George Brothers, Inc, Increte of Albany
About us
Decorative Concrete, Concrete Resurfacing, Plain Concrete, Epoxy Flooring
Business highlights
Services we offer
Driveways, Epoxy garages and basements, Firepits, Patios, Pool Decks, Retaining Walls, Walkways
Accepted Payment Methods
- CreditCard
| Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 71% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 29% |
The initial call and set up of services went ok, we spoke with a rep over the phone then went to the show room. Rick came out promptly to provide an estimate . We then placed a $500 deposit and as told we would be contacted for an install date . Three weeks later when there was no word so I called this company again . I was told that hey were getting me on the schedule , I explained that I had already paid a deposit I reassured I would be called back . Less then a week later Rick and his crew showed up to my home unannounced and ready to work. I allowed them to work -
While doing a demolition of the front patio they dug up a 3 x 10 portion of my driveway. I ask if they were going to replace the gaping hole and was told I would have to get an asfualt company to repave my driveway . I then told rick to have his gus stop he demo and we will cut our losses . He then back tracked and said he would poor cement and pain it black.... Rick and his team created their own design apposed to the one given to them and had to re do their design of the patio. There was stain splatter on the siding of my home and damaged window siding from workers.
While pooring a basic concrete flat patio rick and his crew left blocks and chunks of concrete in my back yard which hardened and created massive boulders half under and have over ground. Rick apologized but did not remove .
"It saddens us and surprises us when a review like this is written on any business, especially ours. We strive to keep all our customers happy, but sometimes that just isn’t possible. • We didn’t schedule a visit in his timeframe, called April 1st • Therefore he wrote a bad review, wrote on April 2nd This review is written not because of poor quality on an install we did in May 2008, 7 years ago, but because we did not accommodate a visit in the customers timeframe. So he decided to write a bad review. We have not heard from this customer since our install in 2008. Not for any complaint, not for a maintenance service, nor to purchase product from us. The work was not done half haphazardly as he states in his review or I’m sure he would had contacted us, and at that time would had written a negative review. This customer is upset because he was told we would contact him once we started the schedule at the end of April beginning of May. This has been the worst FREEZE winter for us in the Northeast. All true professionals know you have to wait for the ground to thaw completely too accurately access and remedy an issue caused by the freeze and thaw cycles of our winters. George Brother's schedule to view such things is based on the freeze/thaw process. This work schedule is decided by our business and varies each year depending on outside ground temperatures. It is April 14 and the ground is just coming out of the freeze state. As for the other contractor’s opinions in our methods and workmanship, I don't know who they are or what expertise they have, but we are well known, certified trained installers of Increte, we are experts at what we do and have been doing concrete work since the early 80's. We do much of the commercial decorative concrete in the area and 100's of residential installs a year because of our quality of work and quality service. Our reputation is what it is today because we take pride in what we do and how we serve our customers. We continually go above and beyond our obligations to ensure every customer is satisfied with our work no matter how old the work is. But it has to be weather permitting. The schedule is the hardest for any outside contractor. You are working around the weather and unfortunately weather is out of our control. The majority of our customers understand this but sadly there may be a few that don’t. We are truly sorry this customer chose to write such a review. We feel our customer service is superior and although this review was written we still would not hesitate to look at the customer’s project if he wishes to give us a call at the end of April beginning of May. We will proudly continue to install decorative concrete for our customers providing nothing but superior work and superior customer service. It’s what we love to do!"
In August I hired another contractor and learned much about what was wrong. First of all in the Increte system the color is spread on top of the concrete so when there is chipping the uncolored concrete is exposed. The newer, more efficient process is to integrate color in the concrete. However, that is secondary to the issue here: I was promised in June that my stamped concrete would be repaired. It's now August 15 and I've not heard anything more from Diane or Rick about how they are going to take care of this.
My recommendation: DO NOT HIRE GEORGE BROTHERS.
"Dear readers: We were contacted in early spring 2014 by [member name removed] We did her project in 2011. She reported chips and white spots. Rick went over in a very timely manner. It is unknown to us how the chips were made, and yes the white spots are from the sealer acrylics breaking down/wearing off. Believe it or not dog urine does contribute to sealer wearing quicker than it would normally on its own. I won't get into whom she hired and their statements as that would not be professional and we hold ourselves to high standards. But I can say George Brothers Inc is the leader in Decorative Concrete and have 1000's of satisfied customers out there both in residential and commercial. We know the products and are experts at what we do. This customer was not under warranty, yet we offered to service her issues 3 years after an installation at NO CHARGE as a courtesy and explained to her we would contact her once we were able to get her on the schedule. Due to our season being very wet I guess we didn't get there quick enough for this customer. And we are apologetic for that. But we can only do our best around the work schedule and the weather. The majority of our customers respect and understand this. ** Also please note this is a customer that raved about us in an earlier review. We just didn't meet her timeline of a visit, for a free service. ** We took no money from this customer, and had no maintenance agreement. It was a courtesy call. We take pride in our customer service and will continue to give exceptional service. We are so thankful to all our 2014 customers that understood the weather battles this season."
It snowed the first day they were supposed to start but after that everything went smoothly and according to plan. The project took about three and half days.
There were at least 3-5 men on the job at any given day. They showed up on time and practically worked non-stop all day! They were all very professional and courteous. Everything was cleaned up in the area they worked on and more importantly the job was done right on schedule.
Overall, hiring Gearge Brothers was a very pleasant experience for us. Both Rick and Dianne have been very considerate and accommodating.
My wife stopped off on her way home from work a few days later and picked the colors and style, all real easy with so much to choose from.
They showed up on schedule with a crew that was well trained and experienced who anticipated my every question. All of the work seemed to be second nature to them. They pointed out potential drainage problems with our design and made everything right with our plan with an inexpensive revision.
Working in the close confines of our stockade fence there was an accidental broken post that they stopped all other work for and dug a new hole and placed a new post, no harm, no foul.
Once the work was finished each day (One long day, and two follow ups for coloring and sealing) they cleaned up the area and upon final completion they used a power washer and made the area just like they found it.
I had offers from private contractors to do the work for less money, but we wanted to have a reputation backing up the project and the future of the patio. After seeing so many examples of their work in the area, we were sold.(If you live, work and play in the Albany and Upstate area, you've seen their work!!) I know if we have a problem with the look or wear of the patio they will be here right away. A family run business who pays great attention to detail.
I would not hesitate to hire them again.
This was such an unprofessional way to deal with customers that I will not seek out George Bros. business in the future. This was a terrible experience.
"We apologize we were unable to accomodate the estimate schedule. We had hoped to fulfill that scheduled appt, but the work day did not allow it and we had to shift the schedule for estimates. This is rare for us to have to do. But a few times a season it may come up. The call for this estimate came in Mid-October which unfortunately for October the cold weather had hit our area rather quickly. We had a work schedule of signed contracts that had to be completed by end of season which was quickly upon us, and we sadly could not take on any more work for the current season. The month of October is the month we do decrease our office/showroom hours which is on our answering machine every fall season. Our customer service has always had high reviews and we have always put communication with our customers as a high priority. We do apologize for your experience with the phone. Your feedback is valued and will help us better our services. Thank you."
"Our apologies that we were unable to get to your original scheduled estimate. We try to accomodate all of our customers/potential customers to the best of our ability. It is very rare for us to not be able to make it to a scheduled estimate and if we can't we do our best to reschedule it assuring sensitivity to the customers schedule. The work schedule for this day unfortunately prevented our arrival. In this review it is mentioned we didn't arrive to do the work. It was an estimate that was scheduled, not work to be done."
The only delay was the endless rain we had in June (obviously not their fault!) and by the time they could schedule the work they ended up working on the hottest days so far this summer (105 degress with humidity). The 5-man crew was pleasant to have around, worked very hard and definitely knew what they were doing. The co-owner, Rick, was on site periodically but the level and quality of work did not vary, whether he was here or not. The job was scheduled to start on a Tuesday, but the office manager, Diane, called to see if they could come Monday afternoon to begin the prep work so they were ready to pour first thing on Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday there were additional tasks for them to do; they arrived, did their work and left, always making sure my outside gate was secured so my dog could not get out if she accidentally got out of the house.
It's a small fenced-in courtyard (approximately 210 square feet) in an end-unit townhouse and they worked very well despite the tight quarters, not bothering my neighbors. They carried the cement from the huge mixer truck on the street by the wheelbarrow full to the back of the property and did not leave a mess for me, or my neighbors to clean up.
The end project is all I had hoped for and more! They did an outstanding job. I recommend them and their product highly. There are many colors and styles to choose from, I selected Philly Blue with gray grout lines in the notched slate pattern and love it!
"Unfortunately the 2011 season was very rainy, and slightly impacted our schedule and we were unable to give this customer an exact date of arrival. She wished to cancel her contract which we agreed to do. Our contracts state that deposits are non refundable yet we offered a full refund of her deposit. We take much pride in our customer service, and unfortunately we can't control the weather, which does impact our scheduling, as it does most outside construction in our area."
Licensing
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FAQ
Contact Information
14 Railroad Ave, Albany, NY 12205
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