DMJ Asphalt Inc

DMJ did 34,787 sf at our shop with an overlay 2 years later and 1500 at our home. Absolutely 100% satisfied. Highly recommend. Can not say enough good things about them.

My schedule was open. DMJ was able to tear out and install ahead of schedule. Tear out, remediation fill, grading and compaction was performed with amazing precision (2% grade throughout), no soft/loose spots, no mess, no collateral damage. I had modifications to original layout which were received and executed without a hitch. Their instructions (owners manual) are rich with details and clearly defines Warranty coverage, care and maintenance. The finished product is 3" thick. All other offers (3) were 2.5" and 2". DMJ was cost competitive. The quality of work is excellent. Water run off test indicates no low spots (though maybe too early at this point to know for sure.) All edges were compacted/finished. Surface is perfect/blemish free as far as I can tell. The two teams (tear out and pavers) were courteous, respectful, very friendly.

Driveway looks great! Communication from office on scheduling was timely. Crew was polite and professional. They did exactly what I wanted.

they did a great job

Needed to replace a 20 year driveway. Called for a quote and DMJ was out the next day and provided written proposal on the spot. Very reasonably priced. DMJ took one day to excavate the old and one day to install the new. High quality job. New driveway looks fantastic. Great customer service. Very responsive. 6-8 houses in our neighborhood are having new driveways put in this Summer and they are still waiting. I would highly recommend. Very pleased with my choice.

There were a few rain delays, but we were kept in the loop with rescheduling our project. Beautiful work, very pleased!

DMJ installed our original driveway and now completed our large addition. Excellent service again!

A+ work

They put the berm in the wrong place and consequently it was useless. They refused to come out and redo the work.

- The quality of work, both excavation and asphalt application, was excellent and exceeded our expectations. No visible seams; straight lines; accurate slope; smooth transitions to garage floor, sidewalk and street curb. - Very professional and efficient crew; the high level of teamwork was noticeable. - The parking pad blended in beautifully with the driveway.

Project history: My driveway apron was sinking and holes were forming in the asphalt near where the asphalt meets the garage concrete floor. In 2011 I chose DMJ Asphalt to come out to fix the problem. Recently a new hole appeared on the apron that DMJ had previously fixed. I contacted DMJ to explain what was happening and to see if this was covered under warranty. They stated that there were no warranties on this and provided the contract I had signed stating this. With no warranty, I decided to cut out the hole and patch it myself. Once I cut into the hole and removed the asphalt I noticed large chunks of cinder block where the class 5 should’ve been. The Minnesota Department of Transportation specifications states that class 5 can contain grounded up concrete, but does not state pieces of cinder block (e,g, large cinder block measuring over 8 inches by 6 inches) to be used in the base. This didn’t make sense to me since the contract I had signed clearly stated that the underlayment would be class 5. There was no mention that large chunks of cinder block would be used to complete this project. I sent the below email explaining that they did not adhere to the contract by using class 5 as the base for this project and therefore they should be accountable for their work and that they did not adhere to their own contract. After I sent the below email I was then sent an email saying the owner would contact me to discuss the situation. After 3+ plus weeks of not hearing back from the owner I sent a follow up email essentially stating that DMJ must of decided that the work performed is up to their standards and quality was not their highest priority. I also stated in that email that I would review the company on social media. One would think if you had a customer that was questioning material used on a job that caused a portion of the asphalt to fail then the owner or someone would contact the customer to discuss this and do so in a timely manner. However, that did not happen! Instead, I received an email where the owner took personal shots at me. Who does that?? The owner is the face of the company and should portray the brand. The emails I sent are not rude and I do not take any personal shots toward the owner or the employees of DMJ. Feel free to read the exchanges below and decide for yourself if you would ever do business with a company that takes personal shots at a customer who paid over $1,400 for a job. DMJ states “Quality Paving For 3 Generations” I bet the previous two generations are shaking their head on this third generation! “Hi Angie, I meant to reply last week, but I wasn't able to get to this until today. I reviewed the two documents you sent and saw the "No Warranties" mentioned among the other disclaimers. I would say that there should be a warranty ONLY IF DMJ would of done the job per the customer agreement which t I paid DMJ to do. I took it upon myself to fix the hole in my drive where the apron that was fixed by DMJ. When I cut out the asphalt I was shocked to find loose pieces of concrete that DMJ used as a base to the apron. Upon reading my agreement it states Class 5 recycle base would be installed as a base at a minimum depth of 6". No where in the agreement does it state DMJ will also use broken apart pieces of concrete block mixed in with class 5 to create a base. These pieces were directly underneath the asphalt NOT under the class 5, which caused the asphalt to fail over time.This explains why the repair failed not some rodent and the other reasons I was given. From that perspective DMJ did not live up to the agreement I signed. Therefore, DMJ was/is liable to repair that piece of my driveway in order to meet the agreement I signed and DMJ signed. I had to repair this myself because of the fear of someone getting hurt by tripping over/into the hole or damage to my car. Without fixing this I would of never known that the base failed because of not properly building the base before laying the asphalt on top. I have included pictures of the concrete pieces that I pulled out of the hole. I now wonder what other parts of my apron has a similar base and will other parts start to fail?? Now that we know what the real issue is and the fact that this does not meet the customer agreement how will DMJ address? Thanks, Mike O” “Mike, Good afternoon, I’ve received your emails and reviewed your contract. The work DMJ Asphalt completed meets or exceeds industry standards. Your job was a 2011 repair project without a warranty, however, still completed to Minnesota Department of Transportation Specifications. Your base work consisted of class 5 recycled gravel base that meets state specifications. Class 5 recycled base is made from recycled asphalt and concrete, thus you may find concrete in your base work or it could be from the overflow of secrete from capping the blocks. Furthermore, you can clearly see from the pictures that you are experiencing other areas/gaps between the brick and concrete which is outside our work area, and experiencing similar issues. Natural earth movement, phenomenon’s , as well as rodents, can cause underlying issues and what you are experiencing is not caused by our installation. We do stand behind all of our work and have been doing it for three generations, with the majority of our work referrals and repeat customers. You, without meeting with us as indicated in our email, decided to repair this miniscule area yourself. Then email us with a bogus, rudely worded claim that a not only a person but a car could incur damage!! I’m not sure how you maneuver around planet earth on a daily basis, as there are many other areas that we pass over/on as the general public that could be much more dangerous than this. I am sorry that you feel the need to disparage DMJ Asphalt, and feel free to do whatever you deem necessary, as remember via social media works both ways. We work with all of our customers in a professional courteous manner, however, in your case, I’m not sure you can comprehend professionalism or politeness. Thank You~ Kari Johnson DMJ Asphalt Inc. "Quality Paving For 3 Generations" 763-478-5600 direct”

Hi potential DMJ Asphalt customers. Before deciding whether or not to go with DMJ for your asphalt needs I would recommend you move on to the next asphalt company. Below is an exchange I had with the owner of DMJ. They performed work on my apron in 2011 recently a hole appeared in the apron that fixed. I called to see if they would fix this under warranty or if we could come to a compromise to fix the hole. They searched every work in the contract to find a way out, which they did. However, I challenged them on the contract stating that they did not use the material stated in the contract because they put a few large pieces of cinder block in the class 5 base. Common knowledge would say trying to compact class 5 with large cinder blocks has the potential to fail over time, which on my apron it did. Apparently the owner disagrees and decided it was best to responded to me with personal attacks. Very sad that the face of DMJ decided it was best to personally attack me instead of having a professional conversation to resolve the problem. I would have been fine if we had a phone conversation where the end result would of not been in my favor, but at least we had a discussion. Obviously Kari Johnson, the owner, felt that was not an option, but the option respond in an immature manner. You decide do you want to go with a company that does not stand behind their product/service and have an owner, who is the face of the company, act like immature person. And if you have an issue after the service is performed do you trust DMJ Asphalt to come out and fix it? In my experience the answer is NO. I am sure they will respond, but read the below and you decide.  

Hi Angie,

I meant to reply last week, but I wasn't able to get to this until today.

I reviewed the two documents you sent and saw the "No Warranties" mentioned among the other disclaimers. I would say that there should be a warranty ONLY IF DMJ would of done the job per the customer agreement which t I paid DMJ to do. I took it upon myself to fix the hole in my drive where the apron that was fixed by DMJ. When I cut out the asphalt I was shocked to find loose pieces of concrete that DMJ used as a base to the apron. Upon reading my agreement it states Class 5 recycle base would be installed as a base at a minimum depth of 6". No where in the agreement does it state DMJ will also use broken apart pieces of concrete block mixed in with class 5 to create a base. These pieces were directly underneath the asphalt NOT under the class 5, which caused the asphalt to fail over time.This explains why the repair failed not some rodent and the other reasons I was given.

From that perspective DMJ did not live up to the agreement I signed. Therefore, DMJ was/is liable to repair that piece of my driveway in order to meet the agreement I signed and DMJ signed. I had to repair this myself because of the fear of someone getting hurt by tripping over/into the hole or damage to my car. Without fixing this I would of never known that the base failed because of not properly building the base before laying the asphalt on top. I have included pictures of the concrete pieces that I pulled out of the hole. I now wonder what other parts of my apron has a similar base and will other parts start to fail?? 

Now that we know what the real issue is and the fact that this does not meet the customer agreement how will DMJ address?

Thanks,

Mike Olin

Mike,

 Good afternoon, I?ve received your emails and reviewed your contract.  The work DMJ Asphalt completed meets or exceeds industry standards.

Your job was a 2011 repair project without a warranty, however, still completed  to Minnesota Department of Transportation Specifications.  Your base work consisted of class 5 recycled gravel base that meets state specifications.  Class 5 recycled base is made from recycled asphalt and concrete, thus you may find concrete in your base work or it could be from the overflow of secrete from capping the blocks.  Furthermore, you can clearly see from the pictures that you are experiencing other areas/gaps between the brick and concrete which is outside our work area, and experiencing similar issues.  Natural earth movement, phenomenon?s , as well as rodents, can cause underlying issues and what you are experiencing is not caused by our installation.  We do stand behind all of our work and have been doing it for three generations, with the majority of our work referrals and repeat customers. You, without meeting with us as indicated in our email, decided to repair this miniscule area yourself.  Then email us with a bogus, rudely worded claim that a not only a person but a car could incur damage!!  I?m not sure how you maneuver around planet earth on a daily basis, as there are many other areas that we pass over/on as the general public that could be much more dangerous than this.

I am sorry that you feel the need to disparage DMJ Asphalt, and feel free to do whatever you deem necessary,  as remember via social media works both ways.  We work with all of our customers in a professional  courteous manner, however, in your case,  I?m not sure you can comprehend professionalism or politeness. 

 Thank You~ 

Kari Johnson

DMJ Asphalt Inc.

"Quality Paving For 3 Generations"

763-478-5600 direct

Great

Great

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Leading up to the day they were to do our driveway I was disappointed with there office staff customer service. They could not give me an approx. date they were scheduled to come out only to tell me we will call you the day before. They could not even tell me what week they had our driveway scheduled. When they did show up,  DMJ ran into problems as the city decided to spread gravel and sealer down on the roads in our neighborhood so some of the gravel rolled up onto the driveway. DMJ came back the next day and redid part of the driveway. The crew that did our driveway were very professional.  One concern is they told me the old base was good and I questioned the depth of the class 5 but they said not to worry.
. The first winter the driveway heaved  and I called DMJ and they said to wait to see it comes down in the summer which it did almost
. My old driveway did not heave like this  so I am concerned the base may  not  be good enough in spots. DMJ says it's normal for driveways to heave but it was about 1 inch to 2 inches above the sidewalk  and the garage floor in the winter and pulls away.leaving a space.which is also unattractive 

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Was scheduled to do work June 22 2015 but due to rain delays was set back 2 weeks. Work finally set for July they came out and prepped lot for blacktop and knocked hole in garage which I am obligated to repair. After lot prepped waited a couple of weeks to have blacktop instales. Set to install on July 24, had 1/4 inch of rain so had to reschedule again.finally installed on July 27th. Job is very nice but don'the understand why all the delays.

The repair and add on was done on time and the quality was excellent.  However the seal coat was delayed to this summer from last fall as they ran out of time.  They called and told me that they couldn't do the job on the specified day as there was a car in the driveway and a person yelled at them and said they would not move the car.  They didn't bother to call me at the time to tell me this, they called after they had already left and then informed me it would be 150 dollars to come back.  When I called to find out what happened it turned out that what they told me was not correct and they changed their story and said they could come back that day.  After numerous phone calls they didn't come back that day, but returned the next day.  They charged me an extra 75 dollars.  I understand they can't do their job if a car is in the driveway, but they could have at least called me to solve the problem prior to leaving and telling me incorrect information and then saying they could come back that day and then not returning.

Work was done in a timely manner.  Driveway looks great!

DMJ did a great job of replacing our old asphalt driveway with a new one.  They were right on time when they arrived to 1) give me an initial bid, 2) later sign the contract, 3) rip out our old driveway, regrade, and let it sit for a week or so, and 4) pave the new driveway.  All of the people I had contact with were very friendly and professional.  The price was very reasoanable and several of my neighbors have already asked me for DMJ's contact information after they saw the great job they did.  I don't always give straight A's to the contractors I use and like, but this was a top-notch job.

They did a good job. They paid attention to the details. It took about a week to do the work.

I requested estimates from four driveway repair companies. DMJ's representative Dave came out at the promised time and provided an estimate that was comparable or slightly lower than the other companies I met with. When meeting with Dave, he provided good information on the repair process in general and provided thorough answers to all of my additional questions.
There was a slight delay in the repair start time due to unforeseen circumstances, but the driveway replacement began within the contractual timeline and was completed very promptly. I was very happy with the results - the work had been completed to the letter of the contract and the new asphalt driveway looked great. My neighbors complimented the new driveway and I have had no cracking or other issues with the driveway in the two months since completion.
I would recommend DMJ asphalt for a new driveway or replacement work and would contact them again in the future for any additional driveway repairs or replacement needed.

We were very impressed with the professionalism starting with the man who came and gave a bid to the the great grading job that the men who spread the class 5 rock. Our driveway drains away the rain very nicely now with the new asphalt.
The driveway looks great and would recommend DMJ to anyone.