Renovation Experts / Basement Experts

First let me start by saying that when it comes to renos I'm very particular and scrutizing that things are done right, no short cuts, and expect quality workmanship. I got around three quotes for the work that we wanted done. One of the companies I called an commonly advertised number on newstalk 1010 wanted to charge $200 for an estimate. Forget that. Anyway, I called Stan for an estimate and he came by and really took his time to listen to what we wanted done. He spent around 2 hrs going over our questions and concerns. He came with a portfolio of other basement renos he'd done previous. He was extremely professional and patient, and easy to talk too. When he gave us the quote for the basement it was extremely detailed and cost broken down into sections. Although he was the most expensive quote of the bunch we decided to go with him because he seemed thorough and detailed which was more important to us than going for the cheapest quote. We're glad that we made the right decision.

The work that we needed done was very unique due to a custom set of sliding doors that we wanted installed which were to be the main feature of the basement. Stan worked with the lead person in charge of overseeing the door and made sure everything was made to spec for the doors. Because of this the doors fit perfectly without any issue. Beyond that the rest of the basement was fairly standard. Nush and Ray did a good job with framing. Although there were two corners in the basement that were a little off and not 90 degrees. By the time I realized this it was already too late but every other corner in the basement turned out well so it was not too big of a deal. Especially given how well Nush did the framing for the vents and crossbeam.

Insulation went ok. They missed certain areas (small areas) where they did not remove the old insulation and I had them remove the drywall to redo it. They did not vapour barrier the headers for some reason but I spoke to Stan about it and it got fixed.

There were no issues with plumbing except that the toilet sits out a couple of inches more from the wall than I would have liked and for whatever reason the spare parts for my faucet left with the plumber but Stan was able to get that back for me. The washroom came out great. Glass shower came out perfect. Any issues big or small I could always get in touch with Stan to have it changed or fixed.

Electrical came out well. Very professional. I again made some last minute changes and Stan was always it touch for consult and to make it happen. For the central vac outlet repositioning and extension Stan even called in another specialist and it was done well and properly. A small detail but it made a difference.

Drywalling was done well and fairly quickly. Only issue I had was with the mudding. Unfortunately, you really only notice it once the walls are painted. The ceiling and certain walls near the windows are quite noticebly a little rough looking, seeming uneven. Although it's ok, I feel it could have been done better. It's because the light coming in from the window shines along the ceiling or surrounding walls that make any imperfection look more apparent. When the potlights are on it's not noticeable.

HVAC went smoothly but certain sections although functional looked a little rough.

Overall we were very happy with Stan and his crew. Everything was done properly to code or better. The main thing was that we could always communicate with Stan if we changed our minds about something or had questions and he would always be willing to take time to work with us. Our basement looks fantastic and is fully functional. Even with all the design changes we made, some on the fly, his original quote stayed fair and never gouged. Ryan, Nush, Laudi, Ray were all very professional and curteous. We're very happy with our basement and if we had another basement to finish we would call Basement Experts.