Lisa M.4/12/2023
I contacted DeckGuru for an estimate in November and promptly got an appointment. Bunmi, the estimator, sent her estimate shortly after coming to our house, and my husband I signed... read moreI contacted DeckGuru for an estimate in November and promptly got an appointment. Bunmi, the estimator, sent her estimate shortly after coming to our house, and my husband I signed DeckGuru's contract about 2 weeks later. Work began shortly after that - the first week in Jan. The total cost was more than the estimate, due to 3 factors: 1. Extra work that we decided to add; 2. Rotten wood that was not visible when Bunmi gave her estimate; and 3. Rotten wood that was clearly visible when Bunmi gave her estimate. Obviously, Bunmi isn't responsible for the first two factors, but she should have accounted for replacing all the rotten wood - my husband and I told her that was our priority. We did pay for all increased costs promptly, when payment was due. The work was substantially completed before the end of January, and then my husband and I were out of town for a short time. Before we left, I notified our DeckGuru contract manager, Amy, that there were some final clean-up items - a replacement trellis for one that had been broken or removed, re-hanging a light that had been taken down, and the deck painting that Amy had said she would add when the other work was complete. When my husband and I returned, I contacted Amy about the final work. She sent someone over, but he came without a replacement trellis and said that he thought the painting only covered one bandboard. We decided we needed to clarify everything before he did any work. I called Amy three times after that, but did not get a return call. DeckGuru has a customer service department, so I called it and got Hope, who had been my initial contact when we started our contract. Hope got in touch with Amy, whose number apparently had been changed, so maybe my messages didn't get forwarded. The final work was immediately scheduled and completed. The deck looks nice, and we're happy with the work. We even got a lighting package as part of a promotion when we signed our contact. All the workers were polite and professional - they came on time and cleaned up when they left. Payment was easy through DeckGuru's payment portal, and I appreciated that DeckGuru had multiple points of contact. I'd have given DeckGuru 4.5 stars if I could give fractions of stars. Basically, the estimation should have been more accurate, and the final work scheduling could have gone smoother. Ultimately, everything worked out well, everyone at DeckGuru was pleasant to deal with, and I recommend this business. read less
