True North Underpinning

We used Dan's team at True North to underpin our midtown Toronto basement (roughly 600sf). They had done our next door neighbour's house several years back and have worked quite a bit with my contractor who is finishing the basement. We went down to a full finished height of 8' (from 6'2") and replaced our old steel beam. We had two very large bulky support posts which were replaced with a smaller one given the stronger beam that was installed. Included in our work was radiant heating, a sump pump and a sewage ejector. Our cold storage room was not dug out but they did waterproof it and break up / pour a new floor.

From the initial consultation/estimate stage to the final walkthrough, all the staff at True North were phenomenal. Dan was very patient to answer my many questions and help me understand all facets of the project. All the guys on the crew were excellent with Fernando leading the charge on our job. Very hard-working, friendly and polite. They showed up on time each day. I got accustomed to hearing the side door open each morning as I was preparing breakfast. The project manager, John, was quick to respond to anything that needed follow up.

The project stayed very close to the estimated cost. The additional costs were reasonable and were related to some unplanned work like moving my water meter to a new location and replacing the lead pipe coming into the house. Also, there were some increases in the cost of the steel beam from the time of the quote in November to the start of the job in July. They started the work at the expected time AND finished on the time.

We were dreading the work because my wife and I both work from home and we thought the jackhammering would be unbearable. Surprisingly we got accustomed to the noise pretty quickly and thanks to technology, the microphone on my computer didn't pick up that noise so it wasn't an issue for virtual meetings.

At the end of each day, the crew cleaned up the basement (put all their tools away) and made the driveway as clean as possible (within reason). I lost track but I think we likely filled ~8 large bins with dirt. They took care to make sure the bin was well positioned so we could still have access to our walkway while not encroaching on my neighbour's side of the driveway.

The crew takes pride in their work and completing a quality job was important to them. When they laid down the rigid insulation, I went downstairs with a 6' level and couldn't find a single spot on the floor which wasn't perfectly level.

Overall we were extremely happy with Dan's team at True North Underpinning. I would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a truly professional, reputable and trustworthy company with excellent staff.