Sam Smith was the worst contractor I’ve ever dealt with. Gave me a good estimate because he said he was having a baby and needed the work. Two weeks into the project he told me he forgot to add the rental equipment and it would be about 1200.00. I had already given him 50% of the original total. When the stone was delivered, he didn’t have any money to pay for it because “he had to pay his helpers”, so I had to pay for that if I wanted the delivery. Then when I got another invoice it was 2500.00 more and he had cut back on the stone to be used in the project making it smaller then what was agreed upon. He had taken me to Stone Forest and showed me a pond, which he said he had built for a trade out, and I hired him liking what I saw. He had no idea on how to build a pond. Some examples are: He charge me 800.00 for a protection liner and tried to use Landscaping cloth. Brought in temporary help who cut the liner too short and now pond is not as deep as it should be. Started putting the skimmer next to the waterfall. Put in a bottom drain, but it is non functional. When I realized he didn’t know what he was doing, I went back to Stone Forest and ask if he built their pond and they said “NO”. He had taken too much dirt away when digging the pond. The dirt he brought back to refill the yard was dry red clay instead of the topsoil that was in the yard, now nothing will grow unless the soil in mended. The patio he built is uneven, full of gaps and ridges, the water pools 2 feet from the drain. Several people have already tripped so it is unusable until I can get it corrected. I had used him for my lawn, hoping he would at least fix the patio, but he never did, and I had asked him several times. Since all he ever did was blow the leaves in the flowerbeds and the neighbors yard, he no longer does my yard.
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