initially reluctant to admit that i really needed a trench dug to collect the volume of flooding I receive directly from the Bay, (rather than from rain/saturated ground) he did validate my concerns. He also agreed to demonstrate how the pump works - which is when we realized that the plastic cover put on the end of the drain line was not only not secured (creating a fountain in my front yard), but also that the fountain - even at ground-level would quickly pool my driveway and cause water to back up into my garage. This Tech didn't know the code requirements for the electrical plug installation that JES subcontracted for, but could "see my point" when the brochure says that outside water can spit in around the discharge pipes, and noting that the electrical outlet was not only a foot or two lower than any other electrical outlet or switch in my garage - but it was right next to the (potentially water-spitting) discharge lines that were drilled by JES into my concrete exterior wall. This Tech agreed to go back to JES and explain the situation, along with his recommendations for what needed to be done to meet my pump drainage needs, as well as to explain electrical concerns. A few days later, he returned to put the proper cover on the end of the drain line to divert pumped water out to the road. However, he said he recommended a six-foot trench-line be put in to collect garage floor water and feed it into the pump by an underground pipe (something the Triple Safe Pump Brochure describes as a benefit of the pump's design...) But, he explained that, so far, he was not authorized to do it. So after I didn't hear from the Quality Mgr for several weeks, I wrote him and the Operations Manager a long letter - with photo and video attachments to demonstrate the type of flooding conditions I experience, and pointing out, that after thoroughly reading the pump brochures, I learned that the electrical requirements for the Triple Safe Pump called for the installation of TWO separate electrical lines so the 2nd pump could kick in if the first one failed, and /or if the circuit for the 1st pump got tripped. The Quality Manager did finally come after that. I offered to hire (AND PAY FOR) my own electrician to put in the 2nd line and move the plugs high enough to likely meet Code. In exchange, I asked that he would put in a 6-foot (or so) trench line and the side-of-pump entry pipe - shown in the pump brochure - that would collect the type of surface water that causes most of my flooding. Well, the Quality Manager just couldn't agree to putting in even a small trench and hooking it to the pump, but he did say he would have the electrician come out to move the electrical plugs up higher and to install the required second line. So, I waited and JES started billing me, and billing me. It wasn't until they sent me a Christmas Card with the "kindest wishes of laughter and joy" that I wanted to know if these people are REAL PEOPLE, and what their address is so that I could tell them about the TRUE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS! and tell them how much time, energy, anguish and stress I'd been thorough for over 4 months... what GALL they had to be threatening me with collections when I had verbally agreed to accept the corrections the Quality Mgr said he'd make (BUT NEVER DID), with the understanding that if I wanted a trench, I'd have to find and PAY someone else to put it in for me. Finally, the electrician came, but he hadn't been told to add the second line (rather just to move the plug up to an acceptable height. So, he moved it up, but then he also had to re-schedule and come again. A new salesman showed up the last time they came and he gave me an estimate of over $3,000 to install 63 feet of trench to address my concerns that the 'airtight lid and plastic drain" on top of the pump were, in fact, supposed to remain "airtight" during a flood. Anyway, the NEW Sales Consultant, wouldn't give me a price for a 6-foot trench, and told me that even the 63 foot trench would only give me "moderate" protection. Ugh!! I told these guys that I don't need "the perfectly dry basement" - I JUST WANT THEIR $3,600 pump to keep my water level down to 5 inches for any storm event short of a direct-hit hurricane. Anyway, I paid them for what they did, and will NEVER call them for anything again. I did rate JES with a "C" for Quality - ONLY because of the quality service I received from the one JES Technician that was HONEST with me, and who tried to advocate on my behalf for JES to install even a small trench and feeder line so that the $3600 pump they sold me would actually work under the type of flooding conditions that I experience.

Great done according to schedule, finished job looked exactly like the photos all of the employees were extremely proffessional. Shorty was one of the best foremen I have ever worked with.