Eco Builder Services Co

This job turned out well. Gino and his crew worked hard to make sure I was satisfied. I am happy with the results. <br />

Gino's crew did a great job with the new siding and other features. His employees work well together and were very helpful with suggestions. The siding looks great and I am quite happy with the job performed. <br />

A disaster.  Stay away from any company with whom Gino Nalashi is affiliated.  Signed contract in June 29, 2012.  FInally started work first week of October 2012 after daily emails to him.  Workers showed up on first day for demolition totally unprepared.  Had to give them a tarp but they still managed to stain the living room rug to a where now it must be replaced.  Would show up for an hour or two and then not re-appear for weeks.  Found them smoking in our house and using knick knacks as an ashtray.   Young guys who were rarely supervised and thoroughly inexperienced.  Days were spent with endless emails questioning Gino whether any one was showing up- got the truck broke down excuse (two times);  no workers because of hunting season; no workers because sick; no workers becasue of weather (funny because project was an interior remodel); worker crashed car; Gino got into an accident; can't get supplies because he was having MONEY PROBLEMS. Oh, there it is- finally.   Got him to supply a completion agreement which contained clause we could cancel if not completed by a cetain date.  We gave him a week after date in this completion agreement and then emailed him that we were execising our right to declare contract null and void.  Gino has the audacity to then email that he guesses we are getting someone else to finish project and that he was in a car accident  but is now feeling better and that he doesn't have a cell phone but wil be getting one next week. <br /> <br /> <br />

A total disater from start to what ended up being <strong> NOT FINISHED</strong>.  When workers did show they were not supervised.    Caught one of them smoking in our house and using one of our knick knacks as an ashtray.  Our drawers were rifled through and later we discovered items missing.  <strong> Permit was never produced</strong> at the job site- was part of contract and was told repeatedly that he had applied for and obtained permit.  We ended up demanding a completion agreement which was provided,  Signed contract on June 29, 2012 and exercised right to declare it null and void as provided in the completion  agreement  on February 14, 2013.  <strong>PROJECT WAS NEVER COMPLETED.    </strong>Gino Nalaschi and Eco Builder Services are the living example of why contractors are given bad names.  We now have the task of finding another contractor who is willing to complete the job.   I would advise you to search any contractor you may be considering not only under the business name but under his/her individual name as well.    <br /> Signed contract at end of June 2012 and supplied deposit as required.  We requested that work not begin until August.  We were advised that jobs were lined up and they would not even be able to start until August.  Finally got him to commit to starting on 10/1/2012.  I waited for them to show up.  Got a text from Gino that he would be there soon.  Replied to  him that I was already two hours late for work.  He replied that he was stuck at anoither job and that I should go to work. I asked him to call me when he was leaving the job he was at and I would meet him at my house.  This was at 9:46am.  At 5:32 pm I was stil waiting for his call.  Finally, on 10/3 someone showed up to begin demo.  Workers showed up unprepared.  Tracked mud and what I can only guess is some sort of grease on living room carpet which will now have to be replaced.  On 10/3  Gino notified me of hidden water damage and provided an estimate to repair it.  We signed the additional contract for this work and paid for it.  Gino hired a sub to complete the repairs which were completed by 10/9/2012 at which point I received a text from Gino with a smiley face and all that "roof is all fixed the rest of the demo tomorrow will be done your [sic] leak free." <br /> Now the fun begins in earnest.  On 10/10 some workers were there but left- leaving lumber and Trufloor on our front lawn, uncovered and exposed to the elements and any potential thieves.  Gino said someone would be back to cover up and that they would return in the am.  Here we go, 10/15 one guy sick, another called off and Gino out of town.  10/17- asked Gino where permit was since it was not displayed. Per Gino, he would have to pick it up "tomorrow morning he's only there Tuesday and Thursdays I missed it yesterday".  10/18 Gino notified us there would be a delay of two days on our job because he had tools stolen from one of his jobs.  10/23 texted Gino to see if anyone would be working on our project that day.  Gino replied "I'm sorry I can't send anyone there today . . . . "    Everyday I had to text him to see if there would be workers coming.  We had cats we had to lock in an unheated room and did not want to put them out there unnecessarily. <br /> 11/29/2012 texted Gino for update and got excuse of no workers available-- holiday, hunting season.  <br /> And on and on and on.  Our joke of the day was guessing what the day's excuse would be.  It was the only way we could deal with the stress of this whole situation <br /> Got the "Truck Broke"  excuse twice as well as a "worker wrecked his car". <br /> Still no permit. <br /> Then on 1/2 we had a disagreement on when next payment of $1,000 was due- contract stated when windows were in.  He argued that it was was seven of the eight windows were in because window in bathroom was separate.  He then proceeds to say, and I quote, "Well it don't matter to me then I'm trying to resolve this and if you can't work with me then I can't send guys there until next week sorry total charge for price on contract is 7 windows to be exact I'm paying got 8th out of pocket but I can only finish it in the next few days."   "Listen I don't want to argue I just want to complete job but I can't send guys there without money sorry"  <br /> Now, let me point out that contract clearly states eight windows,  he simply forgot to add in the cost of one of them to his estimate.  In addition, all windows were lumped in as one phase of the project.  There was no distinction made between the bathroom window and the other seven windows as he tried to argue when he demanded the $1,000 for installation of the windows.  I had, earlier given him payment for installation of drywal before it was totally completed and ended up not seeing a worker for weeks afterwards. I, at this point, wanted this guy out of my house and my life.   Got him to agree to provide a completion agreement stating all work would be done by January 7, 2013 or no additional payments would be due  and contract could be declared null and void. <br /> On January 5, 2013, we asked what time workers would be arriving and were told "well not sure now I'm having banking problems and  can't get the materials there yet.  Jody is sick so I am trying to get there."  <br /> The last time we saw him, he was working on the plumbing and told us that it was going to cost us an additional $100 to which we agreed to pay.  That was the first week in January.  We have not seen him since.   <br /> During this whole production there were days when we specifcally asked that no work be done because we would be out of town.  These days did not total more than seven and could no way have cause this project <strong>WHICH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DONE IN 10-14 DAYS or in anyway have caused the PROJECT TO NEVER BE COMPLETED.</strong> <br /> <br />

On June 28, 2012, we signed our first contract, made an initial down payment, and prepaid for special orders with Eco Builder Services Co. (Gino Nalaschi) for three jobs:  deck work, porch demolition and reconstruction with re-supporting of the porch roof, and installation of a sliding glass door. <br /> The deck was completed in July but it took longer than the estimated two days. In the completion of the work, a 4 x 4 post was used instead of the 6 x 6 listed in the contract, because Gino thought it better matched an existing post.  Since this would have been difficult to replace, we decided to let it go. Otherwise, we were fairly pleased with the deck work. <br /> The start date for the rest of the work, much more substantial than the initial deck job, was supposed to be "august 1st or week before" by contract, but Gino had told us at the end of the deck work it would probably be the second week of August for the start. Not having heard from him, we emailed him about a start date for the sliding door (a 1 day job by the contract), asking him to complete at least that installation by August 22. He replied the same day and said it wouldn't be a problem. We still don't have a new door, five months later.  (Although we have paid for one.) Frustratingly, the one day he committed to come in October and we took off work to be available, no one showed up.  We called Gino and he was "surprised" no one was there. <br /> The porch work began in late August and was estimated to take 9-14 days. It is important to note that Gino promised that once work began, his crew would be on the job, weather permitting, every work day until its completion. He soon discovered his plan of  jacking up the roof and re-supporting it would not be enough and more work needed to be done. (This was not a big surprise to us.)  On August 31, 2012, we signed an additional contract and paid in full the amount to have the roof over the porch mostly rebuilt. The job time estimate in the contract for this was an additional 4-5 days. At the end of September, the roof work was "completed", but we noticed the new roof was leaking in two places and some shingles were not laying down flat.  While Gino was responsive, it seems some repair is still needed. <br /> Demolition on the porch began around early October. On October 31, 2012, we signed an additional contract (again a reasonable one) for foundation repair, waterproofing, and back filling of the area and paid in full the amount of that work. The job time estimate in the contract was and additional 3-4 days, bringing the total number of estimated days to 17-24. This was 2 months after that work had started! To our greater frustration, once that additional work was paid for, there was only minor debris clean up at the start of November and then no work for the entire rest of the month of November! <br /> At this point we tried imploring Gino to come and finish the work before the weather made it impossible. Gino kept "understanding" our concerns, but no one came. He often had excuses. These could very well be valid, but they came nowhere close to explaining the many weeks of absence. Finally, in December, some work resumed, and Gino pledged we would "have a porch by the holidays." Shortly thereafter, on December 14, work stopped, and we have not heard from Gino since. <br /> It also became evident, during this December period, that Gino changed the plans from the original contract, without consultation, by redesigning the porch height but making no mention of a step and by adjusting other structural parts of the porch. This was only discovered after several times of questioning the order in which he said he was planning to complete the work. <br /> At the time of this review (Jan. 23, 2013), almost five months have passed since the beginning of a job that was estimated to take around one. Our porch roof is still propped up with 2 x 4's. There is still a pit in front of the house where the old porch used to be. The front foundation of our house has been left exposed for the winter, and there are numerous gaps/openings into our finished basement. We have had a notable amount of mice in the basement. Despite his pledge (in the contracts) to clean up the job site every day, we still have debris, materials, and equipment under our deck, on our driveway, in our yard, and on the sidewalk leading to front door.  <br /> During the work in October, piles of debris sat on our driveway for weeks instead of being hauled away, blocking our garage and damaging some of the lawn. Several parts of our property have been damaged throughout: several solar lights along the sidewalk to the porch, ceiling tile in the basement from water damage (which Gino said he would replace), and framing on the side of the garage near the porch has several dents. <br /> On days that "work" was going on and one of us was home, we would often see someone arrive for awhile, then leave for a few hours and return later. Given Gino's surprise at other times that no one was working when we called, we wondered how often Gino might have thought work was going on when no one was actually here. We also wondered whether, knowing that he blew it on getting our job done on time, he dedicated himself to making sure his other  contracts were completed on schedule to minimize any negative reviews or complaints. Now seeing other people's experiences, mirroring ours, that we only wish we had seen before June, it appears that this mismanagement is a fundamental problem with Eco Builders. The only question is how much purposeful misinformation is being given. <br /> We are busy people, and hiring someone who could reliably complete this job in a given time frame was important to us when searching for contractors this summer. The rave reviews received on Angie's List for Gino's promptness and people saying they used this company more than one time were big reasons we chose him.  Literally every commitment Gino made on our porch/roof job regarding the duration of work, the completion of work, or when people would work, has not happened. <br /> We believe that Gino is capable of completing a quality job but we just need it completed.  We need him to put forth a plan and stick to it!  In the meantime, we're left waiting, hoping a one month job that started in August may finally be completed, while our property is exposed to the elements. <br /> We can provide additional details and time line information as well as photos. <br />

Estimate was for 3 weeks with a start date of September 5, 2012. Actual start was delayed by some three weeks with poor communication about new start date (s). During demolition, problems with plumbing and electric were uncovered (not unexpected due to the age and overall condition of the house) -- good communication about scope and price added to job, but continuing poor communication about showing up to continue work on the job. Multiple days at a time went by with no workers and no calls. There were several occasions on which the contractor/owner called to ask about coming onto the job site (usually after multiple days of absence) and then no one showed up as scheduled through the phone call. The three week job took over 3 months from the delayed start date, but there was not a continuous presence of workers -- in fact it was very sporadic. Workers often left our job site to go to work on another job. Eco-Builders owner was not on the job site much of the time even when other crew members were. (I point that out because other reviews indicated he was onsite supervising and that factor was a favorable consideration in our choice of this contractor.)  On the last day, trash (including broken glass) was left on and under the porch with a promise to return to haul it away -- still waiting 12 days later. In general the overall job is adequate, but there is evidence of poor execution of some details -- kitchen cabinet doors hung to open the wrong way, floor transition strip in doorway installed 1/2 inch from the end of the flooring.  No paint was left for us to do touch-ups (we were charged for all supplies and no rebates issued for unused supplies.)  The final day's work was primarily plumbing necessitating turning off the furnace -- they left without turning it on and without telling us it was turned off.  By the time we discovered that, it required a service call to get it turned back on and inspect for damage. <br /> <br /> <br />

Gino was supposed to redo my bathroom and replace 7 windows. I contracted with him on September 5, 2012 with an expected completion date of the end of September. Gino had no trouble taking my money, but it is now December 31, 2012 and I am still waiting for him to complete the job. It took him 3 months to start the bathroom and he still has not finished it. Forget about the windows, he never even started them. <br /> Gino never answers his phone and does not return phone calls. He never shows up when he says he will. He has a million excuses, but they are all lies. <br /> If anyone is dumb enough to hire Gino and  give him their money, I fell sorry for them.  <br /> I understand that it seems like I am upset and that is why I am writing this. But believe me, I was upset months ago, now I am just numb. I got myself a lawyer and just want to never hear from Gino again. Please do not make the mistake of hiring Gino. <br /> <br />

Everything went well right from the start. The contractor was both courteous and kept supplies neat while they were on our premises. The whole job (because the weather was good) took about 5 days. <br />

Gino was excellent to work with. Unlike other construction companies we had called for estimates, Gino returned my calls quickly and always arrived at our home when he said that he would. He answered all of our questions. He went above and beyond by completing some tasks that he did not charge us for. He continually kept us informed regarding the status of the work on our home and updated us as to additional things that needed to be done (i.e., the roof was old and we ended up having to replace most of the plywood). <br /> Additionally, the job was completed in 2 days, which was faster than the one week estimate that he had originally given! <br />

He seemed very good. He did a lot of calculations and measurements before giving us the quote. He gave us a nice presentation regarding the cost and his price was half than the other companies that gave us a quote.  Once the work started this all changed and now I am out $8000 and can not reach him.

Did not start our job on time.  Job was to be finished within 15-20 days max after start date.  Two change orders added 2-4 days to original estimate which would total a maximum 24 days. After 33 business days had passed and consecutive days of no one showing up to work we requested delivery of prepaid materials.  Change order proposals were presented by Gino and 100% of payment for materials and <strong> labor</strong> were expected at the time the change order was signed in order for work to continue.  Our 2nd change order included labor for a mason and tile installer whose work was never even started yet alone completed.  Special order supplies that we prepaid (tile, tile pan, heated floor) were not ordered we believe the money was used to fund other jobs.  All permits and inspections were prepaid by us but no permits were ever pulled for our job. <br /> Gino was absent from the job site.  Arrived for the first day, and when he needed to present change orders and collect money. Mistakes were made on installing the tub, and the subfloor for the tile.  When these were pointed out I was told there was more than one way to do things. Showed Gino the installation instructions for the tub before he admitted that it was done incorrectly. Job site was left in a mess, see photos.  Gino did not oversee work or inspect quality.  I had to constantly call Gino inquiring where his crew was.  He often acted surprised that they were not here working.   (When I refer to crew, it was usually one person sometimes two.  Only time I saw more than two people was during the first week of work.)  <br /> <br />

<ul> <li>Met with Gino early June. Original contact with him (he called) was 3 hours after my email on a Sunday! Met with him several times going over what we wanted, gave him <strong>architectural drawings</strong> of the deck and discussed materials to be used. We had some concerns over attaching such a large structure to the house and wanted to be sure we would have no problems with it shifting or collapsing and to make sure the weight bearing was addressed with all posts etc. He was great to deal with, able to reach easily and quick to sign the contracts and pick up the deposit. I called 3 references, all glowing. All stated Gino's men worked from 7:00am to 7:00pm and finished the jobs in the assigned time and quality of work was excellent. 2 were repeat customers and some even referred him to their friends and actually he was on those additional jobs then. Sounded GREAT! </li> <li></li> <li>Contracts signed 6-22-12 </li> <li></li> </ul> Promised start date 7-16-12 and quoted a 10-14 day job. The only item not included in our original plans was the railing. We changed our minds and added the railing to the bid on 7-17-12 and paid for supplies and labor for this addition in full. Not once did Gino mention this may cause an extension on the original 10-14 day job time. <br /> Promised start date delayed a week to 7-23-12. No one showed up. We had to call him to see what was going on! He then promised they would be there on 7-25-12, no one showed. FINALLY they showed up on 7-28-12. He offered NO explanation at that time.   <br /> His employees would not show up for days with no explanation. Weather was cooperative. I found the prIncipal problem to be inexperienced employees with little to no supervision, they seem unsure as to what to do. Some errors in work were so obvious I noticed them! All issues we pointed out were corrected promptly.    <br /> Here is a timeline of the work done using my dated photographs as a reference so as to be fair and accurate:  <br /> July 28th-siding removed (3/4 of the back of my home is exposed to the elements). Holes being dug for sonna tubes. (note-they did have to dig in bedrock and actually needed jackhammers for a few of them). <br /> August 3rd-sonna tubes in. 3 long beams in for the base of the deck (extending to the back from the house). <br /> August 7th-framing has been done for the second time. First time they had such a bow in it that a foreman ripped it out and redid it in a day!  <br /> August 13th-started roof beam frame.  <br /> August 15th-roof frame complete. <br /> August 20th-shingles on the roof complete-more siding removed. <br /> August 22-face of the roof completed. (triangle part now solid) <br /> August 25th-face of the roof now has scalloped siding  <br /> August 28th-inside of roof framed for soffit. <br /> August 30th-2 of the 3 columns up, 14 X 22 section of decking almost complete. <br /> August 31st-all decking down, 3 columns done- <strong>still no siding on my house</strong>. We have been having major water damage to the interior of our home due to heavy rainfall and no siding. Spoke with GIno about our concerns but still no finish date set. <br /> September 7th-railing 3/4 done, <strong>still missing siding</strong> and steps.  <br /> September 13th railing complete, still needs soffit work and gutters. Siding now beginning to be being replaced but it has been almost 2 months without siding! <br /> September 21st-soffit work completed. Siding is on and has been cleaned with a pressure washer.  Finally able to place my recently purchased furniture (June) onto my deck. Still needs lattice work completed but at least now I can sit on my deck (in a jacket!) Just in time to put the furniture away for the winter! <br /> October 3rd-lattice work complete. Deck finally finished. <br />  To sum up my experience with Gino and ECO Builder Services: <br />  The end result was a beautiful deck. He always returned our calls even when he knew we were upset or angry.  <br />    <br /> <strong>What I did not like<br /> The time promised for the job (10-14 days) did not equal the time it took to finish the job! (82 total days/60 work days if you count Monday to Friday).<br />  When I addressed this with Gino I was met with rude comments, him hiding behind 2 separate contracts of 10-14 days , plus the add on contract (for items he neglected to include in the original bid!) 5-7 days and stating the times listed for each job were consecutive.  While I understand weather may play a part in missing some days here and there, I can assure you that the weather was the least of it. Lack of appropriate workers on site was always the problem.<br />  <br /> </strong>I did not appreciate being bumped for more "important" clients and being the subject of his poor time management skills. Spending $19,000 on a deck and not being able to use it for an entire year is not what I had in mind back in mid JUNE. <br /> <br /> <br />

House was properly resupported and while digging for supports Gino noticed a larger water problem then originally thought. Additional sump pump and pit was suggested with extra drains prior to pouring concrete. I agreed and am glad I did. Pouring of concrete is complete. It's a large basement and as expected the concrete has a few spots that pool water. Gino has assured me that these spots will be leveled with a special concrete leveled in order to assure proper drainage in the event of water. Overall the sump pump system works well as it was tested with a large rainstorm. <br />

I had second story doors with failing balconies. Insurance required I replace the decks but Gino suggested removing the doors and replacing with windows in lieu of a more costly approach. I was threatened with insurance cancellation on a Monday. Gino spent a few hours on a Sunday to complete a temporary siding to allow my insurance to be satisfied and is to come back for me to remove the temporary work to complete it the right way so it is more aesthetically pleasing. I was relieved he went above and beyond to help my insurance issue, and he takes pride enough to want to come back and complete the siding the proper way. He also noticed other siding in need of replacement while up there. I am having them replace that as well next week. <br />

All work was completed as stated in contract and completed timely.  Very pleased with Gino and his team.  I will definitely contact Eco Builders again if I need any work done. <br />

New sidewalk installed in one day.  Looks beautiful!  Nice job! <br />

The estimate was provided the same day they came to look at the roof.  The estimate was detailed and easy to read.  Gino kept me informed of all the steps and the work was completed on time.  Very professional. <br />

-I believe there were no permits pulled for this job <br /> -I believe there were no inspections on the deck so we do not know know if it is safe and up to code <br /> -deck boards have been removed 2 or 3 times <br /> -The first time the deck boards were removed was to correct a bow in the deck that we brought to the builders attention <br /> -The second time was to remove or try and remove some of the original nails used as they rusted in less than a week <br /> -They used a screw driver to drive the original nails further into the deck and put new nails in over top of the old <br /> -In some areas we have two nail heads sticking out of the same hole on the deck <br /> -The deck boards are currently a mess of nail holes and wood filler  <br /> -The railings were on and off several times <br /> -The posts of the railings were several different heights <br /> -Currently one of the posts is lose <br /> -The structure itself sits on three sono tubes.  One of which is much higher than the other.  This caused them to cut into the structural support by almost a third.  This is worrisome as we have no inspection, no permit and I wonder if it can handle the load <br /> -The siding that was removed from the house was discarded in the yard <br /> -The job site was left a mess each time they were here.  I picked up tools, countless cigarette butts, plastic bottles and in general trash <br /> -They stored their tools in our basement.  I came home to find the bilco doors left open.  The man door at the bottom of the steps left open and tools laying at the base of the steps <br /> -J-Channel was never put on until we brought it to their attention <br /> -The siding they tried to reuse had several marks were it had been bent in half <br /> -They brought new siding but put it on backwards as compared to the existing siding.  We brought this to their attention and the fixed but we now have a rough edge sticking out <br /> -The broke the outlet cover and can't find a replacement so they are crediting us $25.00 <br /> We are making payment to this vendor as I don't believe they have the ability to fix their work or just aren't interested in doing so.  They do offer a 10 year warranty but if they can't get it right now why should I believe they will honor a 10 warranty.  The only way to fix this deck is to remove it and start over.  Please feel free to come and see our deck. <br /> <br /> <strong>UPDATE 11/6/2012<br /> <br /> </strong>1.      Today is November 6th.  Our deck is still not complete.  We have no handrails and at least one of the deck boards aren?t nailed down. <br /> <br /> 2.     The garbage I speak of is a bucket full of nails we picked up from the yard, an 1/5 inch spade bit that was left in the driveway and all of the old deck boards that were removed were left in the driveway where we park.  Also, several deck boards that are thrown in the woods alongside the house with the nails sticking up. <br /> <br /> 3.     The siding was put on backwards the first time which made your repair stand out like a sore thumb.  <br /> <br /> 4.     Your quote included permits and inspections.  Since we received neither of those items we have no idea if it is safe or not.  To date ECO builders hasn?t kept their word regarding the quote and dates/times you would complete the work. <br /> <br /> 5.     ECO seems to want to use the excuse that it is hard to manage employees and that is why we have/had the issues we did.  It is not our job to manage your employees.  This little $3,000 deck probably cost three times that much due to your lack of supervision of your employees and the fact that you had to replace bad or damaged materials. <br />   <br /> 6.     Your quote doesn?t lie.  We didn?t receive permits, inspections, you called out (4) sono tubes we received three, you said you would clean the site daily and didn?t clean it once.  Your employees left our house open and unattended.  In addition I have pictures documenting your work from the first day your employees were on site to the last, the pictures don?t lie either. <br /> <br /> 7.     In the last contact with ECO you were to be here on Saturday November 3rd to finish the deck.  ECO was a NO SHOW, NO CALL.  <br />

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The job took longer than expected due to illness of owner.  I had to ask them a number of times to remove debris from front yard as it was unsightly.  But in the end, Gino was professional about the work and added some extras at the end as per my request.  I will work with this company again.

ecosystems was fast and efficient when putting on the new roof. They put down tarps to catch most of the debris and walked the area with a magnet to get most of the nails.

All aspects of the job went well.

This was one of the most pleasant experiences we've ever had dealing with a contractor. Geno and his crew were very professional and thorough from start to finish and the quality and workmanship was second to none.  The jobsite was cleaned up every day thereby reducing any inconvience to our lives. We've had many projects done by many contractors before however, nothing even comes close to Eco Builders Services. We love our new porch. It turned out exactly the way we wanted it. <br />

Very professional from the email of the quote within 24hrs of our first meeting. <br /> Project started on time, workers were clean, efficient and completed to our satisfaction 100%.

Everything went well right from the start. The contractor was both courteous and kept supplies neat while they were on our premises. The whole job (because the weather was good) took about 5 days.