Get matched with top excavation pros in Thornton, IL

"I had a small job and trouble finding professional help for my small job replacing the shingles on the roof of my wood garden shed -- 12x6 size. Once I removed the tools inside to prepare for their work, I realized I also needed the floor replaced. They completed both jobs within a few hours; they cleaned up afterwards, I am now prepared for keeping my lawnmower and other tools dry and ready for next season. They were a pleasure to work with. Their price was fair."

"Mr. Preban & his crew installed a drainage system in my yard. His written estimate was complete, fairly priced. They showed up when they said they would & worked a long couple of days. I definitely recommend Preban Enterprises."

"November 13 2025 I hired Elite & Elevated Construction & Excavation to complete excavation, footings, and foundation work for a large project I was working on. I invested about $55,000 in the project, and I couldn?t be happier with the results. The job was completed perfectly and on time, even though the weather conditions were terrible. We had snow, rain, and freezing temperatures, but nothing stopped Mario and his crew. They showed up every day, worked efficiently, and stayed committed to getting the job done right and fast. I truly appreciate their dedication because I needed the work completed quickly, and despite the weather challenges, they delivered exactly what they promised. Professional, reliable, and hardworking team. I would definitely recommend Elite & Elevated Construction & Excavation, and I will absolutely hire them again to install my concrete driveway in the future"

"JM Demolition helped me demo a 2 bedroom apartment and haul out all garbage in a week."

We pride our company on reliability, great communication, integrity, and quality work. We are experts in our trade and will do our best to keep you as educated as we can on your particular task or project. We look forward to earning your business!\nWe have been in business since 1998. We specialize in Excavation work residential and commercial as well as Lawn Maintenance & Tree Removal.

"Work was completed professionally and in a timely manner.  I also asked to have the catch basin cleaned, but Phil said it was not necessary after inspection.
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"RESPONSIVENESS TO NEEDS
There are different measures of success on any project and different constraints and issues that will challenge those measures.  My primary measure of success was a DRY basement, and Brian?s proposal to deliver it was comprehensive. He was committed to meeting my request while satisfying my second measure of success: do it at an affordable price.

ESTIMATE
Brian does all estimates himself instead of sending out salespeople (which I appreciate).  I scheduled Brian's first visit in the days following a large rainfall that caused flooding in neighboring areas, so his schedule was packed. Understandably, Brian was crunched between appointments when he arrived slightly behind schedule, but he had kept me updated in the hours preceding his arrival.  Brian quickly conveyed a focus on resolving the seepage problem.  He also listened to my concerns, identified primary and secondary issues, and said he would send a thorough e-mail containing precise details for a solution with a cost breakdown.  He arrived and left in about hour, and within a couple days he sent an e-mail estimate with two options. 1) A complete basement drain tile system with crack repairs, or 2) a partial system that he believed would resolve the problem at a lesser cost. He offered to allow me to "upgrade" to the full system in the future and pay the difference between the two estimates. This type of offer was not even discussed by the three other companies (two big names and one small business) that came for estimates.

With the exception of the extended (years-long) payment / financing options offered by the larger companies, Brian?s proposed solution was almost a hands-down winner.  The other small company was comparable, but after sending the initial estimate, Brian offered to return on the weekend to give me the opportunity to talk again when there was more time.  Other companies' approaches to doing exterior excavation ranged from doing minor reinforcement to not even wanting to touch it.  Brian, in contrast, said he can?t honestly guarantee a dry basement when he didn?t know what the previous repair looked like.  He offered to completely excavate the two walls that had work done previously and to replace (if necessary) any inferior quality materials with his own fix.  Now we're cooking with gas!  The cost of the job remained competitive, and this ?extra mile? effort on top of everything else fully satisfied my need to be 100% sure the seepage would be stopped.  I opted for the full drain tile system.

TIME
The timeframe Brian quoted was in line with all of his competitors: 2 days max.  The time element of the job met some challenges, taking 5 full working days to complete, (Tues-Fri plus half days Sat-Sun).  The reason?  The crew found the floor was new, dense 4-inch concrete poured on top of the original 4-inch concrete floor.  This meant twice the work for the breakup crew that was prepared for a conventional job, making it impossible to accommodate the original time frame. Brian promised to never leave a job unfinished, so he juggled his crews' schedules to make daily progress, and he never once raised his price despite the extra time or material (concrete) required. I was very grateful.  He also personally came to finish the job on the weekend rather than pushing it out to Monday or Tuesday.

EXTRAS AND RESPONSIVENESS
Some plumbing in the floor was impacted by the concrete breakup and required repairs due to its age and condition.  Brian took the time to find the exact materials I requested for the repair and installed them.  I was not present at installation so he took photos and video and sent them to me via smartphone so I could verify he got it right.  What other contractor does that?! He also paid attention to every detail for laying out the design of the downspout tie-ins, finishing touches, and every single special request I threw at him. He also spotted an additional leak in the corner of the foundation and sealed it up as well. His commitment to resolving every issue to my satisfaction was outstanding.

Brian made himself accessible via phone, e-mail and text, and he responded quickly to inquiries.  I wanted to know every detail of the work, and Brian accommodated. Another totally unexpected surprise came when Brian discovered that some of the promised work did not need to be performed, and he provided credit for this instead of using the difference for my extra requests.

SATISFACTION
"You'll be happy," is Brian's mantra.  He addressed a couple gripes - dust exposure to the first floor space; a few trampled plants outside - by providing equitable financial credits.  These professional oversights on his crew's part are unacceptable to Brian, and credit on the final bill was all he could do to make up for it.  Overall, the crew was polite, and one even brought a stack of extra floor tiles from his personal supply to replace some I'd lost during demolition work I had done weeks earlier!

From start to finish, despite delays and minor shortcomings, Brian executed on the proposed project by 100% nailing the two most important measures of success ? quality and cost. As for timing, the job ran long but Brian didn't quit until the job was done. I never expect perfection; nevertheless, Brian aimed to earn my satisfaction as his primary goal. I give an A+ on nearly every category, taking a point or two away for the issues mentioned.

Rain is coming in the next two days, and I'll only edit this review if the repairs fail to deliver a dry basement.  I am posting this review before the rain comes as a vote of confidence that I won't have to change a word.

The most important criterion to assess a job well done is whether you'd recommend a service provider to a family member or friend.  In Brian's case, I absolutely would."

"Great job building a box and filling it with crushed gravel on unlevel ground—in the rain! Prompt, fair priced and good service."

"I found my interaction with Reliable Basement Services (Reliable Services) excellent in every respect.  I had no problem getting a timely appointment for an estimate, unlike another company that made me wait two months.  The man who provided the estimate was punctual, very pleasant, very professional and seemed very knowledgeable.  Reliable Services was far more flexible in planning the work than the other two companies that gave me estimates.  The other two companies insisted that a series of large bushes along the side of the house and an air conditioner compressor must be removed at my expense before the work was done.  Reliable Services agreed to do the work without removal of the bushes and air conditioner.  Even after an additional charge was added to the estimate because of the additional difficulty of doing the excavation by hand with the bushes and air conditioner in place, the estimate given by Reliable Basements was by far the lowest of the three companies from which I obtained estimates.  The workers arrived punctually on the day the work was to be done, and they finished on time (two day job).  They were polite, professional and did an excellent job, cleaning up as best they could at completion.  Altogether, this was an excellent experience.
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" It was a big project that went smoothly from beginning to end.  Steve and his crew did excellent work - especially in the excavation process which carefully preserved shrubs located right next to the drive.  The work crew was very professional:  on time, considerate and left the work site neat at the end of each day.  The finished driveway is beautiful - I have received several complements from neighbors and also from other service providers who have come to my home.  Totally worth the money!
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