Effective Basement Solutions

My experience with Effective Basement Solutions wasn’t good or like the other reviews I’m seeing so I have to question their validity. I called this business because water was pooling in my mom’s basement. I came into town just to deal with the issue and met with a fellow named Franco who owns Effective Basement Solutions. He came out and was confident that he could fix my problem by installing a sump pump and told me it would cost twelve hundred dollars. He was less expensive than a few others and his reviews were pretty good so I agreed to go with him. He sent two guys who spent a few hours working in my basement. When finished, they insisted that I pay them before I really knew if they fixed the problem but I did anyways and within 24 hours, the water returned. I called Franco and he gave me a few excuses and said it would take another six hundred dollars to fix so I agreed and he sent the same two guys back that did the initial work. They said they found the problem and assured me it had been fixed so I paid them, again. Low and behold, within 24 hours I still had water pooling on my basement floor so I called Franco AGAIN and he gave me all sorts of excuses and said this time it would take another fourteen hundred dollars to fix it for good. Because I was in a hurry and just wanted the problem fixed, I agreed so the same two guys came back again and spent many hours working and again promised that they finally found and fixed the problem once and for all. They wanted to be paid in full but because I wasn’t in town to see for myself, I paid him one thousand dollars and withheld the additional 400 to see if the problem was really fixed. As you would guess, the problem was NOT fixed and the water returned but Franco wouldn’t honor his guarantee and threatened to sue me if I didn’t pay the additional four hundred dollars. He said if I paid the additional amount he would activate my guarantee and would return to fix the problem. As you would guess, that was a lie. I paid the final four hundred dollars and asked him to come back to fix it but Franco refused and tried to make it appear like there wasn’t anything more he could do. He NEVER returned to assess or fix the problem as he will predictably state in his response. Additionally, he will also lie and try and claim the water was most likely coming from the furnace which isn’t operating during the summer and was already replaced the previous winter. The furnace doesn’t have anything to do with the ground water coming in. This is a fact because it was checked by a number of other people well before I called Effective Basement Solutions to fix my water problem. Franco will also lie and state that my basement window was leaking which is a bunch baloney since it was checked previous to me calling him. I already had it sealed by installing a window well cover and new window seal so it’s as tight as a drum. The bottom line is that Franco didn’t honor his guarantee and got in over his head because he didn’t know how to fix the problem but acted like he did. I spent too much money and was taken advantage of by this business owner. Franco was paid a total of thirty two hundred dollars and didn’t do what he promised or was paid to do or honor his guarantee which is virtually worthless. I have since contracted with another more reputable company to come in and fix the problem that Franco was paid three times to do. I suggest before anyone hires this clown and pays him in full, you make sure he fixes the problem you hired him to fix cause he’s gonna suck as much money out of you as he can and then not honor his guarantee. Franco seemed like such a nice guy. Boy was I fooled.

I went to three different companies on Angies List that specialize in this. All three came back with basically the same suggestion and a similar price. I went with Gianfranco and Effective Basement Solutions because I felt that he took the time to explain the full scope of what was involved and seemed to know what would be required. To cut a long story short, he did some work - installed a French Drain around most of the perimeter of the basement and installed two sump pumps. The work was neat and seemed well done but it did not solve the problem. He left out one small section of the perimeter where the water main enters the basement because "he was afraid that he would damage the pipe". Turns out that this was where the water was getting in - the rain water traveled along the outside of the pipe and into the basement. So all the work that was done was basically pointless and when I asked Franco to finish the project and solve the problem, he told me that it could only be done when there was no rain. I've followed up multiple times over the summer to get him back but since he's already been paid, he's just not responding. I'm disappointed.

Never called back. Never answers your calls.

It worked out great and they did a fantastic job. They are professional and it is working very well.

This is in response to the previous complaint. I would like to start off by saying, I respected Franko and his business as this his was the SECOND time I hired for a completely different job and would have hired him again if he owned up to his mistake. When I spoke to Franko he assured me that a speed drain would fix the water from coming in the garage. I voiced my concern that it might not be an option. He came out and said "I promise this will fix the issue and if not I will come back and make it right". He never mentioned anything about the garage door being a problem or anything like that. He said that the speed drain will fix it no problem that he does this all the time and no more water would be in the garage. After I told him water was still coming in, he mentioned he would put a concrete ramp to fix the issue. Weeks and months went by and after multiple voicemails and text messages I got no response until I posted the original 'bad review'. I did leave a nasty message as anyone I am sure would with no response, especially since I paid for a job that I was told was going to work. Who wouldn't be upset? He wanted to get a quick job done. I never received another call or text back. We had a few exchanges through the email on Angie's List and him trying to cover his tracks. I have pictures to show that the job did not fix the problem. If you want a drain that looks like nice that serves no purpose he's your guy.

fine; the sump pump works fine

Everything went as planned and basement has been water/mold free for 3 years

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Overall great service! Highly recommended!
Franco provided excellent service right from beginning. There was a minor rain water seepage and noticeable calcification. Franco and his team installed new French gutters and sump pumps. In general, work was completed as scheduled and I was provided update on every step. 

Arrived on time. Very neat professional installation. Demonstrated proper performance. Totally satisfied. Still waiting for a quote on mold remediation.

He fought with me and acted like a child. He broke a pipe in the floor and then tried to fix it without consulting me. He didn't fix it right and then I had to hire a plumber to properly fix it. The basement is still flooding, he didn't do the work correctly.

Franco was quick to respond, very accommodating and quick to schedule an estimate and was able to perform the service all within one week. The crew prepped the area to minimize mess, cleaned up afterward, and was great in explaining the process. I highly recommend.

Water was seeping into our basement whenever it rain heavy or snow was melting combined with rain.? We obtained several estimates from companies and while Effective Basement Solution (Effective Basement) was not the least expensive, Franco, the proprietor, provided the most detailed explanation of what had to be done.? He also pointed out that there was water seeping into the concrete blocks of the foundation as there was evidence of it by the calcium deposits that formed on the interior side of the basement. Effective Basement arrived on time with a crew of three men including Franco.? Franco worked with the crew throughout the entire project.? We were told that they would move the basement furniture to the center of the room and cover it with plastic.? After my wife and I purged the basement, i.e. removed stuff that should have been remove long ago, we move the basement furniture to the center of the room.? We also remove all electronic equipment out of the basement as we knew that there would be lots of dust generated from the work. A good portion of our basement has wood paneling and we were also concern about the potential for mold.? Franco is licensed to do mold remediation and luckily we did not have any mold.? Effective Basement was able to install the French drain without having to remove all of the paneling in the basement.? We were quite happy about that. Effective Basement removed the old French drain along with the original sump pump.? Throughout the project Effective Basement used an exhaust system that reduced significant amount of the dust generated by the work.?? The jacked hammered out the portion of the basement floor where the old French drain was located, created a deeper trough for the new four inch perforated pipe and installed a water barrier against the foundation along the French drain.? The barrier would direct any water that may seep in to the French drain.? Two sump pumps were installed in different locations of the basement.? Both pumps were of a larger capacity than the previously install pump. Franco was very professional and answered all of our questions that we had during the course of the project.?? The entire project took about 5.5 days and we are not only pleased with the work performed but would highly recommend Effective Basement Solution for any waterproofing problems

Water was seeping into our basement whenever it rain heavy or snow was melting combined with rain.  We obtained several estimates from companies and while Effective Basement Solution (Effective Basement) was not the least expensive, Franco, the proprietor, provided the most detailed explanation of what had to be done.  He also pointed out that there was water seeping into the concrete blocks of the foundation as there was evidence of it by the calcium deposits that formed on the interior side of the basement.

Effective Basement arrived on time with a crew of three men including Franco.  Franco worked with the crew throughout the entire project.  We were told that they would move the basement furniture to the center of the room and cover it with plastic.  After my wife and I purged the basement, i.e. removed stuff that should have been remove long ago, we move the basement furniture to the center of the room.  We also remove all electronic equipment out of the basement as we knew that there would be lots of dust generated from the work.

A good portion of our basement has wood paneling and we were also concern about the potential for mold.  Franco is licensed to do mold remediation and luckily we did not have any mold.  Effective Basement was able to install the French drain without having to remove all of the paneling in the basement.  We were quite happy about that.

Effective Basement removed the old French drain along with the original sump pump.  Throughout the project Effective Basement used an exhaust system that reduced significant amount of the dust generated by the work.   The jacked hammered out the portion of the basement floor where the old French drain was located, created a deeper trough for the new four inch perforated pipe and installed a water barrier against the foundation along the French drain.  The barrier would direct any water that may seep in to the French drain.  Two sump pumps were installed in different locations of the basement.  Both pumps were of a larger capacity than the previously install pump.

Franco was very professional and answered all of our questions that we had during the course of the project.   The entire project took about 5.5 days and we are not only pleased with the work performed but would highly recommend Effective Basement Solution for any waterproofing problems

I don't have an issue with the work, I have an issue with what happened 3 months later. We were very pleased with how the pump worked and the instillation went. They called 3 months later and explained that the check I gave them had been put in the wrong account and been lost. I had no problem with this but I did request that he cover the cost of the check cancellation. I still have not seen the $27 return check fee he was supposed to reimburse me for. I have called him several times and the new check has been cashed. All they have to do is put a check in the mail and send it to me. This doesn't make sense to me since the company did actually do good work, seemed professional, and were pleasant to work with initially.

The installers arrived on time, quickly assessed what needed to be done, and completed the work within a few hours.   They also cleaned up the job site before they left.   The services provided were well worth the price and I would definitely recommend Effective Basement Solutions.

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Franco is very busy, but a reasonable guy to work with.

Franco and his team are the best. He is extremely busy because he is very good. If you call and he doesn't get back to you, call again! He's worth the effort. I am very grateful for the time he took to explain my basement issues and make a number of recommendations. Though I was willing to spend more for him to install French drains to resolve water issues, his recommendation was half the price! I'm not sure how much better it gets than a very experienced contractor telling you that you don't need to overspend to resolve your moisture problems. His crew showed up, did the work, explained each step, and cleaned up before they left. They even volunteered to patch some cracks outside my place since they had a bucket of left over concrete. Seriously call him! You're in good hands

He was courteous and prompt in the beginning. He had a fair price. After a few weeks, I realized the sump pump was not working. I have tried to get in touch with him several times and can not get him to come back to fix it.

Installation went fine. 

Due to rain and horrible traffic initial appointment, which was in the evening after 6, had to rescheduled.  The owner himself came out on a Saturday and did the replacement. 

Gianfrancos (Franco) Arcari  was highly accommodating, friendly and did sound efficient work.

,Everything worked out fine.

Timely, accurate

unknown

Everything went well, in spite of the additional work that Gianfranco had to do to disconnect the old pump. After disconnecting the old pump, Gianfranco cut the drain pipe and attached a rubber connection that could be taken apart to facilitate removing the pump in the future. Gianfranco did a very neat job, and upon completion cleaned up the surrounding area. He even called back a week or so later to check if everything was working properly, and offered to come back in the future should anything go wrong with the pump, although he was certain everything would be okay. I will not hesitate calling him in the future. I am quite pleased with his professionalism and knowledge and in the way he explains things, plus I can see that he is an honest person

I needed a good big enough sump pump and Rick Mcglynn proviede it cheaper than the others>