This review concerns *** *** d/b/a Ponti Brick & Stone
Do not do hire this contractorRun away as fast as you can
We first hired *** to repoint our chimneyThis was in He showed up on time, did a good job and completed the work on budget
In late and early 2015, we started to shop for a patio contractorOur home has installed irregular (natural shape) slate walkways and a raised patioThe patio wall is constructed of granite, the patio deck is also irregular slateDue to being years old, previous poor repairs and general neglect of the property by previous owners, the job required an overhaul
The walk to the front door is about feet long, the side walk is about feet long and the patio approximately square feetPlus, we wanted several amendments to the current house, such as a hip / wing wall, to reinforce the aesthetics of the style
Most bidders wanted to tear out the existing materials and replace them with concrete pavers (yuck!)Others had no idea how to beginPonti gave us a fair bid, not the lowest, and seemed enthusiastic about the prospect of refurbishing the propertyTo quote him, “this is a mason’s dream”Having previous satisfactory experience, Ponti was hired to do the job
He began in late March There was some significant rain during this time and reasonably, breaking down the existing structures required extra hours and effortThe exterior of the home was a true mud bog
Rolling into April, work proceeded apace, although there were early glimmers of problemsPonti would show erratically or not at allOn a clear day, he would not come to the job and the next day, make the excuse that rain was in the forecastOr, he would only bring sufficient concrete-mixing supplies to perform several hours of work
The original estimate for completion was 5-weeksWe slogged on through MayArriving at Mother’s Day, it was obvious the job was not halfway completeThen the work really started to slow down
Ponti began whining that he had underbid the jobObviously, this is a risk of business and not the customer’s faultHis material costs were relatively minor, involving several trucks of concrete and equipment rental of a Bobcat, jackhammer and the likeAll told, no more than 20% of cash was attributable to vendors, the remainder being the hours paid himself and his crew (usually other guy and on a few days, workers in total)
Mid-May the new completion promise was Father’s DayAnd the stories started to build upon themselvesEquipment rental needed to reasonably proceed would never show up, one’ days work with a backhoe became days of manual laborStone supplies were chronically awaiting manufacture at the local brickyard, limiting work
Into June we rolledThe workforce became Ponti himself, with an occasional helperHe was showing up days a week, for a few hours at a timeNever did he work past noonHe alternated saying he was bored and he always finished his jobsTo nudge him along, we started paying him for piece workBuild a set of steps, we paid $Finish the hip wall, $Top the wall with slate, $And so on
Finally, “custom” slate ordered from the local stone yard was finishedAnd *** remarked that he would have the job completed in daysImmediately thereafter, the week before the Fourth holiday, he did not arrive at our property on MondayOn Tuesday, he worked for hoursWednesday, Thursday, Friday, no PontiAfter the holiday, Monday, no PontiCalled him, texted himOn Tuesday, he texted back that he was on a week vacation and oops, did he forget to mention that? The following day, he came to our home and without announcing himself, removed his equipment from the property
We then terminated his employment*** replied he was planning on returning to the job, which was a ridiculous claim, but “accepted the termination”He had not performed hours of work during the entire month of June
The job was about 70% done, we were about 85% cash out-of-pocketNot a great balance, but as close as we could get to cutting the cord without further financial damage
A lot of details need to be reworked – stones need to be replaced and irregular surfaces on the walkways will need be leveledToo, on the patio, Ponti had taken to laying a cement base and placing the stone, without finishing the pointing at that timeAfter a few rains, we now have dirt, mold and other needed repairs in the crevices, because he was in a hurry and could not be bothered to do the work correctly in the moment
We came to find out that the “custom” slate he was having cut – and had a purported week delivery - was in stock every day, and actually cost half the amount he told us Workers were not arriving at the job because they were weeks in arrears for their payEquipment could not be rented because vendors were requiring cash-in-advanceWhere did all the cash go? For a fact, we don’t know
Adding insult to injury, starting up the job involved removing the existing slate and stacking it for reusePonti placed a pallet of stone on top of the sewer line clean out, despite us previously pointing out the location of same (which is clearly visible)This sheared off the top of the cleanout and the torque caused the sewer line to crackThis very line had been completely replaced in the spring of for $6000, an expense we are now facing againThe insurance coverage he claimed to hold had lapsed
Again, do not do hire this contractorHe is dishonest, untrustworthy, unprofessional and ultimately not a qualified masonRun away as fast as you can
This review concerns *** *** d/b/a Ponti Brick & Stone
Do not do hire this contractorRun away as fast as you can
We first hired *** to repoint our chimneyThis was in He showed up on time, did a good job and completed the work on budget
In late and early 2015, we started to shop for a patio contractorOur home has installed irregular (natural shape) slate walkways and a raised patioThe patio wall is constructed of granite, the patio deck is also irregular slateDue to being years old, previous poor repairs and general neglect of the property by previous owners, the job required an overhaul
The walk to the front door is about feet long, the side walk is about feet long and the patio approximately square feetPlus, we wanted several amendments to the current house, such as a hip / wing wall, to reinforce the aesthetics of the style
Most bidders wanted to tear out the existing materials and replace them with concrete pavers (yuck!)Others had no idea how to beginPonti gave us a fair bid, not the lowest, and seemed enthusiastic about the prospect of refurbishing the propertyTo quote him, “this is a mason’s dream”Having previous satisfactory experience, Ponti was hired to do the job
He began in late March There was some significant rain during this time and reasonably, breaking down the existing structures required extra hours and effortThe exterior of the home was a true mud bog
Rolling into April, work proceeded apace, although there were early glimmers of problemsPonti would show erratically or not at allOn a clear day, he would not come to the job and the next day, make the excuse that rain was in the forecastOr, he would only bring sufficient concrete-mixing supplies to perform several hours of work
The original estimate for completion was 5-weeksWe slogged on through MayArriving at Mother’s Day, it was obvious the job was not halfway completeThen the work really started to slow down
Ponti began whining that he had underbid the jobObviously, this is a risk of business and not the customer’s faultHis material costs were relatively minor, involving several trucks of concrete and equipment rental of a Bobcat, jackhammer and the likeAll told, no more than 20% of cash was attributable to vendors, the remainder being the hours paid himself and his crew (usually other guy and on a few days, workers in total)
Mid-May the new completion promise was Father’s DayAnd the stories started to build upon themselvesEquipment rental needed to reasonably proceed would never show up, one’ days work with a backhoe became days of manual laborStone supplies were chronically awaiting manufacture at the local brickyard, limiting work
Into June we rolledThe workforce became Ponti himself, with an occasional helperHe was showing up days a week, for a few hours at a timeNever did he work past noonHe alternated saying he was bored and he always finished his jobsTo nudge him along, we started paying him for piece workBuild a set of steps, we paid $Finish the hip wall, $Top the wall with slate, $And so on
Finally, “custom” slate ordered from the local stone yard was finishedAnd *** remarked that he would have the job completed in daysImmediately thereafter, the week before the Fourth holiday, he did not arrive at our property on MondayOn Tuesday, he worked for hoursWednesday, Thursday, Friday, no PontiAfter the holiday, Monday, no PontiCalled him, texted himOn Tuesday, he texted back that he was on a week vacation and oops, did he forget to mention that? The following day, he came to our home and without announcing himself, removed his equipment from the property
We then terminated his employment*** replied he was planning on returning to the job, which was a ridiculous claim, but “accepted the termination”He had not performed hours of work during the entire month of June
The job was about 70% done, we were about 85% cash out-of-pocketNot a great balance, but as close as we could get to cutting the cord without further financial damage
A lot of details need to be reworked – stones need to be replaced and irregular surfaces on the walkways will need be leveledToo, on the patio, Ponti had taken to laying a cement base and placing the stone, without finishing the pointing at that timeAfter a few rains, we now have dirt, mold and other needed repairs in the crevices, because he was in a hurry and could not be bothered to do the work correctly in the moment
We came to find out that the “custom” slate he was having cut – and had a purported week delivery - was in stock every day, and actually cost half the amount he told us Workers were not arriving at the job because they were weeks in arrears for their payEquipment could not be rented because vendors were requiring cash-in-advanceWhere did all the cash go? For a fact, we don’t know
Adding insult to injury, starting up the job involved removing the existing slate and stacking it for reusePonti placed a pallet of stone on top of the sewer line clean out, despite us previously pointing out the location of same (which is clearly visible)This sheared off the top of the cleanout and the torque caused the sewer line to crackThis very line had been completely replaced in the spring of for $6000, an expense we are now facing againThe insurance coverage he claimed to hold had lapsed
Again, do not do hire this contractorHe is dishonest, untrustworthy, unprofessional and ultimately not a qualified masonRun away as fast as you can