Keystone Basement Systems & Structural Repair Inc

BGREAT service. I called to schedule a free estimate for potential repairs of the foundation/basement of a house we are considering purchasing. Of course, I was imagining that there would be a very hefty price tag for this "free" estimate, but how wrong I was. Jim Kraal met me right on time and proceeded to spend the next 45 minutes inspecting every inch of the basement. The biggest surprise was the he did NOT recommend and further work at this time. Jim and Keystone Basement proved to me that they are professional, punctual, thorough, and perhaps most importantly, aside from the fact that they are experts, they are also honest. I'm pleased to say that I HIGHLY recommend Keystone Basement Services and particularly Jim Kraal! You can be sure that If i ever have a problem in the basement, they will be my first and only call!

Once again Keystone Basement Systems went over and above with great customer service. I had an issue with the new sump pump that was installed with the waterproofing system and had placed a call for Marcia regarding problems with it. This was done via email on Sunday and Marcia was very concerned about the problem and emailed me immediately to resolve my problem. This is GREAT customer service and shows me how much Marcia and this company is concerned with any problems that I address with them. Bravo to Marcia for her follow up.

They suggested putting in a huge system where the walls would be covered (and the mold killed in the process), and internal french drains and a pump. Our basement/home is not big (about 24 ft. X 24 ft.) and the approximate cost was $14,000. After the estimate we researched the issue further and we didn't feel that we were getting enough moisture to require this huge system, and instead we found a company that would treat the mold problem directly, help remove paint on the walls which contributed to the problem in the first place, and we set up a dehumidifier which made a huge difference in eliminating the damp and musty feel of the basement. Their system would have given us a largely finished basement (walls at least) which would have been nice, but wasn't our goal. In terms of our problem it was like suggesting major surgery where a bandaid/dressing would have worked. To their credit, we were initially "sold" and gave a small check to hold our price. When we wanted to withdraw, they asked no questions, and within days refunded our deposit, which was very professional and courteous.

Difficult to get started with them because they will not talk to you unless BOTH husband and wife are present. Our schedule and lifestyle makes that difficult and they will not deal with one or the other of us.

We were away when they did the work. When we returned the basement was neat and clean, with no cement dust or debris left behind. We have no signs of water leakage in the basement now. We are very pleased with the work that was done.

The analysis went really well. They were nice and professional.

Both employees arrived promptly after I showed them the wall they gave a brief explanation of what they were going to do. Sanded paint from wall applied epoxy laden carbon fiber strips the height of wall anchored to footer and header. Pointed cracks, cleaned up and were completed in less than 5 hours. After further inspection I noticed several more joints that should have been filled. After contacting them, they called me and they came back out and corrected the problem and went above and beyond with fixing everything and addressed all concerns. Ron and Ed were the two who came out to help me, and Marcia on the phone was a huge help with scheduling and seeing that I had everything taken care of.

It was great! They did a thorough inspection and provided a reasonable solution for the basement's water leakage issues. Furthermore, the scheduling was easy, they showed on time, and they were very professional. Ultimately, it was a smooth process from start to finish.

The assessment was complete, communication was good. They were pleasant, timely, and efficient.

I recently had waterproofing done by Keystone Basement Systems. I have been very pleased with their service starting with Clarence who is their Senior Field Inspector, he is very polite and concerned individual in regards to the water problem in the basement. The installers came to dig up the basement to install the proper items to make my basement dry. Mike Pitts and his crew were very professional and answered any questions I had reassuring me the job would be done in the allotted time which it was, they even cleaned up very carefully and put things back into place. The crew went over and above making sure I was satisfied with the work when they were done. They were very patient in explaining how the system worked. I had to make several calls to the office speaking with Marcia and she is very nice person as I am sure there were several times that I was upset and not pleasant to talk with, but she maintained such a friendly and pleasant tone being able to reassure me that everything would be taken care of. I also had Ron and Ed back to fix a few problems with the system and they were outstanding. I am so happy that I was able to have a company fix my basement problems that is so customer oriented. It was a pleasure doing business with everyone. Josh, Clarence, Mike and crew, Ron, Ed and Marcia. Marcia told me if I should have any additional questions or problems to please call and this is awesome customer service, more companies need to learn that from Keystone Basements methods of operations. Thank you Keystone Basement Systems for my dry basement. I would not hesitate recommending your company to anyone.

It was an Angie's List Big Deal that I purchased. It was great. The gentleman that came to do the estimate was very thorough and polite. The two guys that did the work were very polite. They answered every question I had. The work was very good. I spent additional for the work.

the person with whom I spoke refused to schedule an appointment without my husband present

This was one of the Big Deals I purchased.. Originally I had a tough time scheduling the service. Once I got it scheduled, they showed up up at the wrong location. I am not sure if this was their problem or Angies List but they showed up at my home instead of the property I had scheduled for. Then they said they couldn't come out for another 7-10 days. I called Angies List and cancelled and received a refund. I then had the work done for less than the Big Deal was going to cost. I have not doen another Big Deal since.

They came out and provided me with an estimate. I thought they were fine but their estimate seemed high. I wanted a sense of what was going on downstairs and I haven’t had a need to do any work in the basement.

The overall work went itself went well. The work crew consisted of anywhere from 2-4 guys depending on the day. The overall job lasted 5 days as it was extremely labor intensive. The crew was polite, punctual, and professional. Crew Manager Mike Pitts was excellent. The sales representative was quite informative and knowelable at our first appointment and took plenty of time to answer our questions. A second follow up was necessary before work was to begin to be sure everything was ready to go. My only complaint would be the responsiveness at which my sales representative would return my phone calls. I never received any follow up from him after the job was finished. I also had some concerns about my garage walls shifting due to possible water damage to the foundation or footer that I needed follow up as well as a request for pricing on installing new window wells in the basement that I was interested in having done. I thought for the cost of the project that I should have received a little quicker response on phone calls or some response period. Overall, I was satisfied with the work performed and would use Keystone Basement Systems again.

I was not happy with them. We purchased an inspection and we got a sales pitch. I was under the impression that they were going to check to see if our basement was waterproof and look for leaks. They basically came out and did a sales pitch to purchase to waterproof the basement to make sure it's well for the next whatever years. I thought it was going to more about inspecting the basement than it was.

They were quick to come and make an estimate after we met them at the Pittsburgh Home Show. The crew was courteous, punctual and completed the job in a timely manner. They were as clean as possible with this work. We had a very wet basement due to some bad grading and of course our sandstone foundation. They did an internal french drain with a plastic type wrap on the walls in our unfinished basement. It is great to have a dry basement. The house smells better and we aren't worried about mold growth anymore. We can use the basement for storage without concern that our items will be ruined from mold or mildew. I would recommend them to anyone. We are especially pleased they put clean-outs in the system to address any future clogs.

Jim Krall provided an education in managing a basement in the cold climate of West Virginia. He not only gave me an education on why things where happening in the basement but he also showed me how other work suggested by other contractors was not required. Let me start with why I was using Keystone Basement Systems. I was looking into purchasing a home in the Bridgeport WV area. I called Keystone for an estimate to make a decision to buy or not. First off Jim changed his schedule to fit me in within 24 hours of me calling. Once he arrived the education began. He showed me what his plan was for the house both inside and out. Jim made sure I understood why his plan was the best. The moisture level was about 92% which he showed me how I could check myself with a simple detector from any home improvement store. He suggested this so I could monitor the system he was planning to install was working correctly. At this point Jim informed me how Keystone backs their work. I was impressed to say the least. I told Jim how another contractor said the basement wall was shearing and needed extensive strapping to secure the wall. Jim did the same test the previous contractor did and showed me how to do it my self, the simple use of a level. I watched both Jim and the other contractor do this test. I was amazed that the other contractor moved the level out from the wall to show why the unneeded repair was required. Jim confirmed my thought that this was an improper test. The Level should be held tight to the wall not an inch away from it. Jim also showed me how and why he was working on moving the moisture away from the house and down the hill. Jim also tested the down spouts drainage system and confirmed they where unusable. By doing this we found a less expensive way to move the water away from the house. Jim was very open with me at how he could charge me more for things I did not need and showed me where we could use existing systems in place of installing unneeded ones. This is why I recommend Keystone Basement Systems. If they have honest trustworthy people like Jim Krall working for them, that is who I want working on my house.

He was right on time - and spent a great deal of time going over with us the problem and the solutions. He answered all of our questions and showed us pictures of finished products, along with three bids on 3 different approaches to the repair. My husband and I never make a decision without having a conversation and doing some research. We are in that phase now and will make our decision soon. Since we weren't aware of the extent of our foundation problem we will have to give it some thought since it's so important to the integrity of our home.

They were a month late in getting started with the project. We tried to get our down payment back because of that delay and so we tried, to no avail, contacted our initial contact, Jim Crawl, about getting the money. We could not get a hold of him and a month later received a letter from a lawyer saying that they would not refund the down payment. After the work was completed on the floor, the walls, which were ugly and peeling, were not completed. We had seen their ad in the Angie's List publication and were looking for our project to look like the "after" pictures displayed in the ad. (which looking back seems like false advertising on their part) They said that they did not agree to that, even though Jim had told us that would be done. We repeatedly tried to get a hold of Jim Crawl, leaving multiple messages, which were never returned. They did not do anything to our walls, but we had had our son move items away from the walls so the work could be completed. We asked that the company move the items back for us since we weren't able to do it ourselves. It took us threatening to not pay and few weeks of time for them to agree to move those items back. When they finally agreed they were very disrespectful and rough on our items damaging some of our Christmas item. The person overseeing the project told us that the company did not give Jim Crawl a commission on this job because of our multiple complaints. This seems to me to be an admission of the companies guilt in this matter. I feel like they definitely took advantage of our age, and that we ended up with bad service and paid more than we should have.

I was contacted by Tony the evening before the start date to go over the procedures for the next day and asked if I had any questions, which were very little, because he covered all details. He told me of when he would be here the next day. He showed up the next morning at the time he had told me. He went over the details and walked me through what they would be doing. He and his crew, Wesley and Charles, helped with removing a few items out of there way for them to begin work. The guys were great. They worked together as a team to get the job completed. These men worked hard all day long. They moved from one task to the next. They kept the work area clean thru the whole process and after all was completed. They answered any questions I had and treated me with respect. I wondered if we had made the correct decision to have the work done and after seeing the water flow out of every hole that was drilled I was convinced we had made the right one.

The workmen arrived a little late because they ran into problems in the job they were finishing up. The technician did call to let me know so I wasn't upset. I figured that this was an indication as to what would happen if my work took longer. Unfortunately for the workmen, my job was more involved than they expected. The group leader explained everything to me and discussed the problem (there wasn't a good place to put the drainline) and various solutions. The workmen stayed until the job was finished. All-in-all, it was a very positive experience. The down side was that I needed the job done in the first place. There was a service call, the drainline froze with the first freeze of the season. The repair technician came out quickly and got the system working. A permanent solution will be installed this month (Jan 2-14). I will update this review then.

TERRIBLE- YOU NEED LOTS OF PATIENCE IF THERE IS ANY PROBLEM. I read the reviews and purchased this very expensive system in April, 2013, so that I would have no problems with my basement. The technicians seemed professional at installation. They cleaned up afterwards. They did not tell me much about the system or leave a manual. The 1st- 3rd times I called, with the emergency alarm screeching and the warning of flood emergency, it took more than 24 hours for someone to get back to me. So much for ?24/7 emergency response?. At the second emergency service call, I expressed my deep dissatisfaction to the technician. There was no customer service follow up. The customer service has been terrible. The 1st time I called, I wanted to ask a question and it took a few days for someone to get back to me. When I have called their receptionist/answering service, there has always been at least 24 hour wait for a response. Finally, after the 3rd emergency call, an employee other than a technician called to ask how things were, and when I said what had been happening, apologized. This was the first time someone seemed to hear my frustration, and responded without a 24 hour wait. The 4th time, the flood emergency alarm went off. I asked for their best professional to review the system, which was installed incorrectly. I was told that a senior level technician would come today. I stressed that I wanted the best, as I can?t stand it anymore. When I raised my voice- with control- no abusive language, my rage directed at the company, not her, SHE HUNG UP. We are now up to the 5th emergency warning. I would have given an F, but the senior technician did sincerely say he was sorry, and seems to want to make sure it is fixed. I just want the system removed and my basement, and peace and quiet restored.

2. There was a miscommunication about a matter but it was resolved amicably and professionally.

Had carbon fiber straps (13) installed on 12/13/13. Tony's crew did a great job and were very professional and informative. They got the job done in one day, and no mess was left behind. Still think the cost was too high, but was actually in line with 2 other contractors.