Environmental Enhancements, Inc.

The first stage of the project was to prepare the soil that was not to be covered to a depth of 12 to 14 inches in preparate for plantings. They only prepared soil to average of 4 to 6 inches deep and said that was all they could do. They were told at the time that this was inadequate.
The existing patio was removed and it and the walkway were prepared for the concrete pour. The contract called for a concrete base between 4 and 6 inches of reinforeced concrete. Instead they installed a base of 3 to 5 inches of concrete with fiberglass embedded in the concrete rather than steel reinforcing mesh or rods. They were told at the time that this was inadequate but decided to continue the laying the stone and brick.
The brick trim was specified to match the house color, it did not. Because of the color mismatch we had to delete much of the edging detail that would ajoin the current foundation.
The following is from the contract we signed.
Notes on Bluesstone flagstone: Joints will nominally be 1/2 inch or less in width and uniform thoughout project. Mortar color will match existing mortar. Stone will be nominal 1 inch thick, of blue and gray shades, not full color. The smallest stone, except in areas that are curved, will be a minimum of 6 inches in any direction.
The stone used had various shades of rust and black incorporated. The mortar was nearly white and nowhere near matching the existing mortar. The mortar joints approached 1 inch wide, where ragged, not at all straight or looking very professional. They were told at the time that this was inadequate but continued to lay the stone and brick. Note: The stones were squares and rectangles, not rough cut or irregularly shaped.
When the project was completed I repackaged all of my previous compaints which resulted in a meeting with one of the owners who came to visit the completed project. To my satisfaction at the time he agreed to replace the stone and brickwork and to extend the warranty because of the concrete base which had been installed. At this point I was impressed that they would undertake the expense or redoing the project to ensure it met standards.
The following was included in the new statement of work that EE prepared:
- Install new handpicked Pennsylvania Bluestone Flagstone over existing concrete base.
The flagstone will be Blue and Grey Shades and will be 1and quot; thick with minimal clefts in the stone.
- Mortar color will be Brixment: OC. A sample board will be prepared for your review before installation occurs.
- Joints will be 1/2and quot; or Less and consistent throughtout.
The reinstalled work is certainly better than their first attempt but fails to meet any of the above standards they put into the contract. Many stones were closer to 3/4 inch thick. The colors were good but there were many stones with significant clefts which they refused to replace. The mortar color is terrible, splotchy and not at all matching the current mortor or the color specified in the contract. The sample board they had specified to eliminate problems with the mortar was prepared after installation of the bicks and much of the stone. Virtually all joints are greater than 1/2and quot;
One the rebuild they made a mistake on the walkway and did not overhang the stone (over the concrete base) by 1and quot;. This space was used to hold mulch to cover the raw concrete underneath the stone. The agreed to solution between ourselves and EE was that the stones would be removed and replaced to give the proper edge finish.
The final straw was when they came out to make this repair I was informed, at that time, that they now intended to grind away the concrete underneath. This would have left a sidewalk that was narrower than specified with a rough grind on the concrete and huge amounts of concrete dust flying around the yard and neighborhood.
I registered my complaint with the foreman who said he would get back to me. That was over 30 days ago with no response. The total project lasted nearly one year, and I did not get the finished project for which I contracted in spite of two attempts by Environmental Enhancements, Inc.

When we returned from vacation, the back patio looked the same, and the front walk had been repaired. I called EE and told them that we were not satisfied with the work on the back patio (and lt; $500) and did not want to pay since the rust was still plainly visible. They sent someone to our house the next day to review the issue. He was very understanding. I explained that I didn't want to pay for the work since the issue remained. Several days later I received an email from EE stating that I am not only expected to pay for the work, but that they were also suspending - immediately - my landscaping maintenance, which was not even on the same contract. Our landscaping contract had a 30 day cancellation clause. When we informed EE of this, they agreed to honor that timeframe, but provided us with the 30 day notice.
I then became suspect of the front walk as one of the stones separated from the joint, and some joints were cracking within two weeks of the work having been completed. I had another landscaper inspect it. He noted multiple issues, including an uneven (hazardous) walkway, loose joints, and lack of proper foundation under the stones.
As a result of this, I requested a full refund of the deposit, as I have to have both jobs redone by another contractor.
To their credit, EE refunded the full amount without requiring further escalation.

Our overall experience was far better than I ever could have imagined. In recent years, it has been incredibly difficult to find reputable companies that actually do what they say they will do, have excellent customer service and go beyond your expectations. Environmental Enhancements was all of this and more. The Vice President, Pat Falvey is extremely personable, attentive to what we wanted and spent untold numerous hours working out some of our special requests - for instance, we have 2 large dogs in a small backyard. We wanted GREEN GRASS but knew sod would be difficult to maintain. Pat started to research artificial turfs that not only were dog friendly, but aesthetically very close to real grass. He worked hard to find us something that was not only beautiful, but also cost effective. We are so grateful! HIs team who came to work - Kyle, Miguel, Santiago and Antonio were extremely professional, worked so hard in our small yard and literally made significant progress each day - it was amazing. They did such a great job, my husband and I got them a celebratory lunch on their last day of pizza, wings and soda - CHEERS!! We are so grateful to their work!!

I know that when we move from this house, our property will be so much more valuable based on the craftsmanship of the work they did in our yard. I also know, I will be calling Environmental Enhancements to fix up our next house too! And, my best friend in Silver Spring plans to call them soon for her yard - I will spread the word! Actually, they finished up on Saturday and we have numerous neighbors ask to come and check out our new beautiful yard - we were happy to show it off!

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The quality of their work is excellent. The value is great, very good. Their promptness is very good.

It could not have gone more favorably! The design was fresh and complementary to the neighborhood, construction of the buildings and materials. It was scaled wonderfully and the plantings were great. Kyle the designer was a great listener in designing something that met my multi-purpose needs (park a car and entertain) as well as fix a drainage problem with a thing of beauty! All the crew were great to work with and got high marks from my neighbors. Living in close in-town quarters, the other Kyle was most concerned that my neighbors were able to use the alley and the work not be disruptive to them. Most appreciated.

From start to finish, the work was orderly and timely done. One thing to note, during the work period, DC had one of its awful heat waves. I was glad to see that the supervising Kyle made sure the workers were well taken care of to the extent of cancelling a day or two of work to keep them out of the harsh environment.

The end product looked great! It us useful, corrected a big problem and looks fabulous. These guys were great! I would use them again in a heartbeat!

As with many things in life, timing was the issue and I must have been requesting my estimate and their busiest time. Waiting for the additional two-weeks was not in my time-line. Otherwise, EE would have been one of my preferred companies.

The entire process was wonderful. Their attention to detail is amazing. They took care of our yard and property as if it were their own. They showed up on time, finished on time and consulted with us during the process to keep us updated on the schedule and ensure things were going as we wanted. Pat and his staff are an absolute pleasure to work with. Kyle, the project lead, took great pride in the work of the landscape and masonry teams and went way above and beyond to make sure that the job was done perfectly. This was one of the best experiences I have ever had with a project for our house.

The workers from Environmental Enhancements arrived on time each day. They had an accurately drawn plan that addressed our desires for the job and followed it to the letter. Following a clean up of the yard, they formed up the patio/slab extension and poured the concrete, then busied themselves with the additional landscaping changes we ordered. On the second day, they began laying the flagstone on the slab, which because of the care they used took the full day really began to look beautiful. Especially interesting was the field-stone veneer put on the face of the concrete steps -- excellent. Once the stone had set in the dry mix, they grouted the entire job, again showing really great care in doing it correctly. We will certainly call Environmental Enhancements again for any masonery or landscaping need we have.

They were very responsive to our initial meeting with a professional design and proposal. Changes to the design and proposal were made quickly and the work was started exactly as stated in the proposal. There were no problems from the beginning to the end. Any concerns or questions, were answered immediately. The job sites were always left in the best possible clean condition. The masonry crew was extremely polite and also responsive to any questions. This patio has been an incredible addition to my backyard landscape and I am the envy of all my neighbors. I throughly enjoyed working with the whole EE staff. Pat Falvey and Kyle Thurman, as well as the masonry crew, was a pleasure to work with from the initial phone call to the final walkthrough and I would recommend them highly.

Pat Falvey, VP, is our contact. Very knowledgeable. Talked us thru project, sent photos of available materials, price quote and finally installation. The workers were extremely neat and courteous and our project was done in time and our home was on our local Home Tour. We were thrilled!