Prime from Toronto

This company is exceptionally good. Excellent phone interactions to get a fast appointment for a furnace with functioning fan/thermostat controls but no heat. On time arrival of a very capable tech duo. Rapid diagnosis of cracked heat exchanger (as I expected). Matched the exact specs to replace the dead furnace with a smart alternative which I accepted (& confirmed by on-line research before installation). Were back the next day, careful, no mess, no fuss, done in a couple hours. Worked perfectly. Later saw a couple of non-essential accessories malfunctioning. They came back & quickly fixed them too. Pleasant, considerate, knowledgeable, fast, and affordable. If I could give them eleven stars, I would.

Two older gas furnaces in old house. Had great experiences with this company and reviewed them favourably. Called them this time for a furnace issue that looked like a shot controller for the blower motor. Great service from the office, tech was competent and pleasant, confirmed diagnosis, recommended replace old furnace because original equipment manufacturer's new board was priced at over $600. I wanted to defer replacement for a year or two, and do both units at once. So, I proposed getting a lower cost alternative board from a big specialist company that was explicitly cross-matched and had been used by countless installers in this product line for years. Got the green light from the office. Service manager over-rode in favour of the original manufacturer's board after I purchased the new board. Cancellation of service call was last minute. Apparently some regulatory issues and liability worries. Frustrating, and some lost time and hassles to get this done elsewhere. Hence a lower score for this encounter than others, but I still like the company and would still recommend them despite this irksome miscommunication.

Key pipe outside feeding our irrigation system split in the winter, so couldn't start the system as the weather warmed up. Called Adi at Aviv Irrigation. He came the same day. Put in a splice in no time. A few weeks later, another problem. Got an excellent new fence, but we had no maps or markers for buried irrigation hoses. Alas, one post installation took out a section of buried hose = a leak & 2 dead risers. Adi took my call on the Labour Day long weekend, ready to fix it. I deferred him to Tuesday! 9 a.m., rolled in, dug, tested, dug some more, tried a couple fixes, solved it. Reasonable prices, great service, very hard worker, responsive, smart. Highly recommended.

GSU Contracting did an outstanding fencing job for us and our neighbours. Competitive prices, very experienced team, very happy with them. They're busy, so give yourself some lead time to book a slot. Project manager Grant engendered confidence from the first visit to review/quote on our complicated project here in mid-town Toronto. i.e. Two different fencing styles for each neighbour set on a single set of new posts on the lot line, as well as some standard one-sided fencing with trees in the way on one segment, and uneven terrain on another. The crew was outstanding -- pleasant, efficient, careful, knowledgeable. They even dealt with some attached fencing for another neighbour, and left him happy too. One minor trailing issue (our oversight) was fixed promptly without additional charges. Bottom line: A top-tier operation -- with owner-operator Jay clearly engaged at all times.

We have a 20+ year old Subzero Fridge - works like a charm. 2-3 years ago, Chris at Kampen got it working properly again after another company botched a freon recharge. Recently the 'Vacuum condenser' warning light has been on, and stayed on after a brief pause despite careful cleaning of the filter. Temperatures OK. Peter came out and in a jiffy did the following: checked all the pressures, used compressed air to clean the filter, & found the fridge compressor was fairly new but the freezer unit was the original and running warm. Told us with one compressor already replaced, the machine could run for years if we replaced the other when needed. However, Peter explained there was no reason to replace the compressor now. Said the warning light was sensitive to aging of the compressor, but loss of temperature control is what matters, and might not occur for a long time. Recommended watchful waiting focused on temperatures, not the warning light. That's what separates Kampen from some companies where it seems the techs are more focused on lucratively swapping parts than building a long-term relationship with customers. And it's why we intend to keep using them.

Two older Carrier furnaces heat our 3 storey home. Main furnace was cycling repeatedly and would not lift the temperature on 2 lower floors above 18 degrees. Tech came out and tested both furnaces, cleaned the pressure switch on the main furnace and it has worked perfectly for weeks, including the recent cold snap. Bottom line: Cost-effective fast service. We will use them again for sure.

Have used big companies in the past with prepaid service. Never convinced it was worthwhile. The last two years we went without a safety net. Sure enough, this year as the temperature outside dropped, the furnace started cycling and the indoor temperature would not rise out of the teens. Found Spring Home Comfort through Home Stars. Spouse dealt with them and was very impressed. The serviceman cleaned a pressure control, and the furnace has been fine ever since. Very modest cost, very efficient, no part swapping, no dire prognostications, just great service.

Used the HomeStars process to seek multiple tenders from reputable service providers. The bidders in general were fast and gracious, and there was substantial clustering of prices. Elite Pro responded very quickly and did the fastest on-site inspection before setting a price. Their price was extremely competitive and the proposed service date was earlier than other bidders. Erick and Arturo arrived on time, were polite and efficient, and did an outstanding job. Highly recommended.

Contacted Acco about a Subzero side by side unit with a freezer that would not cool properly. Jessie came promptly. Found a Freon leak. Changed valve, charged Freon, and off he went. Problem: no change in temperature - in fact, for a while it rose sharply in the freezer. After 24h called another company. They came and found the Freon was overcharged. Spent a fair bit of time titrating the pressures, and temperature began falling rapidly. Also repaired a problem with the alignment of the drain pan that had led to leaks. Charged about the same as Acco - spent far more time, and the freezer has been perfect for 2 weeks. Conclusion: I'll give Acco some credit for speed and diagnosing the problem, but won't ever call them again after this unhappy experience.

Found CLI at Homestars. Contacted them about a dead kitchen receptacle and a blown kitchen light (fancy fixture) that seemed to have shorted out somehow. Steve figured out a weird double-breaker set-up that explained the receptacle problem, and reactivated the outlet. Then spent considerable time doing what amounted to restorative surgery on the fixture socket, including some rewiring, and managed to salvage the light. Saved us a ton of money (i.e. the cost of replacing the dead fixture and its twin). This guy is smart, meticulous, and pleasant. Already looking to bring him back for more work. Thanks Steve!

Leak and black mold outbreak in basement bathroom. Fortunately limited in scope. Checked Homestars per usual. Found The Mold Guy. The friendly and helpful Kay dispatched the fast and friendly Ross who did an expert assessment. No up-selling. Three-man crew led by Lucas followed up quickly and did the remediation. The team was polite, communicated well, finished early, and cleaned up after themselves carefully. Did what was necessary to confirm extent of problem and clearly remediated it. At $1900 with HST for the package, this isn't the cheapest mold service around. However, if I think about value for money, they delivered big-time. Highly recommended.

Short story: Do not call anyone else. This is a firm that specializes in fireplaces, knows its stuff, is prompt and reliable, and delivers outstanding value. Long story: Bought a home, fancy gas fireplace not working. Contacted another firm, highly-rated on Home Stars. They were very pleasant and responsive, but unable to repair the fireplace despite many visits over several weeks. Nice folks but I ultimately gave up and contacted Scott and Gas Fix. Scott got the make and model number in advance, knew it well, brought parts in case they were needed, inspected everything, got the fireplace working in under 15 minutes -- then quickly simplified the controls and added a remote as I had wanted, reset the log configuration properly, added embers, and cleaned the glass meticulously. Fire looks and feels great and we're delighted. Prime in Toronto

Refinishing and restoring antique furniture is an art, and it seems to be something of a dying art. Not many folks in Toronto are expert at it and passionate about doing a job well. Harry is therefore a rare gem. He is the owner-operator of a family firm, and has an extraordinary work ethic together with an in-depth knowledge of all the elements of furniture restoration. I started out asking him to deal with a small number of pieces, and was sufficiently impressed that I added many more. Harry and his family members (not least his charming and hard-working wife) therefore did the following: refinished a dining room table and chairs, made many repairs to the chairs, and re-upholstered them; removed a bad water mark on a walnut occasional table and refinished it; cleaned the fabric on an antique sofa, re-glued all the major joints, and replaced the springs and horse-hair with modern seating; stripped down and brilliantly restored a heavily painted captain's chair; and repaired and refinished two turn-of-the-century dressers. The work was utterly meticulous. His pricing exactly followed the quotes -- and was extremely reasonable. Bottom line: A clear 10. And I'm already thinking about more items to send his way... Thanks Harry! Prime in Toronto

Toronto Home Theater is fabulous value. Mike, the owner-operator, is reliable, highly knowledgeable, very pleasant, and straightforward. Mike and his helpful assistant Kyle streamlined and put into much better working order an existing built-in sound system and home theatre set-ups. There was no upselling to new gizmos, just a high-integrity first assessment and then a focus on implementing cost-effective solutions. Follow-up service (including instant messaging) has been fast and friendly. My advice: Don't go to the big name places with high margins and a strong interest in selling you stuff you don't need -- just call Mike.