BucK from Toronto

Canadian Wire Wizards came recommend by a neighbour and arrived promptly to provide a quote on a list of repairs we needed done on our old house. I did not get a competitive quote because his price seemed fair, and my neighbour had been very pleased with the quality of work done at his house. I dont mind paying a little extra for quality work done on our home. Young and his associate arrived on time, worked quickly, and cleaned up after all tasks were completed. We have lived in this house for over 40 years and have seen our fair share of contractors and repairmen. It is very refreshing when we employ a true professional such a Young at Canadian Wire Wizards!

Laird & Son installed a new ductless A/C system in our century old Toronto home in July of 2022. This year was the first service call on our new system needed to maintain our 10 year parts and labour warranty. The service rep arrived on time, was courteous, and meticulous in inspecting and servicing both outdoor units and four indoor units. As our system was new, and I had periodically cleaned the filters indoors, there was not much cleaning required. The procedure took about an hour. During the call our technician emphasized the impotence of regular filter cleaning (a 5 minute procedure per indoor unit) and offered tips and operation suggestions that were very helpful. My only concern was that we thought the pricing was a bit steep. An annual service call is required to validate the warranty.

The team from Evergreen might well be called efficient, but that superlative alone would not do them justice to capture the entire package that this small company delivers when performing their arborist duties. As we requested, Ryan and his two partners arrived at our Toronto residence on a mild January morning, contracted to remove 2 tall aging blue spruce trees from the front of our property. Though the trunks were well under the diameter required by city bylaws to require a permit, they were still about 30 or 40 feet in height, and in danger of falling over with the next storm. Using specialized climbing equipment including ropes, pulleys, tree crampons and chain saws, the trees were quickly and safely limbed and felled by the 3-man team. In all, the job took only about an hour to cut down the trees to ground level, grind all the wood to mulch, completely sweep up the area, and remove all debris. Evergreen will return in the spring to grind out the roots after they contact the city to map out all underground gas and water lines. After reviewing 4 competing quotations for this project, we chose Ryan at Evergreen Tree Care because they ticked the all of the boxes including timeless, appropriate insurance coverage, comprehensive terms and conditions, attention to detail, and value for money. We have lived in our old Toronto home for over 40 years. During this period, we have had many occasions to hire numerous trade professionals including plumbers, electricians, roofers, renovators, and more. It is so refreshing when we come upon a company with the integrity of Evergreen Tree Care. See you in the spring Ryan.

Christmas week and our 30 year old gas dryer dies . Parts not available to repair so a new one was the only option. I tried contacting a well known appliance retailer that we have used in the past and they did not return my call or email. Tried another well known retailer in Toronto with an in person visit, and after waiting 20 minutes to talk to the rep, he told us there was at least a 6 week waiting period for gas dryers. We then made a 3 minute drive to CAS who solved our problem within half an hour. Delivery in 2 days! The only complication was the necessity to engage a third party to disconnect and reconnect the gas. CAS could do better for their clients by offering a turn-key in house solution for gas appliance customers.

Living in downtown Toronto, it is not unusual for houses to be very close together. My house is only a few feet away from my neighbour's and in fact, the roof lines almost touch at the top. When it rains very hard, water overshoots my neighbour's eves and into the side of my house. Over the years erosion had caused the bricks to deteriorate to such a degree that water was seeping into my chimney. My neighbor had done everything he could on his end, but the problem persisted on those few days when the rain came down in torrents. What to do? Carl had a unique idea to place a stone sill on my chimney about two feet below my roofline and then mortar parge over the bricks above it. The theory being that the water coming off my neighbour's roof will hit the parged area and then drip off the sill away from the wall below it. This was a very tight space to work in and scaffolding had to be erected in order to complete the work. As usual Carl and his team were quick and efficient and all cleaned up afterwards. The finished work was very neatly finished, despite the fact it's almost invisible from the ground to all but the very observant. In the past, I had had other reputable firms tuck point the affected area with no improvement. I applaud Carl on his innovative thinking on this one!

I had emailed Mace Masonry some pictures of the repair required on my garage and received a quote a few days later. I was a bit sceptical because another company had attempted these repairs just a couple of years ago, and now the problem was worse than ever. Carl however convinced me that by swapping out a few damaged blocks at the front with ones that don't show at the back, he could restore the structural integrity and maintain the aesthetic look of this circa 1920 garage. He and his apprentice arrived on time, worked rapidly and efficiently, cleaned up all debris, and on budget. After I wrote out my payment cheque, I asked Carl's advise on 4-5 damaged clay bricks on the side of my house. "I have some leftover mortar, why don't I just do that for you now". 40 Minuts later that job was done too at no extra cost! This guy is a real gem, I highly recommend him.

I knew to remove the remaining knob & tube wiring in our old home was going to be an expensive prospect. I got 2 quotes and selected Deal & Company primarily due to a personal recommendation from a neighbor. Mike and Jason were at my home every morning before 9:00AM to start work, and always swept up at the end of each day. Let me tell you, these guys know what they are doing! Mike was careful to make as few holes in our walls and ceilings as possible, and had some good advice on new positions for switches and plugs. Their drywall/plaster contractor was amazing and worked over the weekend to get the job done. I was very happy with the quality of work I received, and would recommend them to others. Where they need improvement however is in their head office. Communications were not always timely and their invoices lacked detail. Payments must be made by cash or cheque - no credit cards. Advice: If you are living in an old Toronto house and are considering upgrading your wiring to code, be aware that this job is extremely invasive and dusty (particularly if you still have old plaster and lathe in your home). Be sure to cover EVERYTHING in plastic 'poly-tarp'. The guys from Deal will shift your belongings and cover over furniture etc., but all pictures should be removed from walls, books removed from shelves, and clothes removed from closets. In our case we were constantly shifting things from room to room and then always looking for our stuff. If you have the option of moving into a hotel during the process, I would recommend it.

After spending rather a lot to have our European dishwasher serviced, I noticed a wet spot under the sink the next morning. It looked like one of the couplings had not been tightened - an easy task for me to fix I thought. It soon became clear however that the shut-off valve had failed and this was going to be a bigger job than I was prepared to do myself. Chris from DrainWorks came the same day and in an hour had the whole assembly replaced and all working leak free. Chris had done a couple of other jobs for us previously including replacing the remaining galvanized piping in our old home. Each time Chris was professional, thorough, and tidy. I have found that DrainWorks can be a bit expensive particularly on the smaller jobs but they do very good work and I highly recommend them.