Groundworks

RE: Initial Inspection - Mr. Howard Glancy, the inspector who came out for the initial appointment, was very thorough in explaining the issue with the foundation, pointing out multiple cracks and areas where the foundation of the house was "sliding" downward on one side. It was a very detailed inspection and the appointment was a long one, but necessary so that we could understand the problem and what was needed to repair it.

I requested an inspection and quote for my driveway concrete repair and Derek Olsen came to our appointment in time, he explained about the company and how the process works, did a thorough inspection inside and outside my house, provided good feedback and provided me the quote. Overall, great experience and will decide soon on how to move forward with their service.

Ramon, Philly, and Josh did an incredible job executing the planned repairs to posts in my sub floor and installing piers outside the house. Ramon was SUPER communicative and responsive, gave reasonable timeline expectations that he met or exceeded, and provided clear explanations for what he and his crew were doing. Ramon checked in with me at different points in the installation to give me the chance to see the work in progress, point out factors impacting the installation process (e.g., removal of tree roots), and did a thorough walkthrough afterwards and provided me with the post-work elevations for documentation. Wore shoe coverings in the house and laid out work paper to avoid tracking dust/dirt. Ramon also pointed out that they did not end up needing to do some work that was in the original estimate and so put in a change order to reduce my invoice / get a refund. OVERALL: Glad this team was working on my house. Communicative, responsive, clear, honest.

Do not sign a contract with this company until an independent structural engineer reviews your home. I have cracking in a basement foundation wall, with a sinking driveway on the other side of that wall. Groundworks sent a salesperson, not a structural engineer. The salesperson barely examined the driveway or the crack. Instead, he measured with a laser level from the level to the ceiling, part of which was finished and part unfinished (it's a basement). From that, he concluded my house had sunk an inch and a half, on one side only. Yet I have no cracks anywhere else, my windows and doors all operate correctly, and there are no other signs of sinking. When I asked about this, he said it had likely been hidden over the years by patched drywall and shimmed doors. Strange that someone would do all that work but not simply drywall over the foundation crack. It seemed absurd.

This is the worst experience I've ever had with a guy coming out to give me an estimate. I had 2 other companies come out to look at my situation so I kind of had an idea of what's going on. This guy made no attempt to diagnose my problem, blames it on a heater in that location (which I know was not the issue based on the previous 2 estimates) and shoves a general foundation package with 5 year maintenance in my face for 10k. Asks if his quote is higher or lower than the others, and when I said much higher, he tells me to go with the other companies and walks out asking for a good review since he told the truth. The truth about what?