DBEST DECORATIVE CONCRETE CURBING

After many delays,( weather, temperature and being out of the country for months) we finally got everything right. The workers were very friendly and knowledgeable. The job looks absolutely wonderful. Color was perfect, design as ordered. We had to change some things fro the original and they were very accommodating. They are coming back for an additional job later. Very pleased.

The curbing was ok but the matching driveway walkway was not. It has a slant to the right and is uneven. When I contacted John (the owner) about the issue he became instantly upset and very rude. At one point mocking me and mentioning he was the "concrete specialist". He also said "you've been hit too many times in the head" a direct remark about head and facial scars I have due to an accident. It was very odd to interact with John after the issue came up. When I asked why the walkway had such a slant to the right he said it was a "pitch" for water run off but when I countered with the fact the 2 foot wide walkway is already going uphill and has a natural pitch thats when he got very upset. John did not have a reason as to why he would do a pitch on a 2 foot wide walkway that is already pitched uphill parallel to the drive way. Instead he decided to disrespect me. He called my wife and told her he had been at out home to inspect yet he couldn't even remember how the job was layed out. Terrible experience, would not recommend him. At one point he apologized to my wife telling her he was sorry for the way he spoke to me but he gets flustered when questioned. He had also promised to fix the issue but then backed off that and said he would just do another inspection. In order to avoid further confrontation we opted out of having him come out to our home.

dBest was one of two companies who returned calls for estimates of the work we wanted completed. We ended up asking for a second estimate which they were happy to provide when the first was over our budget target. After modifying our plan to fit our budget we paid a 25% deposit and were placed on a wait list for a couple of weeks which was expected as the other company had over a month wait. dBest did try and move us up a couple of days but the weather stopped that from happening so we were suppose to keep our original date. The install only took a few hours and we are very happy with the results. We did need to have them come back to stain a missed portion but that was no problem as they quickly fixed the minor error. We would be happy to have them do curbing again in the future to complete our original plans. <br />

They never finished the job. The ramp in front is smaller than it was supposed to be. They also never covered the sides of the ramps and the concrete they poured dripped onto other parts of the sidewalk. They came out to look at the damage but they said they had no way to fix it. I've been calling them but they aren't responding.

It went Great! the pavers are amazing. all you want to do is stare at them. by far this  is one of the best investments we have made. matter of fact we're having them back to do an additional area. Great curb appeal. <br />

They were okay. If I have to do it over, I would probably use a different company. We actually had neighbors who told us not to use and we did anyway. The owner of the company is very nice but his dad is very difficult to work with. The man who owns the company is very good. The problem is he wasn't always out here when they were doing the work. As long as I was working with the man who own the company, everything was fine. I did not prefer to work with his father. He was kinda ugly on several occasions. He was actually like the site manager but when I had problems, I called the son. I would not use them again. I would not tell anybody else to use them. The son is very nice. He's very professional and very nice to work with. The problem is he is not the one who actually does the work. The father runs the crew that does the work. He's not very nice. He's very sarcastic, condescending, rude and not very punctual. He's very difficult to work.

UPDATED 4/14/2014!!! <br /> I just found out that this company was licences when they did the work.  Check out the BBB website, there is an alert regarding their status.   <br /> <br /> UPDATED 3/9/2014!!! <br /> About  two months ago Dbest came out to fix some of the issues/damage.  They failed to remedy the issues but did manage to crack the sprinkler lines in the exact same place they broke them the first time.  I called them and they came out to fix the lines. The line repairs did not work (when the sprinkler came on water was shooting up from the ground) and when I called to have them come back out to fix it correctly  I received a cryptic email stating that someone passed in the family and the business was no longer operating.  Today I just saw a a half page add in a coupon magazine from dbest (so obviously they are still in business).  Keep away from this company, if things go wrong they will tell you they are no longer in business to get out of finishing the job and fixing damage they cause. <br /> <br /> ORIGINAL REVIEW BELOW.... <br /> This was a very disappointing project with many quality issues.... <br /> <strong>Pool patio expansion</strong>:  This was the major area for the issues and in turn our disappointment.   <br /> <ul> <li>To start, I was observing them as they began to pour the concrete and noticed that the guide boards where higher than the existing patio.  This would mean that if they continued to grade the cement using the boards water would flow back (not away) from the main patio area.  I mentioned this to Victor and he didn't believe me until one of his guys used a level to prove I was correct.  They then removed about 10 buckets of concrete to get it pitched down.  However, they didn't correct the guide wood and instead just tried to level by hand as they went along.  If you walk the slab now it feels uneven due to this miss. </li> </ul> <br /> Second, when I asked why they poured the concrete without putting in the drain rail (continuation of the exiting water drain rail) Victor looked pretty annoyed despite how obvious the miss way on his part.  He then told me that he forgot to get one and he would have to wait until the concrete dried so that he could cut it to install the drain rail.  So, essentially instead of doing it right and embedding the drain rail with the concrete pour (keeping the integrity of the slab) he cut it up the next day and I now have an area where in time cracks are more likely to form.  (Picture attached) <br /> In the area they poured the slab there is a gutter.  Instead of taking the base off the bottom of the gutter to smooth the concrete they actually just left it on an poured around it.  I pointed out to Victor (he was showing obvious annoyance at this point) that is was not smooth at all.  I actually took the bottom of the gutter off and then they put some concrete over the area that was already dry.  It looks terrible and is not smooth. (Picture attached) <br />   <br /> I also had them fill the flower areas because I only get weeds there and wanted to lower the maintenance.  The pour they did for this was so amateur I could hardly believe it.  Victor (who repeated told me he had 30 years of experience) told me not to worry because once I painted over it would be fine.  I will have to get a tool to sand it down myself before I can even think about painting. (Picture attached) <br /> To top this all off my yard flooded once my sprinkler turned on because they smashed the main sprinkler water pipe. (Picture attached) <br /> Other points: <br /> The edges of the slab are pointed up and not smoothed at all (Picture Attached) <br /> The cuts for expansion are crooked and look like cracks more than cuts. (Picture Attached) <br /> The walkway had pieces coming off and had to be redone (still looks bad). (Picture Attached) <br /> They told me that they would move the sprinklers, but they didn't put them back into the ground.  They just moved them and put dirt around them so that they stick up out of the ground. (Picture Attached) <br /> They had some wires on the side of the house that they couldn't seem to make up their minds on what to do, so instead of asking the left them half exposed and half in the cement. (Picture Attached) <br /> After cutting the freshly poured slab to put the drain rail in they still pitched it the wrong way (Picture attached) <br />  In the end this was a big disappointment and I would recommend them and not hire them again.

They were very good.  They came and did what they said they would.  They gave us a really good discount on pricing.  I have no complaints about them.  The only thing I would say is that in the dying process of the curbing, they left a little mess on the driveway and there is no way to get the stain out.  Otherwise, it was a good experience.  I would ask others to make sure that they cleanup after, which is the only thing they lacked in.  We have recommended them to our family and they have done work for them as well.

I originally got an estimate for concrete curbing for my landscape with Gian for a day that fit my schedule only to have him call up the day before and say it slipped his mind and he needed to reschedule the estimate for the next day, if it was okay with me. Gian came the next day, on time and measured out how many feet it would take for him to do the curbing. He gave me the best quote of the three estimates I had for curbing. I felt that he also had the best color samples and pictures of patterns on hand. His company also warranties the curbing and workmanship for five years. The other companies I got estimate from gave 30-days warranties. <br /> <br /> My husband and I like to research prospective contractors for jobs with Angie's List and the Better Business Bureau (BBB). On the BBB'S website for D-Best, it gave the company an "F" and had a note saying that it received this grade because the contractor was not licenced in Hillsborough County. However, Gian was able to email me his business tax receipt and explained the he didn't need a licence in Hillsborough County because cement curbing was considered landscaping and he didn't need a licence for it in Hillsborough County. His answer satisfied us and we scheduled a date (Tuesday April 19th) for him to come out so I could choose the color and design I wanted for the concrete. Once again, he called (on the same day this time) and asked if he could come an hour later. I wasn't happy about it but said fine. We then scheduled Friday, April 22nd, for the curbing to be installed and he wanted to let me know that if it rained it might push my date back. Of course it rained that day and the day after. He called the day before he was going to do the job and asked if he could come out in Saturday. I was disappointed because I really wanted the curbing put in and had already waited a week for Gian to do it when everyone else I got estimates from said they could do it in two days... <br />So Saturday comes and he said he would be at my house at 9 am. It was almost 10 when I finally called him because he didn't show up yet. I thought that perhaps, I had misunderstood the conversation we had about him coming on Saturday instead of Friday. He didn't answer so I left a message. I called about a half hour later when I didn't hear back from him and he answered and told me that he was behind and was still getting the supplies together at the yard and he would be at my house shortly. He didn't end up getting to my house until 11:40. I was not pleased at his lateness and the fact that he didn't even call me to tell me he'd be later than scheduled. He started to say something about his wife asking him to take dogs out when he got there... <br />When he and his crew finally got to my house, he walked along the side of the house and told me that the ground was too wet and he would have to come back on Monday and hopefully it would be dry by then. I wanted it to be done right, so I was disappointed when it had to be delayed again. <br />So, Monday the 25th comes around. He told me to expect him between 12-1. He didn't call again and I ended up calling him and he said he was on his way. He didn't get to my house until 2:30. By this time , I was frustrated with his punctuality and how unprofessional he was not to call me to tell me he was going to be late (again). He tried to tell me something about being sick and having to stop at a gas station. I think he knew I didnt buy it...so his crew gets out and he is working literally for about five minutes and comes and tells me I'm gonna kill him and says his machine is broken and can't continue and has to take it to a welder. I was not happy! Then he reassures me that he will be back the next day ,first thing. I gave him a look and said, "first thing?" <br />Anyhow, finally Tuesday comes around and surprisingly, he is there 12 minutes early and they get to work. Everything appears to be goig well but they ended up shoveling the trenches and not using the machine. About an hour in, my dad and I are walking around the house to figure out where to put security cameras and we hear Gian yelling at a worker for accidently dropping the cement color on the street. He was so loud some of my neighbors heard him and later, commented to me on how unprofessional and insulting he was to his workers. He also started to yell at them toward . e end of the job about how nothing was cleaned up or rinsed off. A couple problems arose during the installation: the first being that my cable wire was cut and the second, one of his workers trampled and killed one of my $15.00 bromiliads. He told me that it happens and that if the cable was underground to code at 6 inches, it wouldn't have been cut. Regardless, I didn't want to be charged for it to be fixed and my family was without a house phone, internet and cable for 24 hours because the cable guy wouldn't be able to work until the cement hardened. In regards to the flower/plant, he took $15.00 off the final price, but I still had to replace it. <br />Overall, the curbing turned out okay, however, some of the black bands in the design were not colored in completely and have some brown cement color areas showing. As far as being professional and punctual, I would not hire him again for those reasons. Gian kept saying that he's been in the business for 8 years when he talked about his company or defended something about his process. As for the other reviews I read in Angie's list, I don't know why my service was so drastically different from previous reviews. My expectation is that when I hire someone, they should be there when they say they will. I am seriously thinking if I had it to do over again, I would have gone with Border Masters; I probably will for my backyard landscape curbing. At the beginning of the process i was willing to refer this company to my neighbors, but after hearing about my experience with this company, my neighbors decided to go with other companies. <br /> <br />

<strong>I could not be more pleased!</strong> Gian was terrific from the get-go. This is Very Impressive because the start of our negotiations was 5 months ago! The delay was entirely my fault, but Gian was very patient and understanding through it all. <br /> The crew was very polite. The guys wielding those sledgehammers the first day were a sight to behold! All of the mess was cleaned before the crew left each day. <br /> Victor, Gian's dad and founder of the business, is a wealth of information and insights on all manner of subjects. (He's been in the construction trade for many years.) He is a delight to talk with. <br /> The work was done just as promised, in a timely manner. They even accomodated us by arranging to pour on Monday so my husband could watch the proceedings. (Our dog enjoyed watching from the window, too!) <br /> I can't recommend this company highly enough! If/when I have any more needs of that type, <strong>it's d'Best Concrete for me!!!</strong> <br />

Was a great experience. <br />

John, the father, came 2 days after I called, gave good advice and a fair estimate. We hired him on the spot and gave a deposit. His son and 2 other workers came one time (about a week later) and completed the work quickly and expertly! We are extremely pleased with the results. They guarantee their work, which we didn't find with another company.

Giancarlo (John) came out to the house the day after I called to give an estimate. We had three bids and his was the same as one and higher than another. They scheduled the job for about two weeks after the estimate day and did a great job. It only took about two to three hours for him and his two crew members to clear grass for the curbing and pour the curb. They did a great job with curving the line of the concrete so that it is a very clean job. They used a dye in the concrete so it won't fade and added a design into the wet concrete. I will be calling them back to add more curbing once I finish a patio project at the house.