PIONEER MASONRY
About us
Concrete Brick,Block and Site work.
Business highlights
Services we offer
Concrete & Masonry Work
Amenities
Emergency Services
Yes
Free Estimates
Yes
| Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 86% | ||
| 5% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 9% | ||
| 0% |
John came out quickly to do an estimate. It took a while to set up a time due to the time of year and unpredictable weather but once we were able to, the job was performed quickly and efficiently. They were responsive to a last minute modification in patio size and made sure the job was done to my satisfaction. The work looks even better than I had hoped and price was very fair.
The floor has held up up well and survived the very cold and brutal winter experienced during 2014-2015 without any problems..
Today, they completed the removal and replacement of the old and cracking foundation exterior finish, making it look better than new . As with the first project, John and his crew were hard working, conscientious individuals who got the job done quickly and professionally. Especially significant is the fact that they completed the job in slightly more than two days in spite of the rainy weather Syracuse has been experiencing in June. When the work was completed, the yard looked as it had before the work was done and none of our flowers or shrubbery was damaged. Additionally, John honored the estimate given almost 1 year ago even though the job proved out to be greater than he might have expected.
I would definitely recommend John Burgen and Pioneer Masonry to anyone who needs any sort of concrete or masonry work done.
Gary & Ellen Whitaker
Initial meeting with John Burgen in August 2013 was informative and he provided photos of previous jobs. He portrayed himself as a professional and a perfectionist. We "needed" to have the foundation along our garage wall fixed and "needed" a new garage floor. After calculating the cost we opted to spend some additional money to have Pioneer remove and replace our 2 car drive with concrete at an additional cost of $4,000 bringing the total job to nearly $14,000. A proposal was outlined and price agreed upon and signed 8/19/13. Work began 9/3/13, the foundation wall was started first, part of the sidewalk in back of the house was prepped and the old garage floor was pulled up. A new opening was created for better access to the crawl space. The foundation was repaired using block along with the walls of the crawl space access area. At the time of our 1st meeting we told John that we wanted a vapor barrier placed under the concrete in the garage. As they began to lay mess on the garage floor I noticed that they had not placed any vapor barrier, I immediately brought it to John's attention and he said it was not listed on the contract. (IF YOU USE THIS GUY BE SURE TO GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING) I agreed to pay any additional cost for a vapor barrier, he supplied an old sheet of plastic at no cost. Along the way he made some suggestions and changes to our original plan which worked out well, some work he said he would perform he did not, small items. The day they poured the driveway it rained and they had to stop work until it stopped raining. However, pouring concrete in the rain causes spaulding, John knew this. Spaulding is a condition caused when concrete is poured in the rain and the concrete pops creating depressions or small pockets in the concrete up to 1 1/2 inches in diameter. The work was finished about 9/20/13. At the time the work was completed everything looked great. NOW, after about 6 - 7 months two large areas of our driveway has excessive spaulding. We made 2 phone calls May 2014 to John, upon arrival to our home the first thing he said to me was "its concrete, not marble". I said if it were his driveway he wouldn't leave it that way, then he offered to let me come to his home and see his driveway. He said the spaulding wouldn't get any worse and offered to take a photo of the area, I said great, he said he would take the photo from the street. After being arrogant, sarcastic, rude and condescending, he said there were no guarantees and he got in his truck and said he would fix it, FOR $3,000. I suggest you find another contractor, don't use this guy!!
UPDATE 8/19/14 - After posting this review we heard from the contractor, John within a few days and following some additional discussions came to a mutual arrangement that was agreeable to both parties. The driveway was not repaired but some additional masonry work was provided and completed at no charge. Honestly, John is an excellent saleman and if we would not have had an issue with the driveway splauding our scores for his work would have been much higher. Also if our initial contact over our compliant would have been handled better we wouldn't have had to write such a review. Regardless of whether the work is guaranteed good customer service after the sale often leads to repeat business and referrals. When John completed the latest work we shook hands. "The power of The Review" works!John arrived at the appointed time, evaluated the situation and provided a detailed estimate on the spot of what needed to be done, costs, as well as several options and alternative ways to do the job. There was no pressure to choose the most
expensive option. He fully explained the pros & cons of each option so that when we made our decision, it was based
on what we needed, our budget and the long term benefit of the project.
After speaking with several other contractors, we knew Pioneer Masonry was the one to do our project. So, at 8:30 AM the following Monday morning, John and his crew arrived. By the end of the day, they had removed the old concrete, and steel
mesh, removing it from the property, plus prepared the floor for pouring the concrete the following day. This was a
significant challenge and John?s crew worked almost non-stop for the whole day to accomplish it. My wife said she's never seen anyone work as hard as they did. They also removed some stairs to the adjoining sun porch and a heavy work bench that we were unable to move from the garage.
Bright and early, Tuesday morning, the cement mixer and the crew arrived, installed 6 gauge steel mesh and poured 6? of concrete. The rest of the day was spent smoothing, leveling , sealing and applying a power-trowl finish. By 4:00 PM, the job was finished. They later returned to place the stairs and the work bench in their original locations.
When we first contemplated doing this project, we had many reservations about how it could be done at a price we could afford and still be of lasting quality. We now feel that we made the best choice possible. J ohn Burgen and the Pioneer Masonry crew are true professionals. We would certainly ask them to do future work for us and have already recommended them to friends who may be needing similar work done.
Pioneer cut trench around perimeter of basement, layered with small gravel, installed perforated plastic piping to collect water and run it into sump pump, poured concrete to cover trench. (Cleared all items stored in basement from walls. REPLACED ALL ITEMS ONCE WORK COMPLETED AND CONCRETE DRY!). EVEN MOPPED THE FLOOR!
John and his crew were great. Did all they contracted for and in the most professional manner possible.
I am delighted and wold use Pioneer's services again if the need arose.
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