DORNBROOK CONSTRUCTION

I had Miles and his team redo our floors at our spa. Our previous contractor did not seal the floors properly and the top coat peeled off, dirty would get inside the parts that were flaking off, and it caused heavy staining. The epoxy on the cove base also started chipping off. After meeting with about 8 different contractors, we found Miles to be the most knowledgable and careful about our floors. One contractor said he and his one employee could do all 10 of our rooms in one week. Miles on the other hand said he would only be able to do 2 rooms in one week. We really liked this approach because we would rather have the floors done correctly than hastily done. Miles recommended a mortar cove rather than using speed cove. It is more difficult to apply but more robust. He was the only contractor who recommended the mortar cove and it gives the floor a nice seamless look. Four of the epoxy companies we met with wouldn't even give us a quote because they were afraid they wouldn't be able to offer a watertight seal and because the square footage was too small. As a float spa, we hose down the floor all day long. Dornbrook's estimate was very reasonable, we got another estimate from a contractor that was twice as much. Abi handles all the emails for Dornbrook and she replies within minutes sometimes even on weekends when we have last minute questions. We also liked that Miles told us about a client where there was a small blemish on the floor and the client asked them to fix it but they had to redo the entire floor to fix the one blemish. Not a lot of contractors would admit to something like that with a prospective client but in the epoxy industry, there are a lot of things that can happen- such as too much moisture/outgassing in the concrete. Miles and his staff were on the job site every day. The previous company I used had hired some college kids to help with the floors. I hope my mistakes will save you the headache of going with the wrong contractor. I've already scheduled for May to have them do the rest of my rooms. I would recommend securing your slot early because they can be booked up several months in advance. If you would like to take a look at our floors, our spa is open to the public. Feel free to call Float Oasis in Brookfield to schedule a time 262-317-9100. The pictures below show the before pics with the top coat peeling and staining. Then the work in progress as they grind the floor and do the mortar cove, and finally the finished product.

Overall, we had a good experience with Dornbrook. Our new neighbors next door needed to replace their driveway, they had selected Dornbrook, and the company offered us a few percent discount if we combined the jobs. They were prompt and fairly punctual in removing the old driveway and preparing to pour the concrete. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate, and we wound up with about an extra week of parking on the street. This was clearly not the contractor's fault, but was still a little frustrating!
They used a 6 bag mix, 5" thick, low chert, with compacted gravel base, so the material specifications and process seemed to be up to standards. No skimping here.
They did clean up fairly well, but  I noticed a few things after the job was done: 1) The surface of the driveway and steps was not troweled quite as smooth as I would have liked. It looks like it was simply floated with the wood floats. It's a bit rough on bare feet, and I'm not really looking forward to snow blowing in the winter. 2) We had some curved corners on the steps on the house and the old front walk (which has two steps also) and they did not take the time to duplicate these on the new concrete. Yes, it's a small point, but matching the old details would have been nice. 3) They had said they would form a small lip at the edge of the concrete that was above the level of one of the basement glass block windows, but in the end they did not do this. I was not here to supervise or provide feedback during the work, but I am not sure that would have mattered much.
Some of these things I might have expected to be done without asking, but I suppose it just shows you should make sure to have everything confirmed and documented so there are no surprises.

Larry was extremely responsive from the beginning. I was referred by a friend, so called and left a message. He promptly returned my call, and when I forgot to return his call, he followed up. He came out and measured, then gave us a written estimate immediately. He was our first bid, so he understood we would get other bids. He mentioned things that would set him apart from the competition, such as his being onsite with his own workers to be sure the job was done right.



After procrastinating over a month, we contacted Larry to do the job. He wasn't the least expensive, but also not the most expensive. After all consideration, however, we felt very comfortable with his communications and references as well. He told us to expect late August, as the weather was causing backups. He was true to his word.



A week before the job was to be done, Larry called to schedule. He stated it could be a day or two off, due to weather concerns. I explained I wanted to board our dog while the job was being done, to be sure I would get advance notice. I should not have been concerned. He called to let me know we would be 1/2 day late, due to rain, but assured me the next day would be the start. He explained the process as well.



On the morning the job was to be done, the crew arrived promptly at 7:00am. Larry met with us to explain in detail what they planned to do and how long it would take. He also explained when they would return to finish the job, which was to be Monday. They were there again, promptly at 7am, to pour the concrete, hoping to beat the rain, which was to be a light rain.



Unfortunately, the 6 weather channels Larry consulted and believed, were all wrong. They poured and smoothed, and no sooner finished when the first downpour came. They quickly covered the concrete, and waited out the rains. Once it stopped, they again smoothed the concrete, only to have another strong storm come through. Though not predicted, it ended up being too much of a storm, and Larry let my husband know he would be back tomorrow to tear it out and start over.



Such professionalism! Larry called around to see if he could get cement to pour the following day after the tear out, but could not. So, they scheduled the repour for two days out. Again, for the tearout and repour, they were there promptly at 7am. The job is done and is beautiful! I cannot wait until we can have the stamping done on our porch and walkway, so we can really show off the beautiful job these guys did.



I should mention that we talked to him about replacing our patio and garage floor. He looked at both, and said, he would do it if we wanted, but he didn't see the need. It was so refreshing to have such an honest opinion. Larry is very professional, pleasant to deal with, and a man with great integrity. I strongly recommend him and his company.

The sidewalk is in a narrow space between my house and my neighbor's house and then wraps around one side of the front of the house. The neighbor's house sets lower and I was concerned that my new walk would send water into their basement. Larry at Dornbrook came up with a solution to capture and carry away the water that made me and my neighbor happy. I had two other contractors look at this project and I was not satisfied with their solutions to the drainage issue. Dornbrook started the day after my OK and had the project done by the end of the week. It looks great and has held up well.