Madden Sewage & Drainage

Our back yard is the lowest spot on our block, which has no alleys. Shaun Madden suggested what I had already had in mind - a drain to direct pooled water to our sewer main. This required them to dig a trench from beside our garage to under our deck to run the pipe. A three-man crew took two days to do this. They got here promptly and got right to work, and worked until they were done. Since then it has sometimes been a bit of a challenge to contact someone with questions about the job, but we are happy with the work they did.

They showed up on time, explained clearly what we were seeing on the camera and provided us with a thumb drive of the sewer scope inspection upon completion. Easy to work with.

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The price was very bad for the time they spent, for the amount of time they spent.

Less money for the time spent.

unknown

Couldn't be happier. Had major basement flooding issues 2 years in a row with the "100 year storms". They converted our flood control to an overhead which led to us finding out what terrible ideas the previous owners had with the plumbing. They kept at it until it was solved and never asked for a payment or anything until we were happy. They ended up digging up parts of the basement a few times until it was mitigated. The next year, the next bad storm we had seepage, luckily before we finished the basement. At the time, we were getting our lawn/patio drainage fixed and Shaun worked around our plan to redo the yard and concrete and gave us a good deal on putting in drain tile over the winter and adding another pit just for that. The big storm on 6/30/2014 put it to the test and we didn't get a drop. Wouldn't consider calling anybody else and recommend them to all my neighbors that may have water issues.

It went great. I had 3 other companies come out and they couldn't find the problem. One company wanted to break up my floor and look for where the problem was. Another company completely misdiagnosed the problem. Madden found it quickly and explained why my basement flooded with sewage like it did. I could tell he knew what he was talking about. I gave Madden information to my neighbors who will also call them for flooding problems.  I learned that just using a camera doesn't mean the company will be able to find the problem and fix it. Like any profession, it takes the skill of the person looking at the film and interpreting it to find the problem.

Absolutely recommend Madden Sewer.  While there was a scary big (to me) price-tag on the work needed for the house I recently purchased, when all was said & done I came away feeling informed, involved in decision-making, and very happy with the large & complex amount of work done and importantly the quality end result.  Shaun Madden is knowledgeable, professional, and reasonable.  He spent a great deal of time with me walking me through the assessment of the current state (while together we watched the video snake on screen), and then going through and explaining all the potential options to address the myriad of water issues with the house.  Shaun went above & beyond and also (after all the basement work was done & he'd been paid in full) he even took the time to coordinate for an electrician to come to the property to add additional wiring/plugs so the new pumps wouldn't be connected via extension cord.  Definitely give Madden a call - good to support local business & you'll get high quality service.

After getting a bid and paying the initial deposit, requests to schedule an appointment went unanswered for a month due to vacations.  I repeatedly had to follow up.  The work done ended up being more complicated than expected and they had to remove a toilet to check the sewer line.  They didn't properly reseal the toilet and the basement had a sewer gas smell.  We called and the crew came back to fix promptly, but they knew that is wasn't done properly and would likely have to come back.  They should have just told us and scheduled a follow up rather than waiting for a call back about an issue.  Overall below average experience.  

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Efficient got the problem solved quickly

After he looked at the basement, the technician told my son who lives upstairs that he would have to knock out the baseboard, insulation, and drywall on one side of my basement, plus the tile, and also a section where the washer and dryer are located.  Also, I would have to pay for the repairs afterwards!  I had just spent a lot of money having my two flat renovated, and so I decided not to use this company.  I called the office and told them so.  The technician called me an hour later to explain and tell me the same thing he told my son, and also tried to tell me this job would cost $9000.  I feel this person was outrageous and trying to take advantage of me.  I called another company to get a second opinion, and they are able to accommodate me better.

I contacted Madden Sewer and several other providers.  Madden was one of the better priced quotes and was very responsive and willing to discuss the project up front.  However, our experience after they started the work was not great.  We were promised that the work would be done within 2 weeks, but the work lasted from April to September.  There were constant surprises and new things that needed to be done that we were not originally told would be part of the project.  Madden was not responsive to emails or phone calls at all and would take days or weeks to get back to us after having to call and/or email multiple times.  Madden promised they would come at one time, and so we made sure someone was home, and then they showed up at a completely different day and time (on multiple occasions).  When replacing the grass out front with sod, we had to make them come back to replace the neighbor's grass that they killed and they replaced it with sod that does not match the type of grass in his yard.  Madden rarely did work right the first time and I had to look over their work every night after I got home from work and come up with a list of everything they did wrong and email it to them so that they would come back and fix it the next time.  After most of the work was done we kept having flooding problems where the the sewer stacks run out through the wall and Madden had to keep coming back until the flooding was finally resolved - this seemed like something they could and should have just done right the first time.  We were frustrated and sick of having contractors in our basement for most of the year.  The only positive I can think of is that Madden did keep coming back until everything was fixed and did not request payment until we were happy with their work.

It went great.  Ontime, on budget and very professional staff.

unknown

His work was done in a thoroughly professional manner.  Workers arrived on time, dod a fantastic job. Cleaned up the area and most importantly Shaun was always available and communication was excellent.  I would use him again and highly recommend him to anyone needing work on their sewer.

Overall, it was a positive experience. Shaun did a great job explaining everything they would do and how it would solve our flooding problems.   We got everything going really quickly and he said his crew was ready to start as soon as the following week.  Unfortunately the Park Ridge permit process held things up for several weeks which was frustrating.  This was by no fault of Madden but communication could have been a bit better...several of my phone messages were not answered and I found myself following up a few times.  But at the end of the day, the job was completed well and at a fair price compared to other quotes we received.

I think they are on Angie's List.  I liked that they got the job done.  It wasn't as cheap as I liked but I don't have anything to compare the price to.  He gave me recommendations as to what I could do in the future too.

Our situation was an emergency as the sewer line was completely blocked.  They provided a estimate the day after our initial call and beat 3 others bidders on price.  They performed all the work that was required from start to finish quickly and cleanly.   Top notch service and repair.  Thanks Madden

Very responsive and professional and would not hesitate to use them again.

Madden was great. They started the work on time, kept us apprised of the work. And after digging the massive hole in the front yard, they put it all back together and no one would even know it's there.

Madden sent two technicians to provide us with an assessment of water damage found during the inspection for a potential home purchase.  They informed us in advance that a visual estimate could be given free of charge, but if they needed to run a  camera there would be a cost.  I told them immediately that we wanted to run the camera because we wanted a full assessment of the drainage system.
They found the source almost immediately with the camera - one of the drain pipes needs to be regraded because it is too flat and perhaps slightly tilted upward rather than running down to the city sewer pipe.  This meant water was just sitting in it, allowing seepage into the old brick foundation of the building.  Upon request, they ran the camera through two other locations to make sure there were no other issues and to check the state of the drain system in general.  
The entire time, the technicians allowed us (2 realtors, 1 seller, 2 potential buyers, and one general contractor - not a small crowd) to look over their shoulders and explained what they were seeing.  They also gave feedback and explanation as to what was found and made recommendations for future improvements without coming off as pushy or making the improvements seem like necessities.  As the potential buyers, this is exactly the information we were after in addition to finding the source of the water found during inspection.
They also did a visual inspection of a couple of locations of the building that were not designed to keep water out of the basement well.  While the technician was hesitant to give us an estimate because this final inspection was something that is typically done by another person in the company, he did agree to provide a ballpark figure so that we could have a number to work with in negotiation.
Madden provided us a solid quote for two things - the drain pipe regrading and one of the improvements.  They also provided us a ballpark estimate noting that it was worst-case scenario (based on our request)  for another two items that included waterproofing part of the foundation and installing a drain tile system and second sump pump.  The latter ballpark estimates were provided after explaining that we were looking for the numbers as a tool to start negotiations, as they typically do not like to provide quotes for items until they've been thoroughly assessed (as is typical for any business).
Overall, Madden was professional, thorough, and clearly knowledgeable.  They were also flexible to our needs, which was very important to us given the situation.

 UPDATE: We did use Madden for regrading the drain pipe.  They were prompt and efficient.  The work was completed in less than 1 day with several workers present.  My husband, who was a land development engineer for 7 years, periodically checked on their work.  From what he saw, he was pleased with the quality.  Given the new grading of the pipe, there should be no water sitting in the drain pipe.

I have used Madden in the past and have always been pleased with their work and prices. They have cleaned my sewer pipes several times and had previously replaced a section of sewer pipe. Over the last two years Madden had cleaned the sewer twice and they told me there was a bow in the pipe that would have to be addressed, but they were able to clear the pipe both times. The section of pipe that they were working on was the section leading to the toilet stack. Being the procrastinator that I am and also not wanting to spend $4000, I put it off. Late in March I started getting seepage from the basement floor whenever we would flush the toilet. If someone took a shower it was like a river in the basement. When Madden came out in April they attempted to clean out the pipe again but were unsuccessful. Using their camera they showed me that the sewer was blocked and the section of pipe that was sagging had gotten worse and would have to be removed. 
Madden was able to get a crew out the next morning to remove ten feet of sewer pipe and replace it. My toilet was functioning again by 3pm. When they broke through the concrete floor in the basement they found a lake under the floor. Water had not just been seeping out of the pipe but apparently flowing. They drained the water, removed and replaced the pipe and returned the next morning to close up the floor. The old pipe had been all two foot long sections, Madden used two 4-foot sections of pipe and a two footer which meant less joints.
When the two man crew was done they did an excellent job of cleaning their work area. They took all of the old pipe and debris with them and disposed of it. The guys were very nice and explained what they were doing throughout the process and also answered all of my stupid questions.
The people in the office were also very courteous and helpful. I felt that Madden Sewers was very generous in allowing me to pay half the total bill up front and the rest in two installments.
Considering that it was my procrastination that caused the urgency of the situation, Madden did an outstanding job from start to finish. 

Original quote to repair catch basin or fill in and divert connections was $3500.  Problem rose with this which required a small hole just inside the basement. They were clear, credible and professional. They brought in cameras and discovered the shattered pipe line---explaining the smell and moisture and other problems.  My general contractor happened to be there doing other work and validated their work and that they were working hard to keep costs for a major problem down.  They cleared their schedules and completed the job in 5 days.  They also reopened a drain in the floor that had been filled in.  They cleaned up well--having dug several large holes into the cement floor.  The project ended up at $8700.

I would recommend them.