Else Marie in Toronto

I has some efflorescence and termite problems on the basement walls of my 100 yr old row house in Riverdale, and needed waterproofing, weeping type system and a sump pump. I got several quotes and chose Aquatech because they use a multi-layer, dimple board system, their price was good (though not the very lowest), and they're a large and established company. Slava and his team arrived to do the job and I was really impressed. They worked quickly, really knew what they were doing, and Slava was able to problem-solve some small issues effectively. He ensured that I understood the work and was satisfied. They also kept the house surprisingly clean given what a messy job this is (they had to walk everything through my row house), and arrived and finished when Slava said they would. Very satisfied customer!

Avenue Road was one of the only roofing companies I called that came out and provided a proper, full quote in a timely way. Trevor answered all of my questions comprehensively, helped me understand what I needed, and even let me know that I could wait for a couple of years for the repair of my 'main' roof I'd been expecting to have done. The crew came today and did a fantastic job on my porch roof - they were prompt, tidy, and answered all of the questions I had. The work looks really good. Avenue Road has a reputation for being the best - which they lived up to today. They cost a little more (though not much more than other quotes I received), but it is well worth the piece of mind.

If I could give a rating higher than 10 I would! Vitaly provides a really excellent service. I called several places to get a quote, and only Vitaly came out to meet me promptly, was helpful and conscientious, and provided a very reasonable quote. The work was done quickly and carefully by Vitaly and his crew. The crew was all lovely - they showed up as promised, worked efficiently, consulted with me about options, and cleaned up after themselves. They even kept apologizing for walking through my (row) house. There was a downpour a couple of days ago, and everything seems to work as it should. Highly recommended!

After a bad experience with one of the big HVAC companies and facing a second night without any heat in mid February, I called SAR Gas. They quoted me a much, much lower price for the new venter motor I needed and agreed to install it the following day. I spoke directly with a repair technician and he was very helpful. The next day they came later than agreed, but then charged me no labour cost to make up for it. My furnace is now working perfectly. Great value, service and customer care!

I had a pretty disappointing experience with McKinnon this week. On Tuesday I called to ask for a repair visit because my 8 yr old HE gas furnace had stopped working (during an especially cold week). I called them because they are one of a few distributors of parts for the type of furnace I have. Based on my conversation with another HVAC company/the internet/my eyeballs I was quite sure the venter motor needed to be replaced, however they said they weren't willing to order the part and still needed to diagnose, which makes sense I guess. A nice staff member (Phil) came and within literally 5 minutes agreed the venter motor needed replacing. He said he'd come back the following day at 2pm with the new part and lent me a space heater. He said he'd let me know how much the part would be beforehand, but agreed that the cost would be 'closer to $200 than $800' (which was the way I asked it). Then came time for the bill - I was shocked: $55 for a 'truck fee', which indeed the receptionist had told me about, but then $85 for labour! This reflected their $125/hr labour fee, minus a $40 coupon from their website. It turns out they don't charge by 15 min or 30 min increments - 5 minutes of labour and you're charged for the full hour! The next day (after a long cold night), the McKinnon receptionist called me after 2pm to let me know the part would be $680. She assured me she'd called to suppliers and this was the best price. Also, it couldn't be installed until tomorrow, as it was now too late in the day to get the part. Finally, she told me that the labour cost, even though this would take under 30 minutes to install would be $125. The full hour I'd paid for the day before would not factor in. I expressed my dissatisfaction and a manager offered to charge $75 for labour instead. In the meantime, I called another HVAC company - they quoted me $411 for the same part, installed it the following day and ended up not charging me any labour. I went with this other company, and won't be using McKinnnon ever again. The icing on the cake was today when McKinnon left a message saying my card had been declined and threatening to send the bill to collections! I'd been trying out the new Visa Debit card I'd just gotten (not very smart, I admit) and it turns out it can't be used as a Visa. I called and gave them my regular card number.

I called Reliable to request a visit to have my furnace repaired. Instead, the person I spoke with asked me about the problem, gave me an idea about what the issue might be, and suggested I call an authorized dealer of parts for my brand of furnace because he is not one (and so the price for the part would be higher). I was so impressed with this - really conscientious and helpful. Thanks for helping me save some money!

George disconnected my old gas stove and installed the new one, adding a new valve and hose. Unlike so many tradespeople, George answered the phone when I called, provided me with a clear information and pricing for the work I'd need, booked me in right away and arrived right on time. He was courteous, tidy, calm and professional. Highly recommended!

I had been turned down by a few appliance repair people that I called to ask about my flooding LG fridge - apparently no one can/wants to work on LG fridges because LG restricts sale of their parts to a couple of companies that have terrible reviews. One told me that I'd probably have to get a new fridge. But Garnet agreed to come out an take a look. He fixed it in under 2 hours, took the time to review what he found with me and made some recommendations. His bill was very reasonable, and it has worked perfectly since. Excellent service!!