It seems Sammy and his salesman have a reputation of selling a vision, and providing a sub-par…read morereality.
Keith, my wife and I did a walk through of the work we wanted quoted, which included: landscaping, retaining wall length, concrete driveway and patio block under the gazebo. $500 for a "professional" design and renderings, which by the way we've asked for several times and were only provided pics via text.
We were offered a "discount" of around $2300 as if they were doing us a favor. However, little did we know, after we signed the contract, the overall length of the retaining wall drastically shrunk. The $2000 budget for plants and shrubs, ended up resulting in several lavender plants, several small bushes, one of the four taller shrubs in the original design, several hostas, and a few hydrangeas.
Also, the overall footprint and design of the concrete driveway was also reduced. Then, the concrete driveway was poured early June. The first truck delivered around 9am, and then the second truck delivered approx. 30-40 min later. Meanwhile, the concrete from the first truck starter to cure, and I noticed them panicking because they hadn't properly troweled. They pulled the bull float back out. The end result was extremely sub-par, however, wasn't visible until 2-3 days later. Chatter marks all over, scuffs from the broom getting dragged over semi-dried concrete, just terrible.
Sam Refused to even come out and look at the final product, and his excuse was that he knew nothing about concrete and threw his concrete guy under the bus.
After a long texting disagreement, Sammy agreed to replace the concrete and asked for me to send him 2 estimates, and he would ask his concrete guy for 2 estimates.
The next day, his concrete guy called me and offered to skim coat the driveway using Euco-Re-Cover, however, couldn't guarantee anything. I said no. Sammy then called me, along with his concrete guy, and we proceeded to argue. Sam said the driveway was functional, and he refused to replace it because of aesthetics... They both also said pouring concrete would result in a 50/50 chance of the same sub-par result, which I know is B.S.!
I had an architect from Columbus, and a REAL, seasoned Concrete contractor from Columbus review the photos, and they advised that it was obvious the concrete began to cure and got away from them. Also, they advised that there could be two different concrete mixes because there's a drastic difference in color. Also, generally, a delay of up to 40 minutes between pours shouldn't result in a cold joint in the concrete. Both said they've replaced concrete in the past simply because of sub-par finishes.
Sammy finally told me that he'd send me a check back for the Full $ amount, minus the $200 for the stone base. Then he proceeded to get angry and say, so you get a free driveway out of this!?! I received the check 2 weeks later, and it was for $6000.00, which coincidentally is the max amount he would have to pay in small claims court.
MY OPINION...Sammy's constant unprofessional attitude, several snippy remarks and unwillingness to try and resolve any issues or concerns in a mature way poorly reflect on his business. Do a deep dive into SVL and come to your own conclusion before doing business with these guys.
