Archer Contractors RPD Corp

Great company! Archer Contractors previously solved a difficult drainage problem and foundation leak so we called them back again. We had foundation problems and needed a new basement stairwell. The old stairwell was unusable, and basement walls were bowing. They proposed a new basement stairwell, a drainage system and foundation repairs. What really stands out with Archer is the quality of engineering and workmanship they put into their projects. Everything heavily reinforced and looked like industrial quality. Attention was tops. Pleasant crew left things neat start to finish. They even installed a new entry door and frame. The structural repairs have eased our concerns about the foundation. Several storms later and the drain functions perfectly, with not a drop of water in our home.

you get what you pay for! Dan provides great service and the work was performed on time and to the highest standards

Our rather large project went well and was done in a reasonable amount of time and as promised. Dan was thorough in diagnosing our situation and came up with a reasonable, well-designed plan to address it, complete with diagrams. To date there have been no lingering water issues whatsoever.

Very professional, higly recommended. It was a big job, accomplished exactly as described in the proposal-- clean, professional and solved a nagging basement water problem.

Totally satisfied with his work and professionalism

In life, generally one thing leads to another . . .  and so
begins this story.  It all started with mold which led to 
finding a contractor to fix the water entry before the inside work 
could be done.  Several estimates later, enter Dan of Archer 
Contractors.  Impressed from the start, I felt he summed up my needs 
quickly and accurately.  We signed the contract, waited for good weather 
and then the digging began. 

Dan is definitely not afraid of hard work or getting dirty.  He was 
present for most of the time, providing professional oversight of the 
hand dug excavation, nine feet down. According the crew, it was a 
particularly difficult job as the dirt was compacted and dry.  From my 
perspective, I was tired even thinking about it. 

Dan is easy to work with, flexible and amenable to change.  He politely 
listened to my 'non-professional' suggestion, acknowledged that 
it was a good idea and gently suggested another option - which 
obviously was better than my idea.  We went through 3 different 
revisions - gravel, bricks and cement slab - to come up with the 
best choice.  Note: If your job includes installation of membrane
(black goop), it is quite stinky.  I suggest you close up your house
before it is installed. 

For those of you considering a job like this, I'd like to share a bit 
about the emotional impact of seeing all the dirt and hard work that 
went into this project.  Dan tried to prepare me by saying that I would 
have a big pile of dirt in my backyard.  Oh yeah, I thought, it would be 
big.  The actual dirt pile (aka 'mountain of dirt') was far more 
shocking than I expected.  I was stunned to see the real life massive 
pile of dirt and despite their apparent fatigue, the willingness of the 
men to keep digging until the excavation was done.  The ground was
so hard in some places that they had to use a jack hammer. 

Results . . . I have a beautiful back yard now with water flowing in the 
right direction.  The best part is that my basement is watertight. 
Would I use Archer Contractors again?  Most definitely, but it's 
probably not likely as Dan and his crew did a great job of correcting my 
water issues.  Although they delivered what was promised and I paid for 
the work, I still feel grateful to all those individuals who made it 
happen.  Thanks Archer Contractors!  It was a pleasure working with you. 

Just a final note, Dan is sometimes a 'bit busy' with juggling many 
calls, texts, site visits and monitoring the weather.  If you find 
yourself wondering when he's going to get to your job (like me), do be 
patient.  He's worth the wait.  The actual work went quickly. Waiting 
for the proper day/weather was what took time. He also has a great sense
of humor which is useful when you are stressed, as in my case, about the
mess and the big smelly hole in your backyard. 

Final moisture meter testing indicates that the moisture issue in my
basement is resolved.  Thanks Dan!

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Dan came by, listened to what we wanted, walked the yard with us, and came up with a plan. I was pleased that we were able to discuss exactly what we wanted and options for getting it done.
The work was done ahead of schedule, and the crew did a great job. They even managed to save a tree that we thought was going to have to be cut down.  Even with several extended rainy days, where the storm drains are filled to overflowing, our yard has no standing water at all. We used to get puddles with even the lightest storm. I am very pleased with the service and the quality of the work. I will definitely use these guys again if the need ever arises.

After some serious flooding in our basement, we sought out some companies to fix the problem.  We selected Archer Contractors, and we could not be more pleased with our decision.  We were presented with a significantly less costly solution than a competing firm. 

The workers at Archer were extremely professional, efficient and neat.  In addition, the management was friendly, accessible, and very attuned to our needs and desires.

We have been waiting for a significant rainstorm before writing our review.  Gladly, we report that our basement is now completely dry.

We give Archer Contractors our unreserved endorsement.

Dan and I had met about a year ago when the spring/water problem began and he offered a lot of good advice. I declined on the work with the hope that it might go away. Not likely. It got worse over this past winter and then through the summer. I got Dan back on the phone and he came out within a few days. As suspected, the problem was worse now but he thoroughly scoped it out, gave me a proposal which was now almost twice the original price but for good reason. Part of the problem was that we had addressed the water issue about 7 years ago and that held for a time, but the contractor didn't use the proper materials and didn't do this type of work as his full time job.  Dan explained everything clearly to us, gave us a time frame for when the work would start (within 3 weeks), told us he would completely warranty his work for 2 years. He was out to start the work in about 2 weeks with a crew of 4. Ramone, his main on-site guy was very knowledgeable too. After the work got going, Dan called me to explain that after opening up the existing drainage system he wanted to modify his original plan which would in turn avoid cutting across my asphalt driveway. Sounded great to me. They were in and out in 3 days and then Dan came back 2 days following to walk through the finished project, explain all the work that was done and of course to pick up a check. The crew left everything in very good shape considering the amount of digging they did and the amount of earth they had to move around. We have no water issue now that I can detect and Dan seemed very confident that the issue "was solved" once and for all. I appreciated his confidence because this is way outside of my area of expertise. I can only judge based on the results.
My wife and I are extremely pleased with the work, their professionalism and without a doubt we would use Archer again.... but I hope I don't have to.
Thanks Dan, Ramone and all of your crew for a job well done!
Niel and Kathy Jefferson

A Great Experience!
Dan (of RPD CORP/Archer Contractors) came out to consult with me about my leaky basement and cracked walls.  Dan was knowledgeable, flexible, and easy to work with.  His understanding of drainage and structural problems gave me comfort in knowing that I have the right group for the project.  He quickly identified the problems and provided the solution.  The other 2 companies I had out just wanted to install sump pumps.  I?m glad I didn?t go that route, as the problem was outside.  Dan discovered an outside drainage problem and resulting structural issue. They installed a drainage system to control storm water, graded the land, and repaired my foundation.  Dan?s crew came out within 1 week, on schedule, and completed my project neatly in 3 days.  The crew was professional and efficient.  RPD/Archer?s plan solved my problem.  I was pleasantly surprised at how the property looked as though it wasn?t even touched after they finished.  It?s been a year since the work was completed and the basement is 100% dry, and the walls are intact, with no more musty smells. Problem solved - I highly recommend RPD/Archer Contractor!

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They were excellent!  They gave me an estimate for the recommended work that I needed done.  They were very thorough with the inspection and sat down and explained everything to me.

It was an Angie's List Big Deal that I purchased. It turned out very well.

It went ok , he provided the service described in the Big Deal

We were very close to starting our basement finishing project when we discovered that we were required to install an egress window in order to complete it. We were also on a time schedule due to the fact that we were expecting a baby, so after we carefully chose someone to finish the basement, we rushed into finding someone to install the egress window. We discovered that it is exremely difficult to find someone to install an egress window in our area (Northern Carroll County). We chose Archer because of the positive reviews, and because their other review of an egress window install on Angie's List made it sound like the work could be completed by them within a few days.
Dan came out to our house and took a look to give us an estimate on Feb 6. In hindsight, we realized that he did not take measurements or do anything other than look at the house. He stated that it would be a 2-day job. We expressed our desire to have the job done quickly and Dan stated that he thought he could get us scheduled and the work done within a week or two. We asked him if he would handle permits for us, and he said he would not (HUGE red flag in hindsight). He asked us to find a window well that we liked, and to pick out a window that we liked.
We received a quote from him 2 days later, which was satisfactory. On Feb 11, we responded to Dan via email that we wanted to move forward with the project. Included in the email were the details of the window well we wanted, and the details of the window that we were interested in and the cover that we wanted. Dan responded right away asking when we could meet to finalize, and we responded right away with our availability. We followed up with voice mails, but did not hear from Dan again for several more days (Feb 14), when he stated he would email us a contract. He finally emailed us a contract on Feb 19, over a week from the time that we said we wanted to move forward, even though he knew we were in a hurry to have the job done. Over the phone, he asked us to send the info about what window well we wanted (as stated above, we'd already sent it).
Feb 22, we returned the contract and stated again what window well we wanted, etc. We also sent him information about Carroll County Permits. Dan agreed to fill out the info for the permits, but not to take them to the county to actually obtain the permits. We expressed our concern that the permit process may take a while, and Dan sent us back a signed copy of the contract without any other information (about permits, etc). We did not hear from him again until we called him multiple times trying to find out when we could move on the project.
Finally, on Feb 28, a week after the contract was signed and 17 days after saying we wanted to start, we got information from Dan. He stated he was waiting to receive a down payment and that is why we hadn't heard from him (note: he never once tried to contact us and schedule anything, address our concerns about the project or tell us what he was waiting for during this time). He also informed us that he was expecting us to order the window well, window and cover. We were not aware that we were needing to take any action or order anything until this conversation, which could have occurred one or two weeks earlier. Instead, we had to rush the order and get it at the last minute so that Dan could start the project. 
Since we were starting to get annoyed with the delays, Dan got us a permit application and agreed to come out and dig the window well the next day (March 1). We took the permits to the county on March 1. When we did this, the drawing of the project was rejected by the county. It was supposed to show the header, etc, but Dan has given us a drawing of a rectangle with measurements on it. The county agreed to come out and inspect after the fact. Dan wanted to cut the foundation on March 1 as well, but this would have left a hole in our house over a weekend when a snowstorm was coming.
After the hole was dug (and the window, well and cover were on order), my husband was taking a look at it along with Dan, and Dan stated that for such a large well, we should have bought a larger window. After we had given Dan details of what we were looking for over and over again, it was a bit of shocker to hear him give us this advice AFTER we'd already ordered everything and started the project. We liked the window well (and it had been delivered), so we requested a larger window. Dan quoted us an additional $780 to cut a larger hole for a larger window (wow). When we balked at this cost, he agreed to install the larger window for $580 (labor only).
We had some questions about how Dan was planning to do the install, and it took from March 4 to March 6 for him to get back to us about anything. The larger window still had not been ordered. At this point, it had been a month since we first met Dan, and the basement finishing project was progressing to the point where the window needed to be there. We were finding that it was taking days to hear back from Dan, and we were unhappy with the method that Dan was using to frame the window (come to our house with a pre-made wooden frame and then cement that into the foundation rather than just framing the window out in the hole that was made). Since Dan's contract required us to give him 2/3 of the payment before work even started, we had already invested too much in this project to ditch it, but we began investigating other contractors who might be able to complete the project.
Once we expressed our frustration, Dan again scheduled us to move forward. I ordered the window on March 7, and paid extra to rush its delivery so that we could get moving as soon as possible. Once i found out when it would be delivered (March 14), I asked Dan if he could come out that day and do the install, since it had been so long. He was busy on another project and was unable to do the install "Maybe Monday or Tuesday" (the 18th or 19th). As of the evening of the 17th, Dan had not confirmed when he was coming to do the install. Since there was a snowstorm coming on the 18th, after we contacted him, he said that we was hoping to come on the 19th (note: he rarely if ever contacted us without us contacting him first to even find out simple things like when he's coming). Monday afternoon, he did contact us to tell us that we was shooting for Wednesday (again due to weather). Finally, he schedule the cutting for Friday, March 22. Dan let us know that he was using a different contractor to cut the foundation, and we agreed that this was fine as long as he was on site while the cutting was being done. He agreed.
The contractor came to cut on time on March 22. Dan was not on site for the cutting. The cutting contractor was VERY professional, and they made the first cut according to the measurements that Dan had drawn on the wall. The cutting contractor does not measure, they only do the cut based on the lines specified. After the first cut was made from the outside, we went down to check the cut and it was approximately 13 inches off of the lines drawn on the inside by our basement finishing contractor. Dan had incorrectly measured from the outside. When we called Dan to let him know that the cut was made in the wrong place (since he wasn't there), he became very upset and acted completely unprofessional, even insinuating that it was somehow our fault that the mistake was made. We had told him that the window did not need to be in the EXACT center of the room, but that meant 1-3 inches or so, NOT 13 inches. The window would have been completely lopsided in the room. It was becoming more and more apparent how little attention to detail Dan has.
Dan had his workers re-measure the lines for cutting. Of course, the hole had also been dug in the wrong spot (and was too small), so before more cutting could happen, the hole had to be re-dug and moved. Thankfully, the mistaken cut was in the center of where the window should be, so no patching would need to be done. New cuts were done in the correct place.
On Saturday the 23rd, Dan and his t

Dan and his crew were fantastic.  Dan came out in person to make a plan and go over it with us to be sure we knew exactly what was going to happen and why.  He addressed all of our concerns and really worked to make sure we were happy with what was going to be done.  We had to have a lot of work done close to the house and we discussed at length what to do about each plant (keep it, move it, trash it) and what would happen to each area (build it up, lower it, add a pipe).  Dan had a solution for everything we wanted to do, his response was always "we can do it this way" instead of "no, we don't do that."
When his guys came out, they really did a professional job.  They did the little things that show someone cares about what they are doing and aren't just trying to slap something together.  We had a small tree that was causing some issues and they went the extra mile to dig it up and transplant it even though the easy answer would have just been to cut it down.  They also used some of the extra dirt to fill in a hole in the backyard that wasn't involved in the drainage issue at all.  They did both of these things without adding extra charges.
Once the work was complete, Dan came out again and walked through everything with us, even throwing down some extra grass seed and touching up paint on the downspouts as we went.  These were things he just did himself because he wanted to make sure things were done right, we didn't ask for them.
I would definitely recommend Dan and Archer and I will call them again if we ever need anything else done.

It was an Angie's List Big Deal that I purchased. He was outstanding and excellent. He was on time and professional. He was very nice. He spent a lot of time and was very thorough. Unfortunately I can't afford to have the work done. I feel badly because he put in a lot of time. He was fantastic. He was very timely and accommodating. He was very comprehensive and thorough and I appreciated it. It was just a lot more than I could afford right now. He was excellent. The price was very fair for me. I don't know if it was fair for him because he spent a lot of time. I will definitely consider him if I have the work done. He came exactly when he said he would. He was very accommodating with the schedule.

Gave good advice.

When they came they covered all of the plants and brass fixtures to make sure they did not get sprayed.  They were diligent in making sure all the brick was coated with the waterproofing solution.  They spent time with me talking about what would be used, the guarantee period, and they gave me the website to read more about the product.  They also followed up after a storm to see if I had any water in my house.

Don't agree to a daily labor contract that does not guarantee results within a specified price limit.
Insist on a fixed-price contract with specified results.

I contacted Archer Contractors and worked with the owner, Dan Piper, to address work that was needed due to the grading of my backyard causing water to enter my basement during extreme storms. I'm very disappointed with the work that was performed. The re-grading and drainage system does the job of preventing water from entering the basement but overall the work was poor quality and the end result is an eye sore.
First, during excavation a dumpster was put on my newly paved driveway and damaged it. I didn't notice this until after the dumpster was removed and after I wrote the final check. Dan did attempt to address this and structurely it is sound, but it is fairly obvious cosmetically were the damage occurred. He offered no discount and wouldn't give me one since he said the problem was addressed.
Secondly, the sod was laid very poorly. I didn't really notice this right away since when I did walk on it Dan ensured me it would tighten up and fill in. This never occurred and now I feel like someone is going to break their ankle in my backyard since the ground is so rough and uneven. To make matters worse, about half the sod died within the year and now my backyard looks like a wasteland. After talking to other lawn care specialist, it was due to the top soil not being properly prepared. I did contact Dan the following year and he was supposed to come back and see what he could do with the lawn but he never did and never returns my calls.  I was hoping he would follow up with me before I wrote this review but it looks like he won't.
I would stay away from Archer Contractors. You may be swayed by Dan when you talk to him since he is very professional, nice, eager to please and seems knowledgeable in person and on the phone but in the end he doesn't care about the results and only wants the check you write him.
 

Multiple problems with leaks into basement. Dan was able to expertly diagnose our problems in a cost-effective and less disruptive manner than other bidders. His company designed and installed a surface storm water drainage system, regraded land around the house, as well as repaired drywall, built shelves and painted interior area after mold remediation.
 Archer started work in advance of contract start date, the crew was on-site consistently from start to finish, work was completed more quickly than expected with a very high-quality result.  Dan supervised his crew closely, and was accessible throughout the project, responding immediately to any questions that arose. We were entirely satisfied with the result and would enthusiastically recommend Dan and his company.

I started the project, digging a trench about 10 feet, then a hole 4ftx4ftdeep for a drywell.  After a hard rain, the trench and hole were completely filled with water, so I knew I had a problem.  Called up Dan, at Archer, and told him to give me an estimate. It seemed expensive, but required a couple guys and a mini escavator, which was out of my comfort zone.  Dan escavated around the flower bed, connected into my drywell, finished filling my gravel around the drywell, laid fabric, filled in the well area, and finished up with the connecting trench using drainage pipe (which was heavily embedded with tree roots), about 75 feet of it.  They put straw down to prevent wash out till I can get some grass seed to grow.